This year marks the 75th anniversary of the invention of PTFE, later named and trademarked as DuPont Teflon™. The "accidental invention" of Roy Plunkett, a DuPont chemist, is a fluoropolymer that is now used in virtually every manufacturing industry, service industry, military, and many medical applications.
It has become an essential part of our everyday lives in the most unassuming of ways. While researching new, safer chlorofluorocarbon refrigerants in 1938, Plunkett had tetrafluoroethylene gas stored in containers at dry-ice temperatures. When he opened a container, none of the gas came out. Instead, a white powder had formed inside, which was later found to be the polymer of tetrafluoroethylene (polyetrafluoroethylene), known today as Teflon™.
Further development of fluoropolymers included the discovery of these other widely used fluoropolymers, ETFE, PFA, and FEP. DuPont is still innovating today with their fluoropolymers.
The impact of Teflon™ is felt in most aspects of everyday life. Fluoropolymers are critical to new development in the fields of medicine, environmental conservation, energy solution, space exploration and civilian and military safety.
PTFE (Teflon™) example photos
Virgin PTFE (Teflon™) is a white, waxy feeling industrial plastic and has almost universal chemical resistance. It has useful electrical and mechanical properties. PTFE can be moulded into solid rods, tubes and sheets for machining into finished components. Teflon™ has excellent non stick properties, it has a surface to which no substance will adhere. It also has excellent UV resistance. As well as having the lowest coefficient of friction of any solid (0.05-0.08), PTFE has a very high upper temperature limit of 260°C. PTFE in its virgin form can be easily deformed by high loads and compressive forces. To minimise this additives such as glass (usually creamy colour), Bronze (usually brown colour), Carbon (black colour) are added prior to moulding. PTFE can also be chemically etched on one surface to allow bonding to steel surfaces. Allplastics can supply PTFE in Virgin, filled grade in Sheet, Rod and Tube form, as well as a full machining service.
Key features and benefits
- Superb chemical resistance
- High temperature use 260°C
- Lowest co-efficient of friction
- Physiologically inert
- Excellent electrical properties
- Can deform (flow) under high loads
Applications
- B/U Washers
- Chevron Vee Packing
- O-Rings
- Envelope gaskets
- Chemical Liners
- Ball Valve Seats
- Insulators
- Tooling Pins
- Glide Rings
