Let us talk about low density and super-light TPE/TPR materials

Recently,i realise that more and more customers have high demand for low density and super-light TPE/TPR materials. For what motivations,one is based on the light weight of the material , which is relatively portable for the user;two is reducing the density of materials and cost of raw materials,three is other sepcial requirments.

Generally speaking,the density of TPE(Thermoplastic Elastomer)/TPR is about 0.88-1.3.Transparent TPE/TPR materials with no filler is about 0.88-0.95 belong to floating material. but this density mustn’t come up to the standard of super-light TPE/TPR materials.at present,there are some low density TPE/TPR materials appeared in the market which density is about 0.6-0.8,some industry insiders even said that the lowest density can reach to 0.3-0.5.anyway,According to the current technology of TPE industry, foam is an inevitable way to produce ultra light TPE material,so let us talk about the foaming TPE/TPR materials.

According to the different products of foaming TPE,we can use the way of injection molding or extrution to process.
Chemical foaming is better than Physical foaming because Physical foaming has very high demands on machine and the higher investment.

Requirements for TPE materials
Suitable hardness:60-80 shore A,high Melt Strength,no filler

The foaming agent.
It is the best to use HYDROCEROL BIH or EXOCEROL232 but not foaming agent AC.foaming agent AC has so many disavantage,such as: Fast heating,easy to melt fracture, roughness surface.

Article From： http://www.gainshinetpe.com/let-us-talk-about-low-density-and-super-light-tpetpr-materials.html

Do you know high temperature resistant properties of all kinds of thermoplastic elastomer TPE ?

For plastics and hard rubber,we usually use HDT Tester (VEKA temperature) to determine the High temperature tolerance.there are two calibrated parameters:one is Heat deflection temperature,the other is Vicat softening temperature. Classically, Heat deflection temperature is lower than Vicat softening temperature.

But for thermoplastic elastomer(TPE) industry,because of many kinds of TPE,many formulations,different adjustable hardness and property.there isn't any occupation standard to test the property of High temperature resistance.The following table, i make stocktaking of all types of thermoplastic elastomer TPE (including silica gel) for the high temperature resistance.

In the table, Silica gel has excellent high temperature resistance.However, silica gel is cross-linked elastomer which structure is different than thermoplastic elestomers(TPE) and thermoplastic elastomer TPE structure is different,I think the biggest difference is Silica gel can not be recycled but TPE can be.TPUE-SH in the table is a new products developed by our company in 2016 which is a thermoplastic elastomer has high temperature resistance.

TPUE-SH (thermoplastic elastomer) has excellent high temperature resistance(160-200℃), can be processing directly by injection molding machine. Because it is thermoplastic material, it can be completely recycled. TPUE-SH has excellent resilience,Good resistance to permanent deformation, texture smooth surface, excellent scratch resistant performance.what is more,TPUE-SH can be adhesion to ABS, PC, PC+ABS (overmolding) and replace silica gel/rubber.which also can be used in seals,push-button and some soft plastics has high requirment on high temperature resistance.

The difference and conversion between Shore(A) and Shore(D)

Generally speaking,Shore(A) is used to measure the hardness of soft plastics or rubber,Shore(D) is used to measure the hardness of hard plastics or vulcanized rubber.The shape of indentor from A-form sclerometer is frustum cone and the shape of indentor from D-form sclerometer is conical.

Test method of Shore(A) and Shore(D) are different.It could not be converted between them in the ordinary way.So if you want to measure plastics under 90 Shore(A),A-form sclerometer is  the best choice. If Higher than 90A,D-form is the best.

But we have two kinds of approximate conversion method.

   1、 D=A-50  ；

   2、A=0.173D+86.58.

If you want accurate hardness, it is recommended to use the A-form sclerometer for soft plastic, D-form sclerometer for hard plastics.

BTW:other special presentation options of hardness.

1.Shore(C):it is usually used to measure ultrasoft plastics which hardness is under 0 Shore(A),The hardness of Thermoplastic Elastomers(TPE) and
Thermoplastic Rubber(TPR) which has good Oil absorbing can be made to under 0 Shore(A)

Drying temperature and drying time of TPE materials

Water absorption of TPE materials is very small,about 0.3-0.5%.In the ordinary way Drying is not required under injection molding directly.For some products which need overmolding,you should need to dry it before Production and processing,such as after prolonged storage to achieve best results use on dry 2 hours at 70℃ .

Drying temperature and drying time of TPE materials:
TPE: hardness:30-60 shore(A),Drying temperature:60-70℃，drying time：1-2h.
TPE: hardness:70-100 shore(A),Drying temperature:70-80℃，drying time：1-2h.
The general principle of drying: higher hardness of TPE,higher Drying temperature,longer drying time.

Do you really understand the market of halogen free & flame retardant TPE

TPE (based on the SEBS substrate) conventional compound system, the flame retardant rating is HB (energy). However, with the expansion of the application field which has high demand for the performance of TPE. The emergence of flame retardant TPE, Let TPE can be used in the field of electronic materials, wire and cable field of Traditional technology by traditional processing.The key raw material is halogen for flame retardant , when you burn the halogen combustion,it will release of dioxin gas. cause tremendous pollution to enviroment. Some big company,like:apple, Dell, Sony, Samsung and other large enterprises are ban on using the materials including halogen.

In recent years, the research and development of halogen free and flame retardant TPE in China is in full swing, although a number of domestic TPE production enterprises have claimed that the halogen free flame retardant TPE material can be provided to used in the field of wire and cable.due to the pecial application of halogen free and flame retardant TPE,has high requirements on the formula and technique of TPE. Although all the TPE factory say that they can provide the halogen free and flame retardant TPE, just for the promotion.Only a few large companies can really provide the mature and stable products of flame retardant TPE.

Read more： http://www.gainshinetpe.com/do-you-really-understand-the-market-of-halogen-free-flame-retardant-tpe.html

Transparent TPR material for shoes and sole

Generally speaking，there four kinds of hardness for transparent TPR material,like:5 (shoreA),10 (shoreA),15 (shoreA),35 (shoreA) which can be injected for shoes and soles. TPR materials are applicated for sole including three main insole accessories:one is half sole pad,two is Heel pad,three is the entire shoe pad.

Half sole pad(actual picture)

Half sole is on the position of feet,the thickness of produce is 2~3mm so we need the soft and smooth TPR materials and not tacky.Therefore, we usually use transparent TPR material which based on SEBS. Hardness is usually about 5~10 shore(A).

Heel pad(actual picture)

Heel pad is mainly to play the role of shock absorption and increased.the thickness of produce is 5~20mm, hardness is about 15~35 shore(A).consider with the adhesion of the soles, can use TPR materials which based on SBS.

Entire shoe pad(actual picture)

The transparent shoe pad mainly plays the role of shock absorption and increase comfort, the general thickness is 2~3mm, and the hardness of the material is 30~35 shore(A). Insole products has a high requirments on the tensile and tear strength.What is more,insole and sole easily can be adhesive by glue. so usually choose transparent TPR material which based on TPR materials and add some RB toughening agent to improve the toughness and tensile properties of materials.

This article comes from：GAINSHINE TPE: http://www.gainshinetpe.com/transparent-tpr-material-for-shoes-and-sole.html

Some basic introduction about TPE pouring materials

TPE pouring materials is a soft plastic materials which are injected by casting or pouring molding.Here TPE refers to the materials are mixed by SEBS,oil and some Chemical additives.

TPE casting or pouring processing :firstly,heating the TPE materials to molten condition by heater(heating temperature:140-180℃).Secondly,Let the molten liquid sprayed or poured into a special casting mold.Finally,casting products can be naturally cooled to become finished products.The whole process are seems to be simple.In fact,  for users who firstly contact with TPE casting products, There’s still a lot to learn,such as:TPE material melting, the selection of the mold materials and mold production.

Type of TPE casting materials:We usually use two kinds hardness of TPE,one is 15(ShoreA),the other is 0(ShoreA).so we just can use very soft TPE materials.

1.SEBS powder mix by oil and some auxiliary: low cost,but it can also have the disadvantages of asymmetry mix, not equal reaction.This caused some bubbles in the final products  2.TPE granules:high cost,well mixed,better final products.

Applications of TPE casting or pouring:sex toys,dolls,medical human model,Damping pad and so on.

reprint from: http://www.gainshinetpe.com/       GainShine TPE