Acetal
What is Acetal?
Acetal, also known as polyoxymethylene (POM), is a semi-crystalline thermoplastic renowned for its exceptional blend of strength, stiffness, and dimensional stability. It's available in two primary forms:
- Acetal homopolymer: Offers high tensile strength, hardness, and resistance to creep.
- Acetal copolymer: Exhibits enhanced impact strength, flexibility, and moisture resistance.
Key Features and Benefits of Acetal Sheets
Acetal sheets offer a compelling range of advantages across diverse applications:
- High Strength and Stiffness: Acetal boasts impressive strength-to-weight and stiffness-to-weight ratios, making it ideal for lightweight and durable components.
- Excellent Wear Resistance: Acetal demonstrates outstanding wear resistance in both wet and dry environments, surpassing many other polymers.
- Low Coefficient of Friction: With a remarkably low coefficient of friction, acetal sheets excel in low-friction applications, reducing noise and extending component life.
- Good Chemical Resistance: Acetal exhibits resistance to a wide range of chemicals, solvents, and oils, making it suitable for demanding environments.
- Dimensional Stability: Acetal maintains its shape and dimensions exceptionally well, even in varying temperatures and humidity levels, ensuring component reliability.
- Easy Machinability: Acetal sheets can be easily cut, drilled, milled, and formed, allowing for versatility in fabrication processes.
Common Applications of Acetal Sheets
Due to their versatility and performance properties, acetal sheets find widespread use in various industries:
- Mechanical Components: Gears, bearings, bushings, cams, sprockets, rollers, and housings.
- Automotive Parts: Interior trim, door handles, mirror housings, fuel system components, and electrical connectors.
- Consumer Products: Sporting goods, toys, zippers, plumbing fittings, and appliance components.
- Electrical Components: Insulators, connectors, housings, and switchgear components.
- Medical Equipment: Surgical instruments, medical device housings, and fluid handling components.