Saint-Gobain Seals has launched their new polyamide-imide (PAI) based Meldin® 4000 series, developed as a result of their collaboration with newly acquired LS Kunststofftechnologie GmbH, a German manufacturer of high-performance thermoplastic components for the automotive, medical and industrial markets.
The December 2013 acquisition of LS Kunststofftechnologie GmbH provided Saint-Gobain Seals with the knowledge and long standing experience in polyamide-imide (PAI) compounds, which strengthened their polymer solution portfolio, especially in the automotive market. This new series is part of their Meldin® HT product line, which includes the Meldin® 1000 and 5000 Series, and complements their other polymer product line, Meldin® 7000 thermoset materials.
Meldin® 4000 compounds are processed by injection molding with a very limited number of shapes available for prototyping activity. The compounds are stiff, retain high mechanical strength at elevated temperatures, are extremely durable even when used in harsh applications in regards to wear, and are chemically compatible with all common automotive fluids (fuels and oils). Due to the inclusion of these high-performance properties, the Meldin® 4000 product becomes a very suitable replacement for metal components, having the advantage of being much lighter since specific gravity is 80% less compared to steel.
The following are the main features and benefits of the Meldin® 4000 series:
- Highest mechanical strength and stiffness of any thermoplastic material up to 270°C
- Low creep
- Very good impact resistance
- Excellent fatigue resistance - when exposed to cyclical stress (loading or vibration), the material keeps very high mechanical properties
- Outstanding wear resistance and low coefficient of friction that make the material suitable for tribological applications
- Low coefficient of thermal expansion, especially for Meldin® 4330 grade
- Very good thermal stability
- Low thermal conductivity (very good insulative properties)
The Meldin® 4000 series is also available in various grades with distinct characteristics, each being designed for specific applications:
- Meldin® 4310 grade provides a balance of wear resistance and low friction properties and is well suited for powertrain seal rings.
- Meldin® 4320 grade is used for powertrain thrust washers where wear resistance at high loads and extended lifetime is key.
- Meldin® 4330 grade is valuable in high precision bearings due to its extreme low coefficient of thermal expansions and high mechanical and fatigue strength for both automotive and industrial applications.
- Meldin® 4210 grade has a very low coefficient of friction and is mostly used for washers.
With the new launch of the Meldin® 4000 series and its added value especially in powertrain applications, the Meldin® HT product line has become more robust as it is also being used in other automotive segments (e.g., braking systems components and oil pumps gerotors) as well as in other key markets such as oil and gas (for bushings and back-up rings on high-pressure ball valves and swivels for FPSO: floating production, storage and offloading); industrial (for piston rings in refrigeration compressors and bearings in appliance motors); and life sciences (for shaft bearings in surgical tools and dental drills and piston rings for medical compressors). These are just a few examples of this product’s versatility.
To learn more about Meldin® HT and other Meldin® products, please call 401-253-2000, visit www.seals.saint-gobain.com, follow their Twitter or connect on LinkedIn.
About Saint-Gobain Seals
Saint-Gobain Seals is a strategic business unit under Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics’ Engineered Components SOA (sector of activity); our parent company, Saint-Gobain, is one of the world’s top 100 industrial groups. With more than 50 years of manufacturing experience and an established global presence (with strategic sites in Garden Grove, California, USA; Kontich, Belgium; and Minhang, Shanghai, China), we offer a diverse range of innovative sealing and polymer solutions:
- Spring-Energized Seals
- PTFE Rotary Shaft Seals
- Fluoroelastomer Seals
- Fluoropolymer Compounds
- Thermoset Polyimide Materials
- Thermoplastic Materials
Other products include Fluoroloy® (high-performance custom-formulated compounds), cup seals, hydraulic seals, metal seals, v-packings, piston rings, Marathon® (valves and pump diaphragms), Rulon® fluoropolymer compounds, polymer bearings and stock shapes. The majority of seals and polymer components manufactured are custom designed and matched with the best materials to optimize their performance in various applications and markets.