The Benefits of Fluoropolymer Coatings

Many people have heard of fluoropolymers, although there are probably more people who have not heard of them. One of the most common fluoropolymers on the market is PTFE, which is short forpolytetrafluoroethylene. Other common fluoropolymers include PFA, which is short for perfluoroalkoxy vinyl ether, and FEP, which is short for fluorinated ethylene propylene. All fluoropolymers are considered to be “super plastics” because they are relatively inexpensive and extremely durable and versatile. Numerous different industries and jobs can benefit greatly from this category of materials.

Probably the most well-known fluoropolymer is Teflon™. You’ll find fluoropolymers in use in a variety of different areas, like national security, the automotive industry, communications, and electronics. Here are several benefits of using fluoropolymers in your business or industry:

• They help keep firefighters safe while they try to battle flames. Fabrics that are fire-proof usually incorporate some fluoropolymer so that they are able to resist water and abrasion while also providing insulation against flames. All of these important qualities keep our firefighters safe.
• Many different kinds of insulation are a fire hazard inside of airplanes, but fluoropolymers fill the need perfectly. They’re resistant to fire and provide appropriate insulation for the wiring inside of airplanes.
• Factory workers all over the world must wear safety gear to protect themselves. Those protective garments usually have a fluoropolymer coating. The most common type of coating for these garments is PTFE, which keeps workers safe from a variety of hazards that are encountered, especially when handling dangerous materials like acid or alkaline.
• Office spaces are filled with wiring, which could be a fire hazard. However, giving those wires afluoropolymer coating reduces the fire hazard because it protects the wires. This type of coating is commonly used on wires for phones, computers, and other products. The coating is resistant to fire and does not prevent transmissions from being sent through the wires that are coated with it. The wiring in homes is also coated with similar material.

So as you can see, your life is greatly affected by fluoropolymers, and you probably didn’t even know it. If you’re designing virtually any kind of new device or product, you will probably need to take into consideration the use of a fluoropolymer at some point. Coatings serve to protect the products they are in and the people who live, work, and play around those products.

When you’re thinking about finding a supplier for your fluoropolymer, it’s important that you find one who is qualified to provide you with it. Some companies are simply suppliers, while others are also certified to apply the coating. It is much more helpful to have a company handle the application as well as the supply of the coating. Proper application does require the knowledge and expertise that lead to a company becoming certified to apply certain products. Many companies go to great lengths to ensure that the companies they certify to apply their products can do it safely and correctly every time.

The Coating Customizers

Let the experts at Toefco help you determine which kind of fluoropolymers you need for your application. They are the coating customizers because they can engineer coatings to fit your specifications exactly. They carry a wide variety of types of coatings and use quality equipment to apply them so that a superior coating is achieved, each and every time. Toefco is ISO 9001 certified and a woman-owned supplier, which enables companies to meet their minority contracting requirements.

To learn more about fluoropolymer industrial coatings, call us at 888-912-5921 or ask an industrial coating engineer.