PEEK Polyetheretherketone – Metal Replacement for Critical Applications
With AKROTEK® PEEK, AKRO-PLASTIC GmbH rounds off its product portfolio in the area of high-performance compounds.
Among the high-performance polymers, polyetheretherketone (PEEK) is suitable for the most demanding applications thanks to its excellent mechanical properties and pronounced chemical resistance. Alongside conventional glass fibre and carbon fibre filled compounds, tribologically modified grades are now available.
Our primary goal is always to develop innovative products. To achieve this, we sometimes pursue unconventional paths in partnership with our customers. In cooperation with our customers, we develop PEEK compounds that meet the industry-specific requirements, correspond to medical technology, aviation or the automotive industry and are suitable for thermally and chemically aggressive environments.
AKROTEK® PEEK offers decisive advantages due to its property profile:
- Excellent mechanical properties due to high strength, stiffness and impact resistance
- High continuous operating temperature up to 260 °C with excellent creep properties
- High dimensional stability, even at elevated temperatures
- High resistance to wear and fatigue
- High resistance to hydrolysis, aggressive chemicals and radiation
- Physiologically harmless
- Inherently flame retardant (V0 according to UL 94) with low smoke density and toxicity
Find the Right PEEK for Your Application
With AKROTEK® PEEK, AKRO-PLASTIC is breaking new ground to expand and upgrade its high-performance compounds.
ProductfinderPolyetheretherketone - for demanding applications
When is AKROTEK® PEEK the right material? If at least three of the following technical requirements have to be fulfilled, the application is predestined for the use of AKROTEK® PEEK:
- Extreme operating temperatures (above 150°C and down to approx. -250°C)
- High media resistance
- High tribological requirements (friction, wear)
- Very good flame resistance (AKROTEK® PEEK is inherently flame retardant)
AKROTEK® PEEK meets these applications due to its special material characteristics compared to other polymers. To meet the individual component geometries, we offer our AKROTEK® in different viscosities.
Polyetheretherketone - exceptional performance
AKROTEK® PEEK belongs to the group of high-temperature polymers, due to their property profile, they can be used continuously at ambient temperatures of over 150 °C are classified as high-temperature polymers. The figure shows a comparison of continuous operating temperatures of various plastics. It becomes clear that AKROTEK® PEEK, with an operating temperature of up to 260 °C, far exceeds the performance profile of other plastics and meets the highest requirements.
AKROTEK® PEEK compounds have outstanding mechanical performance even at permanently high temperatures. The properties of our highly reinforced glass and carbon fiber compounds demonstrate the capabilities of AKROTEK® PEEK for high thermal and mechanical applications.
Polyetheretherketone - exceptional performance
Low moisture absorption in glass fibre reinforced PEEK compared with A3 GF 30 1 black ensures a high degree of dimensional stability. The tensile modulus diminishes only slightly as a result of conditioning. This constant behaviour of AKROTEK® PEEK grades is a great advantage for component design.
AKROTEK® PEEK compounds provide extremely good resistance to a number of critical chemical compounds across a broad temperature range. AKROTEK® PEEK compounds have excellent barrier properties against liquids and gases. Their hydrolysis resistance is excellent, allowing for frequent contact with water vapour.
AKROTEK® PEEK
Friction components in gearbox systems
Due to the partially extreme applications and the standard processing temperatures for polyether ether ketone (PEEK), the use of commercial color pigments is hardly possible or not possible at all. The colour will usually bleed, and standard pigments will lose their brilliance and colour strength over a certain period of time. In combination with intensive UV radiation, this process is even accelerated.
AKROTEK® PEEK in colored versions
Due to the partially extreme applications and the standard processing temperatures for polyether ether ketone (PEEK), the use of commercial color pigments is hardly possible or not possible at all. In collaboration with our branch AF-COLOR, we have now succeeded in developing some color settings that meet the requirements of AKROTEK® PEEK. These innovative solutions are mainly used in the electrical & electronics markets, as well as medical technology.
AKROTEK® PEEK
A test in accordance with ASTM G137 (block-on-ring) was conducted in collaboration with the Institute for Composite Materials (IVW GmbH) on the University of Kaiserslautern campus in order to examine the tribological properties of various AKROTEK® PEEK compounds. For this purpose, the composite to be tested was pressed against a ring-shaped metal piece at a defined pressure. The metal ring was set in motion. This creates a friction which subjects the test object to wear. All AKROTEK® PEEK compounds tested were compared with a reference material under the same conditions. The test object was composed of 100Cr6 steel with a surface roughness of Ra ~0.3 µm.
AKROTEK® PEEK CF 30 (5049) shows identical values at the dynamic friction coefficients under a load of 5 MPa and a speed of 1 m/s over 20 hours of testing time compared to
the reference material. Both samples have an almost identicalcomposition. The other AKROTEK® PEEK compounds show behaviour that is typical of the product due to their components.
Our AKROTEK® PEEK compounds show low wear rates and friction coefficients even with lower degrees of reinforcement through targeted tribological modifications (TM).
Disclaimer: All specifications and information given on this website are based on our current knowledge and experience. A legally binding promise of certain characteristics or suitability for a concrete individual case cannot be derived from this information. The information supplied here is not intended to release processors and users from the responsibility of carrying out their own tests and inspections in each concrete individual case. AKRO®, AKROMID®, AKROLEN®, AKROLOY®, AKROTEK®, ICX®, PRECITE® and DIA(hr)LOG® are registered trademarks of AKRO-PLASTIC GmbH.
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