Q&A

UHMWPE is odourless, tasteless, and nontoxic. It has extremely low moisture absorption.

Very low coefficient of friction. It is self-lubricating and highly resistant to abrasion.

Very resistant to water, moisture, most chemicals resistant to UV radiation, and micro-organisms. UHMWPE only becomes brittle at temperatures below 150°C.

Its melting point is around 130°C to 136°C. It is not advisable to use UHMWPE at temperatures exceeding 80°C to 100°C for extended periods of time. UHMWPE will deform continually as long as the stress is present, an effect known as creep. Maybe not suitable for high load applications

UHMWPE rod has an incredible resistance to abrasion and can outperform almost any engineering plastic in this regard. It has a very low friction coefficient and provides a bearing medium that is very free-running and exceptionally long-lasting. It is resistant to many dilute acids, solvents and cleaning agents. It has a max operating temperature of plus 90°C and a short term operating temperature of plus 120°C.A very tough material, with the highest impact strength of any thermoplastic currently made.

Because UHMWPE rod has excellent abrasion resistance, it is often used for sand, gravel, or aggregate process applications. These environments are incredibly harsh on any bearing material, but UHMWPE is one of the few engineering plastics capable of withstanding such punishing abuse.

UHMWPE Rod can also be used for low friction pulleys because of its very low co-efficient, providing a bearing medium that is very free running and exceptionally long lasting. It is often found in food production environments where high volumes of containers need to be guided along conveyors or production lines. Because it has very low moisture absorption, it is also found in some high demand areas of marine applications. It’s sometimes used in some cryogenic components due to its low operating temperature abilities.

Because of its resistance to wear and impact, UHMWPE continues to find increasing industrial applications, including in the automotive and bottling sectors. Since the 1960s, it has also been the most commonly used material for total joint arthroplasty in orthopedic and spine implants.

High speed steel tooling is recommended with lots of back rake, side rake, and clearances, and a generous nose radius. Use caution when turning UHMWPE as the chips will be continuous and tend to wrap around the tooling, so a “pecking action” is advised.

UHMWPE does not absorb water readily or wet easily, which makes bonding it to other polymers difficult.

Natural grade UHMWPE is FDA approved for use in food applications.

Its coefficient of friction is significantly lower than that of nylon and acetal, and is comparable to that of PTFE, or Teflon. Skin does not interact with it strongly, making the surface feel slippery, almost waxy.

We stock UHMWPE rod in a diameters of 20mm up to 200mm. It is available in natural opaque color (often described as white) or black.

This engineering plastic has an exceptionally low coefficient of friction, which offers superb sliding properties and is one of the best materials for wear and abrasion resistance. It is tough even at low temperatures, it offers low weight, and it is easy to weld.

This engineering plastic can be machined into virtually anything, from small (low load) gears and bearings to huge sprockets-shapes that until recently were only possible with metals. It not only outperforms metal in abrasion applications, it’s also easier to machine and therefore cheaper. This versatile plastic can be milled, planed, sawed, drilled, and turned to create a huge variety of parts at a very competitive price. It possesses outstanding abrasion resistance, superior impact resistance, and non-sticking, self-lubricating, and excellent mechanical properties, even in cryogenic conditions.