Kalsi Seals Handbook

Chapter B5
FEPM/FKM composite

Revision 1 September 18, 2015

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NOTICE: The information in this chapter is provided under the terms and conditions of the Offer of
Sale, Disclaimer, and other notices provided in the front matter of this handbook.
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2015 Kalsi Engineering, Inc. All rights reserved.

FEPM/FKM composite

1.

Chapter B5 Page 1

Seal material profile: FEPM/FKM composite

General material description

The FEPM/FKM composite1 consists of a thin layer of FEPM material at the

dynamic surface which is integrally molded to an FKM seal body. This arrangement
allows the strengths of each material to compensate for weaknesses of the other. Typical
FKM materials have excellent high-temperature compression set resistance, but
historically have demonstrated poor dynamic running characteristics. FEPM has
excellent dynamic running and wear resistance characteristics, but poor compression set
resistance. By constructing the majority of the body of the rotary seal from FKM, the
FKM is able to compensate for the poor compression set characteristics of the layer of
FEPM without being exposed to rotary motion. Exposure of the FKM to the
environment is also minimized, because only the FEPM layer faces the shaft-to-housing
extrusion gap clearance.
Molding Shrinkage for FEPM/FKM Composite Seals

The molding shrinkage rate for -200 seals is significantly different than -201 seals,
and in some cases different than HNBR seals. Typically FEPM/FKM seals can be
molded using existing tooling, in order to take advantage of the improved chemical
resistance of the composite construction. The as-molded size of the seal will depend on
the shrinkage characteristics of the specific composite material, and the shrinkage
correction factor used to design the mold. FEPM/FKM Kalsi Seals manufactured in
some existing tooling may be limited to lower temperature operation due to factors such
as wave pattern and degree of axial constraint. Consult our staff for additional
information.

FEPM/FKM material combinations for High Temperature Kalsi Seals

Material dash no.

FEPM inner lip

hardness,
Shore A

FKM outer lip

hardness,
Shore A

-200

80 5

80 5

-201

90 5

90 5

-202

95 5

80 5

1 The use of FKM/FEPM composite construction in rotary shaft seals is protected by the following
patents: US PAT 8075000, CA PAT 2601655, CA PAT 2601282, CN PAT ZL 200680009376.2, GB PAT
1864038, FR PAT 1864038.

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FEPM/FKM composite

Chapter B5 Page 2

Low temperature characteristics

In the -200 material combination, the low temperature limit of the rotary shaft seal
is determined by the -28 FKM outer lip material. The -28 FKM material has a TR-10
(low temperature retraction) value of 17F (-8.3C) using ASTM test method D1329.
Within the rubber industry, the TR-10 value is generally considered to represent the
useful lower service temperature limit.
2.

Accommodating differential thermal expansion

For operation above 300F (148.9C), FEPM/FKM composite seals require a
wider groove width than similar HNBR seals. FEPM/FKM seals are typically made in
tooling originally designed for use with HNBR, and most grooves for HNBR seals are
designed for the elastomer thermal expansion associated with 300F (148.9C) operation.
Seal width prediction at various temperatures is provided in the handbook appendices.

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