
FFKMs (by ASTM 1418 standard) (equivalent to FFPMs by ISO/DIN 1629 standard) are perfluoroelastomeric compounds containing an even higher amount of fluorine than
FKM fluoroelastomer
A fluoroelastomer is a fluorocarbon-based synthetic rubber. Fluoroelastomers generally have wide chemical resistance.
Composition
Several compositions of fluoroelastomers exist including FKM (by ASTM D1418 standard, equivalent to FPM by ISO/DIN ...
s.
They have improved resistance to high temperatures and chemicals and even withstand environments where
oxygen-plasma are present for many hours. Certain grades have a maximum continuous service temperature of . They are commonly used to make O-rings and gaskets that are used in applications that involve contact with hydrocarbons or highly corrosive fluids, or when a wide range of temperatures is encountered.
For vacuum applications, demanding very low contamination (out-gassing and particle emission) as well as high temperature operation (200–300 °C) for prolonged out-baking or processing times and where a copper or metal sealing is not possible or very inconvenient/expensive, a custom-made, clean-room manufactured, sealing such as Kalrez® 9100, SCVBR, Chemraz®, or Perlast
can be used. After manufacturing, they are O-plasma vacuum cleaned (and/or vacuum baked) to reach out-gassing performance similar to
Teflon
Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) is a synthetic fluoropolymer of tetrafluoroethylene, and has numerous applications because it is chemically inert. The commonly known brand name of PTFE-based composition is Teflon by Chemours, a spin-off from ...
while reaching vacuum leak tightness (
permeability rates) similar to FKM (
Viton) compounds. This combination of properties allows FFKM seals to reach well into
UHV pressures without the use of metal sealing. However, they are significantly more expensive than standard FKM o-rings.
References
{{DuPont
Organofluorides
Elastomers
Materials science
Fluoropolymers