Crosslinked PTFE Sliding Member via Ionizing Radiation
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) materials lack sufficient wear resistance and mechanical strength for advanced sliding applications, necessitating the development of a PTFE formed product with enhanced properties for use in sliding members.
Innovation Solution
A PTFE formed product is created by irradiating a forming material with ionizing radiation, utilizing low-molecular weight PTFE as the principal component, which results in a crosslinked structure with improved molecular entanglement, achieving higher wear resistance and mechanical strength.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If high-molecular weight PTFE is used to provide sufficient mechanical strength through molecular entanglement, then strength is improved, but wear resistance remains insufficient for advanced sliding applications
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the molecular weight parameter of PTFE from high (conventional) to low (600 thousand or less), and combines it with ionizing radiation treatment to create a crosslinked structure. This parameter change enables low-molecular weight PTFE to achieve both sufficient mechanical strength and superior wear resistance, resolving the contradiction between strength and wear resistance.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the conventional reliance on molecular entanglement (mechanical strength mechanism) with a crosslinked structure formed by ionizing radiation. This substitution allows the material to achieve mechanical strength through chemical crosslinking rather than just physical entanglement, enabling better wear resistance while maintaining strength.
2Ease of operation
If low-molecular weight PTFE is used as an additive for improving slidability and coating film texture, then slidability is improved, but mechanical strength becomes insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the insufficient mechanical strength of low-molecular weight PTFE with a crosslinked structure formed by ionizing radiation treatment. This substitution transforms the material's strength mechanism from relying on molecular entanglement to relying on crosslinking bonds, enabling low-molecular weight PTFE to achieve both good slidability and sufficient mechanical strength.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the molecular weight parameter to low (600 thousand or less) for improved slidability, and compensates for the strength deficiency through ionizing radiation treatment. This combined approach allows the material to achieve both improved slidability and sufficient mechanical strength simultaneously.
3Ease of manufacture
If conventional PTFE materials are used for sliding members, then manufacturing is simple, but wear resistance and mechanical strength are insufficient for high-durability applications
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies ionizing radiation treatment to the PTFE forming material before or during the forming process to create a crosslinked structure in advance. This preliminary action ensures that the material possesses the required wear resistance and mechanical strength before being formed into the final sliding member product, achieving high durability without complicating the manufacturing process.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The resulting PTFE formed product exhibits a PV limit of not less than 1600 MPa·m/min, pencil hardness of at least HB, and elongation at break of 100%, making it suitable for high-durability sliding members with improved wear resistance and productivity.
Implementation Method 1
a crosslinked PTFE formed by crosslinking of the PTFE chains in the PTFE forming material upon irradiation with ionizing radiation
Implementation Method 2
crosslinking of the PTFE chains in the PTFE forming material upon irradiation with ionizing radiation
Data Source
AI summary
A polytetrafluoroethylene formed product according to an aspect of the invention contains, as a principal component, a polytetrafluoroethylene having a crosslinked structure and has a PV limit of not less than 1600 MPa·m/min.