Skip to Content
Skip to Main Menu

Ethylene Propylene Diene Monomer

Ethylene Propylene Diene Monomer (EPDM)is a synthetic terpolymer rubber with a saturated polymethylene backbone, coming under the M-Group of materials. 

What is EPDM?

EPDM (Ethylene Propylene Diene Monomer) is a synthetic terpolymer rubber with a saturated polymethylene backbone, coming under the M-Group of materials. Rubbers with a saturated polymer background exhibit better resistance to light, heat, steam and ozone compared to unsaturated types such as NBR. Depending on the specific compound, it can be formulated to use a sulphur curing process (known as cross linking) or a peroxide curing system, with the latter materials generally having better thermal and chemical resistance properties. Sulphur cured EPDM generally have higher tensile and tear strengths, which can be beneficial for certain applications such as gaiters and boots..

 

Why use EPDM?

EPDM is an ideal material choice for many applications exposed to low temperatures, the atmosphere, hot water/steam, CIP/SIP processes or sealing glycol and phosphate ester based fluids. In such cases, similarly priced NBR seals are far less likely to achieve suitable lifetimes in service and whilst there are more material options from the M-Group (notably FKM and FFKM) that can push some capabilities further, the much higher cost of these options may not always be justifiable in the application.

Mouldings Garkets 2 Mouldings Garkets 2

When to use EPDM

EPDM is a good sealing material for applications exposed to ozone and weathering with excellent aging resistance. It is also suitable for sealing phosphate ester based fluids, which can often cause high swelling in other elastomers, and glycol fluid mixes often found in automotive brake systems. With excellent low temperature flexibility it is a good elastomer choice for cold applications whilst also being particularly resistant to hot water and steam and many chemicals used as cleaning agents in the food, medical and chemical processing industries, such as sodium and potassium hydroxides. Whilst resistant to polar solvents and silicone based oils and greases, contact with mineral based fluids results in severe material breakdown relatively quickly and should be avoided. Generally suitable for temperatures between -45°C (-49oF) and +150°C (302°F), specific grades can achieve -57°C (-70°F) and others can achieve up to +260°C (500°F) for limited periods.

Standard EPDM materials

This is a small selection of our general purpose EPDM materials. Many more compounds are available and can be chosen to suit the specifics of the application.

The tensile strength and elongation are for specification purposes. Typical achieved values can be significantly higher.

Temperature range  is general recommendation for static application in air. Temperature ratings are subject to full application review.

Ceetak code
Material group
Hardness
(Shore)
Colour
Tensile Strength
MPa min
Elongation at Break
% min
Recommended operating
temperature range
Callout ASTM D2000
E50CB75
EPDM
50
Black
10
300
-50°C to +150°C
M3 DA 510 A26 B36 C32 EA14 F19 G21
E65CJ26
EPDM
65
Black
14
300
-55°C to +120°C
M2 BA 714 A14 B13 C12 Z1
E70CC48
EPDM
70
Black
10
150
-50°C to +150°C
M4 CA 710 A25 B35 EA14 F17 Z1

Rubber Shelf Life

Guidelines for storage and shelf life of rubber products.

In association with
Member of EUSGA
High Tech NL
Bedford Blues

Contact Us

By submitting this form, you are agreeing our Privacy Policy For more information see our Privacy Policy
Close Menu