22 Oct 2002
Victrex® PEEK™ polymer for New Water Hydraulic Systems
New hydraulic systems, which use water as a pressure medium, have been available since the mid 1990’s. More recently, their diversity and breadth of application have grown significantly. At the forefront of the water hydraulics field is Danfoss from Nordburg, Denmark, with its Nessie® Water Hydraulics Systems.
Using water as a pressure medium presented Danfoss with a wide range of new challenges, not least because just as the quality of air in pneumatic systems and oil in oil hydraulic systems is important, the quality of the water used has important implications on the quality and lifetime of water hydraulics. Water hydraulics are designed to be flexible and work with a wide range of water types and sources, making the selection of suitable materials of construction very important.
When selecting a suitable polymer to use in critical bearing areas of the hydraulic equipment, which are in contact with stainless steel with water as a ‘lubricant’, Danfoss evaluated a wide range of alternatives but selected Victrex® PEEK™ polymer because it was the only material to offer the right combination of wear resistance, low friction and chemical compatibility.
Water hydraulics systems from Danfoss are now used extensively in the food industry, fire fighting equipment, environmental systems, high pressure cleaning equipment and air conditioning systems. They offer the advantage of enhanced reliability, environmental compatibility and lower running costs.
The selection of Victrex® PEEK™ polymer was vital to the success of the development of these new systems.Victrex® PEEK™ polymer, a semicrystalline thermoplastic from the polyetherketone family, provides high strength, stiffness and ductility for a wide range of components in demanding applications. In this application, the ability to run for prolonged periods of time as a bearing against steel in the ‘hostile’ aqueous environment makes Victrex® PEEK™ polymer the natural choice of Danfoss. In the water hydraulics pump,Victrex® PEEK™polymer is used in several bearings, the port plate and piston ball joint. In addition, the Victrex® PEEK™ polymer also provides the ease of processing required to achieve the low wall thicknesses and permit the overmoulding of metal inserts in these complex components.
The ease of processing Victrex® PEEK™ polymer was also vital for this application where some thin sections and difficult overmouldings are required.
Reader enquiries
Helen SwarbrickVictrex plc
Victrex Technology Centre
Hillhouse International
Thornton Cleveleys
Lancashire FY5 4QD
United Kingdom
Tel +44 1253 897700
Fax +44 1253 897701
United Kingdom
Notes for editors
Victrex plc, which has its sales, technical and production headquarters at Thornton Cleveleys in Lancashire, UK, had a turnover of more than £72m in the last financial year. The company exports 97 percent of its Victrex® PEEK™ polymer output to OEMs in the automotive, industrial, medical, food and electronics market sectors in Europe, North America and Asia Pacific.
Information on products, technical support services and sales and distribution contacts worldwide, can be accessed through the company’s web site: www.victrex.com
The PEEK™ Trademark
For many years Victrex plc has been using the PEEK™ trademark to refer to its brand of Polyaryletherketone. Victrex plc is the sole manufacturer and supplier of the Victrex® PEEK™ brand polymer world-wide. PEEK™ is a trademark of Victrex plc.
