Fly me to the moon – PTFE in the aerospace industry
Aircraft, space travel and satellite technology - hardly imaginable without PTFE.
Aerospace engineering places the highest demands on products and materials. Material stress to the limit combined with the highest security requirements characterize the selection of material very decisively. Components and materials must always meet special requirements. These include, for example:
- The reliable fulfillment of the function of the component in every phase of flight operation with a guaranteed service life.
- The lowest possible weight.
- An acceptable price-performance ratio.
PTFE usually fulfills these requirements confidently and economically. The reasons for this are the absolute weather and UV resistance, the long-life ageing resistance, the cold and heat resistance in the temperature range from -200 ° C to + 260 ° C, as well as the universal chemical resistance. In addition the resistance to mineral oils and fuels plays a very special role in this context
In the case of fire, PTFE is self-extinguishing and electrically insulating.
The low sliding coefficient of friction for PTFE is used in particular in aircraft construction, where the lubrication of doors or bearings would fail due to the low temperatures. As often, it is usually the combination of two or more properties of PTFE that determine that certain components are made of PTFE.