Ultrapharma has developed the material Steam-Flon® for sanitary gaskets and some other innovative products. This material is a unique blend of non-pigmented PTFE and 316L stainless steel powder. The mechanical properties of this compound are very interesting because it virtually eliminates the cold flow problems we experience with, for example, virgin PTFE gaskets.
Ensuring product purity and process integrity across the pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical industries.
Steam-Flon® is Ultrapharma’s innovative sealing material, specifically developed to overcome one of the biggest challenges of traditional PTFE: cold flow. By combining high-purity PTFE with 316L stainless steel powder, Steam-Flon® maintains the outstanding chemical resistance of PTFE while significantly improving its dimensional stability under load. This results in a more reliable seal, even during repeated temperature fluctuations and demanding sterilization cycles.
Designed for critical pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical applications, Steam-Flon® delivers excellent performance in SIP, CIP, WFI and steam sterilization processes. The material minimizes gasket intrusion into the process line, reducing the risk of flow restriction and particle or bacterial entrapment while extending gasket service life.
Available in multiple gasket designs, including Ultrapharma’s innovative Type III profile, Steam-Flon® provides a durable sealing solution for applications where long-term reliability, process integrity and product purity are essential.
No cold flow. Maximum stability. Built for critical processes.
Cold flow is the term we use for the movement of plastic under permanent load/stress, a state that is used with static seals. Cold flow increases at elevated temperatures. Material of the gasket is slowly moving towards the inside of the fitting and creates a bead. This bead leads to flow restriction and is a potential area for particles/bacterial entrapment. The Steam-Flon® material takes the cold flow out of the equation, creating a very stable seal with no leaks even at large temperature fluctuations.
For Steam-Flon material the specification is:
Deformation under Load 14 MPa – 24 hrs @ 23°C = 5%
For standard PTFE it is:
Deformation under Load 14 MPa – 24 hrs @ 23°C = 15%
Steam-Flon® is a registered trademark of Ultrapharma BV
The Steam-Flon® gasket last longer if the correct torque is applied. Over-compression is disastrous for each gasket material, even for Steam-Flon®. We came to these recommendations after testing our gaskets at 10 bar water pressure. More information can be found in the Steam-Flon brochure.
The Steam-Flon® gasket last longer if the correct torque is applied. Over-compression is disastrous for each gasket material, even for Steam-Flon®. We came to these recommendations after testing our gaskets at 10 bar water pressure. More information can be found in the Steam-Flon brochure.
Steam-Flon® is available in the following standards:
The better the alignment the lower the torque required. Therefore we are introducing the Type-III series, on both sides a lip. This dramatically helps maintenance engineers when installing these gaskets when piping is not properly aligned.
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