PEEK PLASTIC MACHINING

Pete Poodiack, VP of Sales and Marketing at Controlled Fluidics, talks about PEEK plastic and what makes it a popular material for plastic machining and fabrication.

Welcome to another video about the plastics machining materials we use at Controlled Fluidics. In this video, we’re talking about PEEK, which is a high-performance plastic with high chemical, heat, and stress resistance.

PEEK is one of a few materials that are biologically safe for continuous use in the body. This makes it very popular for medical devices and in vitro diagnostics.

PEEK can also stand up to aggressive chemical environments. It resists all organic and inorganic chemicals except for highly concentrated nitric and sulphuric acids.

PEEK has very low moisture absorption, superior wear capabilities, and great abrasion resistance. That makes it ideal for long-lasting products.

It’s also ideal for heat-related applications. It can handle constant exposure to hot liquids or steam, and it can withstand continuous service temperatures of up to 425 Fahrenheit.

For extruded applications, PEEK is available in sheets, rods, tubes, and films. To meet the needs of your project, PEEK can be ordered in machine grade, USP class 6 grade, or implant grade. This material is naturally tan, but it can be black. In an amorphous state, thin PEEK films can even be translucent or clear.

PEEK Optima walls can be as thin as .0008, and it boasts tolerances of .0002. It also has high tensile strength. That means PEEK parts usually don’t need threaded inserts unless they’re in high assembly or disassembly situations.

Before we close, I want to touch on a few disadvantages of PEEK. Unfortunately, it has a low resistance to UV light, and its hydrophobic non-polar qualities mean that it has rudimentary cell adhesion for medical applications. It’s also more expensive than many materials.

This only covers the basics. Learn more about PEEK Plastic on our materials page.