Product designers and manufacturers in more and more industries are choosing thermoplastic elastomers (TPE) and liquid silicone rubber (LSR) to replace natural rubber. How to make the right choice between TPE and LSR to achieve the ideal product in a more cost-effective way?

First, let's get acquainted with the two materials!

Thermoplastic elastomers (TPEs) are a family of repeatable melt-processable rubber-like materials that become soft when given enough heat and harden again when cooled.

Liquid silicone rubber (LSR) is a liquid product based on silicone resin, which forms a fixed shape after being heated and vulcanized.

In short, TPE is a thermoplastic polymer material and LSR is a thermoset polymer material.

TPE vs LSR
Design, production and performance big PK

So, what is the difference between TPE and LSR? Next, we make these two materials PK each other from the three aspects of design, production and performance.

1. Design
Touch, color, and shape are important factors to be considered in design and development, so that the product can meet the aesthetic needs while being comfortable to grip and easy to shape, so that it can stand out among many competing products:

(1) Touch:
TPE can make the surface of the product have different touch such as silky smooth, slightly sticky or easy to grasp; LSR has a skin-like touch such as dry, smooth, soft and elastic. LSR can reflect fine surface texture better than TPE.

(2) Color:
Both TPE and LSR are available with full spectrum color options for transparent, translucent and opaque colors. LSR can prevent dust adsorption and is suitable for wearable devices. And TPE can achieve a variety of color effects, including metallic, pearlescent, wood texture, marble and other multiple effects.

(3) Shape:
LSR flows easily into molds with different wall thicknesses and can fill longer, thinner parts of the mold. Although TPE can reduce material viscosity when processed at high shear rates, TPE must be "extruded" into the mold to be fully filled, especially for formulations with a hardness greater than Shore 50A. When designing parts with TPE, try to keep the wall thickness of the part uniform and avoid sharp corners.