Epichlorohydrin rubbers (ECO) are special elastomers resistant to fluids and ozone.
These elastomers, while combining many of the typical characteristics of nitrile (NBR, HNBR), polychlorinated (CR) and polyacrylic (ACM, AEM) rubbers, provide unique performances that can’t be found in most oil-resistant rubbers.
Vulcanized products show excellent resistance to a wide variety of fluids, aging, high resilience and flexibility at low temperatures as well as high gas impermeability.
Their good dynamic properties, very similar to those of natural rubber, make them preferable to the latter when excellent performance at high temperatures is also required.
Among the disadvantages are the poor dielectric properties, the tendency to corrode metals when they come into contact with them, incompatibility with glycol-based oils, aromatic and chlorinated hydrocarbons.
Typical applications of these elastomers (ECO) are the automotive, oil, electrical, textile and refrigeration industries.