High-Performance PEEK Material for Wire and Cable Insulation

PEEK is a high-performance material with one of the highest strength-to-weight ratios of all engineered polymer. The material is a highly rigid plastic with exceptional lubricity and offers a non-stop working temperature of 500 °F (260 °C). PEEK can be used as an alternative to other materials including steel, aluminum, and glass when it is extruded.

PEEK is used in numerous industries such as High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) due to its strength. In these analytical applications, the enhanced tensile strength provides improved burst pressure when extruded in tubing form.

Medical applications are increasingly using more PEEK when more pushabilty and torque are required for advanced catheter componentry. In tough applications such as oil and gas, PEEK is commonly extruded as a coating over fiber optics and also extruded over magnet and lead wires for motors that need advanced insulation that is chemical and abrasion resistant.

The aerospace sector utilizes PEEK due to its strength and resistance to abrasion and flame-protecting cable, wire, and fiber optics.

Fillers are provided with PTFE extrusions:

Carbon

Boron Nitride

Barium Sulfate

Applications

The main applications of the PEEK material are as follows:

HPLC/analytical tubing

Catheter componentry

Thermally stable fiber optic coatings

Wire and cable insulation

Products

PEEK material is used in:

Tight tolerance custom extrusions

PEEKshrink^® (PEEK heat shrink)

Drawn fiber

Lay-Flat^® tubing

Insulated Wire

Convoluted tubing

Monofilament

Special profiles

Coated optical fiber v

Multi-Lumen

Key Properties

The key properties of the PEEK material are as follows:

Lubricious

Lightweight

Biocompatible

High temperature resistance

Ideal stainless steel replacement

Exceptional purity

High burst pressure

Limiting oxygen index 35% at 3.2 mm

Thermoformable

Outstanding torsional stability

Resistant to gamma radiation

Superior wear and impact resistance

These tables are meant to serve as a general guideline only. Users have to assess the material to decide suitability for their own particular application.