5 Materials to Consider for Your Next Medical Device: Fluoropolymers

Fluoropolymers 

It was previously thought that fluoropolymers couldn’t be injection-molded, but a new grade can be, Czuba says.

Benefits: Fluoropolymers are inert, self-lubricating materials. Drugs, for example, won’t adhere to them, and they are commonly used for tubing because they allows fluids to pass through without any interaction. Fluropolymers are also relatively soft.

Potential Drawbacks: Like PEEK, fluoropolymers can be expensive.

“It’s also hard to process if you don’t’ know what you’re doing,” Czuba says, adding that they can be corrosive to equipment.

Applications: Tubing, catheters, drug bottles, blister packaging, tissue trays, and “anything where you need a high-barrier material.” Because it offers good grease and oil resistance, it can also be used to coat displays.