Plastic joiners and connectors have numerous advantages, such as being lightweight, over metallic ones. However, not every plastic joiner that can fit on your industrial equipment may be suitable for that application. This article discusses some of the key factors that you should bear in mind as you select plastic joiners for your industrial application.

Cycle Life

You should consider how frequently you change the different components within your industrial equipment before you select plastic joiners. This information will help you to select joiners whose service life matches the cycle life of the other components in your system. Otherwise, you may end up selecting a joiner that needs to be replaced more frequently than the other components in the system. Such a mistake can increase equipment downtime.

Temperature Range

Different plastic joiners can withstand varying levels of exposure to operational temperatures. For instance, joiners made from polyamide or PTFE will perform better in elevated temperature situations when compared to joiners that are made from polyethylene. Select a material that is best suited to the temperature range within your facility.

Media

It is also helpful to consider the different media to which those plastic joiners will be exposed during their use. For instance, some joiners, such as those made from polypropylene, may have greater chemical resistance than others, such as polycarbonate joiners. Similarly, some plastics will handle UV exposure better than others will. The best plastic joiners can only be selected once you identify the different media that those joiners will be required to withstand as you use them at your facility.

Pressure Range

You need to pay attention to the pressure range of your equipment so that you select plastic joiners that will be capable of operating within that expected range. You may also need to consider the expected flow rates as you select joiners. Pulsations and modulations during the transmission of fluids can have varying effects on different plastics. Critically examine the data sheets of the different plastics that are available so that you select the ones that will be able to cope with the pressure and flow rate demands of your application.

As you can see, the specific requirements of your industrial application are critical in determining the most suitable type of plastic from which joiners should be made. You should therefore avoid making a final decision based on price alone because you may end up incurring higher costs to replace inappropriate plastic joiners whose price appeared to be attractive.