Silicone is a very versatile polymer made up of repeated units of silicon and oxygen atoms mixed with hydrogen and carbon. Its uses in industry are many, ranging from cookware to plumbing and construction and everything in between. But how long does it last and what is the normal shelf life of a silicone product? Well, that of course depends on many things, such as application and environmental factors, but silicone generally has a considerable life expectancy. The British Standards Industry classifies silicone in Group C, meaning that it has a shelf life of ten years initially.
Silicone is virtually inert, so it doesn’t degrade or react chemically with most things in the environment. According tohttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silicone, it doesn’t support microbiological growth, and the only things that can break it down are aggressive solvents. In comparison to other types of thermoplastic elastomers and rubbers, silicone is able to keep hold of its physical properties over a longer period of time through numerous use cycles.
Ideal Storage Conditions
All this means is that silicone products can sit on a shelf at room temperature for a very, very long time. But of course these are ideal conditions, and other factors can and are likely to impact on the shelf life, such as humidity, storage, pressure from other stacked goods, packaging and temperature.
After ten years the silicone product, like the one from silicone hose manufacturers such ashttps://www.goodflexrubber.com/pages/silicone-hose-manufacture will need to be tested to see that it is still safe to use. What this means is that it still meets the original specifications of the manufacturer. If it meets the requirements, then it will have to be tested every additional five years.
Temperature
Temperature can impact the service life of silicone considerably. As a general rule of thumb, a rise in temperature of 10 degrees can reduce the service life by half. So a silicone seal that is working at 50 °C might function for eight years, but if you raise the temperature to 60 °C, then it will only last for four years. This also means that if you store silicone in hot and humid conditions, then its shelf life will be reduced to a certain extent. This is turn will lead to a reduction in the service life of the product.
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