Easily processed by injection molding, ELASTOSIL® R 101 offers a number of advantages over organic polymers. These include excellent low-temperature properties that guarantee flexibility down to -50 °C, and heat stability up to 180 °C, which can be improved further with heat stabilizers. A special plus is that its mechanical and dynamic properties remain constant over a wide temperature range.
By virtue of these properties, the product meets a major concern of engine designers, namely how to make engines and components ever more compact. The fuel consumption of modern cars is being cut by making continuous reductions to the engine displacement.
To ensure that this does not impair performance, combustion temperatures are being increased at the same time. This trend calls for tailor-made materials with a higher silicone content in the engine compartment.
ELASTOSIL® R 101 has been specifically developed for the automotive industry. With a Shore A hardness of 25-65, this new product series has a high rebound resilience that comes close to that of a metallic spring. This elasticity remains constant over the lifetime of the engine. ELASTOSIL® R 101 possesses optimized damping behavior and excellent long term fatigue resistance. Such grades are particularly ideal for applications in engine mounts, where the silicone damps engine vibrations and thus makes for a smooth and stable drive.
The damping principle is based on two components, a “spring” in the guise of the highly elastic ELASTOSIL® R 101 elastomer working in conjunction with a hydraulic fluid. This combination produces optimum damping which effectively uncouples the engine vibrations from the body.
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