Acetal Copolymer vs Delrin® Acetal Homopolymer

It’s more than acetal – it’s Delrin^®.

Unlike acetal copolymers, Delrin^® is a tough, lightweight and durable acetal polymer with inherent low friction, low wear, low noise, low moisture pick-up and excellent spring back properties. It's so well known that the brand name Delrin^®is often misused as the industry term for acetal resin. But, not all acetals are equal!

How is Delrin^® different?

The uniform, larger crystalline block structure of Delrin® provides better internal bonding

Delrin^® is an acetal homopolymer and has a uniform backbone with a larger crystalline block structure than acetal copolymers providing better chemical bonding. As a result, Delrin^®is the stiffest and strongest unreinforced technical engineering polymer available.

Delrin^® offers major benefits over acetal copolymer

Specifying Delrin^® for high-performance, high precision mechanical parts can allow to optimize part design and production:

Increased design flexibility
Thinner wall sections at same physical part performance
Lighter parts
Less material usage
Improved mold filling
Shorter molding cycle times
Upgrading from existing tooling delivers higher performance parts
For new part design and upgrading with current molds
Potential for reduction in part production cost (customers quote up to 20%)

Mechanical properties comparison

Delrin® offers the potential for reduced material usage and shorter molding cycle times

For example, Delrin^® 500P, our general purpose resin, significantly outperforms general purpose acetal copolymer across the entire mechanical spectrum:

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80% higher yield strain
65% higher flow rate
over 40% higher impact resistance, particularly at low temperature
higher stiffness, yield strength, strain at break and creep resistance
>1000% higher flex fatigue resistance

ADVANTAGES OF DELRIN^® VERSUS ACETAL COPOLYMER

Delrin^® Properties	Customer Benefits
Higher Yield Stress and Yield Strain	Better memory of original shape after deflection Useful for snap-fits/buckles and simplicity in assembly
Higher Modulus	Stiffer material allows design of thinner-walled parts leading to more efficient use of resin
Higher Flow Rates with Better Mechanical Properties	Better filling of thinner-walled cavities Useful for effectively designing thin-walled parts
Much Higher Notched Charpy Impact Strength, even at Low Temperatures	Parts that are more resistant to fracture and capable of absorbing much more energy Useful for gears in motors that change directions or stop abruptly and mechanical/moving components in refrigerated environments
Higher Strain at Break	Contributes to overall toughness of part Allows deflection farther past yield point w/o part failure Useful for snap-fits and buckles
Higher Creep Resistance	Better maintains overall shape over long exposures to loads Maintains tighter fit in snap-fit applications Better maintains dimensions in spring-loaded applications
Much Higher Fatigue Resistance	More durable in high-cycle applications like continuously running gears