EPDM rubber sheets are the ideal rubber material for outdoor use due to its superior environmental resistance properties. EPDM, vs Viton, is a synthetic rubber whereas Viton is considered a fluoroelastomer. EPDM gasket material can stand up well against harsh UV rays, ozone, oxygen, and moisture, allowing it to be used and left outdoors indefinitely without suffering damage. EPDM also retains excellent chemical resistance properties, allowing it to remain reliable materials in industrial settings. Because Viton is a fluorelastomer, it can withstand higher temperatures than an EPDM rubber roll; however, EPDM can withstand lower temperatures. Both Viton and EPDM rubber products offer durable tear strength and impact absorption for industrial, commercial, and residential applications.

What Type of Rubber is EPDM?

EPDM is a synthetic type of rubber that is best known for its resistance to damaging environmental factors. EPDM, vs Viton, is the best UV resistant rubber material for outdoor use thanks to its superior resistance to outdoor factors, including UV rays, ozone, oxygen, and wet weather conditions. EPDM rubber sheets, also known as ethylene propylene diene monomer rubber, is a synthetic rubber variation that is made up of ethylene, propylene, and diene monomers. EPDM rubber sheets retains excellent physical and chemical properties that make them long-lasting materials in outdoor settings. It is best known for being a UV resistant rubber; however, it retains other durable physical and chemical properties as well. Case in point, “EPDM elastomers have excellent heat, ozone/weathering, and aging resistance. They also exhibit excellent electrical insulation, compression set, and low temperature properties…” (polymerdatabase.com). Due to these durable properties of EPDM rubber sheets, they are ideal materials for use in abrasive industrial, commercial, and residential settings. An EPDM rubber roll is a common material used to create industrial seals and gaskets as well as commercial and residential weather seals. In industrial settings, industrial EPDM sheets are commonly used to create protective rubber parts, such as shock absorbing pads and gaskets. In commercial and residential settings, the UV resistant rubber is commonly seen used in the form of weather seals for windows on homes, businesses, and vehicles. As a synthetic rubber, EPDM rubber sheets retain exceptional strength and resistance to tearing, allowing them to provide exceptional shock absorption in the face of heavy impacts and abrasions in industrial, commercial, and residential settings. Ethylene propylene diene monomer rubber is also available as a closed cell foam, which offers excellent compression for applications that may require a tighter seal. As an excellent outdoor material and thanks to its tight-knit closed cell structure, closed cell EPDM rubber sheets can be used outdoors and in moisture-related applications.

What Type of Polymer is Viton?

Viton is a type of polymer known as fluoroelastomers, or fluorocarbons, and it is recognized for its enhanced operating temperature range. Fluoroelastomers are generally used in applications involving highly elevated temperatures other synthetic rubbers cannot withstand. EPDM, vs Viton, has a high operating temperature range of 212 degrees Fahrenheit whereas Viton can withstand higher temperatures of up to 450 degrees Fahrenheit (polymerdatabase.com). As a fluoroelastomer, viton retains excellent properties that give it long life in abrasive settings and applications. For instance, fluoroelastomers retain “excellent heat and flame resistance, and outstanding resistance to aging, ozone, oxidizers, oils and many chemicals” (polymerdatabase.com). Like EPDM gasket material, Viton is commonly used in industrial settings to create seals, gaskets, and protective padding due to its durable chemical and physical properties that can stand up well against damaging industrial factors. However, EPDM, vs Viton, can withstand lower temperatures whereas Viton only has limited low temperature properties.

What is the Difference Between Viton and EPDM?

The main difference between Viton and EPDM can be seen through their operating temperature ranges. Synthetic EPDM rubber sheets retain a wide operating temperature range of -40 to 212 degrees Fahrenheit while Viton’s temperature range is around -5 to 450 degrees Fahrenheit (polymerdatabase.com). In addition to their difference in operating temperature ranges, Viton and EPDM rubber products differ slightly in their chemical resistance properties as well. As a fluoroelastomer, Viton offers excellent resistance against oils, greases, and petroleum-based solvents whereas EPDM rubber products will be damaged upon exposure to such solvents. Neither EPDM nor Viton are natural variations of rubber, meaning they are made from a blend of chemical compounds which give them enhanced physical and chemical properties. Despite these differences, both rubbers are very strong and will resist tearing under extreme pressure or stress, making them ideal materials for use in physically and chemically abrasive settings and applications. Additionally, both industrial EPDM and Viton are UV resistant rubber materials that can be used and left in harsh outdoor settings without deteriorating under damaging environmental factors.

EPDM, vs Viton, is the best UV resistant rubber material that will provide durable and reliable applications in both indoor and outdoor industrial, commercial, and residential settings. An EPDM rubber roll is considered a synthetic rubber material whereas Viton is considered a fluoroelastomer. EPDM rubber sheets are known for their superior resistance to damaging environmental factors whereas Viton is best known for its superior high temperature resistance. Both rubber materials offer excellent protective properties and tear strength, allowing them to withstand heavy impacts and abrasions. Unlike Viton, ethylene propylene diene monomer rubber is also available in closed cell foam sheets which offer excellent compression properties for applications that may require a tighter seal. Overall, EPDM rubber sheets are the superior outdoor rubber material that can provide reliable applications in outdoor settings that are physically and chemically abrasive.