Gasket Materials Guide

The following guide will help you pick the general class of materials suitable for your application. These materials are available in uncut form as well as in the form of gaskets.

You can also access our full lists of soft gasket materials and metal gasket materials to see what Mercer Gasket & Shim can work with.

Rubber/PVC Materials: Temperatures to 400F, pressures to 150psi, mild chemicals.
Non-Asbestos Materials: Temperatures to 850F, mild chemicals.
PTFE-Based Materials: Temperatures to 600F, aggressive chemicals.
Carbon & Graphite Materials: Temperatures to 5000F, aggressive chemicals.
Metals: Temperatures to 2000F, with unlimited pressure capabilities and wide chemical resistance.

In addition to these basic materials, we fabricate products from a wide variety of specialized materials (including ceramic, cork, fiberglass, vegetable fiber, etc.). We can use materials designed to handle ultra-high and ultra-low temperatures and extreme chemical environments. If you don’t see the specific material you need just call – we can do it! We will supply any of our materials with pressure sensitive adhesive on one or both sides.

Rubber/PVC Materials

Rubber is the most cost-effective material to use where temperatures and pressures are low and the chemical environment is mild. Different elastomers offer different mechanical and chemical properties. Cloth inserted materials are better able to handle movement and high compression loads.

Sponge

Neoprene, Nitrile, Silicone and Viton® are also available in sponge form. Closed cell sponge is available for applications requiring high compressibility. Open cell is available for cushioning applications where sealing is not an issue. The basic physical and chemical properties are the same as for the elastomers in the table above.

Material	Temp. (F)	P Max (psi)	Thick. (in.)	Applications/Features
Butyl	-40 to 225	150	1/16 to 1/4	Gases, inorganic acids & alkalis. Excellent weather/abrasion resistance.
EPDM	-40 to 212	150	1/16 to 1/4	Water, steam, animal/vegetable oils, oxygenated solvents. Excellent weather resistance.
Natural (Pure Gum)	-20 to 140	100	1/32 to 1	Acids, organic salts & alkalis. Non-toxic. Abrasion resistant. Soft.
Neoprene	-20 to 170	150	1/32 to 2	Oil/gasoline. Excellent weather resistance.
Neoprene - Cloth Inserted	-20 to 170	150	1/32 to 1/4	Oil/gasoline. Excellent weather resistance. Handles movement. High tensile strength.
Nitrile (NBR, Buna-N)	-25 to 170	150	1/32 to 2	Oil/Aromatic fuels, mineral, animal and vegetable oils, solvents and hydraulic fluid. Available in commercial, premium and FDA grades.
SBR (Red Rubber)	-20 to 170	150	1/32 to 1/4	Air, hot/cold water.
SBR - Cloth Inserted	-20 to 170	150	1/16 to 1/4	Air, hot/cold water, saturated/low pressure steam. Excellent for high compression loads. Handles movement.
Silicone	to 400	150	1/32 to 1/4	High temperature air or water (not oil or steam). Soft. Available in FDA grade.
Vinyl	20 to 160	150	1/16 to 1/4	Water, oxidizing agents. Excellent weather/abrasion resistance.
Viton®	to 400	150	1/32 to 1/4	Oil/Aromatic fuels, mineral, animal and vegetable oils, solvents and hydraulic fluid.

Non-Asbestos Materials

Non-Asbestos gasket materials enhance the temperature and pressure performance of rubber and vinyl by combining non-asbestos fibers with the rubber. Metal inserted materials are able to operate at even higher pressures. Non-Asbestos materials replace natural asbestos fibers in traditional gasket materials with various combinations of fiberglass, aramid, inorganic and synthetic fibers. Mercer carries Donex®, Durabla®, Garlock® and Thermoseal® (Klinger) & Victor Reinz® brands of non-asbestos gasket materials. These materials are available in thicknesses 1/64″ through 1/4″.

Material	Max T (F)	Max P (psi)	Creep Relax'n (%)	Applications/Features
Non-Asbestos/ EPDM	800	1200	15	Steam/oxygenated solvents/ mild organic acids/alkalis. Excellent aging properties.
Non-Asbestos/ Hypalon	400	900	40	Strong organic & inorganic acids/oils/aromatic hydrocarbons, powerful oxidizing agents.
Non-Asbestos/ Neoprene	800	1200	15	Fuel/oils. Good general purpose material.
Non-Asbestos/ Nitrile	800	1500	15	Steam/oil/fuel/solvent. Excellent general purpose material with wide chemical resistance.
Non-Asbestos/ Nitrile - Metal Inserted	850	2500	15	Hot gases. High load/stress environments. Available with galvanized low carbon steel foil or mesh insert.
Non-Asbestos/SBR	800	1500	15	Steam/industrial gases. Low pressure/temperature.

PTFE Based Materials

PTFE-based gasket materials are able to withstand significantly more aggressive chemical environments (including highly oxidizing environments) than standard non-asbestos gasket materials. However their temperature, pressure and mechanical performance is inferior to standard non-asbestos gasket materials. Metal inserted and expanded PTFE are able to operate at higher pressures. Mercer carries Garlock, Thermoseal and Gore-Tex brands of PTFE-based gasket materials. These materials are available in thicknesses 1/32″ through 1/4″.

Material	Max T (F)	Max P (psi)	Creep Relax'n (%)	Applications/Features
Pure PTFE	500	800	35 - 55	Excellent chemical resistance.
Filled PTFE	500	1200	11 - 40	Excellent chemical resistance.
Filled PTFE - Metal Inserted	500	2500	20	Excellent chemical resistance. 316 SS perforated core.
Expanded PTFE	600	3000	30	Excellent chemical resistance. Highly compressible.

Carbon and Graphite Materials

Carbon Fiber and Graphite Flake sheets are able to withstand significantly more aggressive chemical environments (other than powerful oxidizing environments) and higher pressures than standard non-asbestos gasket materials. Metal inserted materials are able to operate at even higher pressures. In reducing environments, pure graphite can handle up to 5000F. Mercer carries Garlock, Thermoseal and Grafoil brands of carbon and graphite based gasket materials. These materials are available in thicknesses 1/32″ through 1/4″.

Material	Max T (F)	Max P (psi)	Creep Relax'n (%)	Applications/Features
Carbon or Graphite/Nitrile	840	1900	20	Excellent for steam. Excellent chemical resistance except powerful oxidizing agents.
Carbon or Graphite/SBR	900	2000	14	Excellent for steam. Excellent chemical resistance except powerful oxidizing agents.
Pure Flexible Graphite	950	2100	5	Excellent chemical resistance except powerful oxidizing agents. Available laminated or homogeneous.
Pure Flexible Graphite - Metal Inserted	950	2800	7	Excellent chemical resistance except powerful oxidizing agents. Available with 316 SS Foil, Mesh or Tang Core. Available laminated or homogeneous.

Metals

Mercer fabricates solid or jacketed gaskets from any metal in any thickness. Below is a selection of the more popular metals and their performance characteristics.

Material	Max T (F)	Metals
Copper	600	Excellent for steam. Excellent chemical resistance except powerful oxidizing agents.
Brass	500	Excellent for steam. Excellent chemical resistance except powerful oxidizing agents.
GHL	212	Excellent chemical resistance except powerful oxidizing agents. Available laminated or homogeneous.
Grafoil ®	800	Excellent chemical resistance except powerful oxidizing agents. Available with 316 SS Foil, Mesh or Tang Core. Available laminated or homogeneous.
Titanium	1000	Similar strength to 300 series stainless, but tougher and much less dense. Excellent resistance to chloride solutions (sea water) and bleaching solutions.
Soft Iron, Low Carbon Steel	1000	Soft. Will corrode in water. Mostly used where immersed in liquid hydrocarbons.
Stainless Steel, Type 304	1000	A general-purpose, soft, corrosion-resistant, non magnetic stainless that will not harden under heat.
Stainless Steel, Type 316	1000	Not as strong as 304, but more corrosion-resistant in chemical solutions (except for a limited range of oxiding acids)
Stainless Steel, Type 321	1600	Stronger than 304. Used when similar performance to 304 is needed at higher temperatures.
Stainless Steel, Type 347	1600	More corrosion-resistant and harder than 321.
Stainless Steel, Type 410	1200	Commonly referred to as “Chrome”. This stainless will harden when heat-treated. It is highly magnetic, hard and strong, but not very corrosion-resistant.
Stainless Steel, Type 430	1400	More corrosion-resistant than 410, but will not harden when heat-treated. This stainless is soft and no stronger than 300 series stainless.
Nickel	1400	Exhibits good corrosion and erosion resistance at moderate temperatures.
Monel®	1500	A family of nickel/copper alloys that offer greater corrosion and erosion resistance than nickel alone. Particularly useful in sea water applications.
Inconel®	2000	A family of nickel/chromium alloys that are non-magnetic and take corrosion resistance to elevated temperatures.
Hastelloy®	2000	A family of Nickel/chromium/molybdenum alloys for use in highly aggressive chemical environments at elevated temper

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