Ethylene Methacrylic Acid Copolymers (EMAA)

Ethylene Methacrylic Acid Copolymers (EMAA)

Ethylene Methacrylic Acid Copolymers (EMAA) are produced by reacting ethylene with methacrylic acid. The ethylene segments provide properties such as water resistance, flexibility, chemical resistance and flexibility. The presence of methacrylic acid brings polarity, adhesion, toughness, hot tack strength and low temperature heat sealability. Increasing the methacrylic acid content increases the adhesion to polar substrates, reduces the softening and melting temperatures, improves clarity and increases strength. Methacrylic acid copolymers are heavily used in flexible packaging such as laminated tubes, condiment pouches and sachets, aseptic packaging, meat and cheese packaging, as well as protective metal coating, wire and cable and powder coating. Methacrylic acid copolymer have also found use in aqueous dispersions, glass adhesives, and ink and paint formulations.

Applications:

Applications of this material are similar to those of optical sheet plastics. The advantage to low working temperature, high stiffness values, fast cycle times, and high impact resistance make Surlyn an excellent choice for Prosthetic Check Sockets, facial burns masks, and all shells and cuffs where visualizing underlying tissues is critical. Surlyn is an optical resin that allows excellent detection of soft tissue pressure and topical burn areas. It features excellent clarity, elasticity, and impact strength. Surlyn produces fair mold detail reproduction, but requires specific molding techniques.

Features of Surlyn®

Tough – Easily decorated – Lightweight – Excellent low temperature impact – Formable – Impact toughness – Abrasion resistance & High Clarity

Sterilization – Surlyn can NOT be heat sterilized, because of its low softening point. It may be sterilized using either radiation with a maximum of 5.0 megarads or ethylene oxide (used in a 12%/88% ethylene oxide/freon gas mix).