Heat resistant fabrics are used for a wide range of applications including welding protection, aerospace safety, and fire prevention. Heat resistant fabrics can be made of a variety of different materials that provide a range of different heat resistant properties. This blog post will highlight a few of these materials and their uses.
Silicone
Silicone is widely used in heat resistant fabrics due to the high level of heat resistance, with the ability to resist temperatures of up to 250oC and remain stable – 300oC in extreme cases. In addition to this, silicone also exhibits low thermal conductivity, which means that very little heat transfer occurs through it. This is useful in applications where the heat resistant fabric is exposed and could pose a safety risk. It is also useful in furnace applications, as it improves the furnace efficiency.
Vermiculite
Vermiculite is a mineral that undergoes significant expansion when placed under heat. This material is often used to coat fabrics as it has a high level of burn resistance. Vermiculite considerably improves the resistance of a material to flame impingement, molten splash, corrosion, and sparks, which is why it is often used for welding protection. Furnaces also often use materials coated with vermiculite, due to the exfoliation that occurs when the material is heated.
Ceramic
Ceramic is an inorganic compound and there is a class of refractory ceramics known as ultra-high-temperature ceramics (UHTCs). While all ceramics have a high level of temperature resistance of up to 1600oC, UHTCs perform exceptionally in temperatures exceeding 2000oC.
Common uses for heat resistant fabrics with ceramics include kiln linings, gas burner nozzles, and brake discs.
Neoprene
Neoprene is a family of synthetic rubbers that are able to maintain their flexibility across a wide temperature range. Neoprene also has excellent flame resistance, which makes it useful in applications where there is a risk of fire.
Though neoprene does not provide the highest level of temperature resistance, with the maximum operating temperature being around 140oC, it is still useful in welding applications as personal protection during light duty welding.
Heat Resistant Fabrics from Mid-Mountain Materials, Inc.
Mid-Mountain Materials, Inc. supply a large range of heat resistant fabrics, included coated fabrics for heat resistant applications. Our core range of heat resistant fabrics is HYTEX®, which includes Kevlar, Nomex, and ceramic products. Our coated fabrics come with a range of material coatings for heat resistant applications.
If you would like any more information about our range of heat resistant fabrics and how they can help your application, please contact us.
