Air Logic is announcing the expansion of the Barbed Inline Filter line by introducing a 100% Polypropylene option. Inline filters are designed to protect the sensitive components of a circuit from pieces of debris and other potentially harmful particles within the flowing gas or liquid. The filter captures the contaminants and stores it in the body of the part as the fluid goes through the system.
Previous Options from Air Logic
In the past, Air Logic has only publicly released inline filters that consist of Stainless-steel Dutch weave in a Polysulfone housing. This combination of materials is a robust mechanical product that is suitable for general industrial usage. We have primarily focused on the air circuit capabilities of the inline filters.
Air Logic’s Polysulfone barbed inline filters are created to be low-profile; the 1/16” barbs will have the filter diameter slightly larger than the tubing outside diameter while the 1/8” barbs allow the filter diameter to sit flush to the tubing outside diameter, depending on tube thickness. This is to best accommodate for limited space availability in the system design.
Previous filter sizes for the barbed inline filters have ranged from 5um up to 73um. The smaller the size of filtration, the smaller the size of debris the filter is able to restrain. Along with filtration capability, the Stainless-steel Dutch weave filter is incredibly robust and resistant to physical deformation.
The Benefits of Polypropylene
While the Polysulfone and stainless-steel filters are still an applicable offering of the Air Logic products today, there are certain benefits to choosing the Polypropylene option. The Polypropylene Barbed Inline Filter is completely made of the plastic material, both the filter and the housing. This not only allows for more cost-effective production, but also means that the entire part is recyclable.
In comparison to the Polysulfone, the Polypropylene also have a larger filter diameter. While this will take up more space in the design envelope, it allows for a significant increase of area to catch more debris and decreases flow resistance.
The Polypropylene Barbed Inline Filter was designed originally for use in liquid circuits, but it is also applicable to pneumatic circuits. The reason the intent was towards mainly liquid circuits is because of the resistance of the material. Polypropylene has a harsh chemical resistance, which paired with its list of agency ratings, allow for it to be rated for biocompatibility and medical-grade applications.
Agency Ratings
The type of Polypropylene that Air Logic utilizes has been graded against the following agency ratings:
Recyclability
Polypropylene is identified as a number 5 plastic. This material is recyclable, as compared to the Polysulfone which is not, but does not tend to be accepted at local curbside or drop-off recycle centers. Because of this, Polypropylene plastics are noted as one of the least recycled. When complete product sustainability is a goal, consider how the component selection will impact the recyclability of your product by researching recycling programs that accommodate for this specific plastic type.
Air Logic is constantly in the search of expanding our offerings and capabilities. For everyone that has any inquiries or requests, please contact our team of experts so we can start to assist you! Otherwise, check out our list of products and request a quote for your next project today!
Comments are closed