How can medical devices resist the “invasion” of chemical reagents? Let’s see how this material is made

Latest News: As an important part of the medical field, medical devices are widely used in disease prevention, diagnosis, treatment, health care and rehabilitation, including in vitro diagnosis, medical consumables, medical equipment, pharmaceutical equipment It is an indispensable tool for daily medical behavior.

In order to prevent cross-infection of bacteria, viruses, etc., and protect the safety and health of users, some medical devices are disposable after use, but medical devices such as ventilators and monitors need to be repeatedly cleaned and disinfected due to recycling. Under the wiping of chemical agents, the shells of these medical equipment are prone to damage, cracks, etc., and even damage to important internal components, affecting the progress of medical treatment.

How to improve the chemical resistance of medical equipment, while meeting the requirements of the strict disinfection process, and better play the function and role of the equipment? Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC) provides a unique material solution.

As a member of the SABIC LNP copolymer resin family, LNP™ ELCRES™
CRX is a new type of polycarbonate (PC) copolymer. Compared with general PC or PC/ABS, CRX not only retains the performance advantages of copolymerized PC in mechanical and molding processing, but also has stronger chemical resistance.

Currently, LNP™ ELCRES™
CRX copolymer resin has both amorphous and semi-crystalline materials. The relevant grades have passed the strict tests of sunscreens and medical disinfectants, which can cope with the attack of powerful and diverse disinfectants or chemical substances, and fully meet the needs of many medical fields. requirements of various application scenarios.

When the plastic material is repeatedly smeared and wiped by chemicals, its appearance and physical properties will be affected, and there will be different degrees of damage and decline. In terms of appearance, the color and gloss of the product will change, and even fine lines and fractures may appear locally; in terms of physical properties, the material will soften, increase in weight, and decrease in tensile strength.

illustration:

● Compatible (tensile strength retention rate>90%, elongation retention rate at break 80%-139%)

▲ Barely compatible (tensile strength retention rate 80%-90%, elongation retention rate at break 65%-79%)

Incompatible (tensile strength retention <79%, elongation at break retention 140%)

Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC) used the ESCR (Environmental Stress Rupture Resistance) test method as a guideline to evaluate the LNP™ ELCRES™ in the order of appearance, property retention rate change
CRX copolymer resins are evaluated for chemical compatibility. The above experiments proved that when CRX came into contact with various conventional disinfection products such as medical alcohol and disinfectant, its appearance and performance did not change much.

LNP™ ELCRES™
While improving chemical resistance, CRX retains its advantages as a copolymerized PC in terms of physics, processing, and appearance, effectively meeting the needs of the entire chain of medical devices in design, manufacturing, and use.

▶Excellent mechanical properties: After repeated chemical tests, it can still maintain good impact resistance, and is not afraid of “bumps” in daily use.

▶ Outstanding molding and processing performance: With excellent fluidity, similar materials can be processed by existing molds, and complex product designs can also be realized, meeting large-scale injection molding and basic process requirements, and realizing “installation and use”.

▶Good flame retardancy: The flame retardant grade can reach UL V0 1.5mm, and the new grade can reach UL V0 1.2mm, which can reduce the loss even if there is a sudden fire.

▶Excellent appearance: It has excellent color stability, meets the color matching requirements of related products, and combines the aesthetics of materials with safe and reliable performance.

Chemical resistance is one of the important challenges faced by medical devices. LNP™ ELCRES™
CRX copolymer resin can effectively reduce the external damage of medical equipment, ensure their safe operation, and serve patients for longer and longer. Therefore, LNP™ ELCRES™
CRX copolymer resin can be used not only in the medical field, but also in consumer electronics fields such as smart terminals and wearable devices.

As an “old player” in the field of materials, Nagase High-end Materials has joined hands with the special materials business of Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC) to continue to deepen the medical and health industry track, provide innovative medical-grade material solutions, and help industry enterprises achieve product transformation and development. At the same time, escort the health and safety of consumers.