When selecting an enclosure, how does material choice affect resistance to chemicals in the local environment?
Short answer
Material choice determines an enclosure's chemical resistance: glass-reinforced polyester (GRP) withstands the widest range of plastics-safe chemicals, including acids, bases, petrol and diesel, while aluminium offers the broadest resistance overall, covering acids, bases, ammonia and animal and vegetable fats. Coatings such as Chemical Agent Resistant Coatings can further improve resistance where needed.
A broad range of applications and environments require electrical enclosures to withstand exposure to different chemicals. To satisfy most needs, we provide four main plastic materials and three metal ones, each of which has specific resistance to chemical exposure.
All four plastic enclosures can withstand alcohol, mineral oil and vegetable fats. Enclosures made of ABS, polystyrene or polycarbonate are resistant to weak acids too; while ABS, polystyrene and polyester are suitable for exposure to liquid ammonia.
ABS enclosures can be safely exposed to both weak and strong bases – similar to polystyrene – and to diesel.
The plastic enclosures that can withstand the majority of chemicals are the polyester, or glass reinforced polyester (GRP) ones, as they are also resistant to bases, petrol, benzene, diesel and animal fats. For the widest range of chemical resistance, metal enclosures provide the maximum coverage: aluminium enclosures can withstand acid, bases, alcohol, petrol, benzene, mineral oil, diesel, ammonia (liquid or gaseous), animal and vegetable fats.
In addition to the intrinsic resistance of the enclosure material, we are able to apply additional coatings to improve the enclosures’ chemical resistance. For example, we provide Chemical Agent Resistant Coatings (CARCs) that decontaminate the enclosure surface after exposure to chemicals or biological particles.
Once you have identified the most suitable material, you can use the product finder on the Spelsberg website to filter by material type and surrounding conditions.
If your requirements are not satisfied by any of the materials listed, we are able to customise and supply specialist coating solutions that meet the specific requirements for your application.
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