What is PTFE?

Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) is a synthetic fluoropolymer of tetrafluoroethylene that has numerous applications. The best known brand name of PTFE-based formulas is Teflon by Chemours. Chemours is a 2015 spin-off of DuPont Co.,which discovered the compound in 1938.
PTFE is a fluorocarbon solid, as it is a high-molecular-weight compound consisting wholly of carbon and fluorine. PTFE is hydrophobic: neither water nor water-containing substances wet PTFE, as fluorocarbons demonstrate mitigated London dispersion forces due to the high electronegativity of fluorine. PTFE has one of the lowest coefficients of friction of any solid.

The attributes of PTFE

PTFE is a thermoplastic polymer, which is a white solid at room temperature, with a density of about 2200 kg/m3. According to Chemours, its melting point is 600 K (327 °C; 620 °F). It maintains high strength, toughness and self-lubrication at low temperatures down to 5 K (−268.15 °C; −450.67 °F), and good flexibility at temperatures above 194 K (−79 °C; −110 °F).PTFE gains its properties from the aggregate effect of carbon-fluorine bonds, as do all fluorocarbons. The only chemicals known to affect these carbon-fluorine bonds are highly reactive metals like the alkali metals, and at higher temperatures also such metals as aluminium and magnesium, and fluorinating agents such as xenon difluoride and cobalt(III) fluoride.

The practical application of PTEF in membrane structure

Gore-Tex is a material incorporating a fluoropolymer membrane with micropores. The roof of the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis, US, was one of the largest applications of PTFE coatings. 20 acres (81,000m㎡) of the material was used in the creation of the white double-layered PTFE-coated fiberglass dome.PTFE, or polytetrafluoroethylene, is a Teflon®-coated woven fiberglass membrane that is extremely durable and tolerant of even the most extreme weather elements. The woven fiberglass gives PTFE coated glass fiber its mechanical strength and providing the membrane with maximum flexibility.
PTFE fiberglass membranes can be installed in climates ranging from the frigid arctic to the blistering desert heat with a life expectancy of up to 30 years.
PTFE fiberglass coating is chemically inert, capable of withstanding temperatures from -100°F to +450°F (-73°C to +232°C). The low-surface of the material creates a surface which is cleaned by rainwater.

The principal element that differentiates PTFE coated Glass Fiber from conventional glazing is its advantageous shading coefficient. As lighting levels increase, even cooler climates can realize overall energy savings using PTFE coated Glass Fiber. In very warm climates, even low lighting levels make PTFE fiberglass membrane an energy saver versus conventional systems. The savings can be more dramatic when compared with conventional sloped glazing systems.

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