UV and Heat Stabilised TPE: What the Callouts Mean
Stabilisation callouts on a TPE datasheet describe additive packages, not performance guarantees. "UV stabilised" means the compound contains additives intended to slow photo-oxidative degradation; it does not state a service life, because service life depends on exposure, colour, section thickness and the duty cycle of your specific part. Here is what each callout in this catalogue means and which grades carry it.
Key takeaways
- Heat stabilisation protects the polymer during processing and repeated re-melting of regrind.
- UV stabilisation slows photo-oxidative degradation in service, for parts exposed to sunlight.
- Silky touch describes a surface characteristic - low-friction, non-tacky feel - not a durability property.
- A stabiliser package does not change the base polymer: an SBS grade with UV stabiliser is still less weather-resistant than a SEBS grade.
- Of the 49 grades here, 27 carry UV stabilisation and 48 carry heat stabilisation.
Heat stabilisation
Every time a thermoplastic is melted it experiences thermal and shear stress that can break polymer chains. That happens at compounding, again at moulding or extrusion, and again each time regrind is reprocessed. A heat stabiliser package - typically antioxidants - slows that degradation.
The practical consequence is regrind. If you plan to reprocess sprues, runners and rejects, heat stabilisation is what keeps the tenth pass behaving like the first. Nearly every grade in this catalogue is heat stabilised, which is consistent with compounds intended for production environments where scrap is recovered.
UV stabilisation
Ultraviolet light initiates photo-oxidation at the polymer surface. In elastomers the visible symptoms are chalking, surface hardening, loss of elongation and eventually cracking. UV stabiliser packages work by absorbing UV energy or by intercepting the radicals that photo-oxidation generates.
What a UV callout does not tell you is how long the part will last. That depends on the intensity and duration of exposure, the pigment (carbon black is itself a highly effective UV screen, while some pale colours offer little), the thickness of the section, and the temperature. An outdoor part should always be qualified against its real duty cycle rather than assumed from a datasheet line.
UV-stabilised grades in this range include FARRPRENE EF400DV, FARRPRENE EF401DV, FARRPRENE EF520DV, FARRPRENE EF457A, FARRPRENE EF501AU, FARRPRENE EF551AU, FARRPRENE EF600AU, FARRPRENE EF651A, FARRPRENE EF653AU, FARRPRENE EF654AU, FARRPRENE EF656AU, FARRPRENE EF657A, FARRPRENE EF753AV, FARRPRENE EF902AV, FARRPRENE IU250A, FARRPRENE IU251A, FARRPRENE IU550A, FARRPRENE IF602AU, FARRPRENE IF700A, FARRPRENE IF751A, FARRPRENE IF752A, FARRPRENE IF753A, FARRPRENE IF850A, FARRPRENE IF852A and FARRPRENE IF900A. See the full list on the UV-stabilised collection.
Silky touch
This is a surface property, not a protective one. A silky-touch formulation is tuned for a low-friction, non-tacky feel - relevant to visible surfaces and anything held in the hand, where a bare TPE can feel slightly grabby or pick up dust.
Grades with a silky-touch formulation include FARRPRENE EU400A, FARRPRENE EU401A, FARRPRENE EU502A, FARRPRENE EF457A, FARRPRENE EF501AU, FARRPRENE EF551AU, FARRPRENE EF600AU, FARRPRENE EF651A, FARRPRENE EF653AU, FARRPRENE EF654AU, FARRPRENE EF656AU, FARRPRENE EF657A, FARRPRENE EF820A, FARRPRENE EF400DV and FARRPRENE EF520DV.
The interaction that catches people out
Stabilisation and base polymer are separate variables, and the base polymer sets the ceiling. FARRPRENE IF750AS and FARRPRENE IF901AS are both UV stabilised, and both are SBS-based. The stabiliser package slows degradation, but it does not remove the unsaturated double bonds in the butadiene mid-block that make SBS susceptible in the first place.
For a genuinely demanding outdoor application, the order of preference is: SEBS base first, UV stabilisation second, appropriate pigment third. A UV-stabilised SEBS grade such as FARRPRENE EF653AU or FARRPRENE EF902AV is a stronger starting point than a UV-stabilised SBS grade.
All values quoted are typical average values from a limited sample set, not a formal specification. Request the signed datasheet for current values.
Scope note. The guidance on this page is based on published mechanical properties - hardness, tensile strength, elongation, melt flow, specific gravity, base polymer and stabilisation. Food contact, skin contact, biocompatibility, flame retardancy, halogen-free formulation and electrical performance are not characterised in the public catalogue and require a separately qualified compound and testing. Contact us to qualify a grade against any of those.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long will a UV stabilised TPE last outdoors?
No datasheet can answer that, and this one does not try to. Service life depends on UV intensity and duration, pigment, section thickness and service temperature. A UV stabiliser package slows photo-oxidative degradation; it does not confer a defined lifetime. Qualify an outdoor part against its actual exposure.
What is the difference between UV stabilised and heat stabilised?
Heat stabilisation protects the polymer from thermal and oxidative damage during processing and reprocessing - it matters most for regrind. UV stabilisation slows photo-oxidative degradation from sunlight during service. They address different mechanisms and most grades in this catalogue carry both.
Does colour affect UV performance?
Significantly. Carbon black is one of the most effective UV screens available, so black parts generally outlast pale ones in the same compound. Some light colours offer very little screening. If you are colour matching an outdoor part, raise it with us before finalising the shade.
Is a UV stabilised SBS grade suitable for outdoor use?
It is better than an unstabilised SBS grade, but a SEBS base is the more reliable choice. SBS retains unsaturated double bonds that are inherently susceptible to UV and oxidative attack, and a stabiliser package slows that process rather than eliminating it. For sustained exposure, start from a UV-stabilised SEBS grade.
Does silky touch affect durability?
No. Silky touch describes the surface feel - low-friction and non-tacky - which matters for visible and hand-contact surfaces. It is unrelated to UV, thermal or mechanical durability, which are governed by the base polymer, the stabiliser package and the mechanical properties.
Related guides
- SBS vs SEBS: Which TPE Base Polymer Your Part Needs
- Choosing a TPE for Profile Extrusion
- How to Choose a TPE Grade: A Specifier's Guide
- TPE Shore Hardness: A Selection Guide From 15 Shore A to 52 Shore D
About the FARRPRENE range
FARRPRENE is the thermoplastic elastomer (TPE) compound range of Farr Polychem FZCO, a polymer compounder based in Jebel Ali Free Zone, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, supplying the UAE, the wider MENA region and Europe. The range covers injection moulding and extrusion compounds from soft gel-like Shore A grades through rigid Shore D grades, in unfilled translucent and filled natural variants, colour-matchable to a customer reference, with free samples and technical datasheets available on request. Browse the full grade catalogue, see every grade side by side on the comparison table, or request a sample.
FARRPRENE GRADES
Grades commonly specified for industrial applications
| GRADE | HARDNESS | TENSILE (MPa) | TYPICAL USE |
|---|---|---|---|
| IEU150AInjection / Extrusion / Unfilled | 15 Shore A | 3 | Vibration-damping pads and soft mounts |
| IF752AInjection / Filled | 75 Shore A | 5.5 | Bushings, spacers and wear components |
| IF900AInjection / Filled | 90 Shore A | 5.5 | Hard bushings and near-rigid flexible parts |
Typical average values from a limited sample set; not a formal specification. Request the signed datasheet for current values.
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