Anti-microbial sealing rings for the food industry are based on Milliken’s Elastoguard™ technology

Responding to demands from the food industry for equipment components that minimise the presence and effects of bacteria and microbes, the Dutch-based ERIKS group is introducing a range of sealing rings for the dairy industry produced from a special rubber compound developed in conjunction with Milliken Chemical.

The compound, termed Elastoguard™-HNBR, is a high temperature formulation that incorporates Milliken’s Elastoguard silver-based biocide, which permeates parts moulded from the material to provide long-lasting protection against bacteria. The anti-microbial performance provided by the Elastoguard additive is maintained even after parts are subjected to repeated washing and surface abrasion. Other potential applications for the compound, which is resistant to temperatures up to 150C, include seals, gaskets, profiles, castors, diaphragms and levelling feet.

The ERIKS sealing rings, coloured yellow to facilitate recognition, are being injection moulded, in 10 sizes – with outside diameters from 20mm up to 114mm – according to the DIN 11851 standard. In addition to their anti-microbial performance and steam resistance to 150C, the rings have superior resistance to oils, grease and ageing compared with standard grades of NBR. They also provide optimum sealing characteristics. First applications for the coupling rings will be in the dairy market, but evaluation programs are also underway with the brewing industry and food processors. Other, longer-term targets include the medical market and suppliers of laboratory equipment.

“The dairy industry is proving to be very positive in its acceptance of the sealing rings produced from Elastoguard-HNBR,” says the ERIKS international product manager sales and rubber, Marc van Oost. “They are a cleaner product, free of microbes that require less on-line cleaning and will lead to reduced machine downtime. We expect, also, for applications to develop rapidly in other markets where there is a requirement to eliminate bacteria and microbes as completely as possible.”

Milliken and ERIKS have a technical and commercial co-operation agreement to develop applications and markets for the Elastoguard-HNBR compound. The agreement includes visiting customers, running trials and setting up production facilities, and is already underway in Belgium, Holland, France and Germany. Subsequent developments will focus on Scandinavia and the UK. The anti-microbial technology is also applicable to other types of rubber than NBR, including EPDM, silicones and thermoplastic elastomers.

Milliken’s Elastoguard anti-microbial additive is a silver-sodium-zirconium phosphate ion-exchange resin that is non-leaching. Once the moulded part has been vulcanised, the additive is encapsulated in the rubber matrix where it permeates the entire part to give skin-to-core protection. Bacteria absorb the silver ions released by the additive, which break down their cell walls and destroy them. The silver ions are also released into areas that are hard, or almost impossible, to clean with classical detergents, such as hairline cracks in seals.

The silver-based Elastoguard ion-exchange resin in Elastoguard is tasteless and odourless. It has been registered by the FDA (Food and Drug Administration), the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) and the EFSA (European Food Safety Agency).

The ERIKS group comprises 50 companies with operations in eight countries. Its activities consist of the purchasing, storage, processing, sale and distribution of an extensive range of high-quality, mechanical engineering components. Since 1952 it has been a leading supplier of O-rings and holds a stock of 20,000 dimensions.

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