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Non-cytotoxic epoxy withstands medical sterilisation

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Master Bond EP41S-5Med is a two-part epoxy system that meets ISO 10993-5 for non-cytotoxicity and can be used for bonding, sealing, and coating in medical devices.

It features high temperature resistance and good strength properties. As an electrically insulative material, it can be utilised in medical electronic applications.

This epoxy was tested against many sterilization methods, such as autoclaving, STERRAD, Cidex and Steris, successfully resisting a hundred cycles. It is also capable of withstanding exposure to gamma radiation, ethylene oxide, as well as other aggressive sterilants and chemicals.

EP41S-5Med provides a tensile strength of 10,000-12,000psi and is described as adhering well to a variety of similar and dissimilar substrates, including metals, plastics, rubbers, ceramics, and composites. This compound has a glass transition temperature of 140-145°C and is serviceable from -62°C to +232°C.

EP41S-5Med features reliable electrical insulation characteristics with a dielectric constant of 3.5 at 60Hz and a volume resistivity greater than 1014 ohm-cm.

The system is black in colour and contains no solvents or diluents. EP41S-5Med offers a 100-to-25 mix ratio by weight. The mixed epoxy has good flow properties with a moderate viscosity of 25,000-30,000 cps. Upon cure, it offers low shrinkage and a hardness of 85-95 Shore D.

EP41S-5Med comes in standard US unit sizes of half-pint, pint, quart, and gallon kits. It is also compatible with automated gun dispensing systems.