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UniFlor 8512, a PFPE grease by Nye, was chosen by Mallory Controls for the cam-to- wiper interface in a
timer for commercial hand dryers. With UniFlor, the timer surpassed a 500,000-cycle life test. (Timer courtesy of Mallory Controls)
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Fairhaven, MA 7/17/00 — If a mechanical component fails at 150,000 cycles when it's expected to reach 500,000, it may be time to check the grease.
That's what engineers at Mallory Control did when a timer it was life-testing for commercial hand dryers fell far short of expectations. A copper spring
wiper in constant contact a polyester glass-filled cam was causing the cam to wear prematurely. Exacerbating the wear, the operating temperatures near the cam reached 121°C (250°F) — temperatures that cooked the
hydrocarbon grease.
Nye Lubricants, Inc., recommended UniFlor — Nye's brand of perfluoropolyether (PFPE) lubricants — for the application. In its
pre-qualification lab, Nye engineers lubricated Mallory's plastic cams with UniFlor 8512 and subjected them to a high-temperature soak for 24 hours at
180°C (356°F). After no apparent grease evaporation or slumping took place, Nye forwarded the grease to Mallory for life testing.
After consultation with Nye, Mallory engineers placed four dollops of grease about 3 mm in diameter on each timer cam to be tested. The grease would
be evenly spread out by the spring contact riding on the cam's surface. Since PFPE greases are high density materials (2 gm/cc compared to the 1 gm/cc
typical for hydrocarbon greases) each dollop would be approximately 14 milligrams by weight. During subsequent life testing, Mallory engineers found
that all UniFlor-lubricated timers exceeded the 500,000-cycle target.
UniFlor 8512 is just one of a complete line of PFPE lubricants formulated by Nye, the only company in the world to offer a family of standard and custom PFPE lubricants based on all known PFPE
chemistries. UniFlor lubricants are designed specifically for applications that require wide-temperature serviceability (-90°C to 250°C); low volatility; oxygen compatibility; fuel, chemical,
and solvent resistance; nonflammability; and/or compatibility with plastics and elastomers. Mallory Controls is a leading supplier of motors, timers, and solenoid-operated water valves for use in
appliance and commercial applications. For more information about Mallory products, call (317) 328-4055.
Nye is a QS-9000 and ISO-9001-registered designer of custom synthetic lubricants and optical gels.
Its products are widely used in the appliance, automotive, power tool, telecommunications, and office automation industries.
For more information about UniFlor lubricants or other Nye products, contact Nye at: 12 Howland Rd., Fairhaven, Mass. 02719
Phone:(508) 996-6721
E-mail: techhelp@nyelubricants.com
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