kSil™ silicone rubber sheet an excellent lining material for pipeline supports
The expansion of oil and gas extraction within Canada presents some interesting challenges for transporting these valuable resources safely and efficiently. To help solve some of these challenges, Canada Rubber Group Inc. (CRGI) supplies silicone rubber sheet to service applications within the oil and gas industry. This blog highlights one such application: assisting the pipeline construction industry with silicone rubber sheet which can be used to line above-ground pipeline supports.
Silicone rubber is a chemically inert synthetic elastomer. It differs from other synthetic and natural rubbers in that it is able to maintain excellent elasticity and resilience over a very wide temperature range. Silicone rubber has excellent resistance to fire, possesses very low toxicity, and is thermally stable at temperatures from -60°C to 230°C. The material also has excellent resistance to ozone, weathering, and a wide range of chemicals, solvents, oils and greases. These properties make it an especially suitable material for applications in the oil and gas industry.
CRGI can supply kSil™ solid silicone sheet for oil and gas pipeline construction applications. kSil™ is a high-quality silicone sheet manufactured by Silicone Engineering Limited, a leading producer of silicone rubber sheet. In particular, kSil™ has been used to produce above-ground pipeline supports, which anchor and isolate the carrier pipeline. In this application, cut-to-size adhesive-backed kSil™ sheets are applied directly to the pipeline supports, either in the field or during the support manufacturing process. This results in a superior support that fully isolates the pipeline from the support infrastructure, thereby ensuring that there is no metal-to-metal contact that could compromise the integrity of the pipeline.
kSil™ Silicone Sheet Advantages
The image at right shows kSil™ silicone sheet installed on pipeline supports. Advantages of kSil™ for this application are as follows:
kSil™ is the ideal silicone sheet material for gaskets, seals and isolators used in industrial applications where adverse temperatures are an issue, and where an inert, robust polymer is required.
Cut-to-size kSil™ sheets are pre-primed with a superior quality pressure sensitive adhesive (PSA) backing which possesses high tack and good release properties. This eliminates the need for gluing of the sheet to the pipeline support, saving time and resources. It also results in greatly improved bond strength between the support and the sheet, together with a high-quality finish.
The excellent temperature resistance and durability of kSil™ sheet makes it an ideal material for pipeline applications in challenging environments. kSil™ has exhibited excellent performance in pipeline support applications with temperatures as low as -50°C.
kSil™ solid silicone sheet is manufactured to the highest quality on calendared sheeting lines. These lines are equipped with automated laser gauges for the tightest dimensional controls, and high impingement nozzles are used to evenly distribute the heat over the entire surface through the curing oven, enhancing the quality, performance and repeatability of the material.
To find out more about kSil™ silicone rubber sheet, and how it may be used in oil and gas industry applications, please contact our sales department at crg@canadaraubbergroup.com.