Elastomeric Alloys in Automotive Clean Air Ducts

Elastomeric alloys (EAs) have found many under-the-hood automotive applications, replacing conventional thermoset rubbers. The clean air duct on an automobile engine has historically been a thermoset material such as CR, EPDM, nitrile or epichlorohydrin rubber. EAs have a highly suitable aggregate of performance properties for this application. This paper will give in detail the requirements for the automotive clean air duct and how EAs meet them. It will also discuss the proper design of these ducts with EAs. These designs incorporate the flexibility of blow molding in improving part performance and tooling costs, lowering part weight and reducing overall part cost relative to clean air ducts from conventional thermoset rubbers.