Specific silicone deposition applications include hypodermic needles, surgical and cutting blades, blood bags, filters and PVC tubing which require a coating to become lubricious.

3M™ Novec™ fluids disperse a wide variety of coatings, including silicone, PTFE and heparin. These coatings are successfully deposited on many different types of surfaces, including metals, plastics and elastomers. They have low surface tension for uniform coating, evaporate rapidly to potentially speed up your drying process and have an outstanding environmental and safety profile. They are non-flammable, low in toxicity, have zero ozone depletion potential and low global warming potential.

The low surface tension, low viscosity and high vapour pressure of Novec fluids allows easy application to a variety of substrates and rapid drying. All that’s left behind is a uniform coating of your choosing on your parts.

Novec fluids are also able to rapidly swell silicone tubing and other elastomers, which then recover to their original dimensions on exposure to air or in a drying oven.

View the Medical Deposition Bulletin.