The difference between liquid silicone rubber and traditional rubber is not just a superficial distinction between "liquid" and "solid", but a systematic differentiation from molecular design, processing logic, performance boundaries to application layouts. To truly understand the differences between the two, we need to start with their respective 'backgrounds'.

From the most fundamental physical form, liquid silicone rubber is a low viscosity, flowable two-component addition molded silicone rubber that is liquid at room temperature with a viscosity typically between 1000 and 50000 millipascals per second. Its flowability is similar to honey and it can easily fill every tiny structure of complex molds at lower pressures. Traditional rubber, whether it is natural rubber, styrene butadiene rubber, nitrile rubber, or ethylene propylene diene monomer rubber, is a solid rubber material at room temperature and must be thoroughly mixed with various compounding agents through open or mixing processes before entering the next molding process. This innate difference in morphology directly determines that the two have taken completely different paths in their processing routes. Liquid silicone rubber adopts a method similar to plastic injection molding. The A and B components are accurately proportioned in a static mixer and injected into the mold. Under heating conditions, curing can be completed within tens of seconds to minutes. The entire process is highly automated and requires almost no manual intervention. Traditional rubber relies on flat vulcanizing machines or ordinary injection molding machines, with vulcanization cycles often lasting several minutes or even tens of minutes, and requiring a large amount of manual labor to complete post-processing processes such as rubber weighing, material placement, component picking, and edge trimming. From the perspective of production efficiency, the cycle of liquid silicone rubber is measured in seconds, while the cycle of traditional rubber is measured in minutes, and the two are not on the same scale.

The difference in this processing method is further transmitted to the product performance level, first reflected in the dimensional accuracy. Liquid silicone rubber adopts addition curing reaction, which does not produce any by-products during the curing process. The shrinkage rate is extremely low, usually less than 0.1%, while the shrinkage rate of traditional rubber is generally between 2% and 4%. Thick walled products are also prone to uneven vulcanization. This means that liquid silicone rubber can achieve a dimensional accuracy of ± 0.05 millimeters, while traditional rubber can usually only achieve around ± 0.2 millimeters. For products such as medical catheters, electronic connectors, and precision seals that require extremely strict dimensional consistency, this gap is decisive. At the same time, after solidification, the surface of liquid silicone rubber is almost free of burrs and burrs, eliminating the trimming process. Traditional rubber products almost require subsequent trimming treatment, which not only increases labor costs but also limits the complexity of product structure. Liquid silicone rubber can easily form thin-walled structures, complex buckles, and tiny through holes with a wall thickness of less than 0.1 millimeters. Traditional rubber is powerless in the face of these extremely fine structures.

In terms of temperature tolerance range, both inherit the wide temperature range advantage of the silicone rubber family, but have different performance details. Liquid silicone rubber can usually maintain good elasticity for a long time in the range of minus 50 degrees Celsius to 200 degrees Celsius, and can even withstand high temperature impacts below 300 degrees Celsius in a short period of time. Although products made from solid high-temperature vulcanized silicone rubber can withstand temperatures up to 1200 degrees Celsius, their cost is poor elasticity and susceptibility to brittle cracking, which often limits their practical use

Regarding liquid silicone rubber, please refer to our website for details: IOTA Liquid Silicone Rubber