Teflon sheeting has a high melting point of 500 degrees Fahrenheit, before the material begins to lose structural integrity. This makes the material ideal for chute liners and slides used to transport goods along a factory assembly line. This heat resistance also makes PTFE sheets useful as gaskets or diaphragms for machinery.
PTFE sheeting comes in standard sizes with a maximum size of 48 inches in length by 48 inches in width. A single piece of Teflon sheeting is cut into sizes as small as 12 inches by 12 inches. Larger amounts of Teflon sheeting come on a roll with a PVC or cardboard core so that pieces can be cut to the buyer's desired length.
Pieces of Teflon sheeting usually come in a variety of thicknesses that range from .005 inches to .025 inches. Specialty manufacturers can create sheets as thick as eight inches in depth for heavier manufacturing parts. Teflon sheet manufacturers can create thicknesses to a thousandth of an inch for specialized gaskets or parts machining.
As a durable material, Teflon sheets may be stretched 200 percent before breaking. Sheets have a strength of greater than 1,500 pounds per square inch. Standard Teflon can handle 500 volts per thousandth of an inch before becoming conductive, which is important for the safety of workers around electrical machinery.
Depending on the purpose of the Teflon sheets, manufacturers may require the material to have special properties, such as chemical resistance or increased stiffness. The producers of Teflon may mix glass fiber, carbon, graphite, molybdenum disulfide, or bronze as Teflon fillers. Glass fillers offer increased compressive strength and protection from wear, while carbon fillers offer resistance to chemicals, improved hardness, and allow for a heavier load. Adding graphite to Teflon sheets makes the surface more slippery and reduces initial wear on the sheet, while molybdenum disulfide filler increases the stiffness and hardness of each individual sheet. While bronze fillers are unsuitable for chemical or electrical uses, these fillers offer increased hardness and dimensional stability to a Teflon sheet.