According to the Center for Disease Control & Prevention, over two million individuals are injured and 32,000 are killed each year in motor vehicle accidents. As an employee of or contractor for the Department of Transportation, you have a critical responsibility to guide the flow of traffic, reduce congestion, and ultimately create a safer transportation environment for drivers. Even if you’re an owner of a large parking area at an airport, shopping mall or entertainment venue, managing and controlling traffic is essential.

Engineers are tasked with selecting the perfect material for your gasket application. Each part must be able to withstand the task at hand, including operating temperature and being flexible enough to maintain a proper seal throughout the process. 

As we discussed in our last blog, engineers historically chose asbestos because it served a myriad of important functions; it was durable, able to handle high temperatures and parts-handling, and relatively affordable. Unfortunately, it was also linked to mesothelioma, an invasive and often fatal type of lung cancer. Once it was pulled off the market, workers had to find an alternative for their gasket solutions.

As the engineer responsible for ensuring the performance and safety of sealing components, there can be quite a lot of pressure riding on making the proper material selection for a specific application. Before you even begin to think about installing and testing a new gasket, you are tasked with the critical responsibility of selecting a material that is compatible with the surrounding environment, can withstand the operating temperature and pressure, and is flexible enough to achieve a proper seal.