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UNIGARD™ RE DFDE-1638 NT

Non-Halogen, Flame Retardant, Thermoplastic Jacket Compound

Supplied by The Dow Chemical Company

The technical datasheet with complete property values for UNIGARD™ RE DFDE-1638 NT is available to members of the Prospector Plastics Database.
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Product Description
UNIGARD™ RE DFDE-1638 Natural is a non-halogen, highly flame retardant, thermoplastic, low smoke, low corrosivity, and low toxicity compound. It is designed for general purpose cable jacket applications. Used as jacket, it passes the IEEE-383/UL-1581/UL-1685 [Limited Smoke Test] vertical tray cable burn tests. Cable construction, of course, plays an important role in flame performance. It can be used as a jacket on cables operating at up to 90°C.

This compound can replace PVC, low smoke PVC, and halogenated rubbers as a jacket with excellent fire safety (low smoke, low corrosivity, and low toxicity) and good property balance. This compound meets or exceeds many of industry jacket specifications such as UL-1277 Tray Cable.

As a non-halogen flame retardant jacket, UNIGARD™ RE DFDE-1638 Natural is also designed to replace conventional non-halogen jacket products. It can withstand an extrusion temperature up to 180°C, and can be extruded with typical single-flight metering PE screws.

Main Characteristics:
  • Highly flame retardant
  • Environmentally friendly ( lead free, halogen-free, sulfur/ antimony-free)
  • Low smoke, low corrosivity and low toxicity
  • Ease of extrusion and no special screw required
  • Good balance of toughness and flexibility
General  
Material Status 
  • Commercial: Active
Availability 
  • Africa & Middle East
  • Asia Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • North America
Uses 
  • Communication Wire Jacketing
  • Flame Retardant Jacketing
  • Industrial Cable Jacketing
  • LSZH Jacketing
  • Wire & Cable Applications
Agency Ratings 
 
Forms 
  • Pellets
Physical
Nominal Value
Unit
Test Method
Density
g/cm³
 ASTM D1505
Environmental Stress-Cracking Resistance 2 (10% Igepal, F0)
hr
 ASTM D1693
Mechanical
Nominal Value
Unit
Test Method
Tensile Strength
psi
 ASTM D638
Tensile Elongation (Break)
%
 ASTM D638
Flexural Modulus - 1% Secant
psi
 ASTM D790
Elastomers
Nominal Value
Unit
Test Method
Tear Strength
lbf/in
 ASTM D470
Hardness
Nominal Value
Unit
Test Method
Durometer Hardness (Shore A)
 
 ASTM D2240
Thermal
Nominal Value
Unit
Test Method
Brittleness Temperature
°F
 ASTM D746
Hot Deformation
     UL 1581
194°F
%
  
212°F
%
  
250°F
%
  
Aging
Nominal Value
Unit
Test Method
Retention of Tensile Elongation
     ASTM D638
10 days: 230°F
%
  
7 days: 250°F
%
  
Retention of Tensile Strength
     ASTM D638
10 days: 230°F
%
  
7 days: 250°F
%
  
Electrical
Nominal Value
Unit
Test Method
Volume Resistivity (73°F)
ohm·cm
 ASTM D257
Dielectric Constant (60 Hz)
 
 ASTM D1531
Dissipation Factor (60 Hz)
 
 ASTM D1531
Flammability
Nominal Value
Unit
Test Method
Oxygen Index
%
 ASTM D2863
Acid Gas Emission Conductivity
µS/cm
 IEC 60754-2
Acid Gas Emission pH
 
 IEC 60754-2
Acid Gas Test - Acid by Weight
%
 MIL C-24643
Smoke
 
 NES 711
Smoke Density
     ASTM E662
Flaming Mode - D1.5: 0.10 in
 
  
Flaming Mode - D4.0: 0.10 in
 
  
Flaming Mode - Dm, (corr.): 0.10 in
 
  
Non-flaming Mode - D1.5: 0.10 in
 
  
Non-flaming Mode - D4.0: 0.10 in
 
  
Non-flaming Mode - Dm, (corr.): 0.10 in
 
  
Temperature Index (Burning) - Critical
°F
 NES 715
Toxicity
 
 NES 713
Additional Information
Nominal Value
Unit
Test Method
Sunlight Resistance - 720 hr
 
 UL 1581
UNIGARD™ RE DFDE-1638 Natural fitness for use in applications requiring fluid resistance need to be validated by the manufacturer and could be different from past experiences with DFDA-1638 Natural or DFDC-1638 Black. Upon request, Dow can provide consultation on the acceptability of UNIGARD™ RE DFDE-1638 Natural for specific fluid resistance requirements. However, manufacturers need to insure the performance on their manufactured cables per regulatory/standard requirements.
Related Terminology
Product names can be difficult to match. You may have searched any one of these terms to find this product: UNIGARD™ RE DFDE-1638 NT, UNIGARD RE DFDE1638 NT, UNIGARD™ , UNIGARD, UNIGARDREDFDE1638NT, RE DFDE, RE DFDE-1638 NT, RE DFDE1638 NT, RE DFDE:1638 NT, RE DFDE/1638 NT, RE DFDE+1638 NT, RE DFDE_1638 NT, RE DFDE 1638 NT, REDFDE, DFDE1638, 1638NT, REDFDE1638NT, REDFDE_1638NT, Thermoplastic, Unspecified, Thermoplastic Unspecified, TP, Unspecified, TP Unspecified, Dow, ThermoplasticUnspecified, TPUnspecified, DFDERE
Uses
Uses may also be described by the following terms: Wire and Cable Applications, Wire & Cable Applications, Communication Wire Jacketing, Industrial Cable Jacketing, Flame Retardant Jacketing, LSZH Jacketing.
Agency Ratings
This plastic material has 4 certifications from the following agencies (the number in parentheses shows the number of certifications for that agency): IEEE (1), UL (3).
Extrusion Notes
Typical extrusion conditions are listed below. Exact conditions will depend upon the equipment used and the application.

Extruder
  • Screw L/D: 24:1; 4 ½ in. diameter
  • Screw Suggested: Straight PE screw
  • Compression Ratio: Range of 2.0:1 to 3.0:1
  • Screen Pack: 20-mesh screen

Pre-Drying
  • Dow recommends drying UNIGARD™ RE DFDE-1638 Natural in a desiccant dryer for a minimum of 4 hours at 140°F (60°C). Do not go above 150°F (65°C).

Extrusion Temperatures
  • The following temperature profile was used successfully in a 4 1/2 in. diameter, 24:1 L/D extruder. We recommend that you use it as a starting point. It may be necessary to optimize it for your given extruder and cable construction.

  • Barrel Feed Zone: 360° F
  • Barrel Transition Zone: 350° F
  • Barrel Metering Zone: 340° F
  • Crosshead Zone: 330° F
  • Actual Melt Temperature: <380°F

  • The following flat temperature profile could also be used: 350°F to 380°F.
  • Actual Melt Temperature: <380°F

  • For Customers familiar with processing DFDA-1638 Natural, the power draw and extruder pressure will be higher for UNIGARD™ RE DFDE-1638 Natural due to higher viscosity. Attempting to run at melt temperatures above 380°F can lead to foaming.

Tooling
  • Tube-on and semi-pressure tooling will work. A short land die is preferred.

Air Gap/Cooling water
  • A short air gap (~ 6 in.) and ambient water are recommended.

Coloring
  • UNIGARD™ RE DFDE-1638 Natural is a colorable compound. Color masterbatch materials based on EVA copolymers and added at a 1-2 percent by weight level gives adequate color and disperses well in the extrusion process.
Notes
1Typical properties: these are not to be construed as specifications.
2No cracks
 
IDES
Copyright © 2012 IDES
The information presented on this datasheet was acquired by IDES from the producer of the material. IDES makes substantial efforts to assure the accuracy of this data. However, IDES assumes no responsibility for the data values and strongly encourages that upon final material selection, data points are validated with the material supplier.