Butyl Rubbers

Butyl rubber appears as a tacky, gray to amber-colored elastomer with a smooth surface and exceptional impermeability to gases. Key features include exceptional impermeability, excellent vibration damping, superior weathering resistance, good flex properties, and resistance to many chemicals including acids and bases. Butyl rubber excels in applications requiring airtightness such as tire inner tubes and inner liners, pharmaceutical stoppers, vacuum seals, and chemical protective equipments.

Alternatives of butyl rubber include nitrile and neoprene. The industry is trending toward developing grades with improved processing characteristics and heat resistance for demanding automotive applications. The material is available in several variants including regular butyl (IIR), halogenated versions (chlorobutyl CIIR and bromobutyl BIIR), and specialty grades with varying molecular weights and isoprene contents to balance processability, cure characteristics, and end-use properties for specific applications.