01. Wear-resistant
How long a floor lasts depends on its resistance to mechanical, chemical, and thermal loads. Floors are exposed to all these stresses to varying degrees, and resistance is a function of compressive strength and flexural strength.
Why do Acrylicon floors last so long?
To understand what makes Acrylicon’s solutions so wear-resistant, we need to dive into the chemistry. Seamless floors are referred to in the industry as a collective term within resin flooring.
Resin flooring is defined as plastic that is delivered to the installation site in liquid form and will be in solid form once installed as a surface treatment. Resin products can be divided into two main categories: thermoset and thermoplastic.
These two product families have fundamentally different properties, affecting everything from durability to maintenance needs and safety.
Thermoplastic
Acrylic/MMA and Acrylicon
Acrylic and MMA floors (methyl methacrylate) belong to this group. Thermoplastic materials in surface treatment have the ability to chemically bond to a new layer of thermoplastic, as long as the plastic’s plasticizers are intact. Chemical bonding between layers, phases, or generations of plastic provides a unique flexibility.
Thermoset
Epoxy and PU
Epoxy and PU floors (polyurethane) belong to the thermoset family. Once these materials cure, they become permanent and cannot be melted or reshaped. As a consequence, a new layer or phase in a project will only have a mechanical adhesion to the existing thermoset material.
Acrylicon’s solutions stand out in the thermoplastic family thanks to our unique chemical formula. This combination of advanced technology and materials expertise gives our floors an outstanding balance of strength, flexibility, and longevity.
The result? Floors that not only withstand heavy wear and demanding conditions, but also provide increased safety and minimal need for maintenance – year after year.
The lifespan of a floor depends on how well it withstands the relevant loads over time without losing important properties, such as remaining easy to clean, not cracking or becoming porous, or fading and looking worn.
Product types and mechanical strength
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- Epoxy
- 60 – 70 N/mm2 (withstands pallet truck..)
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- Polyurethane
- 60 – 80 N/mm2
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- Acrylic/MMA
- 40 – 45 N/mm2
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- Acrylicon
- 84 – 104 N/mm2
Seven good reasons to choose Acrylicon
