Does your seal design consider MTAP? When Elasto Proxy performs a design review for a manufacturer, we ask about the media (M), temperature (T), application (A), and pressure (P) that the seal will encounter. That’s why we came up with MTAP, an easy-to-remember acronym, to help guide customers through compound selection, a key part of the seal design process. Keep reading to learn how to apply MTAP to your own seal design, or contact us if you’re ready to discuss your application and request a quote.
Media
The M in MTAP stands for Media. This includes fuels, chemicals, and cleaners that come in contact with your seals. For example, the door gasket on a truck’s fuel tank needs to resist gasoline or diesel, depending on the type of engine. In electric vehicles, seals for battery pack housings need to withstand coolants based on either organic or inorganic acid technology. Seals that are splashed by automotive fluids or that come into contact with cleaners during vehicle washdowns also need to withstand specific types of media.
Here are some questions to ask and answer about media.
- Will your seal come into contact with fuels, chemicals, or cleaners?
- If so, which ones?
- Is contact with this media intermittent, or does it involve full immersion?
Temperature
The T in MTAP stands for Temperature. If you’re designing a door seal for a tractor, will your company sell this equipment to farmers on the Great Plains? It gets cold in places like North Dakota and Saskatchewan, but the summertime can be hot. So, you’ll need to design your door seals with minimum and maximum service temperatures in mind. For an engine bay seal, continuous operating temperature is a consideration since farmers run tractors all day long during planting and harvesting.
Here are some questions to ask and answer about temperature.
- What are the maximum and minimum service temperatures?
- Is there a continuous operating temperature to consider?
- Are there rapid changes in temperature?
Because chemical resistance can vary by temperature, you may also need to consider the interaction between the M and T in MTAP.
Application
The A in MTAP stands for Application, the intended purpose of the seal. If you’re designing a gasket for the hatch on a boat, your concerns are different than if you’re designing a seal for an indoor enclosure that’s subject to electromagnetic interference (EMI). By the same token, the type of seal you’d use to help hold heat in an oven isn’t the same type of seal that you’d use to move heat away from EV parts. You may also need to meet flammability standards or install your seal with tape instead of fasteners.
Here are some questions to ask and answer about the application.
- How will the seal be used?
- How will the seal be installed?
- Are there standards that you need to meet?
Pressure
The P in MTAP stands for Pressure. If the seal is for a metal tank, what is the tank’s internal pressure? If the seal is for a pump, what is the pump’s operating pressure? There are also seals used under high vacuum conditions, such as with compressors. As with temperature, application, and media, it’s important to have a complete understanding of pressure. It also helps to have a trusted manufacturing partner.
From Design Reviews with MTAP to Custom Fabrication
Elasto Proxy doesn’t design industrial seals, but we can review your drawings, schematics, or CAD files for MTAP. We can also evaluate your design’s part tolerances, which are important to consider since rubber tolerances aren’t the same as metal tolerances. If you’re a part designer or an engineer who needs custom-fabricated seals or gaskets, we invite you to contact us.
