PU wheels vs neoprene wheels
Back in the early days of the development and use wheels – 100 years ago or more – there were few choices for wheel materials. If you wanted hard wheels, you used metal. If you needed soft wheels, natural rubber was the main option. And if you wanted something in between, wood was a popular choice.
That all began to change in the 1930s, when there were new technical developments in synthetic materials like plastics, resulting in an explosion of choices for wheel materials. In particular, two rubber-like synthetic materials began to replace natural rubber.
Neoprene wheels
This is a synthetic rubber made by the polymerization of certain chemicals such as chloroprene. It is an elastomer, meaning that when stretched it has a memory, and will return to its un-stretched position, much like rubber does. Unlike rubber, however, neoprene is highly resistant to grease, oils, harsh chemicals and high temperatures. This makes it an ideal material to use for wheels.
PU (polyurethane) wheels
This is also a synthetic rubber. It is most often made by combining solutions of two or more chemicals, pouring the mix into a mold, and casting the desired product. Producers can control the properties of the final product by varying the ingredients of the starting compounds, and through different manufacturing processes. PU wheels made from polyurethane can be fabricated with a range of hardness, from soft to extremely hard. Depending upon the formulation, polyurethane wheels can resist oil, grease and chemicals quite well.
Both materials have come a long way since the 1930s, and are now widely available in many different styles for wheels. In fact, because of their superior properties, they have almost totally replaced natural rubber as a choice for wheels.
These days, it’s often hard to tell the difference between synthetic “rubber” materials and natural rubber itself. When many of our customers want soft wheels, they’ll ask us for rubber wheels. We usually ask questions about their application requirements, then I recommend polyurethane wheels.
Below we’ll compare neoprene wheels and polyurethane wheels with the goal of helping you decide which of the two materials is the perfect fit for your needs.
Neoprene Wheels
One of the chief features of neoprene wheels is their smooth, quiet operation. Though they may seem soft, solid neoprene wheels are actually very durable. They are excellent for floor protection, and are frequently chosen as wheels for office seating. They work well on many different floor surfaces, but will not mark or mar the floor. They are very quiet as they roll across office flooring, especially when compared to hard plastic wheels used on some office chairs.
Another desirable feature of neoprene is its chemical resistance. This makes neoprene wheels ideal for use in situations where oil or grease is present. Neoprene is not affected by water, steam or harsh chemicals.
PU Wheels
It’s important to know that not all polyurethanes are equal – the material is available with a tremendous range of characteristics. During fabrication, manufacturers have many different chemical compounds to choose from, and various manufacturing processes which determine characteristics of the resulting products. They choose different polyurethane compounds, based upon the intended application situation. Is it important that the wheels be non-marking, or make no audible noise? Will it be operated at low speeds or high speeds? Will it be used continuously, or only occasionally? Each of these situations may require a different polyurethane formulation.
Non-marking
while often considered to be non-marking and floor protective, PU wheels function better in this regard on some floors than on other floors. They work well on hard surfaces such as ceramic tile, concrete, or hardwood – but usually are not suggested for use on linoleum, vinyl or soft wood floors.
As polyurethane wheel roll, they flex as they load and unload while the wheel is in motion. This constant loading and unloading causes internal heating in the polyurethane – and as speeds increase, so does the heating. If too much heat builds up internally, it can actually melt the polyurethane, leading to a failure called a “blowout”. To avoid this problem, the manufacturer will formulate a polyurethane able to withstand the heat generated by higher speeds. This means that if you are looking for PU wheels to be used in a towline operation, make sure you choose models rated for the speeds at which your equipment will operate.
Some PU wheels, when under load and stationary (not moving) for long periods of time, may be prone to developing flat spots. To avoid this, manufacturers modify their compounds, and create polyurethane wheels that maintain their shape when loaded but not moving. If you need PU wheel for a heavy equipment cart that rarely moves, for example, be sure you choose wheel that keep their shape.
In order to meet consumer’s requirement, we invested huge capitals to develop several series for PU wheels. All raw materials must be top grade. Our cost is two times as expensive as cheap raw materials price. Our technical team tested thousands of times for PU wheel with outstanding performance. At last, we succeed in high characteristics of polyurethane wheel industry.
I kindly ask for you to spend a little time to read following.
1)Wear proof type
Life of the PU wheel is very long, which is over one time longer than common one.
2)Loading heavy weight type
The polyurethane wheels can load more quantity than normal wheels, so consumer can save some work time. Consumer only uses the wheel under some special condition.
3)Anti-cracking type
Consumer can use the PU wheel under cold weather.
4)Eco-friendly type
Raw materials of the polyurethane tire don’t contain any harmful component to keep air clean.
5)Comfortable type
The polyurethane wheel can reduce fatigue when consumer uses it.
You can choose according to your requirement.