Context
A leading international company operating in the medical and diagnostic sector initiated the development of an advanced analytical instrument requiring high-vacuum conditions within an analysis chamber.
In such applications, sealing performance is a critical engineering parameter: even minimal air leakage or contamination can compromise diagnostic accuracy and result reliability.
For this reason, the customer required a high-performance sealing element capable of ensuring stable, repeatable vacuum conditions over time.
The Challenge
The customer initially evaluated multiple sealing solutions without achieving satisfactory performance.
The main issues observed were:
- Difficulty in reaching the required high-vacuum level
- Excessive evacuation times of the chamber
- Loss of sealing integrity in the presence of contaminants
A particularly demanding requirement concerned the ability of the seal to maintain performance even in the presence of foreign bodies.
During testing, microfibers were intentionally introduced between the sealing element and the mating surface to simulate real operating conditions.
The system was required to prevent any air leakage under these worst-case conditions.
Additional technical constraints included:
- The material had to be free of any post-curing or thermal cycle outgassing, to avoid analytical contamination
- High resistance to deformation induced by vacuum pump loads
- High elasticity to ensure conformity even in the presence of fibers and micro-surface imperfections
After several unsuccessful iterations, the customer engaged RORA to develop a fully engineering-driven sealing solution.
The RORA Solution
RORA approached the project through a fully integrated engineering methodology, covering:
- Sealing system design
- Elastomer material selection and formulation development
- Optimization of component finishing processes
Following a detailed application analysis, the RORA engineering team identified a solution combining:
- High polymer purity, ensuring zero contamination after thermal processing cycles
- Controlled mechanical properties, to withstand vacuum-induced stresses without permanent deformation
- Optimized elasticity, enabling full surface conformity even in the presence of fibers or particulate contamination
Once the optimal compound was defined in terms of polymer base and hardness, the development focused on:
- Surface finishing optimization, critical to real-world sealing performance
- Dimensional stability control, ensuring long-term repeatability across operating cycles
Results
The RORA engineering approach delivered clear and measurable improvements:
- Significant reduction in sealing leakage, even under critical contamination conditions
- Strong reduction in vacuum evacuation time
- Stable sealing performance even in the presence of simulated contaminants (fibers)
The sealing system was validated through international testing campaigns, including laboratories in the United States and France, successfully passing all verification protocols.
Following validation:
- The customer approved the final design
- Prototype production batches were initiated
- The component was subsequently industrialized and moved into serial production
Conclusion
This project demonstrates that in high-criticality medical applications, sealing performance is not determined solely by geometry, but primarily by advanced material engineering.
RORA’s capability to intervene at multiple levels:
- elastomer formulation design
- mechanical behavior tuning
- process and application compatibility
enabled the transformation of a complex application challenge into a robust, repeatable industrial solution.
Looking for a Custom Solution?
If you are working on applications requiring advanced sealing performance, high vacuum conditions, or ultra-clean material requirements, RORA can support you in the full development cycle — from design to production.
Contact us to discuss your project.