Crosslinking with Electron Beam Technology
Unlock next-level performance in your polymers with fast, sustainable radiation crosslinking.
What Is Polymer Crosslinking?
Crosslinking is the process of forming chemical bonds between polymer chains, creating a three-dimensional network. This structural change enhances material performance by increasing durability, raising melting temperature, reducing thermal expansion, and improving mechanical and thermal stability, among other benefits.
Radiation Crosslinking vs. Chemical Crosslinking
Crosslinking can be achieved through two primary modalities: radiation and chemical. Both are well-understood and mature technologies. Here’s how they compare:
 Radiation Crosslinking |  Chemical Crosslinking |
|
|---|---|---|
| Process | Uses ionizing radiation (E-Beam) | Requires chemical agents |
| Additives | None required | Typically requires initiators/catalysts |
| Precision | Highly controllable, uniform | Harder to fine-tune |
| By products | Clean process, no residues | Chemical waste and residuals |
| Speed | Fast, continuous, inline-capable | Slower, multi-step batch process |
| Safety & Compliance | No toxic chemicals involved | Potential regulatory hurdles |
E-Beam crosslinking delivers fast, clean, and highly controllable results. It’s ideal for high-throughput production and heat-sensitive materials alike.
Radiation Crosslinking Applications and Materials
| Industry | Radiation Crosslinking Application Examples | Radiation Crosslinking Material Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Medical Devices | • High molecular-weight plastics for orthopedic devices • Hydrogels and wound dressings • Specialty tubing | • High molecular-weight polyethylene (HMWPE)
• Polyethylene (PE) • Polyurethane (PU, select grades) |
| Automotive and Aerospace Components | • Seals, Gaskets, and O-Rings • Molded structural parts | • EPDM (Ethylene Propylene Diene Monomer)
• Crosslinkable polyethylene (XLPE) |
| Consumer and Industrial Products | • Sporting goods • Nuclear-grade conduit • Housings for specialty electronics • Specialty heat-shrink products | • Polyethylene (LDPE/HDPE)
• Ethylene Vinyl Acetate (EVA) • Fluoropolymers (select grades, e.g., ETFE) |
NextBeam’s Radiation Crosslinking Capabilities
NextBeam offers sustainable E-Beam radiation crosslinking for a wide range of discrete products. Our flexible conveyance system allows us to process parts up to 48″ in length and 48″ in height with effectively any range of dose.
Specialty processing is available for products up to 120” in length.
The bulk of the radiation crosslinking market involves continuous, reel-based materials such as wire, cable, and tubing. These products are typically processed in reel-to-reel equipment: the input reel unwinds, the product is continuously transported through the beam onto a waiting/empty output reel.
NextBeam’s NSC facility is different in that it is geared to processing discrete products (or discrete products in batches (we do not currently offer a high-volume reel-to-reel crosslinking option).
The scale of our facility allows us to crosslink a very wide range of product shapes and sizes.
E-Beam Crosslinking FAQs
E-Beam crosslinking uses electron beam energy to create new molecular bonds inside a polymer. This can increase strength, thermal resistance, abrasion resistance, and dimensional stability, among other material properties. It is widely used in wire and cable, tubing, molded components, films, and specialty polymer production. NextBeam performs both sterilization and polymer crosslinking using the same accelerator platform – the key difference lies in the amount of radiation delivered and the presentation of products to the beam.
E-Beam crosslinking tends to work best on polymers where the backbone chemistry and pendant groups form stable free radicals that can recombine into crosslinks without significant chain scission.. These include polyethylene, polypropylene, EVA, PVC, EPDM, silicone blends, and many elastomers. There is a significant amount of academic material published on radiation crosslinking that can help guide material selection and dosing. In any event, testing may be performed quickly to show whether a specific formulation will crosslink effectively.
Crosslinking increases molecular connectivity, which boosts toughness, heat resistance, chemical resistance, and wear performance. Materials often exhibit improved creep resistance, reduced deformation at elevated temperatures, and higher durability in dynamic or high load environments.
Crosslinking creates bonds between polymer chains, making the material stronger and more thermally stable. Chain scission breaks bonds, reducing molecular weight and softening or embrittling the material. The balance between these two effects depends on polymer chemistry, additives, and total dose. Some polymers crosslink at lower doses and shift toward chain scission at higher doses.
Most materials show minimal cosmetic change at typical crosslinking doses. Some resins may darken slightly or shift in tone if they contain sensitive colorants or additives. This is easy to evaluate with a specific dose test.
Yes, for products that require both processes. The same accelerator can perform sterilization and crosslinking, but typically the parameters used for each are very different.. Some customers crosslink components and then sterilize finished assemblies in the same facility to streamline operations.
A quick feasibility test is the fastest way to know. Samples may be irradiated at different dose levels and then tested for mechanical strength, elongation, hardness, color, and any other properties of interest. Test dosing as part of a feasibility study is typically quick (days) and inexpensive.
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