Materials / Compare
Plastic PTFE vs. Wood
Compare Plastic PTFE vs. Wood strength, stiffness, weight and thermal properties.
| Try it on a partA bracket to run stress or thermal on, free in your browser | Open in LessCAD | Open in LessCAD |
|---|---|---|
| Mechanical | ||
| Yield strength | 9MPasourcetypical yield strength at 23 °C (Teflon PTFE, Table 8) | not given (tensile used) |
| Ultimate tensile strength | 39.3MPasourcetypical, skived tape 0.13 mm | 99MPasourcemodulus of rupture (no direct tensile value) |
| Compressive strength | not sourced | 46.6MPasourcecompression parallel to grain (maximum crushing strength), 12% MC |
| Flexural strength | not sourced | 99MPasourcemodulus of rupture (static bending), 12% MC |
| Elongation at break | 350%sourcetypical, skived tape 0.13 mm | not sourced |
| Young's modulus (stiffness) | not sourced | 12.5GPasourcebending MOE, parallel to grain |
| Density | 2,160kg/m³sourcetypical (standard specific gravity, ASTM D4894) | not sourced |
| Strength to weight | 4.17kN·m/kg | not sourced |
| Stiffness to weight | not sourced | not sourced |
| Poisson's ratio | 0.46sourcetypical, 23 °C (Teflon PTFE resins, Chemours handbook) | 0.35sourcemu_LR (red oak group, ~12% MC) |
| Shear modulus | not sourced | 4.63GPa |
| Bulk modulus | not sourced | 13.9GPa |
| Speed of sound | not sourced | not sourced |
| Thermal | ||
| Thermal conductivity | 0.25W/m·Ksourcetypical, granular resin, 4.6 mm specimen | 0.18W/m·Ksourceacross grain, 12% MC (Table 4-7, approximate) |
| Thermal expansion | 100µm/m·Ksourcetypical, granular resin, 23-60 °C (ASTM E228) | 3.1–4.5µm/m·Ksourceparallel to grain, ovendry wood, range across species |
| 100 mm part over a 50 °C swing | 500µm growth | 19µm growth26.3x less |
| Specific heat | 1,400J/kg·Ksourcetypical, granular resin, 20 °C (ASTM D4591) | 1,700J/kg·Ksourcesolid wood (all species), 12% MC, 27 C |
| Heats up and cools (diffusivity) | 0.0827mm²/s | not sourced |
| Thermal shock resistance | not sourced | 244W/m |
| Melting point | 327°Csourcesecond melting peak (sintered polymer), +/-10 | not sourced |
| Max service temperature | 260°Csourceservice temperature (Chemours general Teflon PTFE statement) | not sourced |
| Values for | Chemours Teflon PTFE 7C X granular molding resin, typical values (tensile/elongation measured on 0.13 mm skived tape) | Northern red oak (Quercus rubra), clear straight-grained specimens at 12% MC, parallel to grain unless stated; USDA FPL Wood Handbook FPL-GTR-282 (2021) Ch. 4 and Ch. 5 |
Every value links to the document that states it. "Not sourced" means no citable source states it (or only a specification minimum); figures computed from it are left out too.
Questions
Is Plastic PTFE stronger than Wood?
Wood is stronger: its tensile strength is 99 MPa against yield strength 9 MPa for Plastic PTFE (11x).
Which conducts heat better, Plastic PTFE or Wood?
Plastic PTFE conducts heat better: 0.25 W/m·K against 0.18 W/m·K for Wood.
Which expands less with temperature?
Wood expands less: 3.8 µm/m·K against 100 µm/m·K for Plastic PTFE.