M&I Materials Limited Hydrocarbon Vacuum Grease Apiezon M Grease

Apiezon M Grease is a silicone- and halogen-free high vacuum grease and is ideally suited to all manner of high vacuum applications. Its inherent versatility means M Grease is also frequently used for non-vacuum purposes in both scientific and industrial settings and it is approved for use by NATO. Apiezon M Grease is designed for use in high vacuum environments at ambient temperatures (generally between 10 to 30°C / 50 to 86°F). If you are looking for a grease capable of performing at higher temperatures, Apiezon AP101 or Apiezon H Grease may be more appropriate. Apiezon M Grease: High Vacuum Grease Properties Apiezon M Grease is a silicone- and halogen-free high vacuum grease which: does not suffer from contamination problems associated with silicone based greases such as 'creep' or 'carry over' provides excellent lubrication is recommended for use at ambient temperatures exhibits a vapour pressure of 1.7 x 10-9 Torr at 20°C has built-in radiation resistance has powerful 'gettering' action, meaning it absorbs potentially harmful grease and chemical impurities on metal and glass surfaces is easy to clean and remove as it is soluble in hydrocarbon and chlorinated solvents Applications of Apiezon M Grease As a high vacuum grease with excellent lubrication properties and radiation resistance, Apiezon M Grease is used for many diverse applications. In particular, M Grease is commonly used in scientific and industrial sealing and lubrication applications. Apiezon M Grease has been especially formulated to provide excellent lubrication while maintaining an efficient gas seal and is therefore widely used in the manufacture and servicing of high performance vacuum pumps. Using silicone-free Apiezon M Grease avoids the problems of 'creep' and 'carry over' which can often lead to sample contamination. Therefore, it is regularly used in analytical techniques such as infrared or mass spectrometry where sample contamination must be avoided. Similarly, 'creep' can cause problems in industrial paint or metal deposition processes as trace amounts of silicone on surfaces can prevent the adherence of paint, leading to poor coverage. When using silicone-free Apiezon M Grease this is not a problem. As a halogen-free product, Apiezon M Grease has a built-in resistance to irradiation. Other high vacuum greases such as esters, silicones or halogenated paraffins decompose at radiation levels of 10 Mrads or less. In contrast, M Grease maintains excellent lubrication properties in high radiation applications, despite a small increase in stiffness when irradiated with 4 MeV electrons to 100 Mrads. Apiezon M Grease has strong powers of absorption, particularly for other hydrocarbon molecules due to its complex hydrocarbon structure and very high molecular weight. Consequently it is frequently used as a stationary phase in gas chromatography.