Glossary

Our glossary provides you with quick and convenient explanations of numerous technical terms and abbreviations in the field of hose and connection systems. This list is regularly updated and expanded.

Undesirable changes to the surface due to the separation of small particles as a result of mechanical stress. These wear processes are generally referred to as wear in plastics (and many other materials).

Resistance of the hose to abrasion. Abrasion-resistant hoses prevent wear due to abrasion and are mainly used to transport solid materials such as granulates, wood shavings, iron or sand.

Additives - also known as auxiliary materials or additives - are substances that are added to a material (e.g. plastic) in small quantities in order to achieve or improve certain properties.

Flame retardant additives, for example, are fire retardants that are incorporated into flammable materials as additives to reduce their flammability.

Adheres without fusing with the adhesive surface

Time-dependent change in a material under defined environmental conditions that causes a deterioration (usually) or improvement in the material properties. The causes are often: heat, light, high-energy radiation, chemicals, weather, oxygen (ozone), plasticiser migration in PVC, etc.

Agent that is added to a moulding material or applied to a product surface to reduce conductivity.

A distinction is made:

Temporary antistatic agents are surface-active substances that migrate from the plastic to the surface over time and form a conductive hydrophilic film there with the help of air humidity. The electrostatic charge, which is mainly generated by the friction of plastics, can be dissipated more quickly.

Unlike temporary antistatic agents,permanent antistatic agents have no tendency to migrate. The antistatic effect is maintained throughout the entire product life and cannot be reduced mechanically (e.g. by wiping). They form a self-organising, dynamic, ordered structure (dissipative structure), which in turn dissipates the static charge. In contrast to temporary antistatic agents, the surrounding humidity is almost irrelevant for the antistatic effect.

Maximum pressure to which a hose is exposed. Also takes into account short-term pressure peaks that can occur during operation.

Temperature range of the application. Can also refer to the temperature of the pumped fluid or the ambient conditions of the hose line used.

ATEX is the abbreviation for "Atmosphère Explosible". ATEX is also the abbreviation for the European Directive 2014/34/EU on the placing on the market of explosion-protected equipment and protective fencing systems (including components). It covers all electrical and mechanical devices that are located in potentially explosive atmospheres.

Pressure at which the hose line bursts or the braiding fails. This pressure is determined in a laboratory set-up at 21 °C, whereby the hose must be aligned straight. The maximum burst pressure is the highest pressure at which the hose line is used. This value must take into account the pressure peaks that can occur during operation. The nominal burst pressure, on the other hand, is measured under laboratory conditions.

Maximum pressure to which a hose is exposed. Also takes into account short-term pressure peaks that can occur during operation. The operating pressure is determined in accordance with DIN EN ISO 7751.

This BG information (BGI) explains the most important requirements for the fire and explosion protection of filter systems and silos for wood dust, wood chips and wood shavings - starting from the extraction line of the connected machines to the material input into the firing system - and describes the necessary measures.

Our PU film bags comply with the requirements of BGI 739-2 (issued by the BGHM trade association for wood and metal)

Force required to enable bending around a certain radius, and thus a measure of stiffness.

Minimum radius at which a hose can be bent without kinking, damaging or shortening its useful life. The radius of a bent section of a hose is measured at the centre line (R) of the bent area. The bending radius is given in mm.

Bending radius, dynamic
Smallest radius at which a hose can be used in continuous dynamic bending movements without kinking.

Bending radius, static
Smallest radius at which a hose can be used for continuous static bending without kinking.

Every product that falls under an EU directive requires a CE declaration of conformity. These products include toys, electrical appliances, personal protective equipment and measuring devices.

The suitability of a hose is essentially determined by its resistance to the chemical product to be conveyed. See also Chemical resistance list. The information in this resistance list is only a guide and can only be guaranteed for a limited period of time.

Compounding is a term used in plastics technology and describes the process of refining plastics by mixing in additives (fillers, additives, etc.) to specifically optimise the property profiles.

German Institute for Standardisation

Applies to seamless steel tubes and refers to dimensions and length-related masses.

Retaining clamps - Part 3: Profile clamps and tapered flanges (withdrawn)

This standard applies to hose clamps with worm drive used for fastening hoses to mobile and stationary systems.

This standard specifies the flange types and their sealing surface shapes, dimensions, tolerances, threads, bolt sizes, surface finish of the sealing surfaces of the flange connection, labelling, materials, pressure/temperature assignments and approximate flange weights.

Since 2016, DIN 26057 has been in force in Germany for "Spiral hoses made of thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) with steel wire reinforcement for granulates and powders." DIN standard 26057, in which we played a key role, defines the requirements for spiral hoses made of thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) with steel wire reinforcement and a corrugated outer contour. These hoses are used for conveying granulates and powdery substances, dusts and bulk materials. The conditions and procedure for testing the hoses are precisely described and regulated in the standard.

DIN 4102 - Fire behaviour of building materials and components.

According to DIN 4102-1, building materials are categorised as non-combustible (A1, A2) and combustible (B1, B2, B3):

• A1: Building materials in this class are non-combustible, contain no combustible components, no smoke development and no burning droplets, e.g. concrete, bricks or rock wool.
• A2: Building materials in this class are non-combustible, but may contain certain proportions of combustible components, no smoke development and no burning droplets, e.g. smooth plasterboard
• B1: Building materials in this class are flame-retardant and must not continue to burn independently after a source of ignition has been removed, e.g. perforated plasterboard or lightweight wood wool panels.
• B2: Building materials in this class are normally flammable, the flammability must be limited to a level specified in DIN in the event of edge or surface ignition with a small flame, e.g. wood and wood-based materials.
• B3: Building materials in this class are highly flammable and may only be used in buildings as so-called composite materials, i.e. if they are combined with other building materials in such a way that they are no longer highly flammable, e.g. paper or straw.

Elastomers or thermoplastic elastomers - Determination of abrasion resistance using a rotating cylindrical drum apparatus (ISO 4649:2017)

This standard applies to stainless steel tube fittings for rolling-in or welding for pipework systems in the food industry.

This standard applies to all flexible ducts. It specifies requirements and test methods for the technical characteristics of flexible ducts used in ventilation and air conditioning systems in buildings. Our Master-VENT 2, for example, fulfils the requirements of this standard in terms of dimensions and tolerances.

We offer conduit fittings in accordance with EN 14420 for secure binding with clamping shells made of brass, stainless steel or aluminium. Conduit fittings to EN 14420 are safe and high-quality connections between conduit and system and can be used in almost all industrial sectors.

Clamp seals according to DIN 32676 standard. Clamp seals, also known as tri-clamp seals, are aseptic seals that are widely used as clamp connections in the food, chemical and pharmaceutical industries.

Nominal diameter DN (French: Diamètre Nominal) - see also Nominal diameter

Round profile used during production and vulcanisation to determine the size and support the hoses. Can be rigid (carbon steel or stainless steel) or flexible (rubber or plastic).

see operating pressure

Hoses with a liner can be made of two plastic layers (one inside, one outside) separated by a reinforcing wire insert. A hose without a liner consists of two plastic layers without any additional material in between.

The ability of a body to return to its original shape and size after stretching, compression or deformation.

Material that stretches at room temperature under low load, doubles its length and quickly returns to its original length when the load is removed. Elastomers are dimensionally stable but elastically deformable plastics that can return to their original, undeformed shape.

Marking for documents that have been approved by one of the three recognised European standardisation organisations CEN, CENELEC or ETSI.

Statically uncritical loads lead to functional inefficiency, known as fatigue cracking, due to the constant impact on the material.
In severe cases, the constant load can even lead to total failure of the material.

Copolymer, ASTM designation for ethylene vinyl acetate.

Manufacturing process in which compressed plastic is continuously pressed through a nozzle.

EX zones are potentially explosive atmospheres. These are areas in which an explosive atmosphere can occur. The risk of explosion is particularly present where explosive substances such as dusts or liquids are produced, processed, transported or stored.

U.S. Food and Drug Administration- the food and drug administration in the USA

Flame retardants (or fire retardants) are substances that are intended to limit, slow down or prevent the spread of fires.

In principle, there are four types of flame retardants: Additive flame retardants, reactive flame retardants, inherent flame retardants and coatings.

Force required to achieve the minimum bending radius (the greater the force required, the lower the flexibility). In contrast to pipes, hoses are flexible in every respect.

See permeation

Regulation (EC) No. 2023/2006 defines "Good Manufacturing Practice" (GMP) for materials and articles intended to come into contact with food.

Plastic granulate is the typical delivery form of thermoplastics from raw material manufacturers for the plastics processing industry.

The group of halogens includes fluorine, chlorine, bromine, iodine, astatine and tenness.

These non-metals are very reactive in their elementary state (fluorine can react with the appearance of fire), colourful and react with metals to form salts (origin of name) and with hydrogen under normal conditions to form hydrogen halides (gaseous, monoprotonic acids). Products containing halogens release corrosive gases in the event of fire, which can form hydrochloric acid in combination with moisture. As an electrically conductive substance, hydrochloric acid can cause short circuits and destroy appliances.

Hardness is an important material property of hoses. It describes the mechanical resistance of a material to the penetration of a harder body. Hardness is measured by the relative resistance of the material to a penetrating body. The higher the value, the harder the material.

There are various hardness test methods. For rubber-like materials, the Shore hardness is determined in accordance with DIN 53 505. A needle (truncated cone for Shore A and cone for Shore D) is pressed into the sample with a certain spring tension. The penetration depth is a measure of hardness (scale range 0 to 100 in Shore).

With clamp connections, care should be taken to ensure that there is sufficient contact pressure on the seal. However, if the pressure is too high or the installation is incorrect, there is a risk of the medium migrating past the seal (known as back migration).

Hydrolysis is often underestimated, but leads to irreversible damage to plastics that are not resistant. During hydrolysis, the damage is caused by irreversible splitting of the molecular chains. This can be caused by prolonged storage in warm water, saturated steam or simply a tropical climate. However, hydrolysis can also lead to the splitting of the molecular chains in the plastic under ideal climatic conditions. As with microbial infestation, this causes the mechanical strength of the material to degrade and leads to the final destruction of the material. The product also often becomes unusable after a short time.

Application of a top layer with special properties to films or sheets as well as the
application of films to fabric webs.

It must always be ensured that the smallest bending radius occurring during operation is greater than the minimum bending radius of the respective hose. If the minimum bending radius is not reached, the hose may kink and its cross-section may become narrower or even flattened. This can lead to excessive stress or twisting of the inserts.

Conductivity refers to the electrical properties of the materials that make up the hose, usually the hose core, the layers and/or the material of the hose cover. Conductivity is measured in MOhms. Conductive hoses are used in applications where the material to be transported can generate a static charge. These hoses conduct static electricity through the rubber material to the hose ends, provided the correct coupling material is used.

The KTW ("Plastic Drinking Water") guideline describes the test procedures for drinking water hoses (KTW hoses). In order for a drinking water hose to receive KTW approval, it must undergo a series of test procedures that must be carried out by an accredited test laboratory.

The preliminary drinking water hygiene assessment of products made of thermoplastic elastomers in contact with drinking water is defined in the TPE transition recommendation.

Our TPE film hose for drinking water applications, the Master H2O, is suitable for the transport of drinking water up to +60°C in accordance with the KTW/TPE transition recommendation and W270 certification.

The medium is the substance or material that is channelled through the hose. This can be, for example, water, air, oil, gas, chemicals or other liquids or gases used in various applications. The medium may also have specific properties that must be taken into account when selecting the right hose, such as temperature range, pressure or chemical resistance.

Microbe resistance is often underestimated, but leads to irreversible damage to plastics that are not resistant. The culprits are microbes, tiny microorganisms found in soil, water and air. Under ideal climatic conditions of heat and humidity, these tiny organisms are able to damage some plastics to such an extent that the properties of the material change. At first, slight colour changes are visible on the product. Then small cracks appear in the surface, allowing the microbes to penetrate even deeper into the product. In the course of this damage, symptoms such as loss of strength and embrittlement occur. The hose becomes unusable - often after a short time.

In industrial engineering, the terms "master parts" and "parent parts" refer to the relationship between components in a production system or manufacturing process.

Mother parts are components that have already been manufactured in an earlier production step and now serve as the basis for further production steps. Master parts are usually already finished and do not need to be processed further before they can be used in the next production stage.

Father parts, on the other hand, are components that are only produced in a later production step and are dependent on the mother parts. Father parts still have to be machined or assembled before they can move on to the next production stage.

The nominal diameter is the inner diameter of a hose line. In accordance with EN ISO 6708, the nominal diameter is indicated by the designation "DN", followed by a number (approximately) corresponding to the inner diameter in millimetres.

Resistance to the damaging effects of ozone, polyurethanes generally have good ozone resistance

Physical effect when flow-through substances or individual components penetrate the material

The permeation coefficient is a material constant that indicates the volume of gas that passes through a test specimen of known area and thickness in a given time for a given partial pressure difference. It depends on the temperature and is determined in accordance with DIN 53536.

The burst pressure is the pressure at which the hose is destroyed. The burst pressure is used to determine the operating pressure, taking into account the generally accepted safety factors. The burst pressure is determined in accordance with DIN EN ISO 7751.

Maximum pressure that a hose can withstand without deformation of the corrugations and without exceeding 50 % of the burst pressure. At the test pressure, the hose must not show any leaks or permanent deformations. The test pressure is determined in accordance with DIN EN ISO 7751.

Absorption of liquid or gaseous substances into solids without a chemical reaction taking place between them. This results in an increase in volume and weight in conjunction with a corresponding decrease in mechanical values. After evaporation of the penetrated substance and the associated reduction in swelling, the original properties of the product are almost restored. Swelling is therefore a reversible process.

The EU chemicals regulation REACH (EC) 1907/2006 serves as a uniform European system for the registration, evaluationand authorisationof chemicals. As the competent authority, the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) controls and monitors stakeholders in the implementation of the regulation. You can find more information on REACH here.

Resilience is the ability of a sealant to fully or partially return to its original shape and dimensions after the forces that caused the deformation have been cancelled out.

Force that counteracts the relative movement of two bodies in contact with each other.

Crest compressive strength is the resistance to compression of suction and discharge hoses by external loads applied to the crest.

Named after its inventor, Albert Ferdinand Shore, Shore hardness offers various scales for measuring the strength of different materials. Shore hardness, using either the Shore A or Shore D scale, is the preferred method for rubber and thermoplastic elastomers - and is also often used for "softer" plastics such as polyolefins or fluoropolymers. The Shore A scale is used for "softer" rubbers, while the Shore D scale is usually used for "harder" rubbers. The Shore hardness is measured with a device called a durometer.

The flow profile is a term used in fluid mechanics, particularly in flow measurement technology. It describes the location-dependent distribution of the flow velocity in the cross-section of a flow.

Specification of the range in which the media temperature can move.

Torsion is a term used in mechanics and describes the twisting of a body caused by the effect of a torsional moment. During torsion, a torque is applied in the direction of the centre of gravity - the component (e.g. beam, bar) is twisted. This load is typically found on shafts.

The dead space is an unwanted volume inside fittings or machines that contain a medium.

Temperature of the atmosphere or the medium in the immediate vicinity of a hose in operation.

The vacuum specifications for Masterflex hoses are determined in accordance with DIN 20024, point 15.

Depending on the duration and intensity, plastics can be chemically degraded (ageing) by the effects of UV radiation. Polyurethanes generally have good UV resistance. Over the course of time, the material will yellow and the surface will become slightly brittle. This results, among other things, in a slight reduction in the mechanical properties. Stabilisation against ageing can be achieved with the help of UV stabilisers and/or colour pigmentation.

During the negative pressure tests, the hoses were laid in a 90° bend while maintaining the minimum bending radius and pressurised until they showed signs of buckling or collapse. The permissible negative pressure in continuous operation is determined taking into account a standard safety factor.

In industrial engineering, the terms "master parts" and "parent parts" refer to the relationship between components in a production system or manufacturing process.

Mother parts are components that have already been manufactured in an earlier production step and now serve as the basis for further production steps. Master parts are usually already finished and do not need to be processed further before they can be used in the next production stage.

Father parts, on the other hand, are components that are only manufactured in a later production step and are dependent on the mother parts. Father parts still have to be machined or assembled before they can move on to the next production stage.

In Germany, materials and products that come into contact with drinking water must be tested for the migration of chemical substances and the growth of microorganisms to ensure that they are hygienically safe. These requirements are described in DVGW worksheet W270.

Wall thickness is the difference between the inner and outer dimensions of the walls of a pipe, housing, pressure vessel or other hollow body (e.g. a hose).

Important: The information on the wall thickness of our hoses refers to the plastic layer and does not include the outer spiral. The wall thickness is measured at the thinnest point of the hose. Please take this into account when connecting the hose to a machine, system or other component. If you have any questions, our sales team will be happy to help you.

Plasticisers are substances that are added to thermoplastics to make them more supple and elastic in use or during further processing. They are crucial for the functional properties of many plastic products.

Metal wire embedded in the hose wall in a helical shape; usually used in suction hoses.

During the negative pressure tests, the hoses were laid in a 90° bend while maintaining the minimum bending radius and pressurised until they showed signs of buckling or collapse. The permissible negative pressure in continuous operation is determined taking into account a standard safety factor.

One advantage of hoses (e.g. compared to pipes) is that they absorb vibrations.

Ratio of the cross-section of a body to the maximum load that the material can absorb when stretched without breaking.

Technical appendix

Here you will find all the technical information about our product range at a glance.

Technical appendix