Coextruded Specialty Extrusions
Coextrusion processes to produce specific physical properties to minimize secondary manufacturing operations of small-diameter tubing and to help improve the functionality of medical devices.
In the production of small-diameter medical tubing, simultaneous extrusion of multiple materials with unique property profiles can improve functionality and reduce secondary manufacturing operations. Minimally invasive catheters often require discrete physical properties on the inner and outer surfaces. For example, passage of guide wires and other instruments through the lumens requires low-friction polymers on the inner surface of a tube, while atraumatic requirements often require soft, flexible polymers on the outer catheter surface. Coextrusion of different materials for the inner and outer layers allows us to achieve both outcomes.
Minimally invasive device tubes frequently require radiopaque fillers added to the polymer to provide visibility under X-ray or fluoroscopy. However, these compounds can be substantially more costly than unmodified polymers. Coextrusion of longitudinal radiopaque stripes with unmodified polymers can be an economic alternative.
