How to Choose the Most Suitable Rubber for Your Application?

Rubber material selection directly affects product performance in many fields — from industrial manufacturing and automotive to food and medical applications. Choosing the wrong rubber can lead to short product life, sealing problems, or chemical deformation. So, which type of rubber should you choose under which conditions?

In this guide, we introduce the key factors that influence rubber selection and walk you step by step through Onur Kauçuk’s interactive “Rubber Selection Guide” tool.

🔬 1. Key Criteria to Consider When Choosing Rubber

Each application has different physical, chemical, and thermal requirements. When selecting rubber, it is important to consider the following four main categories:

Physical and Mechanical Properties

The pressure, tension, wear, and flexibility values that a product must withstand are directly related to the type of rubber used.
• NR (Natural Rubber) → High elasticity, excellent performance at low temperatures
• NBR (Nitrile Rubber) → Resistance to oils and fuels
• EPDM → Resistance to air, ozone, and aging

*Chemical Resistance

It is essential to determine which type of rubber can remain stable without degradation when in contact with chemicals, oils, solvents, or acids.
• FKM (Viton) → Resistance to acids, fuels, and solvents
• CR (Neoprene) → Moderate chemical resistance + excellent weather resistance

Thermal Properties

Each type of rubber has a different operating temperature range.
• VMQ (Silicone) → Stability between -60°C and +230°C
• ACM → Resistance to engine oils up to +150°C

*Environmental Performance

UV, ozone, humidity, and outdoor conditions accelerate material aging. EPDM and VMQ are the most durable options under these conditions.

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⚙️ 2. What Is Onur Kauçuk’s “Rubber Selection Guide”?

The Rubber Selection Guide, developed by the Onur Kauçuk engineering team, helps users find the right material step by step.
This smart system scores each type of rubber based on the selected criteria, calculates the compatibility percentage (%), and presents the results as color-coded cards.

The guide filters the results under the following categories:
Physical and Mechanical Properties
*Chemical Resistance
Thermal Properties
*Environmental Performance

For each material, the system evaluates rubber types such as NR, NBR, SBR, CR, EPDM, FKM, VMQ, FVMQ, ACM, ECO, and EA, and finally provides the user with recommendations that have the highest compatibility score.

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📊 3. How Does the Guide Work?

The user simply enters the requirements of their application — for example, “oil-resistant, can operate up to 120°C, and suitable for outdoor use.”
Then, the system automatically scores each material as follows:
1. Scoring based on the selected criteria
2. Leaving non-selected criteria as neutral
3. Displaying the top 3 most suitable rubber types as visual cards

In this way, a suitable material recommendation is obtained quickly without wasting time or getting lost in complex technical tables.

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🌍 4. Why Is This Tool Important?

Manual material selection is often done through trial and error, which leads to loss of time. The system developed by Onur Kauçuk:
• Saves time
• Generates results based on technical data
• Clearly shows compatibility rates
• Prevents failures caused by incorrect material selection

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🧠 5. Conclusion: The Right Material Means Long-Lasting Performance

There’s no room for chance in rubber selection anymore.
Onur Kauçuk’s Rubber Selection Guide offers an intelligent solution for manufacturers and engineering teams.
If you also want to choose the right rubber for your project, try our guide and see the difference.

👉 Try the Rubber Selection Guide