Tyvek
Tyvek is a brand of flashspun high-density polyethylene fibers, a synthetic material; the name is a registered trademark of the DuPont Company. The material is very strong; it is difficult to tear but can easily be cut with scissors or any other sharp object. Water vapor can pass through Tyvek, but not liquid water, so the material lends itself to a variety of applications: medical packaging, envelopes, car covers, air and water intrusion barriers (housewrap) under house siding, labels, wristbands, mycology, and graphics. Tyvek is sometimes erroneously referred to as "Tyvex."
Tyvek has been used by the United States Postal Service for some of its
Priority Mail and Express
Mail packages and for banknotes in some
countries.
Many lightweight backpackers are now using homemade Tyvek groundcloths, finding that they are lighter, cheaper, and pack smaller than the traditional blue plastic tarps.
Tyvek coveralls are one-piece jumpsuits made of Tyvek, usually white in color. They are often
worn by mechanics over their clothes to avoid contact with oil and fuel. They can also be worn for painting to protect skin and
clothes from splattered paint, for installation of fiberglass insulation, by workers in laboratories and clean rooms, and any other use where a disposable, one-time use coverall is needed. Tyvek coveralls are also
used for some light hazardous materials applications but do not provide the level of
protection of a full hazmat suit. Tychem is a sub-brand of Tyvek rated for a higher level of
Tyvek can also be used to make CD and DVD sleeves, due to its useful properties that give the disc sufficient protection.
Tyvek superficially resembles paper; for example, it can be written and printed on. However, it cannot be recycled as paper. Instead, DuPont runs a program in the United States where disposable clothing, coveralls, lab coats, and other Tyvek disposable garments can be recycled.
Tyvek is manufactured at the Spruance plant in Richmond, Virginia and in Luxembourg.
External links
- Formal information about Tyvek as paper
- What is Tyvek
- DuPont home page
- FAQ of Tyvek
- Tyvek® Hard-Structure and Soft-Structure - What’s the difference?
| E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Company (DuPont) | |
|---|---|
| Corporate Directors: | Richard H.
Brown · Robert A. Brown · Bertrand P. Collomb · Curtis Crawford · There du Pont ·
John T. Dillon · |
| Products: | Corian · Kevlar · Mylar · Neoprene · Nomex · Nylon · Teflon · Tyvek |
Annual Revenue: $27.3 billion USD ( 1.3% FY 2004) · Employees: 60,000 ·Stock Symbol: Preferred stock: NYSE: DDPRA, NYSE: DDPRB Common stock: NYSE: DD · Website: www.dupont.com |
|
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