Rubber Diaphragms

A Diaphragm Seal is a flexible membrane that seals and shuts off an enclosure. The flexible nature of this type of seal allows pressure effects to cross the barrier but not the material being contained. Common applications for rubber diaphragm seals are to protect pressure sensors from the fluid whose pressure is being tested or measured. The materials used for producing diaphragms are commonly elastomers and include a wide variety of general purpose and speciality rubbers. They are however limited to low pressure applications and those which are chemically compatible with the various plastics and rubbers used. Rubber diaphragm seals are also used to protect a process fluid from the pressure sensor and examples of this are food processing where allowing a process fluid to accumulate in the pressure port of the sensor would otherwise compromise the purity of the fluid such as milk. Another example is where a metal surface of other monitoring equipment might contaminate the fluid such as copper or brass during processing.