What impact does the choice of caster material have on its service life?
Jul 29, 2025
Leave a message
The choice of castor material is the core factor that determines its service life. There are significant differences in the wear resistance, corrosion resistance, temperature resistance, aging resistance and load-bearing adaptability of different materials, which directly affect the wear speed, aging degree and structural stability of castors in a specific environment.
The specific impact is as follows:
1. Wear resistance: determines the life of casters in friction environment
The main loss of casters comes from the friction between the wheel surface and the ground, and the wear resistance of the material directly determines its "wear resistance life":
High wear-resistant material (nylon PA, polyurethane PU):
Nylon has a tight molecular structure and contains reinforcing fibers. When rolling on rough ground (cement floor, debris-containing ground), the wear rate of the wheel surface is only 1/5 of that of rubber; PU material has excellent wear resistance on smooth ground (tiles, PVC), low friction coefficient, and it is not easy to bleach or fall off after long-term rolling.
2. Corrosion resistance: determines the life span in a chemical environment
In scenarios where disinfectants, oil, acid and alkali are exposed to chemical substances such as disinfectants (such as medical disinfection areas, laboratories), the corrosion resistance of the material directly affects its "anti-aging life":
Corrosion-resistant material (nylon PA, polyolefin PO):
Nylon is highly resistant to chemical substances such as chlorine-containing disinfectants and alcohol, and its molecular structure is not easily damaged by corrosion; polyolefins (PO) are resistant to acid and alkali. In a humid + chemical contact environment (such as hospital cleaning rooms), it can prevent the wheel body from cracking and swelling due to "chemical erosion".
3. Temperature resistance: determines the life span in extreme temperature environments
High or low temperatures will accelerate the aging, hardening or softening of the material, affecting the "anti-temperature change life" of the caster:
High temperature resistant material (nylon PA, cast iron):
Nylon can maintain its structure at below 120℃ and is suitable for high-temperature disinfection areas (such as equipment near the hospital sterilization room); cast iron wheels are more temperature resistant, but they are large in weight and prone to rust (need to be equipped with anti-corrosion coating).
4. Load-bearing adaptability: determines the life of the load scenario
If the load bearing limit of the material does not match the actual load, it will cause the wheel body structure to be damaged in advance, affecting the "structural stable life":
High load-bearing material (reinforced nylon PA, cast iron):
The single-wheel bearing capacity of enhanced nylon can reach more than 500KG, and the wheel body has strong resistance to deformation. Even if it is heavy loaded for a long time (such as hospital heavy equipment transfer trucks), it is not easy to have wheel shaft offset or wheel surface collapse; cast iron wheels have higher load bearing, but attention should be paid to prevent rust.
Medium and light load material (PU, TPE):
If it is forcibly used for heavy loads (such as the PU wheel carrying more than 300KG), it will cause "hidden cracks" inside the wheel surface due to material fatigue, and there may be no obvious damage in the short term, but the wheel body will suddenly break after 3-6 months, and its life span is much lower than the service time under the rated load.
5. Environmental adaptability: "hidden factors" that comprehensively affect lifespan
The "compatibility" between the material and the environment determines whether it will age early due to "non-friction loss":
In humid environments, the lifespan of nylon (not absorbing water at all) is more than 5 times that of ordinary carbon steel wheels (prone to rust);
In the high-frequency steering scenarios in medical wards, the life of the PU wheel (good elasticity and not prone to stress cracking due to frequent steering) is 30% longer than that of the nylon wheel (high rigidity, easy to wear during steering);
In environments with a lot of dust, the PU wheel on a smooth surface (not easy to accumulate dust and reduce friction resistance) has a lifespan of nearly 1 times than that of a rubber wheel (rough surface, easy to get stuck in dust and aggravate wear).
