Bioflex has been designed to fulfil the most demanding of customer expectations and, as such, has been subjected to a highly complex and rigorous Proof Testing Programme, parts of which are described here.

Test No. 1. The 'Flip-Flop' Test.

The ‘Flip Flop’ test was invented by Aflex Hose to combine the extremes of flexing, temperature and pressure simultaneously. The hose is flexed to its Minimum Bend Radius in two opposing directions through a 240º arc. It is cycled through this flexing profile 20 times per minute, while pressurised to its Maximum Working Pressure, inside an oven heated to 180°C.

Results

Bioflex consistently achieves more than 50 times the life of standard convoluted hose.

Typically, a 1” Bioflex hose is still intact tested at 50 Bar for 100,000 cycles, whilst a 1” convoluted hose tested at 30 Bar fails due to the inner tube bursting after 1,300 cycles.

Similar results were also achieved when tested without pressure, at room temperature.

Test No. 2. The Permeability Test.

Fixed lengths of Bioflex were pressurised to 30 Bar with Helium Gas, and compared with samples of standard convoluted PTFE hose.

Results

Bioflex has more than 2.5 x the permeation resistance of standard convoluted hose. Millilitres of Helium, which permeated hose, per metre, per hour:

1” Bioflex = 138
1” Convoluted = 371

Test No. 3. The Flow Rate Test.

The test apparatus illustrated below was used to measure the flow rate of Bioflex, both in a straight configuration and coiled to its Minimum Bend Radius. The test medium was water.

Results

Comparisons were made with samples of standard convoluted hose with the same diameter on the inside of the convolutions as the Bioflex inside diameter. These show that Bioflex is capable of delivering 2 - 3 times the flow rate of convoluted hose.

Additional tests have shown that the flow rate through a Bioflex hose is actually greater than that of a convoluted hose, which is one size larger. For example, 1½” Bioflex has a higher flow rate than 2” convoluted hose. It is therefore possible to use a smaller Bioflex hose, fitted with full size end fittings, to replace a convoluted hose more effectively, and more economically!

This remarkable improvement is due to the fact that the turbulent flow created by the convolutions in the standard product is virtually eliminated by the much smoother bore of Bioflex.