TPE Question and Concerns

JCP502 · Post by **JCP502** » Tue Nov 18, 2014 12:41 am

Hi All,

I am thinking of buying a TPE doll but I have a question about the material that I would like Beautiful Dolls to address. Is the TPE material soluble in organic solvents? Let me be clear, I don't plan on throwing acetone at a doll or anything like that. I am asking to see if besides temperature if there are any other limitations in regards to the material.

With silicone, it has a wide range of thermal stability and is not soluble in pretty much anything once polymerized. So with silicone dolls, I am finding that these dolls are pretty resilient overall. I realize they are not as soft as TPE (from what I have heard from other members), and tear more easily, but it sounds like repairing them is much easier. I have repaired a silicone doll before but not TPE which is the reason for my previous statement.

Now with TPE dolls, I am getting the impression they are much more fragile in the sense they can be melted with lower temperature (than silicone) and, if I my question about the solubility turns out to be yes, also organic solvents. Basically, it is not sitting well with me the thought that a doll could be "ruined" so easily.

I am reaching out to Beautiful Dolls in the hopes they ease my concerns.

Thank you!

JP

Thndrrbolt · Post by **Thndrrbolt** » Tue Nov 18, 2014 8:17 am

I obtained a sample of TPE and deliberately stained it. Then I used xylene as a cleaning agent.
The xylene completely removed the stain, but very slightly roughened the surface.
I think that if I had not allowed the xylene to remain on the surface in such concentration for as long as I did (longer than was actually required to remove the stain), the damage would have been negligible to non existent.
So yes, organic solvents CAN cause damage to TPE, but what scenario do you envision that would result in such an exposure when there are several cleaning agents (Ponds cold cream and WM's dedicated stain remover to name two) which have NO ill effect on the material?
T'Bolt

JCP502 · Post by **JCP502** » Tue Nov 18, 2014 11:31 am

Thank you T'Bolt for the reply and the information! I was just curious as to the degree of solubility the TPE material is in case I want to do any modifications on it, for example.

Obin · Post by **Obin** » Tue Nov 18, 2014 6:38 pm

I thought about posting about experiments but didn't think my experience would be helpful.

I cut up a cyberskin toy that's over ten years old to experiment with. I tried MEK, DCM, acetone, and plain old Testors Plastic Cement to see whether any would work to bond the material as an adhesive. Adhesion did occur, but I observed no results I found adequate. Anyway, after a time, the pieces I had cut up began to split. I don't know whether the solvents caused the splitting, since I used very old material anyway. Certainly, I can't recommend using solvents on TPE material.

JCP502 · Post by **JCP502** » Tue Nov 18, 2014 9:48 pm

Thank you Obin for your input! It sounds like if the material is splitting then it probably is dissolving into the solvent.

I am thinking, based on your results, that the TPE is at least partially soluble in organic solvent. One way to test this would be to take a small amount (maybe a small chunk) of material and putting it into a glass container filled with organic solvent and seeing if it dissolves. If after some time it doesn't dissolve completely, then it is likely only partially soluble. If, however, the material does dissolve completely then it is soluble.

If you want to try this though I am not sure if you have a scale, but if you would like to then you could try maybe one gram in at least 100mL of DCM or some other organic solvent. I recommend DCM since it is the most non polar out of MEK, Acetone, and DCM.

Obin · Post by **Obin** » Wed Nov 19, 2014 12:14 am

JCP502 wrote:Thank you Obin for your input! It sounds like if the material is splitting then it probably is dissolving into the solvent.

I am thinking, based on your results, that the TPE is at least partially soluble in organic solvent. One way to test this would be to take a small amount (maybe a small chunk) of material and putting it into a glass container filled with organic solvent and seeing if it dissolves. If after some time it doesn't dissolve completely, then it is likely only partially soluble. If, however, the material does dissolve completely then it is soluble.

If you want to try this though I am not sure if you have a scale, but if you would like to then you could try maybe one gram in at least 100mL of DCM or some other organic solvent. I recommend DCM since it is the most non polar out of MEK, Acetone, and DCM.

Done that long ago.

However, I don't have a scale. I'll consider that for the next trial, if I ever get a chance.

I'm certain there's more that a chemist would learn from the experiment than I, but I'll state the observation. I've been meaning to experiment once more, using a shallow container. I placed a small amount of solvent and cyberskin in the container. The solvent did cover the cyberskin sample.

I used a cleaned out glass container that a 24 oz. spaghetti sauce product comes in, so I found it difficult to get to the remaining material. What was left, however, was mush and some brittle pieces. It wasn't cyberskin anymore.

Bear in mind that TPE/cyberskin has a good deal of oil. According to documents I've read, there's about ten times more oil than polymer.

JCP502 · Post by **JCP502** » Wed Nov 19, 2014 7:14 pm

Interesting! Thank you for the information Obin!

Obin · Post by **Obin** » Wed Nov 19, 2014 7:38 pm

Although not relevant to this discussion, I'm going to throw another thought in.

UR3, a Doc Johnson material, reportedly has an exclusive Antibacterial SilAGel formula. I think WM/TPE doll makers should consider incorporating such technology. I'm not particularly fond of UR3 toys, but this appears to be a good feature.