This page puts all 13 materials side by side. Pick the materials and properties you care about and see the differences at a glance; each material's full property table is on its product page.
| Property | EPP20–66 kg/m³ | EPS15–60 kg/m³ | EPO16–33 kg/m³ | Beaded EPE20–74 kg/m³ | EVA30–50 kg/m³ | EPE20–45 kg/m³ | MPPE100–285 kg/m³ | E-PA150–600 kg/m³ | E-PET150–300 kg/m³ | EPEBA100–350 kg/m³ | ETPU180–300 kg/m³ | ETPEE100–150 kg/m³ | EPLA25–40 kg/m³ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Light weightdensity, kg/m³ | 20–666–9.2/10 | 15–606.2–10/10 | 16–337.9–9.8/10 | 20–745.7–9.2/10 | 30–506.7–8.1/10 | 20–457–9.2/10 | 100–2852–4.9/10 | 150–6000–3.8/10 | 150–3001.9–3.8/10 | 100–3501.5–4.9/10 | 180–3001.9–3.3/10 | 100–1503.8–4.9/10 | 25–407.3–8.6/10 |
| Load bearingcompression @10%, kPa | 50–3251.5–4.6/10 | 60–4301.8–5.1/10 | 90–1602.5–3.4/10 | 44.8–241.31.3–4.1/10 | 20–300–0.7/10 | 22–880.2–2.4/10 | 1100–50006.6–9.1/10 | 2200–87007.7–10/10 | 1000–38006.4–8.6/10 | 50–8001.5–6.1/10 | 40–801.1–2.3/10 | 30–600.7–1.8/10 | 160–2003.4–3.8/10 |
| Heat resistancelong-term service, °C | 1006.3/10 | 753.1/10 | 803.8/10 | 803.8/10 | 651.9/10 | 803.8/10 | 1056.9/10 | 1208.8/10 | 1107.5/10 | 803.8/10 | 803.8/10 | 1208.8/10 | 500/10 |
| Thermal insulationconductivity, W/(m·K) | 0.036–0.0427.9–9.2/10 | 0.032–0.0379–10/10 | 0.037–0.0398.5–9/10 | 0.0346–0.04337.6–9.5/10 | 0.048.3/10 | 0.039–0.0447.5–8.5/10 | 0.035–0.056.3–9.4/10 | 0.045–0.080–7.3/10 | 0.038–0.0594.4–8.8/10 | 0.04–0.0457.3–8.3/10 | 0.045–0.0555.2–7.3/10 | 0.042–0.0486.7–7.9/10 | 0.0359.4/10 |
| Reboundenergy return, % | 303.8/10 | 5–150–1.5/10 | 25–403.1–5.4/10 | 506.9/10 | 374.9/10 | 30–353.8–4.6/10 | 20–352.3–4.6/10 | 30–453.8–6.2/10 | 20–352.3–4.6/10 | 7010/10 | 578/10 | 557.7/10 | 5–150–1.5/10 |
| Cold resistanceminimum service, °C | −402.5/10 | −503.8/10 | −503.8/10 | −706.3/10 | −402.5/10 | −605/10 | −807.5/10 | −402.5/10 | −402.5/10 | −402.5/10 | −301.3/10 | −402.5/10 | −200/10 |
| Softnesshardness, Asker-C | Asker-C 45–752.9–6.4/10Semi-rigid — cushions under load, not under a finger | Asker-C 70–950.5–3.5/10Hard and brittle, almost no elastic deformation | Asker-C 55–703.5–5.2/10Semi-rigid, harder — stiff without being brittle | Asker-C 25–555.2–8.8/10Medium-soft — flexible and scratch-safe but supportive | Asker-C 15–258.8–10/10The softest here — Asker-C 15–25, conforms readily under load | Asker-C 25–407–8.8/10Soft — thin extruded sheet, gives under a finger | Asker-C 88–970.2–1.3/10Rigid, engineering-plastic class | Asker-C 92–990–0.8/10The most rigid — 8.7 MPa compression strength | Asker-C 90–980.1–1.1/10Rigid, structural core class | Asker-C 387.3/10Very soft, Asker-C 38, close to ETPU | Asker-C 35–525.6–7.6/10Very soft, running-midsole feel | Asker-C 426.8/10Soft, slightly firmer than EPEBA | Asker-C 65–802.3–4/10Hard and brittle, same mechanism as EPS |
| Flame retardancecertified rating | UL 94 V-0 / GB 84108/10GB 8410 ≤70–90 mm/min; UL 94 V-0 FR grade available across the full density range | none0/10 | none0/10 | FMVSS 3025/10FMVSS 302 passed at every density | none0/10 | FMVSS 3025/10FMVSS 302 passed at 35–55 mm/min; flame-retardant grade on request | UL 94 V-010/10UL 94 V-0 intrinsic, halogen-free | none0/10 | UL 94 V-0 (11 mm)7/10Standard grade UL 94 V-2 (5 mm); high-FR grade V-0 (11 mm) | none0/10 | none0/10 | none0/10 | none0/10 |
| Chemical resistancegrade | 66/10Polyolefin base: good with acid, alkali, alcohols; not aromatics or chlorinated solvents | 4/133/10Only 4 of 13 tested media resisted | 11/138/1011 of 13 tested media resisted; DBP partial, MEK not resisted | 66/10Polyolefin base: good with acid, alkali, alcohols; not aromatics or chlorinated solvents | 33/10Resists weak acid and alkali; ester groups weak against strong oxidisers and aromatics | 66/10Polyolefin base: good with acid, alkali, alcohols and most oils; not aromatics or chlorinated solvents | 77/10Resists acid, alkali and most polar solvents; not aromatics or chlorinated solvents | 1010/10Resists fuel, engine oil and lubricants — stated for engine-bay use | 88/10Resists oil, acid, alkali and solvents | 44/10Moderate with oil; amide segments absorb moisture, weak against strong acid | 55/10Good with oil; not strong acid/alkali or hot water (urethane hydrolysis) | 55/10Moderate with oil; ester bonds hydrolyse in strong acid/alkali and hot water | 22/10Ester bonds hydrolyse readily — the flip side of being compostable |
| Weather resistancegrade | 44/10PP tertiary hydrogen triggers photo-oxidation; chalks outdoors within months without additives | 22/10Benzene rings absorb UV strongly — yellows, chalks and cracks; among the worst outdoors | 44/10PS content inherits benzene-ring UV sensitivity | 88/10Saturated linear backbone, no tertiary hydrogen — best weathering among polyolefins | 44/10Ester groups hydrolyse under UV and damp heat; worse at higher VA content | 88/10Saturated linear backbone like Beaded EPE; thin sheet needs a stabiliser for long outdoor use | 22/10PPO UV yellowing is a known weakness — do not assume engineering plastics weather well | 44/10Amide bonds hydrolyse and absorb moisture — outdoors is nylon's weak point | 66/10Aromatic polyester, moderate — better than PS but still photo-degrades and hydrolyses | 22/10Amide segments hydrolyse plus polyether segments oxidise — two weaknesses stacked | 22/10Depends on type: aromatic (MDI) yellows badly, aliphatic (HDI/IPDI) weathers well but costs more. Scored low by default | 44/10Aromatic ester hard segments with oxidation-prone polyether soft segments | 22/10Ester bonds hydrolyse readily — it is designed to degrade |
| Environmentalgrade | 66/10Thermoplastic, re-pelletisable, no cross-linking | 55/10Thermoplastic and recyclable; mature collection but often limited by contamination | 66/10Thermoplastic, re-pelletisable, no cross-linking | 66/10Thermoplastic, re-pelletisable, no cross-linking | 22/10Cross-linked — cannot be melt-reprocessed, hard to recycle | 66/10Thermoplastic, non-crosslinked, re-pelletisable (#4 LDPE) | 55/10Thermoplastic and recyclable; narrow engineering-plastic recycling channels | 55/10Thermoplastic and recyclable; narrow engineering-plastic recycling channels | 88/10BIO grade 25% biomass content; RNW grade uses recycled resin | 77/10Thermoplastic and recyclable; bio-based content 26–28% (castor-derived) | 55/10Thermoplastic and recyclable | 55/10Thermoplastic and recyclable | 1010/10Disintegrates in about 4 weeks of industrial composting; certified compostable to EN 13432; no hydrocarbon blowing agent; bio-based |
Full property tables, grade by grade
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