Radel® R-5000 · Duradex® D-3000 Equivalent — BASF Ultrason® P 3010

A PPSU switch involves two competitor grades of a different character. Radel® R-5000 is the global standard toughness grade behind repeat-steam-sterilised medical instruments, baby bottles and aircraft interiors. Duradex® D-3000 is Syensqo's high-flow grade for long flow lengths and thin walls. They target different positions, so the axis on which each is compared with BASF Ultrason® P 3010 is different too. Both are covered separately below.

Two competitors, two different axes

Octud supplies a single PPSU injection grade — Ultrason® P 3010 — and it is the candidate for both. What has to be compared differs by axis: toughness and sterilisation durability against R-5000, flow behaviour and supply security against D-3000.

Property comparison

Syensqo and Victrex publish to ASTM; BASF publishes Ultrason® data to ISO. Specimen geometry and test conditions differ, so the two columns cannot be compared one-to-one. Use the table to judge whether the grades sit in the same class — ask us if you need data measured to a single standard.

Where a PPSU switch actually gets blocked

Similar property tables do not mean a clear path. These are the places a switch actually stalls.

HDT is lower than both competitors — and when that matters

P 3010's HDT at 1.8 MPa is 197°C: 10°C below R-5000 (207°C) and 7°C below D-3000 (204°C). Glass transition is identical at 220°C, so the material's own temperature ceiling is not lower — what is lower is the onset of deflection under load. For steam sterilisation (typically 121–134°C) or hot-water contact, where service temperature sits well below HDT, that stays inside the design margin. For a part carrying load near 200°C, those 10°C come straight off the margin and this is not a candidate. Tell us the actual load and temperature and we will help judge.

Impact toughness figures are in different units and cannot be compared as printed

P 3010 is quoted as Charpy notched 70 kJ/m² and Izod notched 58 kJ/m² (ISO, per unit area), and does not break unnotched. The 640 J/m in D-3000 trade literature is ASTM, per unit length — converting requires the specimen thickness, and comparing the two numbers directly leads to a wrong conclusion. Since toughness is usually the whole reason PPSU was specified, this is the item to be most careful with. Ask us if you need data on a single basis.

For medical devices, a resin change is a regulatory change

For body-contact parts such as reusable instruments and baby bottles, changing resin brings biocompatibility retesting (ISO 10993, USP Class VI) and a regulatory change filing. That is a different order of magnitude from cross-checking approval listings on a filter housing, and the timeline is far longer. Align with your regulatory team before committing.

Repeat sterilisation durability is only proven by cycling

PPSU is specified for 1,000+ repeat steam sterilisation cycles, and that is not a line on a property table. Cracking, blushing and dimensional drift have to be run for real in an autoclave. Send us your sterilisation protocol and we will supply samples for verification under the same conditions.

D-3000 is supplied in Asia-Pacific only

Per Syensqo's official product page, Duradex® D-3000 is available in Asia-Pacific and not available in Europe, North America, Latin America, Africa or the Middle East. If the part is exported after moulding in Korea, or is a platform part that must share a specification with overseas plants, standardising on D-3000 is not possible. Ultrason® P 3010 is supplied by BASF in all regions — in that case the switch is a supply-chain question, not a cost question.

How to evaluate the switch

1. 01Decide which axis you are coming from — R-5000 (toughness, sterilisation) or D-3000 (flow, thin wall). The checks differ.
2. 02Judge first whether HDT 197°C sits inside the margin for your load and temperature. If it fails here, there is no point going further.
3. 03For body-contact parts, confirm the biocompatibility and regulatory-change timeline with your regulatory team.
4. 04Mould evaluation samples in your existing tool. For thin-wall or long-flow parts, check the filling limit first.
5. 05Verify sterilisation durability by repeated autoclave cycling under your real protocol.
6. 06For coloured parts, run colour matching against your standard. Octud supplies Avient Colorant Chromatics™ high-temperature colouring alongside the resin.

If moulding defects appear, the high-temperature resin moulding troubleshooting guide covers cause and corrective action by symptom.

Frequently asked questions

Can Ultrason® P 3010 replace Radel® R-5000?

Same PPSU family, identical glass transition at 220°C, slightly higher tensile strength, with excellent notched-impact toughness and repeat steam sterilisation durability. HDT at 1.8 MPa is 197°C, however — 10°C below R-5000's 207°C — so for a part carrying load at high temperature, check the margin first. If service temperature is in the sterilisation range (121–134°C), there is normally ample headroom.

What is Duradex® D-3000, and why is its data so hard to find?

It is a Syensqo PPSU grade, a high-flow product for long flow lengths and thin walls, supplied in Asia-Pacific only. Syensqo does not publish a technical data sheet for it, so most figures circulating in the market come from trade literature. For accurate data you have to request the TDS from your supplier — we can help with that.

We use D-3000. Can we specify the same material at our overseas plants?

Not readily. Per Syensqo's official information, D-3000 is Asia-Pacific only and cannot be sourced in Europe, North America or Latin America. To share one specification across a global platform or an exported product, it is safer to move to a grade supplied in all regions — Ultrason® P 3010 is that alternative.

Will P 3010 fill our thin-wall part?

P 3010's melt volume rate is 34 cm³/10 min at 360°C/10 kg, which is towards the higher-flow end of PPSU injection grades. Note that D-3000's published figure is an ASTM mass rate (g/10 min at 365°C/5 kg) — different units and conditions, so the two are not directly comparable. For thin-wall and long-flow parts a trial shot in the real tool is far more conclusive than a number; we recommend checking the filling limit with samples first.

How do we confirm the sterilisation cycle count?

Ultrason® P 3010 is a grade rated for 1,000+ repeat steam sterilisation cycles, but real durability depends on part geometry, residual stress and the sterilisation protocol. Send us your current conditions and we will supply samples so cycling can be verified on the same basis.

Other families

• PSU · PolysulfoneUdel® P-1700 → Ultrason® S 2010→
• PESU · PolyethersulfoneVeradel® A-201 → Ultrason® E 2010→
• PEEK · PolyetheretherketoneVictrex® 450G → Joyrun K10G→

※ Radel® and Duradex® are registered trademarks of Syensqo; Ultrason® is a registered trademark of BASF SE. Octud is the official Korean distributor for BASF Ultrason® and has no affiliation with Syensqo. Competitor product names are used for factual identification and comparison only. Radel® R-5000 and Ultrason® P 3010 values are typical values from each manufacturer's published TDS. Duradex® D-3000 values are reference figures from trade literature because the manufacturer publishes no TDS, and their accuracy is not warranted. Differing test bases (ASTM / ISO) limit direct comparison, and an equivalency judgement does not replace design verification.