Written and maintained by CASRAI Editorial Board
Last updated
TPU is thermoplastic polyurethane, a family of elastic plastics that bridge the gap between rubber and hard thermoplastics. In medical and laboratory supplies it appears in tubing, device housings, connectors and wound-care components. A TPU’s behaviour depends on its grade, and the grade is what a supplier’s documentation describes. This page is general product information, not medical advice. (TPU also abbreviates Google’s Tensor Processing Unit, a computing chip, which is not covered here.)
Short answer
TPU stands for thermoplastic polyurethane. Covestro, a TPU manufacturer, describes TPUs as offering “a unique combination of properties that bridge the gap between rubber and hard thermoplastics”: high wear and abrasion resistance, high elasticity and low-temperature flexibility. Medical grades exist, but the material itself is not cleared or approved by the FDA; the finished device is evaluated.
Definition and scope
A thermoplastic can be melted and shaped, which is why TPU is processed by extrusion and overmolding, both named in Covestro’s grade descriptions. BASF, which sells TPU under the Elastollan name, summarises the family as a combination of elasticity, wear resistance and mechanical strength. The term covers many grades, from soft, flexible ones to rigid ones used for housings, so a single “TPU” on a product listing says little until the grade or its datasheet is known. Where polymer basics matter, see what polymer science is and what materials science is.
How TPU is used in medical devices and lab supplies
Covestro names several of its medical TPU grades and their stated uses:
- Texin RxT76D, a rigid grade, for device and component housings and connectors (nominal flexural modulus 215,000 psi).
- Texin RxS292, a polyester-based grade, for overmolding, extruded tubing and wound care.
- Texin RxT80A, a polyether-based grade at 80 Shore A, for reinforced and multi-lumen tubing and transdermal applications.
Tubing is the use most relevant to supply buyers. Pages on Foley catheters, PICC lines and feeding tubes describe device types where tubing materials are a design choice; TPU is one of several materials a manufacturer may specify, and the product’s own labelling states what a given device is made of.
TPU properties and chemical resistance: polyester versus polyether
The two main chemistries trade properties against each other. The table uses only the manufacturers’ own wording; it is vendor-stated, not a laboratory ranking.
| Type | Manufacturer wording | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Polyester-based | Texin RxS292: “excellent clarity and chemical resistance”. Elastollan ester grade: “excellent mechanical properties and chemical resistance”. | Covestro; BASF |
| Polyether-based | Texin RxT80A: “excellent clarity, extrusion characteristics and hydrolysis resistance”. Elastollan ether grades: “excellent hydrolysis resistance”; 14 Series: “exceptional hydrolysis and microbe resistance”. | Covestro; BASF |
Read together, the vendors associate polyester grades with chemical resistance and polyether grades with hydrolysis resistance (resistance to breakdown by water). For chemical resistance in general, Covestro states that TPUs withstand “chemicals, lipids, cleaning agents and bacteria”, and says Texin RxT76D has excellent resistance to many cleaning agents used to minimise hospital-acquired infections. BASF cites resistance to oils, greases and chemicals. Neither source publishes a rating for a specific disinfectant, so resistance to a named cleaning agent should be confirmed from the grade’s datasheet. For permeation data on another common lab material, see glove breakthrough time and permeation data.
Where it matters for supply decisions
The FDA’s guidance on ISO 10993-1 (issued 8 September 2023) states: “The Agency does not clear or approve individual materials that are used in the fabrication of medical devices.” The biological risk assessment should evaluate the final finished device, including materials, processing, manufacturing methods such as sterilization, and manufacturing-aid residuals. It also notes that a material supplier’s information, for example a master file, can be a source of risk information, and that a change in resin supplier can change a device’s biocompatibility.
Questions that follow directly from those sources, to put to a manufacturer or in a datasheet review:
- Which exact grade is used, and has the resin supplier changed?
- What contact category and duration is the finished device evaluated for? Covestro’s page lists categories such as skin contact, up to 24 hours of circulating blood or tissue contact, and up to 30 days of mucosal membrane or blood-path contact for named grades.
- Does the documentation cover processing and sterilization of the finished product?
Common misunderstandings
“Medical-grade TPU is FDA-approved”
The FDA states it does not clear or approve individual materials. A grade may be described by its supplier as meeting test requirements, but the clearance question belongs to the finished device.
“Meets ISO 10993-1 requirements means biocompatible”
Wording matters. Covestro’s own page uses both “meet important biocompatibility test requirements for ISO 10993-1” and the narrower “meets certain biocompatibility test requirements for ISO 10993-1” for named grades. A claim of meeting certain requirements is narrower than a blanket statement of biocompatibility.
“All TPU resists the same things”
The table above shows the manufacturers separate polyester and polyether grades by what they emphasise, and grades differ in hardness and stiffness.
FAQ
What is TPU?
Thermoplastic polyurethane, an elastic, abrasion-resistant plastic that combines rubber-like and plastic-like behaviour, made in many grades including medical ones.
What are the main properties of TPU?
Per Covestro: high wear and abrasion resistance, high elasticity and low-temperature flexibility. BASF: elasticity, wear resistance and mechanical strength.
Is TPU chemically resistant?
Manufacturers describe good resistance to many chemicals, oils and cleaning agents, with polyester grades emphasised for chemical resistance and polyether grades for hydrolysis and microbe resistance. Confirm any named chemical against the specific grade’s datasheet.
Sources
- Covestro, New medical grade TPU materials, checked 30 October 2026.
- BASF, Elastollan thermoplastic polyurethane, checked 30 October 2026.
- U.S. FDA, Use of International Standard ISO 10993-1, guidance issued 8 September 2023, checked 30 October 2026.
