Insulation & Jacketing Materials Properties

Insulation for wires and cables is designed for specific environments ranging from relatively docile surroundings as in a laboratory, metrology, or indoor AC electric supplies, to very harsh environments where extreme temperatures are present, abusive physical conditions wear on the insulation, or wide ranges of flexure and/or vibration are applied continually. Of course, preventing the conductors inside the insulation from making physical contact is the primary concern. Without a protective insulation covering, the service life can be severely reduced, creating not just system failure, but the potential for fire or electrocution. If the insulation cannot handle the voltage levels being supported by the conductors, then short circuits will occur and/or exposure to electrocution hazards might be present. Even regions of partial weakness in the insulation can cause problems like cross-talk between wires and a particularly difficult problem to troubleshoot - intermittent shorts.

This table of insulation & jacketing materials properties will help get you started when researching your needs. Once you have a good idea of what you are looking for, please take a look at the Coaxial, Ribbon, Twisted Pair, & Braided Single & Multiconductor Cable & Wire Assemblies page for suppliers.
 

1: Ethylene TetrafluoroEthylene by DuPont.
2: Chlorosulfonated Polyethylene  by DuPont.
3: Polyvinyl Chloride.
4: Tetrafluorethylene is the original Teflon resin invented by DuPont in 1938.
5: Fluorinated Ethylene Propylene is a ""Teflon"" fluorocarbon resin and is a registered T.M. of the DuPont Company.
6: Polyvinylidene Fluoride.
7: Thermoplastic Elastomer.   Data obtained from Alpha Wire Company printed catalog table

Here is a great resource from the Anixter for insulation definitions