Monomers are materials, such as styrene and vinyl chloride, which can combine with themselves and become polymers, such as polystyrene and polyvinyl chloride. GYLON® Styles 3510 and 3530 are recommended for monomers, since elastomer-bound gaskets are rarely compatible with monomers.
Some monomers, under certain conditions, will penetrate a gasket and polymerize inside the gasket, causing the gasket to swell and, occasionally, rupture. This effect is known as "popcorning". This effect can be reduced or eliminated with additional compressive load which lowers the void space inherent in a gasket.