An Essential Guide to Offshore Rubber

23rd June, 2025

Rubber is a crucial material for the offshore and wind industry for several reasons; its ability to protect mechanisms, its toughness, corrosion resistance, thermal stability and flexibility means rubber can assist in unpredictable offshore operations.

This essential guide to offshore rubber will explore the importance of rubber for the offshore and wind industry, uses of offshore rubber, materials used in offshore rubber and how to look after rubber suitably, as well as the challenges of offshore wind farms.

Introduction to Rubber for Offshore Wind

The first UK offshore wind farm began operations in 2000, at Blyth wind farm, just off the Northumberland coast. Offshore wind operations are growing, and by 2030, the goal is to have up to 50GW deployed in the UK from offshore wind projects.

Rubber plays a significant role in the offshore and wind industry because it has several unique properties which make them an invaluable addition to offshore wind energy projects. There are multiple uses for rubber in the offshore and wind industry, for example, if you are looking to protect from corrosion, mechanical stress or UV radiation, and choosing the right marine rubber, like rubber gaskets, o-rings and seals, is crucial for your offshore wind farm.

Uses for Offshore Rubber

Rubber materials are used across several applications on an offshore wind farm, all for different protective reasons.

Subsea Cables

Subsea cables are a key component in any offshore wind farm because they transmit electricity from the turbines to the shore, meaning they must be suitably protected from harsh marine conditions. Therefore, these cables need to be protected from saltwater corrosion, underwater pressure and abrasion from the seabed.

Foundations and Substructures

The foundations and substructures of any offshore wind turbines are submerged in seawater, meaning they are at high risk of corrosion. Rubber materials are used to protect the steel components through forming a barrier which prevents saltwater from making contact with the metal. This will extend the working lifespan of the steel components.

Floating Platforms

When offshore wind farms are located in deeper waters, it is necessary to use floating wind turbines which are anchored to the seabed using mooring lines. To ensure strength and flexibility, these mooring lines are made from strong rubbers which are also resistant to UV radiation and water.

Materials for Offshore Rubber

Rubber is an extremely resilient and versatile material meaning that it is the best choice for marine environments, like offshore wind farms, because they have a selection of the following properties:

• Weather resistant (including temperature, wind and rain)
• UV and ozone tolerant
• Chemically resistant
• Seawater and saltwater tolerant
• Resistant to repetitive strain

Different materials will be better suited to particular applications, but EPDM, Neoprene and Nitrile are the most common choices for rubber materials in the offshore and wind industry.

Ethylene Propylene Diene Monomer (EPDM)

EPDM is a synthetic rubber consisting of ethylene, propylene and diene. The diene monomer forms a small amount, but this provides the rubber with high resilience, flexibility and durability, making it suitable for the offshore industry.

EPDM is known for its ozone and weather resistance. Selecting and using ozone resistant materials means that the rubber used in different applications on a wind farm are protected from premature degradation and long-term durability means wind turbines and other applications can perform optimally for as long as possible. Marine conditions can be extremely harsh, so the environmentally stable and abrasion resistant properties of EPDM make it highly sought after for applications in the offshore and wind industry.

Neoprene

In offshore wind turbine applications, neoprene is frequently used for boat landing systems to help protect the coating of turbines from harsh impacts. The cushioning nature of neoprene means it can protect against vibrations from any water vessels approaching wind farms. Protecting a turbine or other aspects of an offshore wind farm from vibrations helps to reduce damage to turbines but also reduces noise pollution and improve the overall efficiency of wind farm equipment.

Neoprene can also be used in protective clothing for those working on offshore wind farms. It can be included in softshell coats to prevent wind entering in the sleeves and to ensure anyone working on a wind farm is protected from harsh weather conditions.

Nitrile

Choosing the right rubber seal for your application is important to ensure maximum performance, and in the offshore and wind industry, seals are used within wind turbines to protect the internal components from a range of environmental factors.

Since nitrile has a large working temperature range, is oil and hydrocarbon fuel resistant and is chemically tolerant, using nitrile rubber on offshore wind farms in turbines means the equipment is efficiently protected from grease and oil, and hot and cold temperatures. Nitrile is also an effective rubber used to protect wind farm equipment from saltwater corrosion.

Looking After Offshore Rubber

It is crucial that you consistently monitor offshore wind farm equipment to check for any potential damage that may affect wind farm operations. Whilst checking for blade damage and electrical system failures – which are significant – you must ensure inspections of any rubber materials used on wind farms are carried out properly. Should you notice any cracks in rubber materials, or if any seals are leaking and not performing optimally, you must consider replacing them as soon as possible to prevent any operational issues.

The most common causes of rubber deterioration and degradation is exposure to oxygen (ozone), heat and light, all of which are environmental conditions faced by applications on wind farms. Although the rubber materials typically used in the offshore and wind energy are suited to the environment, rubber does not last forever and will eventually degrade, so inspecting applications thoroughly on a regular basis is crucial for offshore wind farm operations.

Choosing Aquaseal for Offshore Rubber

At Aquaseal Rubber, we have worked with multiple clients on offshore rubber projects, including creating offshore wind turbine boat landing rubbers, a wind turbine monopile roller refurbishment and the Galloper Wind Farm.

If you are looking for bespoke rubber products for an offshore wind farm or another project in the offshore and wind industry, including gaskets, o-rings and seals, contact us today.