Pressure-sensitive adhesive

It is used in pressure-sensitive tapes, labels, glue dots, stickers, sticky note pads, automobile trim, and a wide variety of other products.

Examples of permanent applications include safety labels for power equipment, foil tape for HVAC duct work, automotive interior trim assembly, and sound/vibration damping films.

Removable adhesives are used in applications such as surface protection films, masking tapes, bookmark and note papers, price marking labels, promotional graphics materials, and for skin contact (wound care dressings, EKG electrodes, athletic tape, transdermal drug patches, etc.).

Pulling at a slow rate and with a low angle of peel helps reduce surface damage.

Articles such as tapes and labels are made from liquid PSAs by coating the adhesive on a support and evaporating the organic solvent or water carrier, usually in a hot air dryer.

100% solid PSAs may be low viscosity polymers that are coated and then reacted with radiation to increase molecular weight and form the adhesive (radiation cured PSA); or they may be high-viscosity materials that are heated to reduce viscosity enough to allow coating, and then cooled to their final form (hot melt PSA, HMPSA).

They are frequently used in hot melt adhesive applications, where the composition retains tack even when solidified; however non-pressure-sensitive formulations are also used.

Resins associating with endblocks (cumarone-indene, α-methyl styrene, vinyl toluene, aromatic hydrocarbons, etc.)

Resins associating to the midblocks (aliphatic olefins, rosin esters, polyterpenes, terpene phenolics) improve adhesion, processing and pressure-sensitive properties.

Once applied, temperature affects the performance on its intended use: Heat can soften an adhesive, reducing its shear holding ability.

Adhesive formulators often use the more fundamental temperature characteristics using the advanced methods such as dynamic mechanical analysis and differential scanning calorimetry.