They are an integral part of many things we rely on every day, from our vehicles to plugging a hole in our leaky pipes to the roof over our heads to many more such things. It won’t be wrong to say that it’s hard to imagine our lives without these self-adhering materials or adhesives. This article aims to discuss the various different types of adhesives and their uses.
Adhesives are often broken into two types, depending upon how they’ve been produced, which again can be classified as either pressure sensitive or polymer-based. These bonding substances are most often made from polymers or resins. However, they can also contain animal product, milk, polyurethane, rubber/latex, silicone, silver, starch, vegetables, water, acrylate, acrylic, copper, epoxy, grains, graphite, nickel, nylon, plants, polyester and oil. Remember no ONE glue is same as the other. Adhesives used in construction are different from the other that works better for stamps and envelopes. It just depends on the manufacturer and their requirements.
Types of adhesives:
Pressure Sensitive Adhesives- These are made of acrylics, rubber/latex, or silicone, and are mainly used for various tapes, laminate flooring, and cartons.
Polymer-Based Adhesives- These consist of polyester, polyurethane, acrylate, and epoxies and are considered best for bonding woods. However, they are also used in many other industries including automobiles, solar panels, and food packaging.
Adhesives are widely employed throughout industry for permanent, semi-permanent, and temporary attachment purposes in various residential, commercial, and industrial applications. These bonding substances ultimately are classified on whether or not they use a solvent, water, heat, or any combination of the three to stick to a surface (to hold, fasten, or bond them together).
Outlining some of the more common types of adhesives employed across various industries:
1. Anaerobic (works best in bonding metal together, particularly in large machinery)
2. Bismaleimide (used in electronic circuit boards, and to also join metals, glass, ceramics)
3. Casein (used for the purpose of making musical instruments, bottles, furniture, and even aircraft)
4. Cyanoacrylate (works best for super gluing plastic or rubber objects)
5. Dextrin (used to hold the pages together in a book)
6. Hot Melt (works best for woodworking projects, packaging, and trade show exhibits)
7. Plastisol (this bonding substance is commonly used as a textile ink for screen printing and to coat outdoor applications like roofs and furniture)
8. PVA's (Polyvinyl Acetate) (it’s good for craft projects)- White glue is a common polyvinyl acetate (PVA) glue traditionally used for arts and crafts purposes, and is suitable for cloth, cardboard, paper, wood.
9. Reactive (used for bonding cell phones, computers, and even some medical devices)
10. Thermoset (mainly used in construction due to its strength and durability)
11. UV Curing (essential in the electronic, automotive, and medical fields)
12. Water-Based (used for decorative concrete, plus, used in product packaging, bottling, and furniture building)
The major reasons for using adhesives:
1. Improved Product Durability and Reliability
2. Enhanced Product Performance
3. Boosts Product Quality
4. Enhanced Product Aesthetics
5. Improved Process Productivity and Reduced Manufacturing Costs
Types of industrial adhesives:
1. Resins
2. Hot melt adhesives (a big advantage of hot melt adhesives is that if you make any mistake during the construction, you can easily rectify the adhesive and reuse it)
3. Anaerobic Adhesive (bonds materials such as paper, masonry, plastic, wood, rubber, glass, fabric, ceramic together)
4. Epoxy Adhesives (largely used in the automobile and aircraft industries)
5. Contact Spray
6. Acrylic
7. Pressure Adhesives
Adhesives application in industries:
Paper converting- Tissue & towel, envelope, wide format laminating (craft glues and laminating adhesives).
Food packaging- Paper straws, bottles & cans, frozen foods, aseptic packaging, carton seal, cartons & trays.
Packaging- Folding cartons, tube winding, paper bags/sacks (bag adhesives display stunning stability and don't dissolve so easily).
Tobacco- Adhesives for cigarette and cigar/cigarillo manufacturing such as Side Seam, Filter Tipping/Plastic Tips, Filter Manufacturing, Filter Wraps, and Carton & Case sealing.
Print & Graphic Arts- For commercial print operations, there are resin glues for cross web printing, re-moistenable adhesive for return mailers, fugitive removable glues (booger glue) for removal with no staining, hot melt for specialty applications, and adhesives for UV and aqueous coatings.