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The Five Factors of Adhesion
Substrate(s) or the material(s) you are trying to adhere to are the first thing to consider
- Adhesive selection is particularly dependent on the material surface energy (polarity) and its texture
• Non-Polar or lower surface energies like Polypropylene, Polyethylene, or those with Powder Coated paint require "Low Surface Energy" (LSE) adhesives
• A textured surface often requires a heavier coat weight of adhesive, or even an "AdhesiveTransfer" to flow into the valleys of the surface
*Be sure surfaces are free of debris. If compatible, clean the surfaces with 50% isopropyl alcohol and 50% water mixture.
Adhesive Selection
- Common adhesives are Rubber, Acrylic or Silicone based
• Rubber adhesives tend to be:
- Highly tackified
- Better suited for lower surface energies
- Less expensive
- Can be made to be removable
- Are typically best suited for indoor use
• Acrylic adhesives tend to be:
- Suitable for both indoor and outdoor applications
- More UV resistant and non-yellowing
- Resistant to temperatures near 300 to 400 degrees F
- More resistant to other environmental conditions
- More shear force resistant
• Silicone adhesives tend to be:
- Resistant to very high temperatures (up to 500-600 degrees F)
- Very chemical resistant
- Good adhering to similar silicones (like silicone coated release liners)
- More expensive
Environmental conditions and temperatures the tape will be exposed to
• It is generally recommended to apply tape at temperatures above 50 degrees F, so the adhesive is warm enough to wet out
• Once adhesives set up, tapes can withstand a wide range of temperatures from -40 degrees F to 600 degrees F (check data sheets)
• When applications expose tapes to outdoor UV, extreme temperatures, outgassing, and/or chemicals, Acrylics or Silicones are typically preferred
Pressure sensitive tapes require:
• About 15# of pressure to wet out the adhesive for a proper bond (equivalent to a firm thumb rub)
Time is needed for tapes to achieve their ultimate adhesion levels
• Acrylic adhesives typically achieve about 50% of their ultimate adhesion within 20 minutes, 80% within 24 hours and 100% in 72 hours
• Rubber based adhesives' bond tends to grow very quickly
• The amount of time tapes are exposed to temperatures and environmental factors are also critical to performance
*The most difficult tape selection tends to be when you are adhering to lower surface energy substrates with outdoor exposure. In these cases, your best alternative is usually to find a modified (tackified) acrylic adhesive that is suitable for your particular LSE substrate.
**Polarity or surface energies can be measured in dynes
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