Columns

RSS

At my house, tape is a precious commodity. Whether it’s needed for wrapping a gift, or my kids’ use in building a robot out of random empty boxes, or adhering doodads to the pages of a scrapbook, we go through roll after roll of the stuff. But what about more high-tech uses of tape? Foam tapes are used in a range of markets, such as automotive, packaging, electronics and medical, and serve a number of functions.

Both of these types of adhesives have the advantage of not containing solvents and being single component, so no measuring or mixing is involved. In addition, they both use moisture to initiate the curing.

In internal combustion (IC) engines, epoxy, silicone and UV/visible light-curing formulations offer enhanced capabilities and speed productivity to meet OEM and tier suppliers’ requirements. Significant innovations in gasketing, impregnation compounds, and bonding and potting can improve overall performance for automotive assembly applications.

The issue you are holding in your hands (whether a physical copy or virtual on an electronic device) is the result of the collaboration of a number of people in various locations around the globe—many of whom have never met!

Packages are chosen based on performance and cost. Specialty materials like anaerobic adhesives need oxygen to maintain their stability and shelf life. These materials were traditionally packaged in low-density polyethylene tubes or bottles to allow air diffusion into the package.

Broadly speaking, a market disruptor may include a technology, method, process, service, or channel with superior performance and customer benefits delivered at an attractive price point that can unexpectedly displace an incumbent. Porter’s Five Forces, created by Harvard Business School’s then-associate professor Michael E. Porter, Ph.D., has provided a framework for taking a “snapshot in time” of any potential threat to a business’ profits (not limited to a business losing its customers to an existing rival.

This is a very interesting question. Many adhesives are used in what is called a “zero gap” situation, where the adhesive is applied between two closely fitting surfaces, which are then clamped together.

We’re all about raw materials this month. Our annual Raw Materials, Chemicals, Polymers and Additives Handbook includes definition/use information for key products, as well as supplier details.

The primary forces are shrinkage of the adhesive on curing and large differences in thermal expansion coefficients between the substrates and the adhesive. High stresses can cause delamination of bonds or damage to the substrates, such as glass cracking.

How much time do you think you spend in a day looking at a screen, be it a cell phone, tablet, computer screen or television? I know I’m sometimes guilty of checking my email on my phone one last time before bed—long after I’ve asked my kids to turn off and put away their devices. Research has shown that people spend an average of 8 hrs, 41 min on media devices, compared to 8 hrs, 21 min sleeping a day—a pretty remarkable statistic. Manufacturers of these devices are driving innovation in adhesives and sealants.