Sealant Manufacturer

Distributor of room temperature vulcanizing silicone, pipe, thread and flange sealants that resist contaminants, harsh environments and high pressures. Serves the automotive, aerospace and metal industries. Offers a wide variety of stock and custom sizes. Meets military specifications.

A sealant must be compatible with the materials of construction of the joint and the other components of the assembly. Compatibility can be tested using the standard ASTM method for adhesive bonding or other methods.

Sealants

Sealants are used to fill joints and gaps in substrates, blocking the passage of air or water. They are a critical part of the building envelope and must be designed, specified and applied correctly to ensure the building is structurally sound. This includes the design of a joint and its movement capabilities as well as considerations such as substrate types, weathering, color stability and aesthetics.

The performance characteristics of sealants are determined by the specific polymer chemistry type chosen for the application as well as by the formulation. However, within each class of polymer chemistry there is a wide range of products with different capabilities. This means that a sealant may be suitable for one use but not another.

There are a number of common sealants that are widely used for commercial or residential applications including silicones, acrylics and butyls. These can be supplied in cartridges that are extruded on site, in preformed sealant strips or in dry tape form.

A sealant’s ability to bond with its substrate is important for a successful installation. This is assessed by its adhesion strength to the surface to which it is being applied, and sometimes a primer is recommended to improve this performance. Resistance to sunlight, UV and outside aging is also important. Older sealants such as oleoresins and butyl have poor resistance to this, oxidizing quickly in the air and becoming hard and brittle over time. Modern elastomeric sealants such as polyurethanes and silicones are much more resistant to this type of degradation.

Adhesives

Adhesives are the ingredients in glue that bind different surfaces together and resist separation pressure. They are used in a variety of ways and serve many purposes. For example, they prevent leaks in the piping that delivers gas, oil and water to homes and factories. Adhesives can also bond materials like paper, wood and plastic to each other and reduce the weight of assembled products.

Modern adhesives are synthetic and come in a wide variety of types. They are categorized by their chemical composition, form and performance characteristics. For instance, some sealant Manufacturer are highly temperature and solvent resistant. Others are designed for specific applications and environments. There are also anaerobic, hot melt and multi-component systems.

The 20th century saw decisive advances in the development of adhesives. Natural adhesives were improved in the laboratory and many new synthetics replaced old ones. The new adhesives were better suited for industrial and domestic use.

Some manufacturers specialize in making specialty adhesives for the aerospace, metal and automotive industries. Other manufacturers produce a wider range of adhesives. These include those that offer fast curing times. Several of these companies are also working on ways to make their manufacturing processes more sustainable. For instance, a manufacturer that makes MECA (Methoxyethyl Cyanoacrylate) cyanoacrylate adhesives uses a process that consumes far less energy than traditional methods and allows for much greater control of potentially harmful emissions.

Adhesive Tapes

An adhesive tape is a strip of material that has an adhesive coating on one side and a backing or carrier on the other. The backing or carrier can be made of paper, cloth, metal, or plastic. The adhesive tape is typically coated with a pressure-sensitive adhesive (PSA), which adheres at room temperature without heat or long curing and drying times.

Unlike other types of adhesives, which need water, solvent, or heat to activate them, PSAs work when the applied force – such as mechanical action or pressure – causes the molecules in the liquid adhesive to change phases and bond to the surface. Most adhesive tapes also do not need a special brush or application tool to apply them. Instead, they can be cut with scissors or a tape dispenser.

To ensure the adhesive on an adhesive tape is at its peak performance, a number of factors must be considered. One of the most important is the temperature. The temperature of both the adhesive and the surface to which it will be applied determines how well the adhesive will hold. Ideally, the temperature should be at least 18oC/65oF.

Other factors to consider include the surface’s cleanliness. Traces of dust, grease, dirt, or moisture can contaminate the adhesive and create a barrier that will interfere with a good bond. To avoid contamination, the surface should be washed down with rubbing alcohol or rinsed with water before using the adhesive.

Adhesive Coatings

There are a lot of different types of adhesives and coatings. Each has a different chemical composition, form and classification as well as load bearing capabilities. The selection of the proper adhesive for a particular application is predicated on a combination sealant Manufacturer of several factors including the type of equipment available in a facility, the end performance requirements and environmental considerations.

For example, many applications in the electronics industry require high tensile adhesion, quick curing and low temperature performance. In these cases, elastomeric products like Kuraray Liquid Rubber grades offer superior damping and adhesion properties. For a broader range of applications, silicone and polyurethane are also ideal.

The chemistry used in the manufacture of an adhesive coating can vary based on its use. For instance, surfactants can be added to improve the rheology of an adhesive coating to enable it to flow and coat more evenly. Defoamers can be used to reduce or eliminate air bubbles in the adhesive coating.

It’s important for manufacturers to understand where adhesion failure is occurring. For example, it’s possible for a break to occur at the surface of the material being bonded or coated (surface failure) or within the adhesive itself (adhesion failure). Understanding these two different types of failure is key to addressing them.