A material capable of fastening two other materials together by means of surface attachment. The terms glue, mucilage, mastic, and cement are synonymous with adhesive. In a generic sense, the word adhesive implies any material capable of fastening by surface attachment, and thus will include inorganic materials such as portland cement and solders. In a practical sense, however, adhesive implies the broad set of materials composed of organic compounds, mainly polymeric, which can be used to fasten two materials together. The materials being fastened together by the adhesive are the adherends, and an adhesive joint or adhesive bond is the resulting assembly. Adhesion is the physical attraction of the surface of one material for the surface of another.
The phenomenon of adhesion has been described by many theories. The most widely accepted and investigated is the wettability-adsorption theory. This theory states that for maximum adhesion the adhesive must come into intimate contact with the surface of the adherend. That is, the adhesive must completely wet the adherend. This wetting is considered to be maximized when the intermolecular forces are the same forces as are normally considered in intermolecular interactions such as the van der Waals, dipole-dipole, dipole-induced dipole, and electrostatic interactions. Of these, the van der Waals force is considered the most important. The formation of chemical bonds at the interface is not considered to be of primary importance for achieving maximum wetting, but in many cases it is considered important in achieving durable adhesive bonds.
The greatest growth in the development and use of organic compound-based adhesives came with the application of synthetically derived organic polymers. Broadly, these materials can be divided into two types: thermoplastics and thermosets. Thermoplastic adhesives become soft or liquid upon heating and are also soluble. Thermoset adhesives cure upon heating and then become solid and insoluble. Those adhesives which cure under ambient conditions by appropriate choice of chemistry are also considered thermosets.
Pressure-sensitive adhesives are mostly thermoplastic in nature and exhibit an important property known as tack. That is, pressure-sensitive adhesives exhibit a measurable adhesive strength with only a mild applied pressure. Pressure-sensitive adhesives are derived from elastomeric materials, such as polybutadiene or polyisoprene.
Structural adhesives are, in general, thermosets and have the property of fastening adherends that are structural materials (such as metals and wood) for long periods of time even when the adhesive joint is under load. Phenolic-based structural adhesives were among the first structural adhesives to be developed and used. The most widely used structural adhesives are based upon epoxy resins. An important property for a structural adhesive is resistance to fracture (toughness). Thermoplastics, because they are not cured, can deform under load and exhibit resistance to fracture. As a class, thermosets are quite brittle, and thermoset adhesives are modified by elastomers to increase their resistance to fracture.
Hot-melt adhesives are used for the manufacture of corrugated paper, in packaging, in bookbinding, and in shoe manufacture. Pressure-sensitive adhesives are most widely used in the form of coatings on tapes, such as electrical tape and surgical tape. Structural adhesives are applied in the form of liquids, pastes, or 100% adhesive films. Epoxy liquids and pastes are very widely used adhesive materials, having application in many assembly operations ranging from general industrial to automotive to aerospace vehicle construction. Solid-film structural adhesives are used widely in aircraft construction. Acrylic adhesives are used in thread-locking operations and in small-assembly operations such as electronics manufacture which require rapid cure times. The largest-volume use of adhesives is in plywood and other timber products manufacture. Adhesives for wood bonding range from the natural products (such as blood or casein) to the very durable phenolic-based adhesives.
