2023 Innovation Awards Submissions

Gold Sponsor:

2022 InnovatIon awards submIssIons

about the Program

The ASC Innovation Awards Program is designed to recognize innovation in adhesive and sealant product developments. The awards identify significant impact chemistries that contribute to downstream industries unmet needs and advancements in technology.

the awards

There is ONE Award Category for 2022:

• The 2022 Innovation Award

• ASC will also recognize the first and second runner ups

The awards are intended to foster and encourage innovation across the Adhesive & Sealant industry and academia.

Silver Sponsor:

Bronze Sponsor:

2022 submissions

3m Company

Technology: 3M Post-it® Extreme Notes Product & Technology

Post-it® Extreme Notes utilize a novel highperformance microsphere adhesive that was developed to stick to challenging surfaces in both indoor and outdoor conditions, expanding Post-it® Brand outside the office to new industries, new customers, and new applications.

Contact: Willem Bastiaens

adhesives-experts.com

Technology: A Rheological Master Curve for the Viscosity vs. Solids Relationship of Water Borne Adhesive Polymer Formulations

The viscosity of any polymer dispersion system is heavily dependent upon the particle to particle interactions of the system. Einstein famously developed an equation which predicted the viscosity vs. solids relationship of a dispersion of hard spherical particles at low solids.

µ = µ0*(1+ Ø* Xvol)

µ = the viscosity of the system Ø = Shape Factor, a constant

µ0 = the viscosity of the aqueous medium Xvol = The Volume Solids of the system

The shape factor, Ø, for a distribution of uniform hard round spheres is the value 2.5.

The validity of this model is best when the volume solids content is about 5% or less. At higher solids any model must include higher terms to account for the increased particle to particle interactions. Because adhesive polymer systems and formulations are soft spheres which deviate from Einstein’s assumptions, the agreement to the hard sphere equations is limited. A way to model the viscosity of soft spheres not only has benefits in adhesives, sealants and coatings but also possible medical implications along with other uses in other water borne polymer markets. The basic knowledge of how the viscosity profile of a water borne formulation changes with solids can speed formulation research and development incredibly and increase the understanding of how adhesives perform. After numerous trials, the best equation for fitting the solids / viscosity relationship is of a form similar to the actual Einstein equation itself:

if Z = (1+ Ø* Xvol)

Then the Einstein solution is: µ = µ0*Z

While the higher solids model is:

µ = µ0*Z^Z

Replacing Z with its definition the model is:

µ = µ0*(1+ Ø* Xvol) ^ (1+ Ø* Xvol)

This model, based on only two degrees of freedom, has a better fit than others using higher degrees of freedom. Using the same variables, shape factor and volume solids, and degrees of freedom as the Einstein model, this equation can predict the solids / viscosity of an adhesive formulation at higher solids once the shape factor for the particle size distribution is determined.

Contact: David W Horwat

avery dennison

Technology: The Advanced Acrylics Technology for High Performance Pressure Sensitive Adhesive Applications

The Advanced Acrylics (AAc) technology is a patented high performance pressure sensitive adhesive technology developed at Avery Dennison’s Polymers, Adhesives and Coatings CoE (PACE) research facilities at Mill Hall Pennsylvania over the last several years. The technology combines controlled radical polymerization within emulsion systems with polymerizable surfactant technology to deliver emulsion PSA that is replacing high performance solvent-based PSA in many applications. A significant milestone was the successful scale up to production scale of the AAc adhesive emulsion process during February/March 2021, to facilitate product introduction within the European market.

Contact: Mark Gower

Technology: Avery Dennison’s CleanFlakeTM sustainable adhesive: Enabling recycling of PET bottles

Plastic contamination of our environment is a growing problem. Consequently, several companies like Avery Dennison have stepped up to the challenge by setting ambitious sustainability goals to help stem the tide of plastic pollution. Avery Dennison’s CleanFlakeTM adhesive technology is in line with our goal to deliver innovations that advance the circular economy by facilitating the effective recycling of PET bottles. Avery Dennison’s CleanFlakeTM technology works by enabling the complete removal of labels leading to unblemished food grade recycled PET resins which can be used for bottle to bottle manufacturing. This is achieved without any disruption to the current recycling process. In addition to complete label removal, Avery Dennison’s CleanFlakeTM adhesive maintains improved water whitening resistance, excellent converting and consistent tropical stability. The improvements built into Avery Dennison’s CleanFlakeTM adhesive makes it an innovative solution which addresses the ever evolving demands of the packaging industry.

Contact: Alex Nyarko

bostik

Technology: Roll-Cote - Extreme Moisture Vapor Barrier, Primer and Alkali Blocker

Bostik Roll-Cote™ High-Performance MoistureVapor-Barrier Coating and Primer is a water-based, one component system formulated to reduce substrate moisture vapor emissions, prime floors prior to the application of underlayments and blocks concrete alkalinity. Roll-Cote significantly improves return-to-service speed for flooring installation by combining multiple steps into one product. Roll-Cote™ is suitable for use in many environments, is compatible with an assortment of flooring types, and can be used on both concrete and wood substrates. No mixing is required, and its easy-to-apply formulation and fast dry time makes Roll-Cote™ dependable and user-friendly. RollCote™ is durable and low odor, and the black color provides great visual indication of coverage during the installation process.

Contact: Adam Abell

Technology: Bostik’s First to Market Gauged

Porcelain Tile Pane Adhesive: Bosti-Set

Bosti-Set™ is a new-to-the-world adhesive technology launched by Bostik’s Consumer & Construction Business Unit. It was conceived by way of a strategic collaboration with Crossville Inc, a world-leading manufacturer of tile products. Bosti-Set™ is a disruptive innovation that is changing the method and materials used to install thin (or Gauged) Porcelain tile Panels (GPP) on walls. Bosti-Set™ is faster, safer, and easier to use than traditional mortars. Compared to mortar, installation with Bosti-Set™ takes roughly ¼ the man-hours, produces no dust, weighs 80% less, consumes no water or electricity, enables first to the market acoustic benefit for wall tile installations, and allows new applications and substrates for GPP.

Be proactive & responsible citizens

Recent changes to the OSHA regulations have nearly cut in half the allowable amount of respirable silica dust exposure on job sites. Bosti-Set™ is dust-free and contains 0 VOC’s. It is lighter and holds better than mortars, so it is also safer for installers, especially working at heights. The formulation uses recycled rubber as an aggregate, sound dampening aid, and as a gauged for even bed depth of the adhesive. This reduces call backs due to lack of coverage for the installing contractor and at the same time ensures that the contractor does not over embed the adhesive which could cause hollow spots behind the tile that could then result in damaged tiles that would require replacement.

Contact: Adam Abell

Technology: Thermogrip H43298

Compostable Adhesive - The World’s First High Performance Compostable Hot Melt Adhesive

Thermogrip H43298 was developed to address the aspirations of many leading brand owners for 100% recyclable, reusable, or compostable packaging by the mid 2020’s. Initially developed for doublewalled hot beverage cups, this hot melt adhesive (HMA) became the first to gain BPI-certification. This certification ensures the adhesive will degrade in industrial composting facilities and at the same time offers a robust temperature performance window, which makes it suitable for “hot and cold” beverage applications, and case and carton sealing for food packaging applications.

Contact: Monina Kanderski

Clariant Corporation

Technology: AddWorks® IBC 760, a high performance, hazards free solution to increase light and heat stability in SMP sealants

Over the last two decades, the sealant industry has been facing an ever-growing demand for increased durability (1) of their products for a broad range of applications such as: joint seals in buildings, metal to metal bonding and glass to metal adhesives for automotive applications. Recently, the classification & hazards labelling of the most common light and heat stabilizers additives used in sealants and adhesives is under increased scrutiny. Regulatory authorities across many regions are expected to further add restriction to those chemicals. Such regulatory changes are not only impacting the labelling of the light and heat stabilizer additives but more importantly, the labelling of the final product itself. By combining their technical expertise, Clariant and Omya formed a partnership to develop a unique and novel solution to address these issues and respond to the growing need from within the industry to create more sustainable and outperforming hazards free solutions. AddWorks® IBC 760 is a micronized powder which prolongs the service life of adhesives and sealants as it reduces cracking and yellowing that typically occurs if exposed to sunlight or high temperature conditions This new stabilizer solution is an ideal ingredient to formulate high performance adhesives and sealants used for construction, automotive and other outdoor or high heat temperature applications. The performance is evident when tested against current market standard (benzotriazole UVA/HALS/AO) with a significant increased weathering durability and heat resistance. AddWorks® IBC 760 is the only label-free solution which provide safer handling for all formulators, production staff and end users.

Contact: Mouhcine Kanouni PhD

Covestro, LLC

Technology: Desmopack™ RC: Rapid curing resins for high performance flexible packaging aliphatic adhesives with room temperature cure and no potential for primary aromatic amine formation

Current offerings in the high-performance flexible packaging adhesive space utilize either fully aliphatic polyisocyanate based curatives or a combination of aromatic and aliphatic polyisocyanates (hybrid approach) to create the formulated adhesives. In either approach these formulations need to be stored in elevated temperature environments for up to 14 days after production in order to achieve the necessary level of cure prior to downstream laminate processing. Through extensive vetting across the entire value chain, we determined that a clear unmet need was present in the high-performance flexible packaging adhesive space. That unmet need was for raw materials that can be used to create fully aliphatic adhesive formulations that do not require curing at elevated temperatures, had no potential for primary aromatic amine formation, and still meet all the necessary physical performance criteria for high performance flexible packaging applications. Desmopack™ RC, a novel class of amine terminated resins, was developed by Covestro, LLC specifically to address this unmet need.

Desmopack™ RC technology is a new linear amine terminated resin that, when combined with an aliphatic polyisocyanate, gives excellent adhesion to a wide variety of packaging substrates, cures at ambient conditions in 2 – 3 days, and has no possibility of forming primary aromatic amines. Desmopack™ RC resin decreases cure time by ≈80% at ambient temperature — saving time, energy and inventory costs.

When we reference rapid curing, we are focusing not only on the immediate development of physical properties, but also the rapid consumption of aliphatic isocyanate monomer that is present in the typical aliphatic polyisocyanates used in these adhesives.

Desmopack™ RC resins have been discussed with Converters, sampled to several key Adhesive Formulators in the flexible packaging adhesive industry and results from coater trials have shown that these new raw materials meet all the criteria needed in order to address the unmet needs. Since the conception of this technology in 2018, new products.

Contact: Ray Zeliznik

daP Products Inc.

Technology: Advanced Hydrophobic Sealant Technology

Sinks, tubs, and showers have transitions that need to be sealed against water intrusion to prevent

moisture damage. For kitchen and bath applications, the primary caulk options are waterborne latex or silicone based. Waterborne latex sealants are easy to apply, have little odor, and can be cleaned up using water. However, current latex products take as long as 24 hours to set-up before using and can be susceptible to water swelling, dirt pick-up, and mold growth.

Silicone-based sealants can be as fast as 30 minutes to put into service; however, they can be difficult to apply and clean-up, can have significant odor, and are susceptible to dirt pick-up and mold growth.

DAP’s Advanced Hydrophobic Technology dramatically increases the hydrophobicity of sealant products, which lowers water absorption, reducing polymer degradation and sealant failure from both adhesion failure or surface erosion. The technology exhibits a measurable increase in the contact angle with water, which reduces immersive exposure. This results in self-cleaning and stain resistant benefits as contaminants do not stay in direct contact with the sealant. The technology also reduces the return to service times. As the sealant dries, its carefully designed composition rapidly forms a tough waterproof skin which resists washout in as little as four hours, five times faster than conventional waterborne sealants.

The development of this specialized, highly hydrophobic latex technology provides a new platform that addresses both the application and performance problems with the incumbent technologies, while still providing the benefits of waterborne chemistries. Introduced in 2015, DAP® KWIK SEAL ULTRA™ is the first sealant using this technology, creating a kitchen and bath sealant that is markedly different from anything currently available. This technology platform has led to significant market share gains, and represents a breakthrough for the industry.

Contact: Robert Butera

dow

Technology: Dowsil™ 844 RTV Adhesive Sealant – A New Innovation in High Green Strength

Dowsil™ 844 is a new high green strength sealant with excellent adhesion to a wide variety of substrates, high elongation, excellent durability, and fast cure. It is a neutral cure one-part RTV sealant that is environmentally friendly. Enabled by a new polymer technology, 844 retains attractive attributes of incumbent sealants while shortening cure time and increasing green strength. This allows OEMs to assemble and move parts faster without using heat cure, oxime chemistry, or a two-part tin cure material. Parts assembled with 844 pass rigorous blow-out resistance testing without the need for a highly filled and difficult to pump material. Dowsil™ 844 was commercialized in Q4 2021.

Contact: Chrissy Marchand

dow Chemical

Technology: New Generation DOWSIL™

993N Structural Glazing Sealant for Glass

Curtain Wall Launched in 2020

DOWSIL™ 993N Structural Glazing Sealant is a two-part, fast, and neutral curing silicone sealant, developed for structural glazing applications. It adheres glass and metal in the production of windows providing a long lasting, strong bond.

DOWSIL™ 993N employs a new adhesion promoter in Part B to balance adhesion and durability. Adhesion builds rapidly on most common substrates. Meanwhile, it has excellent adhesion after both room temperature water immersion and 45°C water immersion. It retains more than 80% strength after the harsh aging conditions.

Novel silicone polymer systems were designed for Part A to solve the problem of extrusion rate vs. sealant strength and elongation. The base extrusion rate increased by >50% over the incumbent sealant in the structural glazing sealant market. Meanwhile, the elongation was maintained well over spec per GB16776 requirement.

For a 2-part structural glazing sealant, as base shelf aging time increases, the AB mixture will show an increase of cure speed and shorter working time for operation. DOWSIL™ 993N solved this problem by specially formulating to improve both the thixotropic property and base shelf life stability.

Curing agent phase separation is also common issue after extended aging of traditional two part structural glazing sealants. Phase separation is eliminated in DOWSIL™ 993N, and excellent shelf life was achieved: less than 1 cm separation in 20L pail after 2 years.

DOWSIL™ 993N provides the long life, UV stability and ease of use of silicones while delivering unprecedented toughness. Developers, architects, building owners and building occupants all benefit from the safety, lifetime, and structural performance it delivers. DOWSIL™ 993N controls the interaction between additive and filler, effectively eliminating curing agent separation. This provides longer shelf stability and less waste. Everyone in the value chain wins, ultimately reducing costs and improving performance relative to other glazing options.

Contact: James Yu

dow Europe GmbH

Technology: Towards More Sustainable Hot Melt Adhesives

Climate change is amongst the greatest technical, social, and economic issues the world is currently facing and consumers and brand owners are demanding more sustainable solutions. This holds true for the packaging industry where the drive for

solutions with improved sustainability credentials is one of the most important topics for the complete packaging industry value chain. Proactivity and new solutions are needed to push forward for example the lowering of carbon footprints of products and production processes while increasing the usage of renewable raw materials. Dow’s launch of AFFINITY™ RE polyolefin plastomers and Henkel’s expertise in hot melt adhesive formulation led to the development and launch of TECHNOMELT® Supra ECO thus delivering a more sustainable hot melt adhesive solution which can help minimize environmental impact and fossil-fuel resources without compromising on performance.

Utilizing bio-naphtha derived from waste from sustainably managed forests in the production of AFFINITY™ RE, Dow brought a new to the world product to the market with a negative carbon footprint (cradle-to-gate1). The ISCC certified mass balance approach used in the production of AFFINTY™ RE was key in bringing AFFINITY™ RE to the market with the product equivalency to the existing fossil-fuel based AFFINITY™ GA. Henkel’s expertise in hot melt adhesive formulation resulted in the launch of TECHNOMELT® Supra ECO: a hot melt adhesive with a negative carbon footprint (cradle-gate). These two innovations combined have created this unique high performance food packaging adhesive that would enable the packaging industry to reduce its carbon footprint. Net Cradle-to-Gate, Dow Data with Credit for Biogenic CO2 up-take.

™ Trademark of the Dow Chemical Company. Contact: Allan McLennaghan

dow Inc

Technology: OPULUX TM Matte Finish for Premium Recyclable Polyolefin Packaging

Premium matte packaging is a trend not only food packaging but also electronic and cosmetic packaging, which requires rich color, antiglare, luxurious appearance, soft touch, and durability so drive consumers’ purchase preferences. The brand owners are looking to differentiate their products to showcase the product’s quality and natural ingredients to enhance the consumers’ purchasing experience and perception.

The flexible packaging industry dominantly uses plastic materials which have recently brought the attention to its potential impact on the global environment. Brand owners are urgently seeking material innovations to simplify the post-consumer recycling of plastic packaging materials.

OPULUX™ Matte Finish is a waterborne antiglare coating for packaging to enhance premiumization, shelf differentiation, and enable to make recyclable “all” polyolefin packages. The new matte coating technology was developed from the uniquely

designed polyacrylic beads and formulation development to achieve the special surface morphology and application rheology which provides excellent soft touch, abrasion resistance, heat seal resistance, matte appearance, color retention and contact transparence, controlled COF, as well as outstanding adhesion on polyethylene, polypropylene, PET, Nylon, Paper, OPA, PLA, and other film substrates. It can be applied by Gravure, Flexographic, Offset printing process and can be applied to printed or non-printed substrates in either spot or complete package coverage of the substrates without any compromise in adhesion. The new matte finish certified recyclable product by Association Plastics Recyclers (APR), enables a recyclable all PE packaging and can be recycled in a mono-material stream. The new acrylic bead material has a core-shell structure and was developed from a unique polymer design and emulsion processing development to achieve the optimum balance of optical and mechanical properties so it can deliver a premium haptic performance. It has been commercialized in 2018.

Contact: Yinzhong Guo

Eastman Chemical Company

Technology: Amorphous Polyolefin Polymer that Imparts Superior Performance and Versatility for Hot Melt Adhesives in the Hygiene Industry

A new amorphous polyolefin (APO) copolymer was produced with unique properties, for the construction hygiene industry. The APO polymer is used in a hot melt adhesive (HMA) formulation to impart high performance value. The non -woven hygiene Industry today are subject to strict government regulations and continuous pressure from the consumer in developing and improving on products such as diapers, adult incontinence, femcare products, and medical pads. The challenges involve sustainability, odor, VOCs, and cost. For applications in this market, there is an increasing need for manufacturers to resolve these issues.

The new polymer is designed to target six areas of concern simultaneously,

1) Lower coat weight; 2) Lower application temperature; 3) Sustainability; 4) Processability; 5) Higher polymer content; and 6) Formula simplicity. The formulated HMA is applied to the polyethylene and polypropylene substrate layers and absorbent material which constructs the incontinence product. The versatility of the polymer allows for the HMA to be applied by spray or slot die methods and is compatible with other polyolefins for performance optimization, throughout the products’ lifecycle.

Contact: Kujtim Bizati

H.b. FuLLEr

Technology: Low Monomer/Emission Reactive Hot Melt Adhesives

Most polyurethane based reactive hot melt (RHM) adhesives contain free monomeric diisocyanates. Free monomeric diisocyanates, depending upon their chemical nature, have been known to be hazardous to users when not used in prescribed manner. The European Regulatory Commission has announced stringent labeling and mandatory training for all users starting in August 2023. Recently, some customers are also requesting adhesives with low residual isocyanate monomer contents. H.B. Fuller has invented a novel approach to achieve RHMs containing <0.1% free monomeric diisocyanates using commodity raw materials. This invention enables the use of existing manufacturing/ production equipment and enables H.B. Fuller to provide customers with a low monomer solution with properties like conventional RHMs while being cost competitive. The development was conducted collaboratively between Europe and North America R&D labs and the first product, Rakoll 5010, was commercialized in 2019. Rakoll 5010 is used for flat lamination application in Woodworking market. Rakoll 5010 exhibits higher green strength and better application stability compared to its conventional version along with being cost competitive relative to other low monomer grades marketed by our competitors. Since 2019, two other low monomer RHMs have been commercialized: Rakoll 5016, a low viscosity/sprayable flat lamination grade and Rakoll 4020, a high green strength edge banding grade. Using H.B. Fuller’s patented approach more RHMs are being developed for applications in Woodworking, Automotive, Graphic Arts and Electronics markets.

Contact: Sudipto Das

Technology: Fast 2K - The Load Bearing Polyurethane Foam

Fast 2K is an expanding polyurethane for use as a foundation footing for decks and other light weight struc-tures. Foundation footings act to spread the load over a greater area to prevent settling of structures. Concrete is the most common material used for this application due in part to its high availability, low cost, high strength, and long historical usage, however concrete is heavy to transport, slow to cure, and unable to be set in rain or freezing conditions. Fast 2K is the next generation footing that addresses these issues. Additionally, the heavy environmental impact of concrete can be reduced by more than 90% when using Fast 2K. By expand-ing more than 10 times its original volume, a small pack of Fast 2K can replace an entire bag of concrete, lead-ing to reduced tail pipe emissions. The 2020 International

Code Council report finding Fast 2K was compliant with International Building Code Standards has led to significant growth in the market and sales of Fast 2K. The strength, adhesion, and durability of Fast 2K has been demonstrated through intensive material tests and component trials.

Contact: Scott Cowen

Technology: Mega Pillows for Wetness Indicator

Mega Pillows are the newest packaging solution for H.B. Fuller hot melt wetness indicator technology. This new packaging solution offers a more sustainable approach, and provides manufacturers improved handling and storing.

Our patent-pending pillowing technology produces an individual form of wetness indicator. It creates a bigger pillow with seals on the ends, and the coating protects the adhesive within from harsh environmental conditions.

While wetness indicator technology has historically been delivered in cake-style packaging, we have successfully developed a way to pillow water-sensitive adhesives. This innovation is very challenging because it allows for a water-sensitive, color-changing adhesive to be processed through the pillowing system, which requires full submersion in a cooling water bath. Successfully accomplishing this means that H.B. Fuller can claim the following over traditional cake-style packaging approaches:

• Reduced packaging material: Better for the environment with 90% waste reduction with the elimination of silicone boxes and foil liners

• Easier handling: Reduced labor and handling at the manufacturing melt tank as material handlers can open one master case and just scoop into the melt tank instead of opening individual cake box containers

• Improved storage and logistics: the packaging takes up less space and is less prone to contamination

• Safer introduction into melt tank vs. traditional cake form as the mega pillow due to less splash back

• Reduced tank contamination

Contact: Erin Johnson

Technology: Swift®tak 5730 Paper Straw Adhesive

As single-use plastic bans go into effect globally, paper straw manufacturers need a high-performance adhesive they can rely on to meet growing demand. H.B. Fuller has developed Swift®tak 5730 water-based adhesive to create consumer-safe, liquid-resistant straws designed for fast producing machines and improved durability and sustainability. This next generation technology offers paper straw manufacturers superior performance in terms of consistent, easy machinability, cleanability, and overall productivity in response to the increased

demand for safe and sustainable paper straws.

• High wet tack, steady machining, and no filtration needed at production startup allows manufacturers to meet aggressive productivity goals while using fast paper straw machines that can produce at more than 100 m/min

• Secure bonds create plasticizer-free, durable liquid resistant straws in cold beverages for 3+ hours*, for straight or bendy cold drink straw production, like those often used in juice boxes

• Allows paper straws to be BfRXXXVI and FDA 176.170 direct food contact compliant for maximum consumer safety

• Suitable for core winding and slot nozzle paper straw construction

• Testing results for overall** and MOH*** migration, underscored the suitability for the intended paper straw applications in all drinks under the specific conditions

*Results are paper, liquid, and adhesive coat weight dependent and subject to variability

**Overall migration in 3% acetic acid and 50% Ethanol

***Mineral oil hydrocarbons - each of the test fractions of MOSH + MOAH in 50% Ethanol following JRC guideline

Contact: Erin L’Hotta

Technology: Sustainable Hot Melt Moisture Cure for Textile Lamination

At the end of 2019, H.B. Fuller had been presented two new polyester polyol’s types: bio-based polyols and ones made with recycled PET bottles. Bio-based, respectively recycled polyols are partially made with acids and diols produced from natural feedstock, like corn, wheat, soybean, or castor oil, respectively from PET bottles previously degraded by bacteria. We designed two sustainable reactive polyurethane hot melt (HMMC) adhesives for textile lamination with these new raw materials. Thanks to the agreement we signed in 2021 with Covestro, bio-mass balanced isocyanate as replacement of the fossil MDI helped reach sustainability rates of 57% for Swift®lock 6458 and 62% for Swift®lock 6450. Invention 63/120314 was filled in December 2020 with additional improvements 63/154257 and 63/154276 in February 2021.

Swift®lock 6450 was validated to laminate fabrics to fabrics for fashion clothing, reaching similar bonding and washing performances than benchmarks.

Swift®lock 6458 fulfils the contract and workwear clothing requirements, means adhesion onto all membrane’s types with high washing and drycleaning resistances. The sustainable raw materials are ordered to produce the first industrial batches of our new sustainable grades.

This new generation of HMMC adhesives will help our customers justify a more responsible approach in the use of our planet’s resources. With unique and very high sustainability rates, these textile lamination

adhesives are taking the same green orientation than the textile industry.

Contact: Pierre-Yves JAUBARD

Technology: Sesame® Evolution™ AdhesiveCoated Fiber-Based E-Commerce Opening Tear Tape

H.B. Fuller expert engineers designed Sesame® Evolution™ adhesive-coated fiber-based e-commerce opening tear tapes to provide frustration-free opening on e-commerce packages. The award-winning, innovative, and global patentpending tear tape clearly stands out, as it is a adhesive-coated fiber-based tear tape that may add fiber to the recycling stream, unlike the standard plastic technology on the market. With more than 80% of bio-based material and less than two percent plastic, this solution dramatically reduces the use of single-use plastic, along with being made of a substrate that is also responsibly sourced and sustainably sourced certified by FSC (Forest Stewardship Council). This solution is one design in a series of adhesive-coated tapes for plastic reduction to perform in many different scenarios.

Sustainable packaging designs and materials are top of mind for consumers, brand companies, OEMs and packaging makers. In fact, with the accelerated growth rate of online shopping comes the looming reality of dealing with an increased amount of packaging waste and tough issues to solve related to recycling or finding other alternatives to plastic. Various adhesive-coated tear tapes on the market used in e-commerce packaging today do not completely break down in the recycling process of corrugated or folding cartons.

Sesame Evolution prioritizes sustainability, while maintaining a thrilling consumer “unboxing experience” of everyday packages used to ship goods from e-tailer to consumer. Our solution is suitable for most:

• Paper bags

• Folding carton mailers up to and including 18 pt.

• Single-wall lightweight corrugated boxes

H.B. Fuller received the Sustainability Award for Sesame Evolution at the European Federation of Corrugated Board Manufacturers (FEFCO) technical seminar, where the product officially launched.

H.B. Fuller was the only recipient in this category in 2021. The launch caught the attention of Packaging Europe and Sesame Evolution was discussed in “A Sustainable Future for Packaging” in Volume 16.6.

Contact: Erin L’Hotta

unique formulation combined with a globally patented palletization process, grips product into place and prevents pallet loads from shifting during transit— reducing the need to use corrugated slip sheets and unrecyclable stretch wrap for pallet stability. Unlike competitor’s hotmelt adhesives, SmartGrip® 5025 doesn’t tear, burn or stain packaging. It cleanly releases and is ultra-removeable. Shockingly versatile, SmartGrip 5025 can be used to temporarily bond: Shrink wrap to shrink wrap containers, corrugated to corrugated, shrink wrap to corrugated and metal to metal. The formula was developed in 2017 and rigorously tested at customers in 2018 and 2019. It officially commercialized in North America in January 2020.

Contact: Erin L’Hotta

Henkel aG & Co KGaa

Technology: Smart Adult Care - Leveraging conductive ink to transform traditional adult incotinence products into digital health devices to to increase patients’ quality of life

As the global population grows older, the number of people suffering incontinence continues to grow. Currently 150 million people suffer with incontinence globally, which negatively impacts patients and caregivers. Smart Adult Care improves quality of life for patients, and it enables caregivers to support individual needs rather than according to set schedules. It prevents the distress related to delayed changes and too frequent checks. This is especially relevant for patients who are unable to communicate their needs. With Smart Adult Care, health issues related to saturated incontinence products are reduced by 47%. The solution also saves healthcare workers up to 30 minutes per patient per day which allows for higher quality and more efficient care work for its users. A reduction of health issues connected to wet incontinence products by up to 47% and up to 20-30 min per patient/day more time for rewarding quality care work are 2 of many benefits Smart Adult Care provides for its users.

Developed by Smartz and Henkel Qhesive Solutions, Smart Adult Care is a complete turn-key solution that allows diaper manufacturers of mass market hygiene products to adapt traditional product lines rapidly and cost-effectively into smart healthcare solutions – providing additional value to both end users and caregivers.

Technology: H.B. Fuller

SmartGrip 5025: The Smart Way to Ship Beverages

H.B. Fuller SmartGrip® 5025 is a proprietary metallocene hotmelt for palletization of shrinkwrapped containers, metal and corrugated boxes. When applied to the top of finished goods, its

Conductive ink developed by Henkel is printed onto the back sheet of the diaper and is the foundation of a capacitive sensor which measures moisture level. This data is transmitted via a reusable clip-on device to a phone, a tablet or another digital tool used by the caregiver. This clip-on device, commonly called a pod, is attached to the front of the diaper. It also keeps track of the position of the wearer and can monitor

and alert for falls. This enables timely notification of when a patient needs to be repositioned to help prevent bed sores, pressure injuries or if the patient has fallen. Smart Adult Care is an end-to-end solution that includes cloud-based data analytics featuring apps providing medical information to caregivers.

Contact: Stephan Buschhueter

Innovative Chemical Products

Technology: Novel Low Pressure Spray Polyurethane Foam Blown with Hydrofluoroolefin Propellant

One and Two-component polyurethane low pressure spray foam products represent a significant portion of building envelope applications in insulating, sealing, and adhering various substrates. In order to improve climate stability, hydrofluoroolefin (HFO) blowing agents have made a presence in the foaming industry over traditional blowing agents like HFC-134a. HFO molecules are designed to break up in the Earth’s atmosphere in order to reduce radiation absorption, but the reduced molecular stability merits the chemical to more readily react with and deteriorate chemical components essential to a polyurethane blend when stored in pressurized canisters. This means that conventional chemical blends previously stored with HFC blowing agents will deteriorate and degrade when stored with HFO molecules, sometimes in a matter of days. Through the means of innovation and novel chemical compositions, stable foaming products have been developed by Innovative Chemical Products (ICP) over the past five years. During this time, thirteen insulation, sealant, and/ or adhesive products have been converted or have launched as new products new to the industry, with many championing improved product performance and/or improved physical properties essential to each unique application. Although the stability of the HFO molecule restricts the variety of compounds previously enjoyed by the industry, it does not eliminate the space for next-generation products and product improvements, especially in the realm of density, flame and smoke ratings, flowability, adhesion, among other important properties.

Contact: Andrew Shinko

Kuraray

Technology: Novel bio-based elastomer for sealants and adhesives – Liquid Farnesene Rubber

Abstract: Liquid Farnesene Rubber (LFR) utilizes a bio-based monomer produced by the fermentation of sugarcane (trans-β-farnesene). Compared to conventional petroleum-based polymers such as polybutadiene and polyisoprene, liquid farnesene

rubber has the unique advantage of high molecular weight, high reactivity, and low viscosity due to its highly branched structure (Figure 1). In addition to being bio based, liquid farnesene rubber provides significant value to formulators of adhesives and sealants by reducing rection time, potentially reducing processing temperatures, and improving sound and vibration damping properties. Sealant manufactures have often requested a polymer with high molecular weight and low viscosity. LFR can meet this requirement due its molecular structure. Lastly, the LFR grade line continues to expand and now includes blends of farnesene and butadiene which help improve properties. LFR is currently sold into multiple markets including rubber compounding, tires1-3), and sealants.

Contact: Erich Klein

L&L products

Technology: Hybrid room-temperature cured foamed adhesive using novel curatives and foaming agents

Traditionally adhesives and foams have been two separate categories of materials. Adhesives are usually higher density materials, and foams, even if they do develop good adhesion to substrates, have limited mechanical and physical properties due to high volume expansion. This article discusses a new type of two-component ambient-temperature curing foamed adhesives that can be used in a wide range of applications with benefits of both foams and adhesives. The technology is branded PHASTER™. The ability to create foaming adhesives that simultaneously cure and foam enables tunable properties with densities as low as 0.25 g/cc. This allows for the bonding of substrates with imperfect alignment and variable gaps. Additionally, PHASTER™ foaming adhesives can be soft or rigid with great adhesion to a broad range of substrates. When foamed, the adhesives have also shown significant resilience and recovery from compressive stresses, with the ability to be compressed to half of their initial height and still rebound. These room-temperature cure and foaming adhesives are inherently flame resistant due to the curative system. These adhesives can be extremely flame and heat resistant with using only 10-20% of fire resistance improving additives to satisfy specific standards. As a comparison, other types of polymeric materials may need a large quantity of flammability reducing additives (e.g., about 50% or more) to achieve their desired fire resistance performance for similar applications.

Other advantages of the PHASTER™ technology is tunability of fixture and cure time as well as viscosity of the material without significant penalty in the performance of the final product. The open time could be tuned and variable from seconds

to hours and the viscosity is tunable to fit the applications of static, dynamic, and impingement mixing. In this article, the PHASTER™ technology is explained and three subfamily of development products are discussed in detail.

Contact: Hamid Mortazavian

maPEI

Technology: Universal, Multipurpose Pressure Sensitive Aqueous Adhesive for High and Low Energy Flooring Backings

Carpet manufactures produce a variety of Carpet Tiles (CPT) based on different Chemistries such as poly vinyl chloride, polyolefin, linoleum, etc. These carpets backings have substantially different surface energies due to myriad properties. In this invention, a universal aqueous pressure sensitive adhesive (PSA) has been developed to adhere to a variety of CPT regardless of the type of chemistry backing and surface energies and was successfully introduced to the market place in April 2017.

Contact: Dr. Raj Hariharan

michigan technological university

PPG

Technology: Liquid Nails® Fuze*It® MaxTM: High strength and high grab construction adhesive

Liquid Nails® Fuze*It® MaxTM is a moisture-curing, one component (1K) adhesive technology for the construction market. It is the first construction adhesive to deliver both exceptional initial grab and high long-term strength in one product.

Contact: Ted Novitsky

re mixers, Inc.

Technology: Xemex Static Mixers

Xemex Mixing Nozzles offer unprecedented advancements in adhesives mixing. Launched with Ellsworth Adhesives in 2021, Xemex is the first static mixer to implement multi-dimensional fluid mixing. This development provides optimal adhesive performance in a fraction of the length (and waste) of existing mixers, increases dispense accuracy with manual applicators, and maximizes spatial clearances in meter-mixing systems.

Contact: Eric Ronning

shell mds (malaysia)

Technology:

Smart Adhesive with OnDemand Tunable Adhesion to Wet Surfaces

A smart adhesive is capable of switching between its adhesive and non-adhesive state in response to external stimuli (e.g., pH, temperature, light). Smart adhesives with on-demand switching of adhesion have potential applications in the biomedical field (e.g., painlessly removable wound dressing, artificial prostheses attachment, and wearable sensors for health monitoring). Moreover, these adhesives are of great interest for on-demand attachment and detachment of electronic sensors or modules in automotive as well as locomotion of robots. However, most of the existing smart adhesives are limited to dry adhesion and demonstrate poor performance in the presence of water. Here, we describe the use of applied electricity to deactivate a mussel-mimetic adhesive that could be deactivated with a voltage as low as 1 V. The adhesive was deactivated while it still in direct contact of a surface. The adhesive contains a temporary protecting group to preserve the reversibility of the adhesive. The adhesive demonstrated strong adhesion to a wetted surface and could be repeated deactivated and reactivated for adhesion.

Contact: Bruce Lee

Technology: New Shell GTL Waxes of SX90 and SX110 in Hot Melt Adhesives Applications

Recent innovations by Shell have led to the introduction of two new GTL wax products to their product portfolio. Shell GTL Sarawax SX90 is a unique narrow cut GTL hard wax, and Shell GTL Sarawax SX110 is the highest melting GTL hard wax available. This study investigates the performance of these novel waxes in Hot Melt Adhesive (HMA) formulations with a metallocene-type base polymer. The results show clear advantages for both waxes compared to currently available options, offering greater control over open/setting times and excellent heat resistance. The cohesive and adhesive strength of HMA formulations can be fine-tuned through the high crystallinity of these waxes, combined with their different molecular weight distributions. Due to its narrow cut origin, SX90 provides competitive low-temperature stability and high peel adhesion strength, while boasting a comparatively low melting temperature. SX110 easily outperforms all other waxes with respect to high-temperature stability, without compromising HMA formulation viscosity. Therefore, the expanded selection of Sarawax SX90, SX105 and SX110 offers versatile solutions for effective and reliable control over HMA processing and properties.

Contact: Dr. Kay Kian Hee

sika automotive

Technology: Advanced Structural Adhesive for New Generation of Automotive Assembly

Structural adhesives use in assembling automobile body structure has been playing an increasing significant role. As demand for vehicle lightweighting continues, a vast array of lightweight materials including aluminum are being used with new vehicle body architectures. One of the leaders in these designs is Ford, a pioneer in using aluminum, first in the Ford F-150 platform. As the technology envelope is being pushed, new requirements are needed, Ford wanted to streamline existing material specifications requirements into 1 specification. Working in collaboration with Ford, Sika developed the SikaPower-550® G product, to meet these demands.

Contact: Kent Fung

soudal nv

Technology: Aerosol Contact Adhesive Compliant to Carbon Volatile Organic Compounds and Proposition 65

As a major supplier of adhesives and sealants, Soudal has developed an aerosol contact adhesive with superior performance. This is the first aerosol contact adhesive on the market that can be used for both the Carbon Volatile Organic Compounds (CARB VOC) and Proposition 65 legislations, respectively implemented by The California Air Resources Board and California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment. Both legislations are implemented in different states and slowly implemented around the USA The CARB VOC regulation is there for reducing emissions from consumer products as it limits the usage of aromatic hydrocarbons and volatile organic solvents to less than 40 % for aerosol contact adhesives with a web spray pattern. The Prop. 65 regulations strictly avoid the usage of naturally occurring and synthetic chemicals that are known to cause cancer or birth defects or other reproductive harm.

Soudal did succeed to develop an aerosol contact adhesive within the window of solubility where it meets both regulations as this makes a very environmental friendly consumer product. This development is US patent application pending, where the combination of solvents and its ratio is registered and filed. Next to the sustainably, the specifications are superior compared to market leading products. Soudal has sustainability as one of its main pillars in their corporate philosophy and therefore, it’s always a target throughout the development process of new products.

Contact: Dr. Bart Forier

sunstar Engineering americas

Technology: Novel High Damping Structural Adhesive

Noise, Vibration and Harshness (NVH) refers to the level of unpleasant aural and physical sensations experienced by the occupants of a vehicle under normal driving conditions. In recent years it has become a more important consideration of automotive design because cabin comfort and NVH characteristics are increasingly being identified as critical factors in buyers’ purchasing decisions. Structural adhesives, having high stiffness and strength, play an important role in NVH reduction by improving vehicle rigidity and reducing vibrations that sometimes result around mechanical fasteners. However, they typically also have low damping characteristics. Consequently, they function primarily in a non-dissipative mode, redirecting and shifting vibrational energy to higher resonant frequencies while not actually reducing it. Here we report a novel class of adhesive that has been designed to be combine high dissipation of vibrational energy while still maintaining high stiffness and strength desired in a true structural adhesive. By combining multiple epoxy resins with different glass transition points and combining fillers effective in maintaining damping, we have succeeded in developing an adhesive that exhibits high damping (as measured by tan δ) over a broad temperature range of typical vehicle use. This adhesive can be used alone or in combination with conventional structural adhesives to improve ride comfort when mounted on next-generation vehicles. When used in key areas of an automobile frame and chassis, the adhesive significantly lowers vibrations and sound, resulting in a quieter and more comfortable driving experience. This is the first adhesive of this type (high damping and high modulus and strength) to be commercialized into the global automotive adhesive market and is currently being use on several 2021 model passenger vehicles at a major OEM.

Contact: Stephen Howe