Mechanical Properties of Acrylic Pressure Sensitive Adhesives and Their Relationships to Industry Standard Testing

Dynamic mechanical and tensile stress-strain properties were measured for four sets of acrylic pressure sensitive adhesives, and were compared to industry standard “applications” peel and shear properties. Correlations were established showing that more than half of the range of performance shown by commercial PSA's is controlled by the bulk mechanical properties of the adhesive polymer. A few exceptions stand out clearly. Also, room temperature performance properties were found to correlate better with DMA at higher temperatures than with room temperature DMA. The contribution of tensile properties to peel strength and failure mode is discussed. The results can be used to relate PSA performance to well-known concepts in other areas of materials science, e.g. fracture toughness, rubber elasticity, and rheology, and to key variables in the adhesive formulation or selection process.