Butyl acrylate/methyl methacrylate latexes: Adhesive properties

In this study, butyl acrylate/methyl methacrylate (BA/MMA) latexes of bimodal molecular weight and particle size distribution were prepared in a multi-step process by seeded conventional emulsion and seeded miniemulsion polymerization. For the conventional emulsion case, a BA/MMA batch copolymerization was conducted as a first step (seed generation) and was followed by a monomer addition step to ensure particle growth. In a third step, a BA/MMA pre-emulsified mixture was added to generate a second particle population. For the miniemulsion case, a BA/MMA copolymerization was carried out as a first step (seed generation) and was followed by a monomer addition step. The addition of a BA/MMA miniemulsion served to generate a bimodal particle size and molecular weight distribution. The final latexes were coated onto a polyethylene terephthalate carrier, dried and their performance as pressure-sensitive adhesives was evaluated using tack, peel and shear adhesion measurements. Structure-property relationships between the adhesive properties and the weight-average molecular weight and average particle size were examined. Even though the polymers obtained by miniemulsion showed better shear resistance, their shear resistance was low. There was no statistically significant difference in peel resistance of the polymers obtained by the two reactions. While a significant difference in tackiness between the two emulsion procedures was found when the adhesives were tested using the less sensitive, rolling ball test, no differences were found when they were tested using a loop tack test.