Effects of composition and layer thickness of a butyl acrylate/acrylic acid copolymer on the adhesion properties

Acrylic pressure-sensitive adhesives are synthesized by solution copolymerization using n-butyl acrylate and acrylic acid (AA) in ethyl acetate anhydrous. The copolymer composition is controlled for good adhesive properties by varying AA content. The monomer conversion is measured by the gravimetric method and FTIR technique. The adhesive layer thickness is measured by scanning electron microscopy, and the adhesive properties are evaluated with loop tack, 180° peel, and holding time measurements. The peel force increases with increasing the AA content up to 3 wt% and decreases at the AA content higher than 3 wt%, but the tack force decreases with increasing the AA content. The holding time increases with increasing the AA content, and it shows a similar trend with the T_g of adhesives. The increase of layer thickness improves tack and peel forces, but it weakens the holding power. A tape thickness of about 20 μm shows well-balanced properties at 3 wt% AA content in the acrylic copolymer system.