New glue for automotive, wearable and audio technology

Bostik has announced a prototype cyanoacrylate (‘superglue’) adhesive “for long-term critical applications such as those required in the automotive and electronics industry”, it said. “It will propel instant adhesives’ use outside of repair and maintenance applications, into a solution that can be relied upon for longer-term, structural engineering use.”

It is a two-part n-butyl cyanoacrylate-based adhesive, with the hydrophobic butyl cyanoacrylate monomer conferring humidity resistance and “when properly formulated becomes a highly-flexible polymer, recognised as the main component of many existing instant medical grade adhesives”, according to the company. “Inherent flexible and hydrophobic qualities mean that bonding integrity is maintained even for applications where vibrating or humid environments are common, or for where impact and high levels of wear and tear are likely, such as mobile phones and smart watches”.

The adhesive can be stretched a long way before it fails – up to 100% elongation, which leads Bostik to propose it for assembling audio tweeters (high-frequency loudspeakers).

Cure is generally within a minute – depending on substrate and environmental conditions, and the adhesive is suitable for automated dispensing. It is also low-odour, low-blooming, and will not need to carry hazard labels or CLP pictograms (red warning diamonds).

The prototype is in the final stages of development, said Bostik, and samples can be produced for customer testing.