About TPE Material's Stickiness Issues

At Plaspros Company, we discuss three distinct aspects of stickiness related to TPE materials:

1. Self-adhesion of TPE Materials: This refers to the strong adhesive property inherent to the surface of TPE materials, akin to having a layer of glue applied. TPE materials with strong self-adhesion can be used to affix everyday items, preventing them from slipping or tipping over. Certain foreign TPE manufacturers have dedicated research to develop and patent such materials. In regular TPE blending systems, incorporating a compatibilizing tackifier that is compatible with the primary blend can enhance the surface stickiness of TPE materials. This type of stickiness is desirable and sought-after by users.

2. Surface Stickiness of Soft TPE Materials: Some low-hardness TPE materials exhibit a sticky feel on their surface due to the high content of oil components in the blend. This sticky feeling is attributed to the oil present in the formulation. TPE materials based on SBS typically tend to have a greater tendency towards a sticky surface. This kind of stickiness is undesirable and something users wish to eliminate.

3. Adhesion during Overmolding: In this context, stickiness refers to the melt bonding effect that occurs when TPE adheres to the substrate material (plastic) during high-temperature injection molding due to their similar solubility parameters (SP) or good compatibility. The quality of this bonding is mainly influenced by the affinity between TPE and the substrate plastic's surfaces, such as comparable melting points, similar polarity, and surface tension, among other factors.

The co-adhesive properties of TPE and TPR are widely applicable. Numerous plastics, a few non-metallic materials, and even metals can be bonded to TPE or TPR through similar co-adhesion mechanisms.