Adhesive and sealant formulations must meet a wide range of performance requirements. These materials must apply smoothly, remain stable during storage, and cure reliably once applied. At the same time, formulators must balance factors such as viscosity control, filler dispersion, moisture sensitivity, and curing speed.
Additives play a critical role in helping formulators manage these variables. Selecting the right additive technologies can help improve application behavior, maintain formulation stability, and support long-term durability.
Below are four key factors formulators should consider when selecting additives for adhesive and sealant systems.
One of the most important considerations in adhesive and sealant formulations is how the material behaves during application.
Adhesives must flow easily when pumped, mixed, or dispensed, but quickly recover viscosity to prevent sagging or slumping once applied. Similarly, sealants must maintain their shape after being applied to vertical joints or surfaces.
Rheology modifiers help formulators achieve this balance in waterborne systems by building viscosity under various shear conditions while allowing flow during application.
Borchi® Gel A LA is one rheology modifier that provides optimal rheological properties and stabilization of resins against coagulation. This non-associative polyacrylate thickener builds viscosity in the low-shear range while improving rheological properties. This type of rheology control helps adhesives maintain structure after application while still allowing smooth processing and dispensing.
Many adhesive and sealant formulations incorporate significant levels of inorganic pigments and fillers such as titanium dioxide, calcium carbonate, and iron oxides. These components influence mechanical properties, opacity, cost efficiency, and appearance.
However, poor dispersion can lead to agglomeration, unstable viscosity, and inconsistent performance.
Dispersing additives help wet and stabilize pigments and fillers, ensuring uniform distribution throughout the formulation.
Borchi® Gen 1252 is a high-molecular-weight wetting and dispersing agent designed for titanium dioxide, iron oxide, and other inorganic pigments and fillers. It enables high pigment loadings while maintaining free-flowing viscosities and stable dispersions, supporting consistent formulation performance.
Moisture can significantly affect polyurethane-based adhesives and sealants. Even small amounts of water introduced through pigments, fillers, or solvents can trigger unwanted reactions that impact storage stability or curing behavior.
In some cases, excess moisture can cause foaming, gas formation, or reduced mechanical performance.
Moisture scavengers, such as Additive TI, help reduce these risks by chemically reacting with trace amounts of water before they can interfere with the intended reaction.
Additive TI™ is a monofunctional isocyanate moisture scavenger that reacts with water to form an inert amide. By removing moisture introduced through solvents, fillers, and pigments, it helps improve storage stability and reduce moisture-related defects in polyurethane systems.
Formulators must carefully balance cure speed with processing time. If a formulation cures too quickly, pot life may be shortened. If curing is too slow, production timelines and final performance may be affected.
Catalysts are essential for controlling curing reactions in many adhesive and sealant systems, particularly polyurethane formulations.
Selecting the appropriate catalyst technology can help optimize this balance.
Borchi® Kat 2115 is a highly reactive tin-free catalyst designed for one- and two-component polyurethane systems. It accelerates the reaction between polyols and isocyanates while maintaining a good balance between drying time, pot life, and hardness development.
Designing effective adhesive and sealant formulations requires balancing multiple formulation variables. Rheology control, pigment dispersion, moisture management, and cure behavior all play critical roles in determining final performance.
By understanding these factors and selecting the right additive technologies, formulators can improve application behavior, maintain formulation stability, and support reliable curing across a wide range of adhesive and sealant applications.
Borchers offers additive technologies designed to support adhesive and sealant formulations across multiple industries. From rheology modifiers and dispersants to moisture scavengers and catalyst technologies, our solutions help formulators improve stability, application performance, and curing behavior.
Explore our Adhesives & Sealants solutions or connect with a Borchers expert to discuss your formulation challenges.
Adhesive and sealant formulations must meet a wide range of performance requirements. These materials must apply smoothly, remain stable during storage, and cure reliably once applied. At the same time, formulators must balance factors such as viscosity control, filler dispersion,
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