Originally Published MPMN October 2001

Spotlight on Pressure Sensitives and Adhesives

Cold-temperature label material

A pressure-sensitive material is designed for labels exposed to extreme cold temperatures. The TLP 866 has comformability characteristics when applied to small-diameter surfaces that make it suitable for vial marking. A special top coating enables labels made of the material to be preprinted with static information and then imprinted with variable information such as bar codes and serial or lot numbers. Tailored Label Products Inc., W165 N5731 Ridgewood Dr., Menomonee Falls, WI 53051.

Skin contact adhesives

A company offers standard or custom designs of medical-grade skin contact adhesives and pressure-sensitive materials for applications in wound-care, ostomy, electromedical, surgical drape, and diagnostic markets. Materials available include films, foams, foils, adhesives, hydrocolloids, laminates, and woven and nonwoven fabrics. Avery Dennison Medical, 7100 Lindsay Dr., Mentor, OH 44060.

Double-coated adhesives

A double-coated tape is designed to provide flexibility and comfort to patients. The DC 500 tape is suitable for surgical drapes, medical device assembly, patient monitoring, and mounting medical devices to skin. It is a 3-mil, clear, low-density polyethylene film. The release liner is an 80-lb, bleached, supercalendered kraft, silicone treated on both sides for differential release properties. Tyco Adhesives, 1400 Providence Hwy., Norwood, MA 02062.

Electrically conductive adhesive tapes

Nonmetallic, highly conductive acrylic adhesive–based tapes are suitable for bonding the connector components of an electrode to a second substrate. The ARcare 8874 and 8881 tapes facilitate the transmission of signals sent through the adhesive to make the electrical connection. They can be used in a range of multifunctional electrodes including monitoring electrodes for retrieving cardiac, nerve activity, and muscle movement data; electrodes for the delivery of pain control and therapies; and disposable electrode pads found on automatic external defibrillators. Adhesives Research Inc., P. O. Box 100, Glen Rock, PA 17327.

Curing adhesive

A room-temperature curing adhesive can operate in temperatures up to 145°C. Tra-Bond FDA23 is electrically nonconductive, has excellent lap shear properties, and is semirigid, making it suitable for the repair and assembly of medical devices. Applications include endoscope repair and catheter assembly, bonding, and encapsulating. Tra-Con Inc., 45 Wiggins Ave., Bedford, MA 01730.

Hot-melt adhesive coating systems

Web coating and laminating lines are suitable for the application of hot-melt adhesives to produce products such as ECG patches, transdermal delivery systems, breathable laminates, adhesive films, tapes, and bandages. Several coating techniques are available to produce full-width coverage, down-web stripes, or customer-specified dots and patterns in web widths to 80 in. Substrates can include film, foam, paper, release liners, nonwovens, wovens, and hook and loop. May Coating Technologies, 1120 Red Fox Rd., St. Paul, MN 55112.

Metal-bonding adhesive

A methacrylate metal-bonding adhesive provides a combination of high strength, fatigue endurance, impact resistance, and toughness on metals and other substrates including stainless steel, aluminum, thermoplastics, and composites. The MA820 is a two-part adhesive that requires no primers and little or no surface preparation on most substrates. A low-odor nonsagging gel with good tolerance to off-ratio mixing, it has a working time of 4–6 minutes, achieves 75% of ultimate strength in 30–35 minutes, and cures with no surface tack. ITW Plexus, 30 Endicott St., Danvers, MA 01923.

Acrylic and latex-free adhesives

Pressure-sensitive adhesive-coated skin contact products offer a selection of acrylic and latex-free rubber-resin adhesives that can incorporate active ingredients such as antimicrobials. The products include Dublfilm double-sided tapes, Bioflex PVC and polyurethane foams, and UniFilm unsupported transfer adhesive films. Scapa Medical, 540 N. Oak St., Inglewood, CA 90302.

Copyright ©2001 Medical Product Manufacturing News