Asphaltene-Stabilized Polyisobutylene Pressure-Sensitive Adhesives for Ultraviolet Protection and Surface Bonding

• Published in: Materials Vol. 16; no. 3; p. 1209
• Main Authors: Melekhina, Viktoria Y, Kostyuk, Anna V, Smirnova, Nina M, Ilyin, Sergey O
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 31.01.2023; MDPI
• Subjects: Adhesion tests; Adhesive bonding; Adhesives; Adhesives and sealants industry; Aging; Asphaltenes; Bond strength; Coatings; Crude oil; Electric waves; Electromagnetic radiation; Electromagnetic waves; Erythema; Glass; glass bonding; Glass fiber reinforced plastics; Graphene; Molecular weight; Network formation; Petroleum; Petroleum refining; Polyethylene; Polyisobutylene; Polymers; Pressure sensitive adhesives; Protective coatings; Refining; Rheological properties; Rheology; Skin cancer; Thin films; Ultraviolet radiation; UV protection; Viscosity; United States > US; UV protection; polyisobutylene; rheology; asphaltenes; pressure-sensitive adhesives; glass bonding
• DOI: 10.3390/ma16031209
• ISSN: 1996-1944

The usual way to protect indoor areas from solar UV radiation is to use UV-absorbing materials, which are applied as a thin film on the surface of the windowpane. Asphaltenes are useless wastes from crude oil refining that absorb UV radiation well, which gave the idea of their use in protective coatings. Pressure-sensitive adhesives based on polyisobutylene containing from 5 to 30 wt% of asphaltenes were obtained. Deterioration of the adhesive properties with the introduction of 5-20 wt% of asphaltenes was shown by adhesion tests, which can be associated with the plasticization of the polymer matrix. At the same time, the use of 30 wt% of asphaltenes leads to the polymer matrix reinforcement with the restoration of adhesive properties to the original level or even slightly higher. The rheological study of adhesives at 25 °C and 120 °C showed the structural network formation by asphaltenes at a content of 30 wt%, explaining the increase in adhesion performance. According to microscopy, asphaltenes are flat brown glass shards in a polymer matrix. They absorb electromagnetic radiation, predominantly in the UV range, while maintaining relative translucency in the visible range. This makes it possible to obtain thin films from the asphaltene-filled adhesive for bonding glass sheets to produce UV-blocked and tinted windowpanes.