new-applications-for-adhesive-tapes

New Applications for Adhesive Tapes

Uses adhesive tapes in the design, production, and transportation of its white goods and small appliance because tapes offer better craftsmanship, no stains or residue left on the end product, good chemical resistance, a variety of thicknesses and types for application, design flexibility (they can bond similar and dissimilar surfaces), high strength, multi-functionality (adhesion, insulation, barrier, etc.), and cost efficiency.
The company uses adhesive tapes in various applications in fixing, bonding, securing, and/or protecting refrigerator condensers, evaporators, shelves and crispers, and glass doors; washing machine and dryer inlays, panel plates, screens, and insulation; TV metal and glass stands, and screens; and product name plates and labels.
Suggested new applications for adhesive tapes include glass door and VIP adhesion in refrigerators and construction of holders containing foam in both large and small appliances.

the-effectiveness-of-adhesive-tape

The Effectiveness of Adhesive Tape

No doubt many of you have spent a happy Christmas tearing away layers of wrapping paper to expose some new gadget. But did you stop to spare a thought for the “sticky-back plastic” holding your precious gift paper together?
There are a crazy number of adhesive tapes available, and in this article I’d like to discuss a few of the ones I’ve found useful in my lab, and their sometimes surprising applications. I’d be interested in your own favorite tapes and adhesives too, so please comment below!
But first, I’d like to start with the tapes that I don’t use. Normal cellulose tape, while useful outside the lab, is less than ideally suited to most lab applications. The same goes for vinyl-based insulating tapes, which I find have a tendency to fall off leaving a messy sticky residue. When insulation is necessary, heatshrink seems to serve better.
The one tape I have in my lab which is similar to common cellulose tape however is Scotch Magic Tape. Scotch Magic tape, made from a cellulose acetate, and has a number of surprising properties. It’s often favored because of it’s matte finish. It can easily be written on and when taped to paper appears completely transparent. It’s also easy to tear/shape and remove. But for my purposes I’m more interested in it’s scientific applications.
Here’s a neat trick you can try at home. Take a roll of tape (I’ve tried this with Scotch Magic tape but other tapes may work too) to a dark room. Now start unrolling the tape and look at interface where the tape leaves the rest of the roll. You should see a dim blue illumination. The effect is quite striking and rather surprising. It’s called triboluminescence and has been observed since the 1950s in tapes and far earlier in other materials (even sugar when scraped in a dark room will apparently illuminate). The mechanism, however, is poorly understood.

the-history-of-scotch-tape

The History of Scotch Tape

Scotch tape was invented in 1930 by banjo playing 3M engineer Richard Drew. Scotch tape was the world’s first transparent adhesive tape. Richard Drew also invented the first masking tape in 1925, a two-inch-wide tan paper tape with a pressure sensitive adhesive backing.