Pressure-sensitive tape, known also in various countries as PSA tape, adhesive tape, self-stick tape, sticky tape, Sellotape, or just tape, is an adhesive tape that will stick with application of pressure, without the need for a solvent (such as water) or heat for activation. PSA tape consists of three components: *the tape itself, which often is

cellophane Cellophane is a thin, transparent sheet made of regenerated cellulose. Its low permeability to air, oils, greases, bacteria, and liquid water makes it useful for food packaging. Cellophane is highly permeable to water vapour, but may be coated ...

cellulose acetate In biochemistry, cellulose acetate refers to any acetate ester of cellulose, usually cellulose diacetate. It was first prepared in 1865. A bioplastic, cellulose acetate is used as a film base in photography, as a component in some coatings, and ...

, or polyvinyl chloride. Other materials include

paper Paper is a thin sheet material produced by mechanically or chemically processing cellulose fibres derived from wood, rags, grasses or other vegetable sources in water, draining the water through fine mesh leaving the fibre evenly distrib ...

plastic film Plastic film is a thin continuous polymeric material. Thicker plastic material is often called a "sheet". These thin plastic membranes are used to separate areas or volumes, to hold items, to act as barriers, or as printable surfaces. Plas ...

cloth Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, different fabric types, etc. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is not the ...

, or

metal foil A foil is a very thin sheet of metal, typically made by hammering or rolling.Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "foil". Encyclopedia Britannica, 6 Nov. 2008https://www.britannica.com/technology/foil-metallurgy.Accessed 11 September 2022. Fo ...

.coated onto a backing material such as

, or

. *a pressure-sensitive adhesive. *

release liner A release liner or ''release paper'' is a paper or plastic-based film sheet (usually applied during the manufacturing process) used to prevent a sticky surface from prematurely adhering. It is coating, coated on one or both sides with a release ag ...

, which keeps the tape from sticking to itself. Some have layers of adhesives, primers,

release agent A release agent (also mold release agent, release coating, or mold release coating) is a chemical used to prevent other materials from bonding to surfaces. It can provide a solution in processes involving mold release, die-cast release, plastic r ...

s, filaments, printing, etc. made for specific functions. It will stick without the need for a solvent such as water or heat for activation. By contrast, "gummed" or "water activated" adhesive tapes require warm water for activation and "heat activated" tapes require heat. Single-sided tapes allow bonding to a surface or joining of two adjacent or overlapping materials. Double-sided tape (adhesive on both sides) allows joining of two items back-to-back.

Varieties of PSA tape

*Adhesive transfer tape does not have a backing material. Instead, adhesive is on a double-coated

for winding on a roll. Sometimes the adhesive is sandwiched between two liners. *Archival tape is similar to transparent office tape, with low-acid adhesives that will not degrade surfaces they are applied to, protecting documents from damage during long-term storage. * Box-sealing tape (also "packing tape"; "parcel tape", UK) is a type of packaging tape which is clear or opaque, and used for closing packages for shipment. It is usually two inches (48 mm) or three inches (72 mm) wide and is made of a

polypropylene Polypropylene (PP), also known as polypropene, is a thermoplastic polymer used in a wide variety of applications. It is produced via chain-growth polymerization from the monomer propylene. Polypropylene belongs to the group of polyolefins a ...

or polyester backing. * Drafting tape is similar to masking tape, but with lower tack adhesive so that it may be removed without damaging or leaving residue on paper or other delicate surfaces, and also has pH maintained at 7 so as not to damage the substrate. *

Duct tape Duct tape (also called duck tape, from the cotton duck cloth it was originally made of) is cloth- or scrim-backed pressure-sensitive tape, often coated with polyethylene. There are a variety of constructions using different backings and adhesi ...

usually has a plastic-coated fabric backing and a strong adhesive. * Double-sided tape has adhesive on both sides of a backing material, for attaching two surfaces together. *

Electrical tape Electrical tape (or insulating tape) is a type of pressure-sensitive tape used to insulate electrical wires and other materials that conduct electricity. It can be made of many plastics, but PVC (polyvinyl chloride, "vinyl") is most popular, as i ...

(or insulating tape) stretches to conform to irregular objects, and is made of materials like

vinyl Vinyl may refer to: Chemistry * Polyvinyl chloride (PVC), a particular vinyl polymer * Vinyl cation, a type of carbocation * Vinyl group, a broad class of organic molecules in chemistry * Vinyl polymer, a group of polymers derived from vinyl ...

that do not conduct electricity. * Filament tape or "strapping tape" has filaments (usually

fiberglass Fiberglass (American English) or fibreglass ( Commonwealth English) is a common type of fiber-reinforced plastic using glass fiber. The fibers may be randomly arranged, flattened into a sheet called a chopped strand mat, or woven into glass clo ...

) embedded into the adhesive for extra strength. *

Gaffer tape Gaffer tape (also known as gaffer's tape, gaff tape or gaffa tape as well as spike tape for narrow, colored gaffer tape) is a heavy cotton cloth pressure-sensitive tape with strong adhesive and tensile properties. It is widely used in theatre, p ...

(or simply "gaff tape") is normally based on a heavy fabric or

plastic Plastics are a wide range of synthetic or semi-synthetic materials that use polymers as a main ingredient. Their plasticity makes it possible for plastics to be moulded, extruded or pressed into solid objects of various shapes. This adaptab ...

tape. * Hockey tape or "friction tape" is a somewhat rough cloth tape used for grip on

hockey Hockey is a term used to denote a family of various types of both summer and winter team sports which originated on either an outdoor field, sheet of ice, or dry floor such as in a gymnasium. While these sports vary in specific rules, numbers o ...

and

lacrosse Lacrosse is a team sport played with a lacrosse stick and a lacrosse ball. It is the oldest organized sport in North America, with its origins with the indigenous people of North America as early as the 12th century. The game was extensiv ...

sticks. * Masking tape is used to cover areas that should not be painted. It usually has a paper backing and an adhesive designed to be removed from surfaces (within a limited time). * Security tape has special features to make it tamper evident * Speed tape or "600 mile per hour tape" is a metallic foil with an adhesive designed to secure the tape under high-speed airflow and is used on the skins of airplanes * Spike tape is a thinner version of gaffer tape that is usually brightly colored. It is used to mark places of furniture or actors on a stage. *

Surgical tape Surgical tape or medical tape is a type of pressure-sensitive adhesive tape used in medicine and first aid to hold a bandage or other dressing onto a wound. These tapes usually have a hypoallergenic adhesive which is designed to hold firmly ont ...

is an adhesive

bandage A bandage is a piece of material used either to support a medical device such as a dressing or splint, or on its own to provide support to or to restrict the movement of a part of the body. When used with a dressing, the dressing is applie ...

used to hold a dressing on a wound. *Transparent office tape is used for repairing torn paper products, sealing envelopes, general holding, etc. It is a transparent film of

, cellulose,

, or other plastic, with an acrylic or synthetic rubber–based adhesive. Clear tape with a matte finish is branded "Scotch Magic Tape" or called "invisible tape". Clear tape is sold in pre-filled single-use

tape dispenser A tape dispenser is an object that holds a roll of tape and has a mechanism at one end to shear the tape. Dispensers vary widely based on the tape they dispense. Abundant and most common, clear tape dispensers (like those used in an office or at ...

s and in "refill" rolls for permanent desktop tape dispensers. Famous brands include Sellotape, Scotch Tape, Duck, Tesa, LePage's, Texcel, etc.

Tape glossary

*Backing. The primary component of tape upon which an adhesive is applied. Examples are cloth, paper, metal foil, plastic film, etc. *Conformability. Ability of a tape to make total contact with a rough or uneven surface. *Creped. Paper that has small "folds" to provide stretchability and conformability. *Double-coated, or two-sided tape. Pressure-sensitive tape with adhesive on both sides of the carrier material. *Gapping. Openings between layers of tape within a roll. *Release coating. A very thin coating applied to the impervious tape backing so as to allow the tape to be unwound at a controlled level. *Substrate. The substrate is the material to which the PSA tape must adhere. *Tack. The sticky feel of the tape. It is the initial adhesion without rub-down. *Telescoping. A sideways sliding of the tape layers, one over the other, so that the roll looks like a funnel or telescope. *Unwind. The force to remove or unwind the tape from a roll.

PSA tape standards

The PSA industry is in the process of unifying the several standards presently in use. The most active organizations are: *ISO

International Organization for Standardization The International Organization for Standardization (ISO ) is an international standard development organization composed of representatives from the national standards organizations of member countries. Membership requirements are given in Art ...

: A European AFNOR committee is currently active in the definition of international standards; some of the most common test methods, such as Peel Adhesion, Static Shear Adhesion, Break Strength, and Elongation are presently ISO standard
ASTM
ASTM International has several Technical Committees which write standards related to pressure-sensitive tape.
PSTC
Pressure Sensitive Tape Council (tapes, North America)
TLMI
Tag & Label Manufacturers Institute (labels, North America)
AFERA
European Association for the Self Adhesive Tape Industry (tapes, Europe)
FINAT
Féderation internationale des fabricants et transformateurs d'adhésifs et thermocollants (labels, Europe)

Japanese Adhesive Tapes Manufacturers Association

ASTM International ASTM International, formerly known as American Society for Testing and Materials, is an international standards organization that develops and publishes voluntary consensus technical standards for a wide range of materials, products, systems, ...

has dozens of standards related to pressure-sensitive tape. Some of them are for general types of PSA tape; others are for specific types. For example, ASTM D1000 has test methods for electrical tapes. There are ASTM

specification A specification often refers to a set of documented requirements to be satisfied by a material, design, product, or service. A specification is often a type of technical standard. There are different types of technical or engineering specificati ...

s for many tapes including D2301 for vinyl electrical tape, D5486 for box-sealing tape, etc. Several of the ASTM test methods are coordinated with PSTC, other trade associations, and other international organizations. Following are a few examples of some ASTM standards and counterparts:

Environmental considerations

Life cycle assessments of the tape and the item being taped are useful to identify and improve possible environmental effects. For example, there may be instances where the use of a PSA tape, compared to an alternative solution, improves the overall environmental impact, or vice versa. Reuse or recycling are sometimes aided by a tape being removable from a surface. If a tape remains on an item during recycling, a tape should be chosen which does not hinder the recyclability of the item. For example, when taped corrugated boxes are recycled, film-backed box-sealing tapes do not hinder box recycling; the adhesive stays with the backing and is easily removed.

History

Pressure-sensitive adhesives were first developed in 1845 by Dr. Horace Day, a surgeon.''Journal of the American Institute for Conservation'', By Merrily A. Smith, Norvell M. M. Jones, II, Susan L. Page and Marian Peck Dirda; JAIC 1984, Volume 23, Number 2, Article 3 (pp. 101 to 113) Commercial tapes were introduced in the early twentieth century. Hundreds of patents have since been published on a wide variety of formulations and constructions.

References

External links

Pressure Sensitive Tape Council
*{{YouTube, UWBCAjxgKB8, How It's Made: Adhesive Tape, by Science (US) / Discovery Channel (Canada) Adhesive tape Packaging materials Stationery