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Urethane Adhesives

Flexibility for when just being strong isn’t enough.

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Strong bonds that bend but don’t break

  • Two-part urethane structural adhesives are different from one-part moisture-curing urethane sealants. Urethane structural adhesives are two-part formulations that react when mixed and do not require moisture to cure. They are relatively flexible when cured and therefore tend to have excellent impact and vibration resistance. Urethane structural adhesives bond well to most plastics, wood, concrete and rubber, but they tend to have reduced resistance to solvents and high temperatures. The combination of flexibility and the ability to form strong bonds to a variety of substrates makes two-component urethane structural adhesives an excellent choice for bonding dissimilar materials.


  • Discover the Important Attributes of Urethane Adhesives

     

     

    Hotspot selector of Urethane attributes

Strength

Structural adhesives provide the strength you need without the weight you don’t, allowing you to reduce or eliminate metal fasteners

Bonding

Urethanes adhere to a wide variety of materials, including wood, concrete, rubber and many plastics

Process Efficiency

Different chemistries provide a variety of surface preparation, open time and strength-build times so you can find the best options for your process

Impact Resistance

Depending on the chemistry, structural adhesive bonds provide the strength or flexibility to resist shock, vibration and impact loads

Lightweighting

Adhering to new materials and distributing stress along the entire bond area helps designers use thinner and lighter materials

NVH

Flexibility allows urethanes to absorb shocks and thermal expansion differences between dissimilar materials

Aesthetics

Urethanes provide better product appearance by bonding different materials without the bond line being visible through the substrate

Innovation in Design

The ability of structural adhesives to bond a wide variety of substrates allows the freedom to design for the best materials available

Water Intrusion

Structural adhesives provide a continuous bond line to prevent the migration of fluids, dust and dirt

Benefits, Applications and Products of Urethane Adhesives

  • This white paper discusses the features and benefits of structural adhesives for bonding polymer matrix composites, both thermoset and thermoplastic fiber-reinforced plastics, to themselves and to other materials. It also covers advantages of adhesives specific to composite materials, typical assemblies and applications for composite materials, selecting the appropriate adhesive to maximize your assembly and testing and prototyping for bonding composite parts.

  • This brochure describes a two-part urethane repair option for fixing cracks and spalling in concrete floors. Rather than taking the floor out of service, this product hardens in as little as five minutes and can be traversed with a forklift in as few as 15 minutes. It hardens to any depth and can be applied with a common caulking gun.

  • 3M urethane structural adhesives add flexibility when you need more than just strength. These two-part adhesives bond well to most plastics, wood, concrete and rubber, making them excellent candidates when you’re bonding dissimilar substrates. Explore some options.


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Frequently asked questions

Different customers often bring up similar questions when they work with our adhesive experts. Here are some of the most common ones.

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Urethane Adhesives in Action


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Need help finding the right product for your project? Contact us if you need product, technical or application advice or want to collaborate with a 3M technical specialist, or give us a call at 1-800-831-0658.

Need help finding the right product for your project? Contact us if you need product, technical or application advice or want to collaborate with a 3M technical specialist, or give us a call at 1-800-831-0658.

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