Adhesives and adhesion are of fundamental importance to the textile and clothing industries.

They are necessary in nearly every type of textilebased product. Adhesion to textile fibers and fabrics may be either temporary or permanent. Temporary adhesion is required generally at some point in the yarn or manufacturing process in order to move the product through to subsequent parts of the process. Permanent adhesives are more demanding, as the adhesive must last the life of the final product. In most cases, if the adhesive fails, the product also fails. The production of textile fibers is a global industry, and the end-uses for textile-based materials continually expand. This growth is due both to the many end-uses of textile-based products and to the globalization of the textile and clothing industries. Several topics related to textile adhesive and adhesion will be the focus of this article. The nature of adhesion to textile fibers and fabrics will be reviewed, and the major end-uses of textile materials in which adhesives play an important role will be highlighted. Important industrial adhesive materials and processes that are commonly used in textile products will be summarized. Textile adhesives that are used in the home for mending, sewing, etc. will not be discussed in this article, but they will be the subjects of a future SpecialChem article. Industries that are dependent on textile fibers include apparel, transportation, (e.g., automobile and aerospace), filtration, and geotextiles among others. Adhesion plays an important roll in all coating, laminating, bonding, and fusing processes that are used in the manufacture of modern textile products. Generally products that are produced by bonding textiles can be categorized into four segments: (1) woven, (2) non-woven, (3) laminated products, and others (knits, etc.). Demands for higher performance criteria and for adhesion to newly developed fibers continue to increase due to the sophistication of

products in which textiles are used. The requirements of the adhesive and adhesive bond are as varied as the products manufactured with textiles. The mechanism for adhesion in textile manufacture may be either physical (mechanical interlocking, diffusion, electrostatic) or chemical (intermolecular attractions and covalent bonding). There are generally three problems that interfere with satisfactory adhesion: Contaminants or weak boundary layers Required flexibility Dimension stability of the fiber-adhesive interface relative to the environment There is a wide range of natural and manufactured textile fibers available, but satisfactory adhesion depends on the nature of the fiber surface, the presence of natural or added impurities, and the effects of physical and chemical treatments prior to bonding. Holme provides an excellent review of the subject of adhesion to textile fibers, addresses some of the problem areas relative to adhesion, and provides information regarding chemical pretreatments to enhance the adhesion to fibers.

Manufacturing processes
Nonwovens are typically manufactured by putting small fibres together in the form of a sheet or web (similar to paper on a paper machine), and then binding them either mechanically (as in the case of felt, by interlocking them with serrated needles such that the inter-fibre friction results in a stronger fabric), with an adhesive, or thermally (by applying binder (in the form of powder, paste, or polymer melt) and melting the binder onto the web by increasing temperature).

Adhesives and sealants find several applications in an automobile. In fact, adhesives have revolutionized the way automobiles have been designed and built. Adhesives are used to assemble metal, glass, plastics, rubber, and a variety of other materials during the manufacture of automobiles. Adhesives help prevent the ingress of water, salt and dirt in the car body shell. The shell layers, most commonly steel, are coated with a number of oils used for protection and lubrication as they are cut and stamped to shape. Good adhesion performance must be maintained over a wide range of test temperatures, typically from -30C to +90C and after several types of ageing tests. In addition to their key purpose of fastening, they may be used to seal, damp vibrations, be electrically insulating or conducting, provide corrosion resistance, or perform a variety of other functions; depending on the application. Adhesive bonding reduces steps in the manufacturing processes, which ultimately results in reduced cost. They are routinely used in both structural and non-structural automotive applications. Epoxy and PU sound deadening materials and structural adhesives are now used between body shell layers instead of mechanical fasteners. This lowers a car's weight, improving fuel efficiency along with reducing the likelihood of corrosion. Adhesives also offer better aesthetics as compared to mechanical fastening. Adhesive joints can show higher strength and stress dispersion than other attachment methods in automobiles. Epoxy adhesives are used for load carrying members and areas where aesthetic constraints demand perfect joint stability as they provide the stiffest bond. PU is used where elasticity is required, as in vibration damping or shock absorption while acrylate adhesives offer balance properties. Hot melt adhesive is gaining higher share of the automotive industry due to emission problems of elimination of volatile organic compound. Water based adhesives are also gaining higher penetration. The application and processing characteristics of an adhesive represent, perhaps, the greatest value to the automobile manufacturer as they enable cost efficient designs. As per a report by Sri Consulting, the polymer dispersion/emulsion adhesives category is the largest because of their versatility and moderate price, followed by solvent-based adhesives. Consumption

of solvent-based adhesives is on the decline in developed countries primarily because of VOC emission regulations, but is growing strongly in developing countries such as China following the rise of shoe manufacturing. Silicone products dominate the sealants market, followed by polyurethane products. Polysulfide sealants are losing market share to these products and to commodity sealant products. Silicon-modified polyether sealants have expanded beyond their Japanese production base to the larger markets in North America and Western Europe.

Some producers have switched from targeted solvents to other solvents only to find they must switch again with new regulations, or have changed to lower or no-emission technologies. Waterborne products continue to push into commodity markets, but their penetration into specialty segments has slowed because of the formulating difficulties and performance challenges in the solvent borne segments. Although the consumption of solvent-based adhesives is continuing to decline in North America, Western Europe and Japan, this category is growing steadily in China and the rest of Asia, following the growth of relocated industries such as shoe manufacturing. Overall, hot melt technologies have seen the greatest growth globally, because they offer very low or no emissions, work on a variety of substrates, and are easy to apply. Also, new low-temperature and reactive hot melt products have expanded the possible end-use areas for these adhesives.