BETONCHEM Corporation manufactures sodium silicate and potassium silicate products that can be used as adhesives in several applications, such as those involving paper, wood, and fabrics. Soluble silicates in aqueous solutions have physical and chemical properties that are useful in adhesive applications. Liquid silicates are inexpensive, readily available, and convenient. When applied as a thin layer on or between surfaces of other materials, the silicate solution dries to form a tough, tightly adhering inorganic bond or film which can exhibit the following characteristics:
 
Low cost
Non-flammable
Resistant to temperatures up to 3,000°F
Odorless and non-toxic
Bondable to metals, particles (e.g., refractory materials), fibrous materials (e.g., paper, fiberglass), glass, ceramics
Strong and rigid
 
 
Because of the low cost and versatile properties of BETONCHEM sodium and potassium silicates as coatings and binders, they are useful in a broad range of applications. BETONCHEM 's latest development, sodium silicate, serves to extend phenol-formaldehyde resins in adhesives for plywood. replaces up to 25% of the phenolic resin in the adhesive formulation with no sacrifice in final bond quality and delivers significant cost savings. 
     
How It Works
 
Silicates are water-based solutions of polymeric silica. When properly applied, sodium silicates penetrate the surfaces to be joined.  Liquid silicates begin to dry by losing moisture to the air and to the substrate itself. As this occurs, the viscosity increases becoming tacky and sticky. Eventually the silicate dries to form a hard, glasslike bond. In addition to bonding, the silicates harden and strengthen the substrates. 
 
Silicates usually work well with porous or semi-porous surfaces, where the silicate can partially penetrate the surface. Silicates can also bond metal and glass, but surfaces must be roughened or attacked chemically to make sure that a good physical bond can be formed.  Typical applications include:
 
Adhesive for corrugated board, spiral or convolute paper tubing and fiber drums
Foil-to-paper lamination adhesive
Binders for forming fibrous materials into building products (e.g., ceiling insulating materials, wallboard)
Glass
Metal       

Applications 
 
Plywood
 
Spiral and Convolute Tubes and Cores
 
Fiber Drums
 
Paper/Metal Foil Laminates
 
Paperboard Laminates
 
Angleboard and Cornerboard
 
Corrugated Board
 
Other Fibrous Products
(Sisal, Fiberglass, Fabrics)