KUDO^® blog

Hybrid adhesive sealant: what is it?

Hybrid sealants, known mostly as MS polymers or SMP (Silyl Modified Polymer), were first introduced by the Japanese company Kaneka about 40 years ago. They are a hybrid polymer of polyurethane and silicone. The material obtained by crossing polyurethane with silicone has the strengths of both and is free of their weaknesses.

Where hybrid polymer materials are used

The range of applications of hybrid polymer materials follows from their all-round properties and is therefore extremely wide: they are used as adhesives and sealants in construction, in the home, and in the aircraft, automotive and shipbuilding industries.

The KUDO^® range has a new product – the NEXTGEN constructional adhesive sealant based on hybrid polymers.

The hybrid adhesive sealant is designed for installing various building elements and has excellent adhesion to most building materials. It resists weathering and is suitable for interior and exterior work. It withstands loads and vibration and suits sealing and bonding assemblies with joint movement of up to 10%. It is chemically neutral, does not react with the bonded materials and, once cured, can be painted with almost any type of paint.
The hybrid adhesive sealant is white and comes in a standard 280 ml cartridge.

Rubber structural adhesive “Liquid nails”, fast fixing and Rubber structural adhesive “Liquid nails”, strong fixing are now supplied in one more pack – an 85 gram tube. The new pack suits buyers who need a small amount of adhesive and for whom the standard 300 ml cartridge is too large.

The most common mistake in working with PU foam sealant is not moistening the joint enough.

Foam cures under the action of moisture. What happens when there is not enough of it is what we set out to show in the experiment below.

We filled two cups with the same PU foam sealant. In one of them the foam was moistened, in the other it was not. All the other conditions were identical, yet in one cup the foam cured and in the other it did not. This is why the joint must always be misted with water before it is filled with foam, and then misted once more after filling. And the joint must not be covered with vapor barrier tape until the foam has fully cured.

A new product: Acrylic sealant for wood and parquet.

It is designed for sealing and grouting joints when laying parquet, laminate and cork floors, and for filling gaps when installing baseboards, casings, wooden window frames and window sills where joint movement does not exceed 15%. It is also used to seal joints when finishing with tongue-and-groove boards and installing partitions.

The KUDO^® range includes metallic spray paints with two types of pigment: leafing and non-leafing. They differ both in appearance and in other properties.

A sealant for a bathroom has to meet several specific requirements. First, it must resist mold growth. Second, it must be water-resistant. Third, it must be elastic, because the joints that need sealing in a bathroom are often subject to movement. On top of that, a bathroom sealant needs good adhesion to a range of materials.

To find a suitable sealant, look at the sealant selection chart. It shows that two types meet all of these requirements: hybrid and silicone sealants.

Hybrid sealants are a versatile, balanced solution: they combine the best of polyurethane, silicone, acrylic and rubber sealants and adhesives. Their main advantages are that they can be applied to a damp surface, have high strength and good adhesion, do not yellow, give off no odor and, most important, resist mold and mildew well. The flip side of that strong adhesion and high strength is that a hybrid sealant is harder to remove if it ever has to come off.

Silicone sealants are either acetoxy cure or neutral cure, depending on the curing system. Acetoxy sealants give off a sharp smell of acetic acid while they are being applied; neutral cure sealants are practically odorless. Acetoxy sealants are used on stainless steel, glass, ceramics and wood, but they are not compatible with alkaline materials (cement, lime, gypsum), marble or granite, and they corrode metals. Neutral cure sealants can be used without such restrictions.

Summer 2019 update! Meet the new combined KUDO^®, RUSH^® and DONEWELL^® catalog of sealants, PU foam sealants and adhesives. Choosing the products you need is now even easier!

The long-awaited summer 2019 update: a new combined catalog of PU foam sealants, adhesives and sealants KUDO^®, RUSH^® and DONEWELL^®. Choosing the right product is now even easier.

Introducing a new product: Professional all-season PU foam sealant DONEWELL^® 65.