Acrylic resins find extremely broad application across various industrial sectors, including coatings, chemical fibers, textiles, adhesives, leather, papermaking, inks, rubber, and plastics.

Acrylic Adhesives

(1) Organic Glass (PMMA)

The most prominent variety of acrylic plastics is polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) resin, which consists of homopolymers or copolymers of methyl methacrylate. Abbreviated as PMMA, it is also commonly referred to as "organic glass," "acrylic sheet," or "acrylate sheet." Based on its physical form, PMMA can be categorized into molding compounds, powders, and sheets (including cast sheets and extruded sheets). Due to its high light transmittance (reaching up to 92%), excellent weather resistance, ease of coloring via pigment addition to prepolymer slurries or granules, ease of modification and molding, and—compared to silicate glass—superior impact resistance and shatter-proof properties, PMMA is widely utilized in numerous fields. These include building materials and home furnishings (windows, signage, decorative lighting fixtures, sound barriers for high-speed railways/highways/bridges, furniture, bathroom fixtures, etc.), the automotive industry (headlight covers, instrument panel covers, etc.), aerospace (aircraft canopies, portholes, windshields, etc.), optical displays (optical components such as lenses and prisms, polarizer materials, eyeglass lenses), and information transmission (light guide plates, optical fibers). As another high-transmittance plastic, polycarbonate—owing to its price advantage—has led to the partial substitution of PMMA demand in several of these sectors.

(2) ASA Resin

ASA resin is a terpolymer of styrene, acrylonitrile, and butyl acrylate; its mechanical properties are comparable to those of acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene terpolymer (ABS resin). By replacing the polybutadiene rubber found in ABS with acrylate rubber featuring a saturated backbone structure, ASA achieves weather resistance approximately ten times greater than that of ABS. Furthermore, even after prolonged outdoor exposure, it retains excellent impact resistance. As a significant engineering plastic, it also demonstrates marked superiority over ABS resins in terms of solvent resistance and colorability. Additionally, ASA is an antistatic material, which helps minimize dust accumulation on the resin's surface. ASA serves two primary purposes: first, it acts as a toughening modifier to enhance the properties of materials such as polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polycarbonate (PC), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), and nylon; second, it is blended with acrylonitrile-styrene copolymer (SAN) resins to produce ASA resin itself. This ASA resin is predominantly utilized in automotive interior and exterior components, outdoor building materials, home appliances, sports and leisure equipment, and consumer electronics—with the automotive sector representing its largest application market.

(3) Liquid Acrylic Resins

Liquid acrylic resins constitute a class of novel materials that have garnered significant attention in recent years. Compared to traditional solid resins or prepolymer systems, they offer distinct advantages: liquid acrylic resins can be processed at room temperature without the need for solvents, exhibiting excellent flow properties and ease of processing. Moreover, even after curing, they retain high transparency, superior weather resistance, and outstanding mechanical properties. These characteristics endow liquid acrylic resins with immense potential in the fields of eco-friendly, high-performance composite materials, optical materials, architectural coatings, and 3D printing. (3) Electronics, Printing Industries, and Photosensitive Materials

Acrylic resins find application in fields such as the electronics and printing industries, as well as in photosensitive materials, primarily by leveraging their characteristic ability to undergo free-radical curing (radiation curing). Driven by the rapid advancement of radiation curing technology, acrylate-based materials have rapidly expanded into areas including microelectronics manufacturing (chips, printed circuit boards [PCBs], photoresists, liquid crystal display [LCD] panel encapsulation, highly abrasion-resistant touchscreen coatings, microelectronic product packaging, etc.), 3D fabrication, UV inkjet printing, and surface coatings for automobiles, home appliances, and wood products.

In UV/EB curing systems, oligomers typically refer to prepolymers containing polymerizable functional groups—most notably, acrylate groups (CH₂=CH-C(=O)-O-). They constitute the largest proportion of the formulation (often ranging from 30% to 70%) and are the primary contributors to the physicochemical properties of the cured film. Based on the chemical structure of their main chains, UV/EB-curable oligomers are broadly classified into the following categories: polyurethane acrylates, polyester acrylates, epoxy acrylates, polyether acrylates, and pure acrylates; among these, the first three are the most widely utilized.

① Polyurethane Acrylates (PUA)

PUA consists of three distinct components: a "soft segment" derived from polyols (which imparts flexibility), a "hard segment" derived from diisocyanates (such as TDI, HDI, or IPDI—which provides strength and hardness), and terminal acrylate groups (which provide reactivity for the photocuring process). The structural design versatility of PUA is exceptionally high. Its advantages include: excellent overall performance characteristics. By carefully selecting different polyols (e.g., polyesters, polyethers, polycarbonates, polybutadienes) and diisocyanates, specific properties—such as flexibility, elasticity, abrasion resistance, chemical resistance, thermal stability (resistance to high and low temperatures), and adhesion—can be precisely tailored. Typically, PUA exhibits outstanding flexibility and abrasion resistance. Its disadvantages include: relatively high raw material costs; generally high viscosity (particularly in low-functionality variants), which sometimes necessitates the use of reactive diluents for viscosity adjustment; and the potential for certain raw materials (such as aromatic isocyanates) to cause yellowing issues.

② Polyester Acrylates (PEA)

The main chain of PEA is formed through the polycondensation of polybasic acids (such as phthalic anhydride, adipic acid, or isophthalic acid) and polyols (such as neopentyl glycol or trimethylolpropane), featuring acrylate groups located at the chain ends or on the side chains. Its molecular structure contains a large number of ester linkages. Advantages include: relatively low cost; a wide viscosity range, allowing for the selection of low-viscosity grades; excellent adhesion to various substrates (particularly metals and plastics); rapid curing speeds; and good hardness and chemical resistance (specifically resistance to solvents and oils). Disadvantages include: ester linkages are susceptible to hydrolysis by strong bases or acids, meaning their resistance to hydrolysis is generally inferior to that of PUA and EA; flexibility is typically lower than that of PUA (though this can be improved by selecting long-chain dibasic acids or diols); and weather resistance (specifically resistance to yellowing) may be inferior to that of aliphatic PUA or modified epoxy acrylates.

③ Epoxy Acrylates (EA)

EA is synthesized by reacting epoxy resins (most commonly Bisphenol A-type epoxy resins) with acrylic acid; this process involves the ring-opening esterification of the epoxy groups, thereby introducing acrylate groups into the molecular chain. The main chain features rigid benzene rings and ether linkages, with acrylate groups situated at the chain ends. Advantages include: extremely rapid curing speeds; high hardness and high gloss; excellent chemical resistance (to acids, bases, and solvents) and corrosion resistance; strong adhesion to polar substrates (such as metals); and low cost. Disadvantages include: high brittleness, resulting in poor flexibility and impact resistance; a relatively high curing shrinkage rate; poor weather resistance (due to the aromatic structure's susceptibility to yellowing); and typically high viscosity. EA Modification Methods and Performance Characteristics:

Fatty Acid Modification — Improves flexibility and weather resistance, and reduces viscosity; however, hardness and chemical resistance are compromised.

Amine Modification — Improves brittleness, adhesion, and pigment wetting properties, while increasing the curing rate.

Polyurethane Modification— Improves abrasion resistance, heat resistance, and elasticity.

Phosphoric Acid Modification — Enhances flame retardancy and improves adhesion to metals.

Acid Anhydride Modification — Yields alkali-soluble resins suitable for use as photoimaging materials; upon neutralization with amines or bases, they serve as water-based UV-curable materials.

Silicone Modification — Improves weather resistance, heat resistance, abrasion resistance, flame retardancy, and anti-fouling properties.

Phenolic Modification — Improves heat resistance and facilitates applications involving alkali-soluble photosensitive resins.