Odor-free coating adhesives, under increasingly stringent environmental and production requirements, have become the prevailing trend in the industry, with a wide variety of products and mature technologies now available on the market. Based on their dispersion systems, these adhesives are primarily categorized into two types: water-based systems and solvent-free systems.
I. Water-borne adhesives: Low odor adhesive formulations address the same concern from the factory floor to the finished room.
Using deionized water as the dispersion medium, the resin is uniformly dispersed in the water, with virtually no organic solvents present; the application process is odorless or exhibits only a low odor. Consequently, this type of eco-friendly coating adhesive is currently the most widely used and applied category of such adhesives. Depending on the resin system, mainstream variants are classified into three categories:
1. Water-based acrylic pressure-sensitive adhesive
This is the most widely used general-purpose waterborne adhesive, featuring a broad adjustable formulation range and adhesion performance spanning from ultra-low to high viscosity across the full spectrum. After coating and curing, it maintains pressure-sensitive adhesion over extended periods, making it ideal for high-speed roll-to-roll production lines, while offering balanced overall cost efficiency. It is extensively applied in various self-adhesive products, including standard protective films, packaging tapes, self-adhesive labels, and medical adhesive patches.
2. Water-based polyurethane pressure-sensitive adhesive
The adhesive layer exhibits high flexibility and elasticity, with outstanding bend resistance and impact resistance; its adhesion to flexible and porous substrates—such as leather, foam, and fabric—significantly surpasses that of acrylic-based adhesives. It is widely used in foam tapes, leather back adhesives, and self-adhesive composites for flexible substrates.
3. Water-based liquid hot-melt adhesive
Using deionized water as the dispersion medium, this formulation is environmentally friendly and odorless. After coating and drying at room temperature, it forms a non-adhesive crystalline state; upon high-temperature press activation, it achieves high bonding strength. Combining the eco-friendliness of water-based adhesives with the composite strength of thermosetting adhesives, it is widely used in hot-press composite processing of materials such as PET, TPU, and leather rolls.
II. Solvent-free adhesives:
The adhesive itself consists of 100% active resin components, contains neither water nor organic solvents, and releases no volatile substances during the curing process, thereby achieving truly zero VOC emissions, no odor, and the highest environmental rating. Depending on the curing method, it can be further classified into four primary subtypes:
1. Two-component reactive solvent-free adhesive
Represented by solvent-free polyurethane composite adhesive, this material undergoes a chemical reaction and cures upon mixing of its two components. The resulting adhesive layer exhibits a dense structure, along with excellent resistance to media and boiling water, making it the standard adhesive for high-end multi-layer food flexible packaging and fully complying with food contact safety requirements.
2. UV-curable adhesive
Using photosensitive resin as the primary material, this formulation undergoes second-scale crosslinking and curing under ultraviolet (UV) irradiation, with no solvent volatilization throughout the process. It features rapid curing speed, high production efficiency, and the cured coating exhibits excellent wear and chemical resistance, making it widely applicable in high-precision thin-film coating applications such as optical films, precision electronic coatings, and printing varnishing processes.
3. Addition-type silicone pressure-sensitive adhesive
A 100% solid silicone rubber formulation catalyzed by platinum, which undergoes heat-induced crosslinking and curing after coating, featuring solvent-free properties and low outgassing. It exhibits high and low temperature resistance, electrical insulation characteristics, and leaves no adhesive residue upon removal, making it a core adhesive material for high-end screen protectors, high-temperature specialty tapes, and other electronic-grade products.
4. Solid hot-melt adhesive
It exists in a solid state at room temperature; upon heating, it melts and is then coated, and upon cooling, it solidifies into its final shape. The entire process is solvent-free and odorless. This material is a classic environmentally friendly adhesive type, though most of them are thermoplastic-based, offering limited temperature resistance; therefore, they are better suited for medium-to-low temperature applications such as packaging sealing and composite laminating of sanitary products.
product recommendation
Product Name: KL-108 Series Water-Based Liquid Hot-Melt Adhesive
Product Introduction: A water-based adhesive based on modified polyurethane system, utilizing deionized water as the dispersion medium, is VOC-free and can be applied to fiber-based substrates via roller coating or immersion processes.
Product Features: Environmentally friendly, solvent-free, odorless, exhibits strong adhesion, offers a wide range of applications, and passes the D85 test.
Coating Adhesives: Assess Odor, Exposure and Coating Performance Separately
Selecting odorless coating adhesives requires a clear description of what the production team wants to change. Odor in the mixing area, odor during drying and odor retained in a finished laminate are different observations, so identify the stage that creates the concern. A low odor impression does not establish the absence of hazardous constituents or replace a review of the safety data sheet. Likewise, a water-based or solvent-free description identifies aspects of the formulation, not the suitability of every finished coating for every use. Why approve a coating solely because it smells mild when incomplete drying can still compromise the laminate? Examine the intended substrate, the coating method and the downstream process together. A porous web may take up liquid differently from a smooth film, and a closed laminate can restrict the escape of moisture or other volatile components. Where drying is part of the route, establish that it is complete before winding tightly or closing the bond. Where the system cures by reaction, evaluate the mixed material and the final film under the actual processing conditions. It’s helpful to separate the role of the coating from its environmental description: pressure-sensitive attachment, heat-activated bonding and a hard protective film demand different final behavior. The industrial adhesive formulation catalogue is a starting point for discussing those material functions. Ask about the proposed process and available documentation before treating a general formulation label as evidence about emissions, workplace exposure or application suitability.
Build a trial around the coated film and finished laminate
Trials of odorless coating adhesives should include the wet coating, the processed film and the finished article rather than stopping at a sample of the supplied liquid. Check wetting across the real surface and look for retreat, pinholes or differences between the center and the edges of the coated web. A continuous film is useful evidence about coverage, but it does not establish that drying or reactive cure has finished throughout the coating. Follow the supplier’s process instructions and compare the coating after the intended drying or curing stage with material exposed to the actual downstream conditions. For a heat-activated system, drying and activation serve separate purposes and should be recorded separately. For light-curable coatings, the substrate, pigmentation and geometry can restrict light access; an exposed witness sample may not represent a shaded interface. During winding and lamination, inspect for blocking, adhesive transfer, trapped moisture and changes in appearance. Later evaluation should address the service duty, including peeling, flexing or contact with relevant cleaning fluids where those exposures are expected. A coating that remains attached can still soften or change the feel of a finished surface, so include the functional properties of the article in the inspection. Record the location of any delamination and retain an unconditioned sample for comparison. If further material guidance is needed, discuss the coating process with JOME using the substrate description, processing sequence and observed problem. This gives the discussion a reproducible starting point without introducing an unsupported claim about environmental approval or the performance of a particular formulation.
Everything covered here draws on the full JOME product catalogue JOME manufactures in house. Engineers comparing notes with Adhesive for optical communications specialty resin can move between the two guides; the the complete JOME industrial adhesive line frames the range and the start a conversation with the JOME team takes it from there.