ADHESIVES IN FLOORING: GET A GRIP!
Trampled under foot - can you imagine what carpet, parquet, linoleum and the like have to endure? Every day, people trip, scamper, shuffle, trudge and tramp on them. Sometimes in high heels, sometimes with rug-ged boots or other heavy foot-wear. Of course, the adhesive underneath the floor surface has to endure these loads as well.
"Where you find the ground, spread something good on it", said the Swiss poet and philosopher John CasparLavater. True, he probably was not thinking about floor coatings, nor carpeting, PVC coatings and related adhesives. These surfaces are subject to a permanent load, particularly in public buildings. That said, quality is not a luxury but of the essence. Rubber coatings in airports and railway stations have to resist loads comparable to several herds of hippos, elephants and rhinos crossing.
Every day, armies of passengers, pilots, flight attendants and train conductors lug their baggage over them. Furthermore, floors and adhesives both have to stand up to other demands placed during regular cleaning using heavy machines and rotating brushes. Usually elastomer covering can be glued using dispersion adhesive which is selected to match the covering type. If the floor is subject to a load, as is customary in railway stations or airports, they are glued with resin adhesives. Finally, temperature variations, solar radiation, moisture or heavy equipment as used for damp cleaning, add on to these strains.
Likewise, floors in hospitals are subject to major loads as well. Wheel chairs and meal carts compress floor material and adhesives together. What is more, in the surgery and intensive care units, adhesive and floor coating have to conduct electricity. This as applies too for all rooms where major IT equipment is housed. The machines must be grounded to the floor. In residential buildings, carpet, laminate, cork and adhesives are exposed to less harsh conditions. Still furniture castors and floor heating challenge material resistance. And the adhesive definitely has to hold up if junior decides to practice roller-skating on the carpet while mom is out shopping!
