Rubber as a substrate exhibits very different surface physical and chemical characteristics from steel. It still remains challenging to achieve a complete interface stripping of steel while maintaining double-sided adhesion between rubber and steel. Hydroxyl-terminated polybutadiene (HTPB) possesses remarkable low-temperature flexibility that contributes to migration and orientation of molecular chains, and contains abundant C=C bonds that facilitate cross-linking reaction. In this work, the hydroxyethyl acrylate (HEA)-terminated waterborne polyurethane (WPUH) adhesive was prepared by introducing HTPB into polyurethane backbone. The impact of HTPB on the properties of WPUH adhesive was investigated by changing HTPB/poly(tetramethylene ether) glycol (PTMG) molar ratio. The reasons for such change were studied focusing on the structure and bonding mechanism of WPUH adhesive. When rubber and steel were bonded together by WPUH adhesive, the rubber would induce non-polar HTPB segments to approach the bonding interface while the steel would attract the polar carbamate groups to its surface. The adhesion was strengthened by the interfacial interaction once WPUH adhesive wetted two substrates. In addition, the 1,2-isomer C=C bonds of HTPB could undergo free radical polymerization with HEA to form a cross-linked network, which improved the cohesion. This study provides a feasible strategy for achieving the goal of effectively bonding rubber-to-steel without residual adhesive stripping.
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