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Structural adhesives and the solar industry: standing the test of timeInterviewStructural adhesivesand the solar industry:standing the test of timeAs a major producer of general-purpose and specialty adhesives, LORDCorporation has been at the forefront of many industry trends. This isespecially true for the solar power industry, which was just coming intoplay when LORD became involved with supplying adhesives for the firstsolar-electric generating plant (Solar One) in California in the early 80s.Not only was the solar power installation innovative for its time, so werethe adhesives used to assemble the solar generating equipment. Sincethen, LORD has pioneered adhesive technology advancements and isnow one the foremost suppliers of adhesive solutions to the solar powermarketplace.In this interview, Dennis Howard, a retired synthetic polymer chemist,discusses the development of polymeric adhesives at LORD and theiruse in the burgeoning solar industry in the 1980s. Dave Pugne, managerof Structural Adhesives Technology at LORD, brings us up-to-dateon the advances LORD has made in adhesive technology for the solarpower industry.Dennis HowardWhat developments in materials weretaking place 30 years ago that warrantedsimilar innovations in adhesives?Dennis Howard: Back then, more andmore manufactured assemblies were usingnew plastic materials that were emerging atthe time. Many of these assemblies requiredthe bonding of plastics to metals, and wewere working on developing adhesives thatcould bond dissimilar materials, besidesadhering metals-to-metals and plastics-toplastics.The adhesive had to be so versatilethat it could bond a metallic material to aplastic material.Describe the development of these newpolymeric adhesives at LORD.Howard: At the time, these adhesives werevery innovative. We were at the forefrontof new polymer development. In our R&Dlabs, we were not just buying stock componentsand mixing them together; we wereinvolved in creating new polymeric materialsto formulate these adhesives. It is moredifficult to develop an adhesive that sticksto plastic on one surface and metal onanother surface—but our line of Versilok®adhesives was able to do that—while alsobonding metal-to-metal and plastic-toplastic.The solar industry was also just beginningto develop at that time. What was the solarindustry looking for in an adhesive?Howard: Solar panels are often made ofdissimilar materials—metal componentsand plastic components. Solar assembliesneed to withstand harsh environmentalconditions (rain, wind, sand) and excessivetemperature ranges (panels get coldat night, extremely hot during the day, andcold again at night). The solar industry waslooking for an adhesive that could meetthese criteria—and Versilok adhesivesseemed to be a natural application for thesolar market.So, at LORD, you were developing adhesivesthat were a perfect fit for the solarindustry.Dave PugneHoward: Yes, we were creating new polymermaterials that could be used in formulatingadhesives that were also very stableagainst degradation due to water and moisture.This new class of polymeric materialsremained flexible at low temperatures butdid not decompose at high temperaturesand therefore, would be useful over a verywide temperature range. In developingVersilok adhesives, proprietary componentsenabled the formulation to provideextremely good adhesion to metal andplastic.12 – Global Solar Technology – June 2011 www.globalsolartechnology.com