What is Natural Rubber?
Natural Rubber is a highly elastic, flexible and resilient material. It is a versatile elastomer widely used across industrial, automotive, construction and consumer applications due to its excellent tensile strength, tear resistance and vibration dampening properties. Natural Rubber offers outstanding flexibility over a broad temperature range and performs exceptionally well in dynamic applications where repeated movement or compression is required. It also provides good abrasion resistance and can be adhered to with a variety of industrial adhesives.
What adhesives can bond natural rubber?
Natural Rubber bonds extremely well with Instant Adhesives due to their ability to rapidly polymerise on contact with the rubber surface and create high strength bonds with minimal clamping in a matter of seconds.Â
For natural rubber, NEXTITE 506 is the preferred option. Its high purity, low viscosity formulation ensures fast and consistent curing. The next best choice is NEXTITE 501 which is a medium viscosity version of NEXTITE 506 which offers more control.
Other NEXTITE Instant Adhesive grades can also bond natural rubber successfully for highest rubber to rubber shear strength use a surface insensitive cyanoacrylate adhesive. For improved peel and impact resistance as well as bonding to dissimilar materials consider a rubber toughened grade. For high visual appearance consider a low odour, low bloom (low whitening) grade.
For larger surface areas, contact adhesives provide a practical and economical alternative. These are well suited to sheet bonding, rubber lining and broad area laminations where flexibility is required and near immediate handling strength is beneficial.
Instant Adhesives (Cyanoacrylates)
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Strengths |
Extremely fast fixture, high shear strength, no mixing (single part), great for high-speed production lines various grades available for different adhesive needs. |
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Limitations |
Limited gap filling capability without activators, lower impact and peel strength compared to other structural adhesives (rubber toughened grades increase impact and peel resistance) |
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Most Suitable |
All grades of NEXTITE Instant Adhesives can bond Natural Rubber. For General Purpose: NEXTITE 506 (Thin), NEXTITE 501 (Medium), NEXTITE 554 (Non-Drip Gel). For Impact Resistance: NEXTITE 580 (Black, Medium), NEXTITE 510 (Black, Thick), NEXTITE 535 (Clear, Medium). For High Visual Appearance: NEXTITE 560 (Thin), NEXTITE 503 (Thick). |
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Contact Adhesives
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Strengths |
Contact adhesives provide excellent performance over large surface areas, making them ideal for rubber sheeting, linings and laminations. They remain flexible after curing, allowing the bond to accommodate movement, vibration and thermal expansion. |
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Limitations |
They generally offer lower structural strength compared to instant adhesives or structural systems, particularly in high load or peel stress applications. Proper application technique is critical, as incorrect flash off time or uneven coating can significantly reduce final bond strength. |
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What Industries Use Natural Rubber?
Natural rubber is widely used in applications where flexibility, resilience and vibration resistance are critical. Its high elasticity and strong tear strength make it ideal for components that are compressed, stretched or exposed to constant movement.Â
Common industries include:
- Automotive and Transport
- Mining
- Industrial Manufacturing and Machinery
- Construction and Infrastructure
- Medical and Healthcare
- Agriculture
Typical bonded applications include rubber to metal mounts, gaskets, seals, hoses, conveyor components, impact pads and vibration isolation parts.
Challenges with natural rubber
- Limited resistance to oils, fuels and many hydrocarbons
- Susceptible to UV and weathering, limited lifespan in harsh environments
- Performance can decline at higher temperatures compared to synthetic elastomers
- Lower surface energy than other elastomers. Adhesive selection must account for this.
Surface Preparation
Proper surface preparation is critical to achieving a strong and reliable bond when working with natural rubber. Begin by lightly wiping the bonding area with Isopropyl Alcohol. This removes surface contaminants including dust, oils, mould release agents and residual adhesive that can interfere with bond strength. Allow the cleaner to fully evaporate before applying any adhesive.
Summary
Choosing the best industrial adhesive to bond natural rubber comes down to understanding the application requirements and performance required from the joint.
If you would like to speak to our expert team about your next project, please contact us for tailored advice and product recommendations to suit your application.