Release Liner

Abstract

The present invention is a release liner including a film formed of a thermoplastic polymer and a non-migratory silicone additive. The additive is formed with a siloxane polymer that can be added directly to the thermoplastic polymer prior to compounding the thermoplastic polymer into an extrudable release liner film. The additive provides the desired release properties to the film, and due to bonds formed between the siloxane polymer and a binding component added to the siloxane polymer during formation of the additive, as well as the high molecular weight of the siloxane polymer, is non-migratory.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS[0001]This application claims priority as a continuation of U.S. Non-Provisional application Ser. No. 12 / 138,757, filed on Jun. 13, 2008, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,897,666, which claims priority from U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60 / 944,200, filed on Jun. 15, 2007, which are each incorporated by reference herein in their entirety.FIELD OF THE INVENTION[0002]The present invention relates to release liners, and more specifically to a release liner formed with a non-migratory, ultra high molecular weight silicone component.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0003]Release liners are films or papers used for the release from adhesives, adhesive laminate constructions, or mastics in industrial operations. The term release liner is also used for films and papers that are used to cover and subsequently release from various objects, materials or parts, such as in molding operations or when handing certain types of materials. However, even though they a...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0015]According to another aspect of the present invention, the additive is used to form release liner compositions having: (A) a thermoplastic polymer and (B) the migration resistant additive including a polydiorganosiloxane and a binding agent capable of hydrogen bonding with polydiorganosiloxanes. More particularly, the present invention relates to a composition comprising: (A) 100 parts by weight of a thermoplastic resin; and (B) at least 0.1 part by weight of a non-migratory silicone additive that preferably takes form of a high molecular weight diorganopolysiloxane having a viscosity of greater than 50 Pa·s and a binding agent or component having a number of hydroxyl groups thereon that added to and capable of hydrogen bonding with the diorganopolysiloxane polymer during the formation of the additive. When added to the primary polymer or resin, the hydroxyl groups on the binding agent can also form hydrogen bonds with the polymer or resin, thereby bonding the additive in position with regard to the polymer or resin, and preventing any migration of the additive with regard to the polymer or resin.

[0016]According to still another aspect of the present invention, the migration-resistant additive composition provides a method of producing a thermoplastic composition having improved release and enhanced demolding capabilities. More specifically, the non-migratory silicone additive is used as a process additive that is incorporated into the polymer to be used as the primary component of the release liner. The non-migratory silicone additive is compounded into the polymer in a manner that, as a result of the chain length and morphology of the additive, enables the additive to intertwine with the primary component polymer matrix, preventing any migration of the additive from the polymer. Further, the form of the migration-resistant additive enables the additive to be added to directly to the polymer melt, which can then be mixed and extruded directly into a release film or liner.

[0017]According to another aspect of the present invention, the use of the migration-resistant additive as a process additive during the process for forming the film to be used as the release liner eliminates the requirement for a separate step in as in prior art processes where a silicone release layer is applied to, and subsequently treated on the surface of the extruded film layer.

[0018]According to still another aspect of the present invention, the migration-resistant additive and the release liner formed with the additive are each formed from easy to prepare or commercially available components, thereby improving the commercial economic viability of the release liner.

Problems solved by technology

However, even though they are viable for this particular application, these types of release liners are used quite differently from those liners used in covering adhesives.

The release tension profile for a release liner is a very complex phenomenon.

In addition to the silicone coating and curing steps being highly capital cost intensive with high operation and maintenance costs, one significant issue with the process of forming release liners in this manner is that the step of coating and subsequently curing the silicone composition onto the polymeric film introduces a wide array of variables that can detrimentally affect the proper adhesion and the correct release levels of the final film.

A common problem that arises in the use of liners including the silicone coating applied in this manner is the migration of loose silicone fluid, usually in the form of uncured silicone polymer or residual oils and process fluids, from the liner onto the adhesive.

However, as with the previous references, other than the variation of the composition of the siloxane blend, there is nothing disclosed in the composition that effectively prevents the siloxanes from migrating to the surface of the product.

As a result, with the compositions disclosed in these references, migration of the composition may still occur because there is nothing to tether it into the polymer matrix.

For this reason, the silicone additive concentrates disclosed in these references are not suitable for and have not found widespread use in commercial release liner films.

However, this composition also suffers from potential migration of the siloxane to the surface of the film because the siloxane is only embedded into the composition through the use of mechanical shearing forces prior to an extrusion process, and is not intertwined or otherwise bound in any manner into the system.

Thus, the siloxane additive can migrate and subsequently interfere with re-adhesion of an adhesive.

Additionally, the siloxanes of this invention contain Si—O—C bonds which are susceptible to hydrolytic degradation, further reducing adhesive performance stability over time.

As a result, each of these alternative silicone additive compounds has certain problems associated with it, for example, difficulties in adequately locking or binding the particular silicone compound in the polymer forming the liner, the costs of the particular additive compound and the chemical complexity of the compounds and the consequent potential interactions, i.e., migration, of the compound and other components of the release liner or the adhesive to which the liner and silicone compound are applied.

However, neither of the materials disclosed in these references are capable of producing a commercially effective release liner.