The Corona Treatment

Surface electrons on the plastic substrate are affected by flame plasma.

[Sadly this is not a post about a beverage, but about why some labels won't stick to surfaces.]

An interesting phenonmenon sometime occurs when applying labels to plastic or low surface energy (LSE) surfaces: labels just won’t stick.

Why is that? Two articles explain it much better than we can. (Thanks to Wikipedia and MachineDesign; links are listed below.)  Oils from the plastic substrate interfere with the adhesive’s ability to grab to the surface of the plastic. Cleaning the surface with alcohol won’t do the trick.

What needs to be done is treat the surface with a corona, or open flame. The flame will evaporate any surface oils left over from the manufacturing process. It will also microscopically roughen the surface and allow the label to stick.

Of course the appropriate adhesive needs to be called out when the order is placed. You’ll need an LSE adhesive.

Providing this kind of information is what Drake Industries is all about. Our sales staff has the engineering knowledge to “build” the appropriate labels, decals, stickers, and overlays for your needs. Quotes are always free and usually provided within hours.  Contact us at quotes@drake.com or 1.800.531.5073 if you have questions about labels.

Drake has been in business for over 40 years. We are a veteran owned company and all of our products are made in the US.

Links:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corona_treatment

http://machinedesign.com/article/bonding-low-surface-energy-plastics-0615

MetalPhoto Labels

MetalPhoto Characteristics p2

Circular Aluminum Label

This circular label is used aboard aircraft.  The black areas are burned into the photosensitive aluminum with a patented process called Metalphoto.  The images are embedded into the aluminum which means that they cannot be scratched off.

Metalphoto is a popular process for labels used in the marine and aerospace environments.  It is many times more durable than photo etching because the printing process does not damage the integrity of the aluminum. Metalphoto is a preferred process for these, and many other industries, also because labels and plates can endure 1000 degrees farenheit.

For more information about the Metalphoto process or whether it is right for your labeling needs, contact Drake Industries at 800.531.5073 or quotes@drake.com.