Bonding is one of humanity's oldest known technologies. The technology behind a car, a book or a kitchen cabinet today is the product of thousands of years of accumulated knowledge.
Prehistory: birch tar
Archaeological finds show that around 200,000 years ago Neanderthals heated birch bark to produce tar, which they used to fix stone points to wooden shafts: the first known adhesive made with controlled heat.
Antiquity: natural glues
Egyptians used glues from animal bone and hide for furniture and veneering; inlaid furniture from pharaohs' tombs proves their skill. Greeks and Romans advanced woodworking with beeswax, resin and casein glues.
Middle Ages and Renaissance
Fish glue and animal glues were standard for centuries in bookbinding, musical instruments and joinery. Violin makers still prefer traditional glues today because heat and moisture let instruments be taken apart and repaired.
The 20th century: the synthetic revolution
- 1910s: phenol-formaldehyde resins made the plywood industry possible.
- 1930s: polyvinyl acetate (PVAc) and chloroprene rubber laid the foundations of today's white glue and contact adhesives.
- 1940s: epoxy resins and polyurethane chemistry enabled structural bonding in aerospace and defence.
- 1950s–60s: hot melts spread through packaging; cyanoacrylates and anaerobic adhesives were discovered.
- 1980s–90s: reactive PUR hot melts and silane-modified polymers were developed.
Today and tomorrow
Modern adhesives are used in countless fields, from EV batteries to smart textiles, lightweight building panels to recyclable packaging. Bio-based raw materials, low emissions and recyclability are shaping the industry's future.
At Sentez Optimum Kimya we bring the latest solutions of this long-established technology to manufacturers.
