For hot melts, open time is often very short. It is important to match the open time of the adhesive with the requirements of the process and conditions. A hot melt with an open time of 1-2 seconds in an application where it takes 4-5 seconds to form the bond after the adhesive has been applied would give poor wetting of the second substrate and a poor bond overall.

However, short compression times are the very essence of hot melt bonding processes and a situation can arise where the adhesive is still liquid when compression is removed and stresses on the joint may then force the substrates apart (eg tray erection, carton sealing).

The PAPT 3 instrument allows the development of the hot melt bond strength to be characterised under simulated commercial bonding conditions. Alternative glues and substrates can be tested for suitability without the need for production down time and scrap.


Please contact an expert for more information on testing of open time and setting time of hot melt adhesives.

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