XlynX Materials, a specialty chemical and materials company based in Victoria, Canada, is proud to announce that it has been recognized as a recipient of the 2023 Innovation Award at this year’s Adhesion and Sealants Council (ASC) Convention and Exposition in New Orleans, Louisiana, April 18, 2023.
XlynX’s senior research scientist, Dr. Stefania Musolino receiving Innovation Award from Adhesion and Sealants Council (ASC) in New Orleans, Louisiana, April 18, 2023. Image Credit:
The ASC Innovation Awards Program is designed to foster and encourage innovation by recognizing significant impact chemistries that contribute to advancements in technology and address unmet needs in the adhesives and sealants industry. Past winners have included industry giants like DuPont, Dow, H.B. Fuller, PPG, Henkel and Avery Dennison.
“As a start-up company, for us to be recognized alongside these established leaders, it’s quite amazing,” XlynX’s senior research scientist, Dr. Stefania Musolino remarked after receiving the award.
XlynX received the award for its submission on the “Development of Universal Covalent Adhesives for Use with Low Surface Energy Polymers”, which describes how the company took inspiration from the field of chemical biology to solve long-standing materials science challenges.
Low Surface Energy (LSE) polymers such as polyethylene and polypropylene are extraordinarily useful materials that are increasingly found at the forefront of technological innovation, from ropes and mechanical parts to performance textiles and medical devices. This is because LSE polymers are relatively cheap to produce, can be molded to specific dimensions, and offer remarkable strength, durability, and resistance for such lightweight materials. However, these same qualities result in LSE polymers being extremely resistant to adhesion (gluing), layering, coating, and dyeing applications, which limits how these materials are used.
In response to this challenge, XlynX Materials has developed a highly reactive suite of compounds that chemically insert themselves into unreactive polymer surfaces. In this way, they transform LSE polymers into materials that are no longer resistant to gluing, coating or other adhesion-based applications. This breakthrough “diazirine” technology is enabling the world’s most abundant polymers to be used in a host of new applications.
“I’m thrilled that we’ve been recognized for innovation, as this is something we pride ourselves on,” lead inventor and scientific advisor, Dr. Jeremy Wulff, said. “We were first to develop a crosslinking molecular adhesive for this kind of use with commodity polymers, and we aim to remain a leader in this innovative field of diazirine chemistry.”
The new compounds, known as BondLynx and PlastiLynx, are easy to apply and are activated by either moderate heat or UV/Vis light. They are primarily designed as adhesives, primers, and textile strengtheners, and the results in these areas have been remarkable. In lap shear tests, the strength of bonds between LSE polymers—glued together with traditional, store-bought adhesives—have been increased by as much as 950% when primed with XlynX’s compounds first. Even more encouraging, the company’s products are showing tremendous potential in exciting new applications like organic electronics stabilization, quantum dot photopatterning and new composite material development.
Product samples for testing and research purposes are available. Please send your request to [email protected] and take the opportunity to consult with some of our experts, to see how we can make the world of chemistry work to enhance your business efficiency and capability.