Republic of the Philippines

Department of Science and Technology

PHILIPPINE SCIENCE HIGH SCHOOL-WV
Doña Lawaan H. Lopez Campus
Bito-on, Jaro, Iloilo City

Stick To What’s Chic

A study on the adhesive forces of the three most commonly used and locally available
masking tapes.

By
Mary Agnes Jardeleza
Wynken Myrrh Gelito
Kristine Grace Albastro
on January 17,2011
BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
During most Biology 2 classes, Sir Olvido would usually bring with him his
visual aids in form of information written on manila paper and he would use masking
tape to attach these to the board. Although, this helps, we cannot but be distracted with
the occasional fails of the masking tape to consistently attach to the board which is where
our inspiration for our Physics Investigatory Project drew from.
Adhesion is any attraction process between dissimilar molecular species that can
potentially bring them in "direct contact". Here we observe the adhesive force of the three
most used brands of masking tape which were considered to be adhesive tapes: Tartan,
Armak and Best Buy.
The main product characteristics of adhesive tapes are their adhesive force. How
pronounced these characteristics are depends on how the tape will be used. Tapes for
splices in the paper industry have to have a high level of immediate adhesive force.
To measure the adhesive force of these tapes, we used a simple technique which
consisted of 3 types of surfaces, the whiteboard, blackboard without chalk and
blackboard with chalk, a small, light plastic bag and 150 pieces of 5 centavo coins.
The results of this test will show which of the three brands, Tartan, Armak and
Best Buy, would have the greatest amount of adhesive force and therefore, the most
convenient for both the student and faculty body to use.

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

What masking tape brand has the strongest adhesive force?

OBJECTIVE
To determine the adhesive force of masking tape in various surfaces.

RATIONALE
While some would use PowerPoint presentations for their lectures, there are still a
few who uses papers and tapes instead. But there are instances that the tapes come off
and time is wasted just by fixing it. Overtime, it becomes annoying and time-consuming
if the tapes keep peeling off the board. With this study though, we could help these
people (mostly teachers and students) by finding out which tape brand would be able to
hold the papers all throughout the presentation.

PHYSICS INVESTIGATORY PROJECT PARADIGM

Tartan

Armak
Whiteboard
Best Buy

Tartan

Armak
Adhesive
Blackboard
Force Test Best Buy

Tartan
Blackboard w/
Armak
Chalk Dust
Best Buy

MATERIALS
Blackboard
Whiteboard
Tartan, Armak, and Best Buy Masking Tapes
Plastic Bag
Chalk

RELATED INFORMATION:
Why does adhesive stick?

A series of organic polymers, chemical compounds that consist of chain or

branched molecules, can be permanently sticky. Examples are polyacrylic acid ester,
natural rubber, and styropol and styrene copolymers.
The macromolecules have to be long enough to “tangle up” like a serving of cooked
spaghetti. This generates the inner cohesion of the adhesive. Because the long molecule
chains between the points of contact are movable, the adhesive can be applied well to
surfaces and adhere there.

There are self-stick polymers that adhere without the addition of resins to make them
sticky and some that adhere only weakly and become truly adhesive only when such
other substances are added.

Why does the adhesive stay stuck to the correct side of the adhesive tape?

So that it can be guaranteed that the adhesive tape can be dispensed without
problems, the backing has to have various surface qualities on both sides. To increase the
adhesion of an adhesive to the backing, the surface is cleaned, roughened, and made
chemically functional through physical processes. For example, molecular layers on the
surface are evaporated.

A thin layer of primer can also increase the adhesion. Dispensing the adhesive tape from
the roll is facilitated by release agents, which work through their low surface tension. The
lower the release agent’s surface tension in comparison to that of the adhesive, the
stronger the release effect

What are the most important raw materials for adhesives?

Since 1882, when Paul Beiersdorf received the patent for adhesive bandages,
natural rubber has been one of the most important raw materials for adhesives. Adding
resins to make it sticky makes it a low-cost adhesive with a great deal of adhesive force.
Adhesive tapes made of natural rubber adhesives are best suited to interior applications
such as masking tape for painting work, or for packing tapes that can be dispensed with
very little noise.

PHYSICS PRINCIPLES:
• Force
METHODOLOGY
1. Place the blackboard between the two chairs.

2. Cut 4 inches of any masking tape brand.

3. Place half an inch of both ends of the tape on the board, letting the center make a
curve as shown in the figure
4. Drop a 5-centavo coin inside the plastic bag and continue doing so until the
masking tape peels off the board.

5. Record the number of coins.

 6. Repeat the procedures above 3 times and get the average for every brand. Repeat
them again using a whiteboard and blackboard with chalk dust.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Tape Brand Ave. No. of Coins Ave. No. of Coins Ave. No. of Coins
(Whiteboard) (Blackboard) (Blackboard w/
Chalk Dust)
Tartan 54 52.33 31.67
Armak 46 98.33 31
Best Buy 38.67 20.67 17.33

Tape Brand Mass Mass Mass

(Whiteboard) (Blackboard) (Blackboard w/
Chalk Dust)
Tartan 105.84 g 102.57 g 79.42 g
Armak 90.16 g 192.73 g 60.76 g
Best Buy 75.79 g 40.51 g 33.9 g

Tape Brand Adhesive Force Adhesive Force Adhesive Force

(Whiteboard) (Blackboard) (Blackboard w/
Chalk Dust)
Tartan 1.04 N 1.01 N 0.78 N
Armak 0.88 N 1.88 N 0.60 N
 Best Buy 0.74 N 0.40 N 0.33 N

To solve for the adhesive force, we multiplied the number of coins by the weight
of one 5-centavo coin which is 1.96 grams and multiplied it again by 9.8 m/s2. Out of the
3 brands of masking type commonly used in Philippine Science High School, Tartan
holds the greatest number of 5-centavo coins on the whiteboard and blackboard with
chalk dust category. Armak is best used on blackboards since it held the greatest number
of coins on that category.

CONCLUSION
We have concluded that the best brand of masking tape among the three is Tartan
because 2 out of the 3 situations, Tartan has the greatest adhesive force. Armak also has a
great adhesive force. Best Buy can easily be peeled off seeing as it has the lowest
adhesive force.

RECOMMENDATION
We recommend future studies on this area to test other brands of masking tape.
This is to extend knowledge on the adhesive forces not only in the availability of brands
in our local area. We also suggest studies on other properties related to adhesive force.

REFERENCES
Tesa: Research and Development; [cited 2011 Jan 17]. Available from
http://www.tesa.com/company/research/faq/faqs,4375,1.html

APPENDIX

SI PREFIXES
 Factor Name Symbol Factor Name Symbol
24 -1
10 yotta Y 10 deci d
1021 zetta Z 10-2 centi c
1018 exa E 10-3 milli m
1015 peta P 10-6 micro µ
1012 tera T 10-9 nano n
109 giga G 10-12 pico p
106 mega M 10-15 femto f
103 kilo k 10-18 atto a
102 hecto h 10-21 zepto z
101 deka da 10-24 yocto y

BUDGET

Quantity Item Amount

1 Blackboard ---
1 Whiteboard ---
1 roll ½ inch x 25 yards Tartan Masking Tape P 39.75
1 roll ½ inch x 25 yards Armak Masking Tape P 27.00
1 roll ½ inch x 25 yards Best Buy Making Tape P 16.75
1 piece String ---
1 piece Plastic Bag ---
Total P 83.50

DATA SHEET
Whiteboard

Trial Number of Centavo Coins

Tartan Armak Best Buy

Average
 Blackboard without Chalk

Trial Number of Centavo Coins

Tartan Armak Best Buy

Average

Blackboard with Chalk

Trial Number of Centavo Coins

Tartan Armak Best Buy

Average

RAW DATA
Whiteboard

Trial Number of Centavo Coins

Tartan Armak Best Buy

1 52 40 45

2 55 50 35

3 55 48 36

Average 54 46 38.67
 Blackboard without Chalk

Trial Number of Centavo Coins

Tartan Armak Best Buy

1 20 20 25

2 57 45 20

3 80 100 17

Average 52.33 98.33 20.67

Blackboard with Chalk

Trial Number of Centavo Coins

Tartan Armak Best Buy

1 30 28 17

2 35 35 15

3 30 30 20

Average 31.67 31 17.33