If you've ever decorated your home, you’ve likely had this moment: the creeping horror as you realize the tape holding up your heavy picture isn’t strong enough, and it’s just seconds away from crashing down off the wall.
This problem isn’t limited to home décor—many manufacturers also struggle with adhesives due to a similar issue, called shear force, which pulls double-sided tape (among other things) in different directions.
As a company that converts large rolls of tape into adhesive products, Strouse’s engineering team must account for shear stress to ensure materials can perform properly under these forces.
If you want to build a proper bond for your application, keep reading to learn more about shear strength and how to plan a solution.
Shear strength occurs when two forces tug an object in opposing, yet parallel directions, causing internal stretching of the material. This can lead to material or adhesive bond failure.
Shear strength is necessary for applications that involve holding, pulling, or hanging objects. It’s often used in load-bearing situations, such as uneven or non-uniform tensile loads, which are prone to shear stress. Many everyday operations, such as hanging up signs or using an adhesive hook to hold something, rely on shear strength to function correctly.
Although these measurements are often conflated during product design, shear, tensile, and peel strength each serves their purpose in determining how well a material functions under different types of pressure.
As previously mentioned, shear strength measures the stress a material can withstand when pulled by opposing parallel forces before it fails.
Shear stress occurs when two surfaces slide against each other with applied force. Too much shear stress will cause layers of a material to slide against one another, leading to deformation and part failure.
Shear strength testing is particularly conducive to analyzing the performance of double-sided adhesive tapes used to hang weight.
Tensile strength, also known as “breaking strength,” measures the point at which a material breaks when opposing forces pull both ends.
When comparing shear vs. tensile strength, shear stress occurs on a single plane, where opposing parallel forces cause the material to slide and stretch in until it breaks. Tensile stress occurs when perpendicular forces tug either end of a material until it snaps.
Peel strength measures the bond strength between materials and the force required to separate them. When an adhesive is removed from a surface, its peel strength determines the energy it will take to break the seal that has formed.
Peel testing quantifies the strength required to remove an adhesive material from a substrate at various angles.
Unlike shear or tensile stress, which are distributed across the entire bond plane, peel stress is uneven and always includes at least one flexible substrate.
Like any other factor in product application, planning for shear strength will depend on your solution. If you know that your application has certain qualities that may involve shear, tensile, or peel strength, you’ll want to discuss this with your converter before finalizing your choice.
Talking to your converter before you finalize the material selection will help guarantee that your choice aligns with both functionality and manufacturability. This will lead to the most efficient manufacturing cost and process.
Strouse’s sourcing efforts go deeper to match each customer’s application and function. We also offer custom samples so you can test materials and evaluate different solutions to confirm their shear strength is compatible with your needs
Contact Strouse for a custom sample, and we’ll discuss your design needs to ensure you’ve fully tested the materials and design for your application.
And lastly, you can learn more about how a converter can help with the product development process in our Learning Center.