Polyvinyl acetate

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Polyvinyl acetate

Polyvinyl acetate (PVA or PVAc) is a rubber

Rubber

Natural rubber is an elastomer?an Elasticity_ hydrocarbon polymer?that was originally derived from a milky colloidal suspension, or latex , found in the sap of some plants....
y synthetic polymer

Synthetic polymer

Synthetic polymers are often referred to as "plastics", such as the well-known polyethylene and nylon. However, most of them can be classified in at least three main categories: thermoplastics, thermosets and elastomers....
. PVA is a common copolymer.

It is prepared by polymerization

Polymerization

In polymer chemistry, polymerization is a process of reacting monomer molecules together in a chemical reaction to form three-dimensional networks or polymer chains....
of vinyl acetate monomer

Vinyl acetate

Vinyl acetate is an organic compound with the Chemical formula CH3COOCH=CH2. A colorless liquid with a pungent odor, it is the precursor to polyvinyl acetate , an important polymer in industry....
, also referred to as VAM. Partial or complete hydrolysis

Hydrolysis

Hydrolysis is a chemical reaction during which one or more water are split into hydrogen and hydroxide ions which may go on to participate in further reactions....
of the polymer is used to prepare polyvinyl alcohol

Polyvinyl alcohol

Polyvinyl alcohol is a water-soluble synthetic polymer....
. Hydroylized alcohol

Alcohol

In chemistry, an alcohol is any organic compound in which a hydroxyl Functional group is bound to a carbon atom of an alkyl or substituted alkyl group....
product is typically in the 87% to 99% range (converted PVA).

as discovered in Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium, and the Netherlands....
in 1912 by Dr. Fritz Klatte

Fritz Klatte

Fritz Klatte was a German chemist and the discoverer of polyvinyl acetate, with German patent for its preparation from acetylene gas.Polyvinyl chloride was discovered by French physicist Henri Victor Regnault, and German physicist Eugen Baumann....
with the help of his assistant James Michael Fairholm.

n emulsion

Emulsion

An emulsion is a mixture of two immiscible liquids. One liquid is dispersion in the other . Many emulsions are oil/water emulsions, with dietary fats being one common type of oil encountered in everyday life....
in water, PVA is sold as an adhesive

Adhesive

Adhesive or glue is a compound in a liquid or semi-liquid state that adhesion or bonds items together. Adhesives may come from either natural or Chemical synthesis sources....
for porous

Porosity

Porosity is a measure of the void spaces in a material, and is measured as a fraction, between 0?1, or as a percentage between 0?100%. The term is used in multiple fields including ceramics, metallurgy, materials, manufacturing, earth sciences and construction....
materials, particularly wood

Wood

Wood is an organic material; in the strict sense wood is produced as secondary xylem in the stems of woody plants, notably trees but also shrubs, etc....
, paper

Paper

Paper is thin material mainly used for writing upon, printing upon or packaging. It is produced by pressing together moist fibers, typically cellulose pulp derived from wood, rags or grasses, and drying them into flexible sheets....
, and cloth.

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Discovery

It was discovered in Germany

Germany

Fritz Klatte

Applications and uses

As an emulsion

Emulsion

Adhesive

Adhesive or glue is a compound in a liquid or semi-liquid state that adhesion or bonds items together. Adhesives may come from either natural or Chemical synthesis sources....
for porous

Porosity

Wood

Wood is an organic material; in the strict sense wood is produced as secondary xylem in the stems of woody plants, notably trees but also shrubs, etc....
, paper

Paper

Wood glue

Wood glue is an adhesive used to tightly bond pieces of wood together. Many substances have been used as glues.The most common wood glues are polyvinyl acetate , also known as "white glue" or "hobby and craft", and aliphatic resin emulsion, commonly referred to as "carpenter's glue" or "Yellow glue", which has similar relative ultimate stre...
, both as "white glue" and the yellow "carpenter's glue."

PVA is widely used in bookbinding

Bookbinding

Bookbinding is the process of physically assembling a book from a number of folded or unfolded sheets of paper or other material. It also usually involves attaching covers to the resulting text-block....
and book arts due to its flexibility, and because it is non-acidic, (unlike many other polymers) it is used extensively in paper

Paper

Paint

Paint is any liquid, liquifiable, or mastic composition which after application to a Substrate in a thin layer is converted to an opaque solid film....
and industrial coatings when it is referred to as vinyl acrylic.

It can also be used to protect cheese

Cheese

Cheese is a food consisting of proteins and fat from milk, usually the milk of cattle, Water Buffalo, goats, or sheep's milk. It is produced by Coagulation of the milk protein casein....
from fungi and humidity

Humidity

Humidity is the amount of water vapor in the air. In daily language the term "humidity" is normally taken to mean relative humidity. Relative humidity is defined as the ratio of the partial pressure of water vapor in a Air parcel of air to the saturated vapor pressure of water vapor at a prescribed temperature....
. It is slowly attacked by alkali

Alkali

In chemistry, an alkali is a Base , Ionic compound salt of an alkali metal or alkaline earth metal Chemical element. Alkalis are best known for being Base s that dissolve in water....
, forming acetic acid

Acetic acid

Acetic acid, CH3COOH, also known as ethanoic acid, is an organic acid which gives vinegar its sour taste and pungent smell. Pure, water-free acetic acid is a colourless liquid that absorbs water from the environment , and freezes at 16.7 Celsius to a colourless crystalline solid....
as a hydrolysis

Hydrolysis

Hydrolysis is a chemical reaction during which one or more water are split into hydrogen and hydroxide ions which may go on to participate in further reactions....
product. Boron

Boron

Boron is a chemical element with atomic number 5 and the chemical symbol B. Boron is a trivalent metalloid element which occurs abundantly in the evaporite ores borax and ulexite....
compounds like boric acid

Boric acid

Boric acid, also called boracic acid or orthoboric acid or Acidum Boricum, is a weak acid often used as an antiseptic, insecticide, flame retardant, in nuclear power plants to control the fission rate of uranium, and as a precursor of other chemical compounds....
or borax

Borax

Borax, also known as sodium borate, sodium tetraborate, or disodium tetraborate, is an important boron compound, a mineral, and a salt of boric acid....
will form tackifying precipitates by causing the polymer to cross-link

Cross-link

Cross-links are bonds that link one polymer chain to another. They can be covalent bonds or ionic bonds. "Polymer chains" can refer to synthetic polymers or natural polymers ....
.

PVA is also commonly recommended for use in making leather

Leather

Leather is a material created through the tanning of rawhides and skins of animals, primarily cattlehide. The tanning process converts the putrescible skin into a durable, long-lasting and versatile natural material for various uses....
handcrafted works and papier-mâché

Papier-mâché

Papier-m?ch? , sometimes called paper-m?ch?, is a construction material that consists of pieces of paper, sometimes reinforced with textiles, stuck together using a wet paste ....
.