The future of product design: debonding tape technology

Technologies

Today, we are committed to creating smarter, more sustainable, and easily repairable products. But traditional permanent bonding often creates barriers to innovation and circular economic principles. Being able to remove adhesives without leaving residue behind would be a game-changer. It would allow easy access to repair, recycle, and upgrade products. Enter: debonding tapes, the future of product design.

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Debonding on Demand

It was this exact sentiment that inspired us to develop our range of debonding tapes. This innovative adhesive solution provides a strong bond and clean removal when required. Our goal is to help designers and manufacturers:

reduce waste
simplify product disassembly
push for circular economy principles

We started this journey more than a decade ago with our groundbreaking tesa® Bond & Detach technology, which set a new standard for residue-free tape removal. Building on this breakthrough, we are now exploring even more advanced solutions.

Our latest developments include debonding tapes that respond to various triggers such as electricity, induction, infrared light, or heat. This advancement in bonding is set to transform and revolutionize the adhesive industry.

Debonding tapes provide fast, safe, and reliable bonds with exceptional strength. Yet they can be completely removed whenever required. This innovative solution enables our customers to conserve resources, promote sustainability, maintain a competitive edge, and adapt to changing regulations with confidence.

Debonding tapes enable resource savings and promote circularity.

A diverse and growing range of debonding methods is now being integrated into adhesive tapes for a wide variety of products. This makes it possible to rework parts during production, save resources, and cut waste materials.

Through improving the ability to repair products, their lifecycle is extended. Naturally, this helps reduce the need to manufacture replacements. Additionally, being able to disassemble products residue-free improves recyclability. As a whole, the transition to debonding tapes supports a more circular economy. Win, win, win.

We work with OEMs to create innovative adhesive solutions for modern manufacturing pain points. In particular, our focus has been on debonding tapes, and our product development is already at an advanced stage. In particular, our renowned tesa® Bond & Detach tape allows for mechanical release without leaving any residue.

Looking ahead, structural adhesives will also become debondable through various mechanisms. One of our product development goals is to make the disassembly of products as non-destructive as possible. We believe that early engagement with our customers is key to driving such innovations. Together, we are looking at ways to incorporate debonding mechanisms into the substrate, material, and overall product design.

The mechanisms for our Debonding tapes:

01Debonding on Demand – Electrical debonding

Low-voltage electricity causes electrochemical reactions. This allows debonding of the adhesive within a few seconds.

02Debonding on Demand – Laser debonding

In just a few seconds, light from a Near Infrared (NIR) laser weakens the tape structure – causing it to debond.

03Debonding on Demand – Stretching & debonding

Developed from the famous tesa® Powerstrips, tesa® Bond & Detach tapes feature a tab users can pull to remove the tape by reducing the bonding strength via stretching.

04Debonding on Demand – Thermal debonding – Joule Heating

Several methods allow for thermal release. For example, heat can be generated conventionally. This causes the adhesive to foam, so the tape will separate.

05Debonding on Demand – Thermal debonding – Induction

Debonding can also be achieved by generating locally. Electromagnetic fields are used to generate heat through a metal strip built into the tape that causes the bond to separate. This is best suited to appliances like modern kitchen ovens.

Our range of Bond & Detach® tapes

tesa adhesive tape with a gray backing layer partially peeled off on a white background (This text has been generated by AI)

01tesa® 70350 Bond & Detach®

Thickness: 500µm
Very high bonding strength
Superior push-out and shock resistance
Easy removability even after a long bonding time by stretching the adhesive

tesa adhesive tape dispenser with a partially unrolled white tape strip on a white background (This text has been generated by AI)

02tesa® 70415 Bond & Detach®

Thickness: 150µm
Very high bonding strength
Superior push-out and shock resistance
Easy removability even after a long bonding time by stretching the adhesive

03tesa® 70425 Bond & Detach®

Thickness: 250µm
Very high bonding strength
Superior push-out and shock resistance
Easy removability even after a long bonding time by stretching the adhesive

04tesa® 60619 Bond & Detach®

Thickness: 250µm
Very high bonding strength
Superior push-out and shock resistance
Easy removability even after a long bonding time by stretching the adhesive

05tesa® 70420 Bond & Detach

Thickness: 200µm/7.87 mils
Very high bonding strength
Superior push-out and shock resistance
Easy removability even after a long bonding time by stretching the adhesive

06tesa® 70440 Bond & Detach®

Thickness: 400µm/15.8 mils
Very high bonding strength
Superior push-out and shock resistance
Easy removability even after a long bonding time by stretching the adhesive

07tesa® 70465 Bond & Detach®

Thickness: 650µm/25.6 mils
Very high bonding strength
Superior push-out and shock resistance
Easy removability even after a long bonding time by stretching the adhesive

08tesa® 70410 Bond & Detach®

Thickness: 100µm
Very high bonding strength
Superior push-out and shock resistance
Easy removability even after a long bonding time by stretching the adhesive

Debonding tapes will drive big changes for electronics

There is already great demand for debonding tapes in the electronics industry. The tesa® Bond & Detach technology with the mechanical separation of adhesive tapes is already in widespread use.

As regulations in the EU change, there is a push for smart debonding tape technologies in this fast-moving market. The council wants to give consumers the right to repair (opens in a new window or tab) products by themselves without special knowledge or tools. That in itself presents a big challenge for manufacturers. They urgently need solutions to help them design products that comply with this legislation.

Exploded view illustration of a smartphone showing internal components such as the display, battery, camera, and circuit board, illustrating debonding tape used for secure assembly and controlled device disassembly application

An average smartphone already contains approximately 70 adhesive tapes from tesa, including technologies that secure the screen, the battery, and cameras. Replacing these traditional adhesives with debonding tapes should give consumers the freedom in the future to extend the service life of their device by repairing or replacing parts. In this way, devices will stay usable for longer, and the volume of electronic waste will decrease.

In addition, our debonding tapes make it possible to rework and cut scrap during manufacturing, and to carefully dismantle devices at the end of the lifecycle. This allows for components and valuable materials to be harvested for recycling.

Enabling innovation for the automotive sector with debonding tapes

In the automotive sector, debonding solutions are at the beginning of their journey. The EU has created new regulations that strengthen sustainability rules for batteries and their waste. (opens in a new window or tab)

automotive-bond-detach-display-video-2023

Initial applications mainly involve dashboard displays. Our debonding tapes already have a record of relevant success within the electronics market. As EVs gain popularity, there are more opportunities to use debonding tape technologies in this industry. This includes battery mounting, cell mounting, and battery box sealing.

Advanced Driver-Assistance Systems (ADAS) also offer possibilities to support repair and recyclability. This can be achieved through improving access to components such as cameras, radar modules, and electronic control units.

Debonding tapes create opportunities across industries

At first glance, altering everlasting bonding tape to become debondable seems contradictory. Debonding tapes attract vast attention, given the potential to improve sustainability.

Woman in a laboratory looking up during an adhesive testing process, illustrating debonding tape evaluation for controlled removal, bonding performance, and electronics testing applications.

Our product developers aim to integrate debonding mechanisms into more than 7,000 products. tesa chemists, engineers, and product developers are collaborating with customers to develop optimal solutions for the future. This growing trend for smart debonding tapes is the latest step in our proud history. For more than 125 years, we have been working to improve products and lives with innovative and more sustainable adhesives. These bonding, debonding, and re-bonding solutions are already gaining popularity with customers globally.

Debonding tapes, in a nutshell

tesa's revolutionary Debonding on Demand technology represents a significant breakthrough in adhesive solutions, addressing the growing need for sustainable and repairable products. The technology enables strong bonding with the ability to cleanly separate components when needed, transforming traditional permanent bonding methods.

Two people in a manufacture setting working on a smartphone assembly process, illustrating debonding tape used for secure bonding, controlled disassembly, and electronics manufacturing applications.

This innovation particularly impacts the consumer electronics and automotive industries, supporting repair rights legislation and circular economy principles. With multiple debonding tapes and mechanisms available - including electrical, laser, stretch, and thermal debonding - the technology offers versatile solutions for various applications.

Debonding tapes are helping manufacturers reduce waste, simplify repairs, and extend product lifecycle. From smartphones to EV batteries, this adhesive technology is being adopted across industries. It is our aim to transform product design and manufacturing to adopt more sustainable processes.

No, debonding on demand does not affect the load-bearing capacity of products. This method is designed to remove adhesives without damaging the structural integrity of the product. tesa also offers debonding tapes for structural bonding. This means for permanent and very strong bonding applications. These bonds can also be removed without affecting the load-bearing capacity of the products.

At present, the debonding tapes themselves cannot be reused, but all the components released by the debonding process can be reused, repaired or, if required, recycled.

Debonding on demand helps generate less waste for several reasons. Firstly, adhesive bonds can be removed and repositioned during the production process, eliminating the need to discard items due to incorrect bonding. Additionally, items that can be repaired or recycled after use reduce waste, as they are not thrown away and recycled materials can re-enter the production cycle. Therefore, debonding on demand offers significant potential to reduce waste in the near future.

Yes, Debonding on Demand can be integrated into existing production processes. It is designed to be adaptable and can be implemented without significant changes to current manufacturing operations but overall allowing for greater flexibility and efficiency. Depending on the application, a decision on the appropriate debonding mechanism should be made in advance. tesa advises its customers on the best method to use.

two colleagues in a meeting room talking

Find the perfect debonding tape for your needs

We offer a wide range of debondable tapes, with a variety of removal methods. Whatever your application, we’ll help you find the ideal solution. Contact us today.

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The future of product design: debonding tape technology

Debonding tapes enable resource savings and promote circularity.