A photocurable adhesive sheet that can be photocured even if there are places such as print-concealed sections that are difficult for light to reach, and even if the adhesive sheet has a certain degree of thickness, the entire sheet can be cured. A transparent adhesive sheet formed from an adhesive composition containing: (A) a thermoplastic resin; (B) a crosslinking agent; (C) a photopolymerization initiator that reacts with light having a wavelength of at least 380 to 430 nm; and (D) a wavelength conversion agent that is excited by light having a wavelength shorter than 380 nm and that emits light having a wavelength of 380 to 550 nm. The transparent adhesive sheet is characterized by the adhesive sheet absorbance X at a wavelength of 390 nm and the adhesive sheet thickness Y satisfying relational formula (1):
0.5X/Y12.Formula (1):

A (meth)acrylic copolymer (A) having a mass average molecular weight of 50,000 to 1,000,000, in which the (meth)acrylic copolymer (A) is obtained by polymerizing a monomer mixture including a macromonomer (a) that has a number average molecular weight of 500 or more and less than 6000 and a vinyl monomer (b), and preferably includes 7 to 40% by mass of a repeat unit derived from the macromonomer (a), has sufficient coating workability, adhesive holding power and adhesive property as an adhesive composition.

A (meth)acrylic acid copolymer (A) having a weight average molecular weight of 1000 to 1,000,000, and in which when the half-width of the primary scatter peak when measured by small angle X-ray scattering is defined as X, 0.12<X, is used as an adhesive. The (meth)acrylic copolymer (A) is obtained by polymerizing a monomer mixture containing a macromonomer (a) having a number average molecular weight of 500-100,000, and a vinyl monomer (b). The adhesive has sufficient holding force and adhesive force, and the occurrence of adhesive deposit can be prevented when peeled off.

A multi-phase silicone acrylic hybrid visco-elastic composition prepared by polymerizing an ethylenically unsaturated monomer and a silicon-containing pressure sensitive adhesive composition comprising acrylate or methacrylate functionality in a first solvent in the presence of an initiator, removing the first solvent, and adding a second solvent to form the multi-phase silicone acrylic hybrid visco-elastic composition. Alternatively, a multi-phase silicone acrylic hybrid visco-elastic composition prepared by polymerizing an ethylenically unsaturated monomer and a silicon-containing pressure sensitive adhesive composition comprising acrylate or methacrylate functionality in a first solvent in the presence of an initiator, adding a processing solvent having a higher boiling point than the first solvent, applying heat to selectively remove a majority of the first solvent, removing the processing solvent, and adding a second solvent to form the multi-phase silicone acrylic hybrid visco-elastic composition. The phase arrangement of the multi-phase silicone acrylic hybrid visco-elastic compositions is selectively controlled by selection of the second solvent.

An adhesive composition includes a first acrylic polymer preparable from first components and a second acrylic polymer. The first components comprising i) a branched first alkyl (meth)acrylate having from 4 to 22 carbon atoms, and ii) at least one of acrylic acid and methacrylic acid. The second acrylic polymer is preparable from second components comprising iii) at least one second alkyl (meth)acrylate having from 4 to 22 carbon atoms, iv) a (meth)acrylamide represented by the formula ##STR00001##
wherein R.sup.1 is H or methyl, and R.sup.2 and R.sup.3 each independently represents H or an alkyl group having from 1 to 8 carbon atoms, or taken together R.sup.2 and R.sup.3 may form a divalent alkylene group having from 4 to 6 carbon atoms, and v) at least one high T.sub.g macromer having a terminal free-radically polymerizable unsaturated group, the high T.sub.g macromer having a T.sub.g of at least 45 C. Based on the combined total weight of the at least one first acrylic polymer and the at least one second acrylic polymer, the at least one second acrylic polymer is present at a level of from 5 to 40 percent by weight. Methods of making the adhesive composition are also disclosed.

An adhesive composition includes a first acrylic polymer preparable from first components and a second acrylic polymer. The first components comprising i) a branched first alkyl (meth)acrylate having from 4 to 22 carbon atoms, and ii) at least one of acrylic acid and methacrylic acid. The second acrylic polymer is preparable from second components comprising iii) at least one second alkyl (meth)acrylate having from 4 to 22 carbon atoms, iv) a (meth)acrylamide represented by the formula ##STR00001##
wherein R.sup.1 is H or methyl, and R.sup.2 and R.sup.3 each independently represents H or an alkyl group having from 1 to 8 carbon atoms, or taken together R.sup.2 and R.sup.3 may form a divalent alkylene group having from 4 to 6 carbon atoms, and v) at least one high T.sub.g macromer having a terminal free-radically polymerizable unsaturated group, the high T.sub.g macromer having a T.sub.g of at least 45 C. Based on the combined total weight of the at least one first acrylic polymer and the at least one second acrylic polymer, the at least one second acrylic polymer is present at a level of from 5 to 40 percent by weight. Methods of making the adhesive composition are also disclosed.

The present invention is a copolymer of a monomer mixture including about 25 to about 80 parts by mass of an alkyl (meth)acrylate, approximately 15 to approximately 50 parts by mass of a hydroxyl group-containing monomer, and approximately 5 to approximately 25 parts by mass of a macromer having a glass transition temperature (Tg) of approximately 50 C. or higher. The copolymer contains substantially no acidic groups.

An adhesive containing silicone, in the form of an adhesive compound which contains at least a first adhesive component and a second adhesive component containing silicone is provided. The second, silicon-laced adhesive component consists of a non-crosslinked polysiloxane. The kinematic viscosity of the non-crosslinked polysiloxane is at least 100,000 mm.sup.2/s and at most 10,000,000 mm.sup.2/s or that the molar mass of the non-crosslinked polysiloxane is less than 10,000 g/mol, and the second, silicone-containing adhesive component is microencapsulated. Alternatively it can be provided that the molar mass of the polysiloxane is at least 80,000 g/mol and at most 500,000 g/mol, or that the kinematic viscosity of the non-crosslinked polysiloxane is less than 100,000 mm.sup.2/s, and the second, silicone-containing adhesive component is microencapsulated.

Methods of preparing macromonomers, e.g., single- or double-tailed macromonomers, using radical polymerization of a first monomer in solution or in an emulsion are described. Methods of using the macromonomers in the preparation of multigraft copolymers are also described. For instance, the macromonomer prepared by radical polymerization can be used in an emulsion copolymerization with a second monomer to form a random multigraft copolymer. The random multigraft co-polymers can be superelastomers.

Multigraft copolymers having various structures, e.g., comb and centipede structures, can be prepared from emulsion copolymerization of monomers and macromonomers. The emulsion copolymerization can be initiated by a thermally activated radical initiator or a redox initiation system. The multigraft copolymers can have high molecular weight and/or a large number of branch points. Elastomer or adhesive compositions of the copolymers can be prepared. Also described are poly(n-alkyl acrylate-graft-styrene) multigraft copolymers.