Acrylic adhesives are usually not tackified; rather, their pressure-sensitive character results from the inherent physical properties of the polymer. The primary monomers used for copolymerization are 2-ethylhexyl acrylate, iso-octyl acrylate and butyl acrylate (about 90% with regard to the dry adhesive). Polymers based on these monomers do not necessarily perform as well as PSAs on their own, but their performance may be improved by adding acrylic acid (ca. 10%) to the copolymer structure.
In order to improve adhesion on low-energy surfaces, acrylic adhesives are tackified with resins (10-30% with regard to the dry adhesive) usually based on rosin derivatives.
In the case of UV-curable acrylic adhesives, the resins must not interfere with the radical crosslinking reaction; neither must they absorb radiation in the UV-range used for crosslinking. For this purpose, hydrogenated and glycerol-esterified rosin is used (e. g. Foral 85, Eastman).