We are independent & ad-supported. We may earn a commission for purchases made through our links.
Advertiser Disclosure
Our website is an independent, advertising-supported platform. We provide our content free of charge to our readers, and to keep it that way, we rely on revenue generated through advertisements and affiliate partnerships. This means that when you click on certain links on our site and make a purchase, we may earn a commission. Learn more.
How We Make Money
We sustain our operations through affiliate commissions and advertising. If you click on an affiliate link and make a purchase, we may receive a commission from the merchant at no additional cost to you. We also display advertisements on our website, which help generate revenue to support our work and keep our content free for readers. Our editorial team operates independently of our advertising and affiliate partnerships to ensure that our content remains unbiased and focused on providing you with the best information and recommendations based on thorough research and honest evaluations. To remain transparent, we’ve provided a list of our current affiliate partners here.
Technology

Our Promise to you

Founded in 2002, our company has been a trusted resource for readers seeking informative and engaging content. Our dedication to quality remains unwavering—and will never change. We follow a strict editorial policy, ensuring that our content is authored by highly qualified professionals and edited by subject matter experts. This guarantees that everything we publish is objective, accurate, and trustworthy.

Over the years, we've refined our approach to cover a wide range of topics, providing readers with reliable and practical advice to enhance their knowledge and skills. That's why millions of readers turn to us each year. Join us in celebrating the joy of learning, guided by standards you can trust.

What is Super Glue®?

By Brendan McGuigan
Updated: May 17, 2024
Views: 7,630
Share

Super Glue® is a trade name for a glue based on cyanoacrylate, more specifically ethyl-2-cyanoacrylate. The other popular ethyl-2-cyanoacrylate glue is Krazy Glue®, while a number of glues such as Vetbond®, Indermil®, LiquiVet®, and Histoacryl® are based on another cyanoacrylate, n-butyl-cyanoacrylate. Super Glue® is well known for its amazing ability to fasten two things together, as well as the fact that it can seal skin together or skin to other objects, if used without care.

Although Super Glue® will bond most materials together, it works best with materials that are non-porous, and materials which have virtually no water in them. Because of its strength, affordability, and relative ease of use, Super Glue® has become a popular adhesive for a wide range of applications. From hobbyists to woodworkers to medical practitioners to ballerinas, Super Glue® can be found in many unlikely places.

Originally, cyanoacrylate was discovered during World War II. Although urban legend holds that the glues were used in the war as a way to field treat soldiers’ wounds, this is not how the adhesive was discovered. In fact, it was discovered entirely by accident while trying to make a better clear plastic gun sight. As it stuck to everything it touched, it obviously wasn’t of much use for this purpose, and so was set aside by its inventor, Dr. Harry Coover of Kodak Labs.

After the war, Dr. Coover returned to cyanoacrylate, thinking maybe it would have a use to make airplane canopies. Once again, it was completely wrong for this application. At this point, though, he saw the possibilities it offered as a fast-acting, industrial-strength adhesive, and released it as Eastman #910. Dr. Coover demonstrated his new glue in 1959, on a famous episode of the television show “I’ve Got a Secret,” in which he used a single drop of the glue to lift the show’s host off of the ground. By the mid-1960s,the medical applications of cyanoacrylate had been realized, and in Vietnam the glue was in fact used in the field, mostly in spray form, as a way of controlling bleeding and temporarily closing wounds.

This same potential to connect skin is sometimes a curse for hobbyists using Super Glue® for projects. Even a little bit on the skin can bind fingers together, or fingers to hobby items. Attempting to pull the fingers apart will generally just tear the skin, causing a wound. It’s important to be very careful when trying to remove Super Glue®, taking the proper precautions and exercising plenty of patience.

The trick to removing Super Glue® is to use acetone to weaken its bond, and then to slowly pry apart the bonded skin. Acetone is most commonly found in a house in nail polish remover, and can be applied to the stuck area with a cotton swab. Once applied thoroughly, the skin can be slowly pried apart, taking care not to tear suddenly, as this will generally rip the skin. Not all nail polish remover contains acetone, so it’s important to check and make sure the product you’re using does, otherwise it won’t accomplish anything.

Share
WiseGeek is dedicated to providing accurate and trustworthy information. We carefully select reputable sources and employ a rigorous fact-checking process to maintain the highest standards. To learn more about our commitment to accuracy, read our editorial process.

Editors' Picks

Discussion Comments
By Rotergirl — On May 30, 2014

I think this is the glue they use for nail tips in the nail salons. It smells the same.

I saw an interview with Pete Townshend from The Who and he was talking about when the band was touring the USA and someone was telling drummer Keith Moon about super glue. Townshend said the look on Moon's face was indescribable. He was a lunatic prankster anyway, and the old story about the hotel room furniture being glued to the ceiling wasn't just a story -- it was Keith Moon experimenting with super glue. Townshend said they wrote a big check to the hotel for those damages.

By Pippinwhite — On May 29, 2014

I remember the first Krazy Glue commercials: A construction worker would glue his hat to a block of wood with Krazy Glue and he would hang in midair, suspended from a beam, held only by the glue. It was a pretty effective ad.

My mom worked in a doctor's office and they saw several people who had glued fingers together or similar when the stuff first came out. I guess they didn't believe the warnings on the packaging. She said they used nail polish remover and usually got the digits apart, but it was a painful process.

Share
https://www.wisegeek.net/what-is-super-glue.htm
Copy this link
WiseGeek, in your inbox

Our latest articles, guides, and more, delivered daily.

WiseGeek, in your inbox

Our latest articles, guides, and more, delivered daily.