# Adhesives and sealants

Adhesives and sealants bond and seal packaging, buildings, furniture, cars and electronics; a roughly $77 billion formulated industry led by Henkel, with Pidilite dominant in India.

Source page: https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/adhesives/

Specialty chemicals · Coatings, adhesives & colourants · No. 83

- Product family
- Feedstock: Oil, gas or coal
- about 20 Mt a year (indicative, basis: $77 billion at about $3.5-4/kg; no free volume figure found)
- 2.0 t CO₂e per t
- HS 350691
 Specialty chemicals · Coatings, adhesives & colourants · Foundation · Matter

In India, Fevicol is simply the word for wood glue, and its maker earns margins most chemical firms envy.

Chart: Illustration: Adhesives and sealants

##### Where it comes from

Chart: Map of where it comes from

Most adhesives start as oil- and gas-based monomers; white PVAc wood glue needs about 400-500 kg of vinyl acetate monomer per tonne.

##### Three things to know

1. Henkel's adhesives arm sold about EUR 10.67 billion in 2025, roughly 16% of the whole world market.
2. Hot melts are applied molten at about 120-180 C and set in seconds as they cool.
3. Pidilite earned a 24.6% standalone EBITDA margin on Rs 13,437 crore of sales in FY26.

##### The journey

1. 1 **Monomers**Vinyl acetate, acrylates, isocyanates, epoxy resins
2. 2 **Polymers**Emulsions, hot-melt bases and reactive resins
3. 3 **Formulation**Mixed with tackifiers, fillers and additives
4. 4 **Packaging, retail**Drums, pails, pellets and consumer tubes
5. 5 **Bonded goods**Cartons, furniture, tiles, cars, electronics

##### Go deeper pick a tab to open it in full

## Other sections

- [Overview](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/adhesives/overview/index.md)
- [Correlation](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/adhesives/correlation/index.md)
- [Production route](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/adhesives/routes/index.md)
- [Production](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/adhesives/production/index.md)
- [Feedstocks](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/adhesives/feedstocks/index.md)
- [Cycles](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/adhesives/cycles/index.md)
- [Trading](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/adhesives/trading/index.md)
- [Movement](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/adhesives/movement/index.md)
- [Regulation](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/adhesives/regulation/index.md)
- [Characteristics](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/adhesives/characteristics/index.md)
- [Emissions](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/adhesives/emissions/index.md)
- [Relationships](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/adhesives/links/index.md)