There are various generic families of sealant materials, and many methods are used to classify them. Properties and performance characteristics can vary considerably within each type. There are over 15 families of base polymers that are used, individually or in polyblends, to achieve the storage characteristics, application properties, physical performance, and durability required for each application. Table 1 shows some of the strengths and weaknesses of the more popular sealant families.
Much attention and publicity has been given in recent years to the medium and high performance sealants. This attention is well deserved because of recent focus on premium sealants in building and construction to meet new regulations such as hurricane, moisture, and mold resistance.
However, low performance sealants are also commonly used in many building and construction applications, and because of their price they should be considered when the end-use requirements dictate that they are the right material to use.