how come when gel super glue is on a surface it takes minutes to dry, but when on fingers it dries instantly?
In: Other
Besides the sciency side of why it does that i heard once that it was initially formulated by the goverment for battlefield medics to be able to close wounds speedily so its literally made to instantly stick to skin if that is true.
Superglue uses water as a catalyst. The water in the air is enough, and the blob hardens from the outside in, moving very slowly because while the water/catalyst is on the surface, it is NOT in the middle of the blob.
Your hands have water on them, too, even if it’s just a little bit.
If you squeeze superglue between your fingers, you’ve created a very thin layer with sufficient water to start the reaction. It hardens almost immediately.
Super Glue was literally designed to hold human body parts together – using it to fix other broken stuff is a spin-off
The moisture on your skin activates the glue’s curing process. Skin has more moisture and natural oils compared to most surfaces, which accelerates the chemical reaction that makes the glue harden. Additionally, the rough texture of skin provides more surface area for the glue to spread out and react quickly. In contrast, other surfaces typically have less moisture and the glue might be applied in thicker layers, causing it to take longer to dry.
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