The resins vary from soft, sticky semisolids to hard, brittle solids, depending upon the constitution of the monomers and upon the polymerization. They are used for adhesives, protective coatings, finishes, laminated glass, transparent structural sheet, and molded products. Acrylicresins, or acrylate resins, are stable and resistant to chemicals. They do not cloud or fade in light when used as laminating material in glass and are used as air-curing adhesives to seal glass to metals or wood. Waterbased acrylics are used for the formulation of calks and sealants. They have better adhesion and weather resistance than butyl rubbers and dry more quickly. The sealants usually contain about 80% solids.

Most acrylic plastics are based on polymers of methyl methacrylate,which may be modified by copolymerizing or blending with other monomers. Noted for excellent optical properties, they have a light transmission of about 92%. Besides the transparent grades, they can be obtained in translucent or opaque colors as well as the natural color of water white.Moldings have a deep luster and high surface gloss, and for this reason are widely used for decorative parts. Acrylics have excellent weathering characteristics. Because they are little affected by sunlight, rain, and corrosive atmospheres, they are well suited for outdoor applications. In general, the majority of grades can be used up to about 200°F (100°C). Thermal expansion is relatively high. Acrylics are hard and stiff. They are also a relatively strong plastic; their tensile strength ranges from 5,000 to about 11,000 lb/in² (34 to about 75MPa). However, regular grades are somewhat brittle. High impact grades are produced by blending with rubber stock. The high strength is useful only for short-term loading. For long-term service, to avoid crazing or surface cracking, tensile stresses must be limited to about 1,500 lb/in² (10MPa). Acrylic plastics are available as cast sheets, rods, tubes, and blocks. They are also processed by injection or compression molding. Sheets are produced in thicknesses from ¹/₈ to ³/₈ in (0.32 to 0.95 cm) and in sizes up to 10 by 12 ft (3 by 4 m). A special process that produces molecular orientation in the cast product is used to make crack-resistant aircraft cabin windows and fighter plane canopies. Acrylic moldings as large as 1 yd² (1 m²) have been produced. A lead-filled acrylic sheet, produced by Kyowa Gas Chemical Industry Co., japan, is used as a radiation shielding material. It is transparent and has better impact strength and fabricability than leaded glass. Typical moldings include knobs, handles, escutcheons, parts for vending machines, and a wide variety of lenses for light control, signal
lamps, and the like. Tough molding resins are made by copolymerizing methyl methacrylate with styrene. Zerlon 150, of the Dow Chemical Co., is such a molding resin with a flexural strength of 17,600 lb/in² (123 MPa). Thiacril, of the Thiokol Chemical Corp., is an acrylate rubber having a tensile strength of 2,500 lb/in²) (16 MPa) and an elongation of 350%. It is used for gaskets,wire insulation, and hose.

Allyl methacrylate is a liquid of the empirical formula C₇H₁₀O₂, boiling at 63°C, and insoluble in water. It can be polymerized to form liquid or hard solid resins, but is used chiefly as a cross-linking agent for other resins to raise the softening point and increase hardness. Gafite, of the General Aniline &: Film Corp., is polymethyl alphachloroacrylate, (CH₂:CCl-COOCH₃)_x. It is a transparent and craze-resistant resin used for aircraft windows. The heat distortion point is 260°F (127°C), and it has higher tensile and flexural strength than other acrylics. Cyclohexyl methacrylate has optical properties similar to crown glass, and is used for cast lenses, where its softness and low softening point, l60°F (71°C), are not objectionable.

Lucite is methyl methacrylate of E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Co., Inc., marketed as molding powder and in rods, tubes, and cast and molded sheets. Lucitone is this material molded in dentures in pink and translucent. Lucite HM-140 is this material compounded for high-temperature injection molding. Acrylic syrup is a liquid Lucite for use as a low-pressure laminating resin. It produces strong, stiff, tough laminates adaptable to translucent or bright colors. Reinforced with glass fibers, a panel with contact cure has a flexural strength of 25,000 lb/in² (172 MPa), elongation 1.5%, distortion point at 233°F (112°C), Rockwell hardness R121, and light transmission up to 65%. Crystalite, of Rohm & Haas Co., is an acrylic molding powder. Plexiglas, of this company, is transparent methyl methacrylate in sheets and rods. Perspex is a similar English acrylic resin. All of these plastics are used for aircraft windows. Plexiglas V is for injection molding, while Plexiglas VM is a molding powder to resist heat distortion to 174°F (79°C). Vernonite, of Rohm & Haas Co., is an acrylic denture resin. The Acryloid resins, of the same company, are acrylic copolymer solid resins, and the Acrysol resins are solutions for coatings. Plexene M,of the same company, is a styrene-acrylic resin for injection molding. The specific gravity of the molded resin is 1.08, the dielectric strength is 350 volts per mil (14 x 10⁶ volts per meter), and tensile strength 15,000 lb/ in² (103 MPa). Rhoplex resins, of the same company, and Crilicon, of the jersey State Chemical Co., are acrylic resin emulsions for paints, textile finishes, and adhesives. Polyco 296, of the American Polymer Corp., is a water-soluble acrylic copolymer used for thickening natural or synthetic rubber latex for paper and textile coatings. Coatings made with acrylics have good adhesion and gloss, are resistant to oils and chemicals, and have ,good dielectric strength. Carboset 511, of the B. F. Goodrich Chemical Co., is a water solution of acrylic resin for protecting polished metal surfaces and precision parts against scratching. It is resistant to water, but can be washed off with soap and water. Cavalon, of Du Pont, is a polyacrylic resin for coatings that has high hardness and resistance to abrasion.

Volan, of the same company, is a methacrylate-chromic oxychloride, CH₂:C(CH₃)C(OH)(OCrCl₂)₂, in which methacrylic acid is joined with two CrCl₂ groups to form resonant bonds. It is a dark-green liquid with a specific gravity of 1.02, boiling at l80°F (82°C). When applied to negatively charged surfaces such as cellulose, polyamides, or silica materials, the chromium complex is strongly held while the chlorine is lost. In attaching to glass, the CrO forms a chemical bond to the silica of the glass, Cr·O·Si. With polyamides, the CrO attaches to a carbon atom, Cr·O· C. It is thus used to obtain strong bonds in plastic laminates.