Originally Posted by
cyccommute
Sorry but a chemist (I am one) would unequivocally call acetone a polar solvent. It has a high dipole moment and high dielectric constant. Definitely polar.
Pressure adhesives, on the other hand don't have much polarity at all. I just got a new FTIR with a cool sampling accessory that allows me to sample the adhesive on tapes and sticky notes (without the backing paper or plastic interfering with the spectrum). Both have lots of C-H bonds that are typical of nonpolar materials.
Operationally, acetone will just cause the adhesive to clump up like a wax and not dissolve it. Mineral spirits will actually remove the material by dissolution.
Uber
I believe we've had this discussion before.
You are absolutely right but, nevertheless Acetone does work to remove decals (and price tags for that matter). It detackifies the adhesive and the decal or tag rubs right off.
OMS or Kerosine will work on pressure sensitive adhesives but I believe some "water transfer" decals don't use that type and acetone works on them by dissolving the decal itself.