Radiation-curable desiccant-filled adhesive/sealant

1. An electrophoretic device comprising a radiation-curable desiccant-filled adhesive/sealant composition consisting essentially of:

a) a radiation-curable resin,

b) one or more desiccant fillers,

c) a photoinitiating system comprising one or more photoinitiators and optionally one or more photosensitizers,

d) optionally, a radiation curable resin diluent.

2. The electrophoretic device in accordance with claim 1 in which radiation-curable desiccant-filled adhesive/sealant in accordance with claim 1 in which the radiation-curable resin contains reactive functionality selected from the group consisting of glycidyl epoxy, aliphatic epoxy, cycloaliphatic epoxy; oxetane; acrylate, methacrylate, itaconate; maleimide; ethers of vinyl, proenyl, crotyl, allyl, and propargyl groups; thio-ethers of vinyl, pronenyl, crotyl, allyl, and propargyl groups; maleate, fumarate, and cinnamate esters; styrenic; acrylamide and methacrylamide; chalcone; thiol; allyl, alkenyl, and cycloalkenyl groups.

3. The electrophoretic device in accordance with claim 1 in which the one or more desiccant fillers are selected from the group consisting of metal oxides, metal sulfates, metal hydrides, metal halides, metal perchlorates, metal carbonates, phosphorus pentoxide, metals that react with water, superabsorbant polymers, zeolites, molecular sieves, activated alumina, activated silica gel, and combinations thereof.

4. The electrophoretic device in accordance with claim 3 in which the desiccant fillers are selected from the group consisting of CaO, BaO, MgO, SiO 2 , P 2 O 5 , Al 2 O 3 , CaH 2 , NaH, LiAlH 4 , CaSO 4 , Na 2 SO 4 , MgSO 4 , CaCO 3 , K 2 CO 3 , CaCl 2 , 4A and 3A molecular sieves, Ba(ClO 4 ) 2 , Mg(ClO 4 ) 2; , lightly crosslinked poly(acrylic acid) and Ca.

5. The electrophoretic device in accordance with claim 1 in which the adhesive/sealant composition is disposed on a substrate and encapsulated with a lid in which the lid and the substrate are bonded together, wherein said adhesive/sealant composition is disposed along the perimeter of the substrate and the lid.

6. The electrophoretic device in accordance with claim 1 in which the adhesive/sealant composition is disposed on a substrate and encapsulated with a lid in which the lid and the substrate are bonded together, wherein said adhesive/sealant composition is disposed in the whole area between the substrate and the lid.

7. The electrophoretic device in accordance with claim 2 in which the radiation-curable resin is a polyisobutylene or butyl rubber.

8. The electrophoretic device in accordance with claim 2 in which the radiation-curable resin is a thiol-ene resin.

9. The electrophoretic device in accordance with claim 8 in which the thiol-ene resin is a pentaerythritol-tetrakis (3-mercaptopropionate)/triallyl-isocyanurate system.

10. The electrophoretic device in accordance with claim 2 in which the radiation-curable resin is a maleimide resin.

11. The electrophoretic device in accordance with claim 10 in which the maleimide resin is

12. The electrophoretic device in accordance with claim 2 in which the radiation-curable resin is an epoxy resin.

13. The electrophoretic device of claim 12 , wherein said epoxy resin is resorcinol diglycidyl ether.