Glass cord adhesives comprising vinyl pyridine terpolymer/lignin sulfonate-resorcinol-formaldehyde reaction product; method of use and composite article

A method for adhering a reinforcing element to a vulcanized conjugated diene rubber compound which comprises treating said element with a composition comprising an aqueous alkaline dispersion of from about 10 to 30% by weight (as dry solids) of a mixture of 100 parts of a rubbery vinyl pyridine terpolymer containing about 50 to 95% of a conjugated diolefin, about 5 to 40% of vinyl pyridine and about 0 to 40% of a styrene;

• about 1.0 to 30 parts of a lignin sulfonate, resorcinol and formaldehyde reaction product;
• and heat treating said element to remove the water and to heat set the solids from said composition and to deposit on said element from said composition a total of from about 2 to 30% by weight (solids), said heat treatment being conducted at temperatures of from about 300.degree. to 500.degree. F. for from about 30 to 150 seconds, cooling said treated element, combining said cooled treated element with an unvulcanized vulcanizable rubber consisting essentially of conjugated diene as the major elastomer component, and vulcanizing the same.