Use of alkanolamine additives during the pigment grinding, and impact on performance of WB coatings systems

 
The development and optimization of low-VOC (volatile organic compound), zero-emission pigment dispersions remain challenging across the broad landscape of today's water-borne coatings applications. The ability to effectively wet, grind and stabilize pigments has been shown to have a dramatic impact on the critical performance attributes of a dry film, such as hiding power, color strength, water resistance, and anti-corrosion protection. With a powerful, natural affinity for adsorbing to the surface of many organic and inorganic pigments, the use of multifunctional alkanolamines in the grinding stage can help formulators and manufacturers maximize the dispersion of pigments while reducing loading levels of conventional surfactants and dispersing agents. This new, comprehensive work including evolution of particle size distribution and color strengh for instance, explores the use of ANGUS alkanolamines with TiO2, carbon black, and several organic pigments to demonstrate the unique performance and value alkanolamine additives can provide during the grinding stage in a variety of water-borne architectural and industrial coatings formulations.