Engineering Commons^™

Understanding Complex Coacervation Of Low Charge Density Copolymers And Latexes, Nicholas Bryant

Masters Theses

Many coatings only need to either be durable or fast drying, usually sacrificing long term stability in favor of quick setting, or vice versa. One coating type that cannot afford to sacrifice either performance feature is traffic paint. These paints are made up of a weak polycation, an anionic latex, and a volatile base which evaporates upon application. The high pH in the initial formulation deprotonates the polycation, rendering it charge neutral. However, upon evaporation, the resulting drop in pH allows for the electrostatic complexation between the polycation and the latex. The electrostatic interactions used in these formulations parallels that …