New additives to offer freeze–thaw stability and increase open time of low/zero VOC latex paints

With increasing pressure from regulations to reduce VOC in waterborne coatings and the push toward low odor coatings, coalescing aids are being taken out of the formulations. As film forming properties need to remain identical, binder polymers that exhibit low minimum film formation temperatures (MFFT) are being developed and utilized for formulating coating with the expectation that the resulting products exhibit the same if not better performance as the traditional ones containing significant amounts of solvents. However, this change of binder, has a negative impact on a number of properties including freeze–thaw stability – due to destabilization of the latex during transport, storage and application through cold climate – and open time. New additives, Additive FT-100 and Additive OTE-500 were designed as novel solutions to these issues. These additives are added either to the resin or to the paint formulation to provide a finished coating formulation that exhibits five cycles of freeze–thaw stability as well as significant extension in open time. Other paint properties, such as gloss, scrub resistance, stain resistance, etc., were also improved when Additive FT-100 or Additive OTE-500 products were incorporated. An extensive comparison between formulations with and without these additives will be discussed.