Synthesis of alkali-soluble copolymer (butyl acrylate/acrylic acid) and its application in leather finishing agent

Alkali-soluble copolymer (butyl acrylate/acrylic acid) was synthesized via solution polymerization and used as the emulsifier to prepare acrylic resin for leather finishing agent. The influence of the synthetic conditions, such as the contents of acrylic acid and the initiator types on the properties of P(BA/AA) was investigated in detail. Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrometer (FTIR) indicated that the polymerization reaction of P(BA/AA) was complete without “CC” absorption peak. Differential Scanning Calorimeters (DSC) analysis confirmed that the glass transition temperature (Tg) of P(BA/AA) was −44 °C, Transmission Electron microscope (TEM) indicated that the copolymer latex particles dispersed evenly and were less than 100 nm. Moreover, in contrast to acrylic resin prepared with sodium dodecylsulfate (SDS) and alkylphenol ethoxylates (OP-10) as the emulsifiers, the applied properties of light leather finished by acrylic resin in use of P(BA/AA) as the emulsifier were measured: The air permeability increased by 18.5% as well as the water-resistance by 28.08% and the wet rub fastness by half class, respectively.