According to Angela Cackovich, European marketing manager, emulsion polymer chemistry has the greatest potential to deliver true innovation in both the coatings and adhesives industry. “Emulsions are at the foundation of coatings and adhesives formulations, and if real innovation is sought, then the chemist needs to start there,” she said. “During the product development process today at Celanese, we consider the needs of formulators and manufacturers, of course. But we also look into the requirements of the people using their products, and of consumers who have to use and live with our technology in its final form, be it paint on the wall or adhesives in furniture.”
Cackovich pointed to the work Celanese has done in the area of dispersions for the development of low VOC, low odor eco-friendly coatings. “Environmentally-friendly paints started as a niche area years ago and has since grown into its own market segment as the global population has begun to demand ‘greener’ products,” she said. “We have seen consumer demand explode globally in the past few years.” Other factors, including green labeling programs such as Blue Angel in Germany and Green Seal in the U.S., as well as increasingly stringent VOC regulations, are playing a major role in the rapid expansion of the eco-friendly sector in coatings.
At ECS, Celanese Emulsion Polymers is showcasing its vinyl acetate/ethylene (VAE) emulsions. “Mowilith LDM 1871 is the gold standard for matt, interior decorative paints and now Mowilith LDM 1852 is the new standard for satin to semi-gloss coatings,” said Stephan Krieger, senior technical service manager for the coatings segment.“These VAE emulsions allow the chemist to formulate a coating without the use of coalescing agents that can add both VOCs and additional cost to their products.”
In the technical arena, Celanese’s Dr. Kerstin Gohr, senior research and development chemist, presented a technical paper at the European Coatings Congress outlining the higher performance of VAE emulsions versus styrene acrylic emulsions in the areas of opacity and wet scrub resistance. Dr. Gohr’s research shows that the higher opacity of the VAE polymer is independent of the titanium dioxide type, content or the filler mix. In addition, her data shows that a less desirable grade of TiO2 can be compensated for with VAE emulsions.
For the adhesives segment, Celanese focused on Mowilith LDM 1081 for paper packaging and converting adhesives. Mowilith LDM 1081 is designed to bond to difficult substrates such as UV lacquered boards and OPP folder foils and be utilized across the entire range of application methods. With extremely low dirt formation, aiding long machine time before failure (MBTF) and tailing, which helps to support high machine speed, it is especially favorable for use with spray nozzle applications.It also allows for its use in sterilizable adhesives due to excellent heat resistance.Finally, the viscosity profile of Mowilith LDM 1081 provides excellent cost-in-use benefits.