Resins suppliers are offering a variety of technologies to cater to customers looking to formulate "greener" products.

To help formulators address global sustainability trends, Dow offers EVOQUE Pre-Composite Polymer, which allows formulators to develop paint using fewer raw materials like titanium dioxide while increasing hiding and life cycle.
“A third party Life Cycle Analysis showed paints formulated with EVOQUE Technology yielded the lowest environmental impact compared to similar technologies while demonstrating heightened stain resistance and durability,” said Sylvia Insogna, North American marketing director, Dow Coating Materials. “EVOQUE Technology enhances resistance to household stains and dirt pickup while blocking tannin stains and resisting corrosion. In 2013, Dow was named a winner of the 2013 U.S. EPA Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Award for EVOQUE Technology. Dow is also introducing FORMASHIELD 12 Acrylic Binder, which improves indoor air quality by abating formaldehyde that is naturally emitted through common household items.”

Reichhold has developed a new platform of low VOC alkyd latex resins made from renewable resources.
“We take conventional alkyd chemistry and emulsify it in water to deliver a unique combination of alkyd performance and regulatory compliance, without the use of solvents,” said Scott Cooley, technical director. “This platform is marketed under the BECKOSOL AQ trade mark and currently includes options for a wide variety of applications and substrates including wood, metal, asphalt, concrete and natural stones.”

BASF is developing new dispersions that deliver better performance at lower VOC.
“Also, BASF is focused on new technologies that will reduce the solvent requirement for 2K urethane systems and maintain the expected performance,” said Thomas Hall III, Market Segment Manager, Industrial Maintenance, Transportation and Industrial Coatings & Plastics , Dispersions & Pigments Division, North America, BASF Corporation.

Alberdingk Boley has several technology platforms that include “greener” products.
“We have solvent free PUDs and hybrid urethane acrylic dispersions, as well as PUDs made with renewable resources (Castor and linseed oil based),” explained Yasmin Sayed-Sweet, vice president of sales & marketing, Alberdingk Boley Inc. “We also offer products that are APEO-free, have very low odor and low film forming temperatures for low VOC market needs.”

"Arkema is extending the life of alkyds - already a renewable resin technology - by launching new waterborne alkyds that offer low VOC, but at similar performance levels of conventional alkyd resins,” John Hiel, North America Marketing Manager, Arkema Resins explained.

Specialty Polymers labs continue to develop a line of resins that can be formulated into higher performance coatings and meet the ever increasing demand for lower VOC’s.  The core shell technology utilized in these resins provides for exceptional water, chemical, scratch and early block resistance in a wide range of applications.

“These new core shell resins have a much lower solvent demand than resins traditionally used in high performance applications,” said Steve Reiser, vice president of sales and marketing, Specialty Polymers Inc. “By working closely with our customers Specialty Polymers continues to have success in developing low VOC resins.”

Emerald’s CVC business manufactures a range of low viscosity, 100% solids resins, reactive diluents and modifiers that allow for high solids, low-VOC formulations and has also added products based upon renewable resources to the line.

These “greener” alternatives were designed to also deliver enhanced performance characteristics such as improved coatings durability or dry time.

“Formulators often use liquid epoxy resins (LER) as an approach to lower VOCs in high-total-solids epoxy primer formulations,” explained Hitesh Soni, CVC’s manager of specialty epoxies. ”This extends the dry time, which is typically undesirable.  Emerald developed EPALLOY 7200 to reduce dry time and achieve an optimal balance of features: equivalent cure to solid epoxy systems, excellent solvent resistance, good formulation viscosity and about 1/3 the VOC content of typical solid epoxy resin formulations."

Celanese has developed new products in a range of chemistries, which enable their customers to reach low/no VOC.

“With our Avicor 601 product, we have developed a full acrylic product which has excellent early block resistance for semi/high gloss paints while having a minimum film formation temperature of 0°C,” Brad Moncla, marketing manager, Celanese said.  “Celanese has also developed a vinyl acrylic product, Avicor 390, which has low VOC capability while allowing customers to meet a variety of difficult third party testing protocols such as MPI.  Finally, our VAE (vinyl acetate/ethylene) products, especially EcoVAE 401, set the benchmark for their ability formulate low/no VOC interior paints with excellent scrub and stain resistance.”