Harrison Christopher Gallantree-Smith

The primary function of acrylic roof coatings is to protect the underlying material from water, UV radiation, chemicals, and wear. They are typically applied either by roller or airless spray, from which the latter is increasing its share as the formulation technology is developing. Acrylic elastomeric coatings differ from standard architectural paints, as they typically have higher binder levels, as well as higher solids and have a typical viscosity around 100-130 KU.

Today, many coatings producers are increasingly focusing their production towards water-based coatings and are moving away from solvent-based formulations. This is to reduce the VOC content of their formulations, not only to make it friendlier for the end-user, but also to improve the sustainability impact on the environment by reducing their CO2 footprint. Incorporation Challenges Replacing traditional coatings technologies with water-based coatings can be challenging.

It is commonly known that waterborne formulations still suffer from several issues, and it is not always possible to obtain the same performance as with solventborne systems. One of the typical challenges with waterborne systems is related to the behavior of rheology modifiers in the presence of surfactants as well as under extreme pH conditions. The common rheology modifiers can be divided roughly into two categories, associative and non-associative.