Aqueous polyurethanes - polymer colloids with unusual colloidal, morphological, and application...

INTRODUCTION

Waterborne polymer colloids are an increasingly important class of material available to the surface coatings industry. Environmental and legislative pressures have driven industry to concentrate on waterborne polymers. This has resulted in the development of a variety of polymer types exhibiting a range of useful properties that can frequently match and, in some instances, exceed those provided by conventional solvent-borne systems.(1,2)

There are two major classes of waterborne polymers in use: (1) aqueous polymer dispersions prepared by emulsion po