Apr 17 2008
Those of us over forty might remember the days when outside house paints carried a strong odor, and the brushes and rollers used to apply them required solvents to clean up afterwards. In those days, solvents were predominantly used in paints, but today that scenario is a distant memory. The company that introduced acrylic emulsions in the 1950s, Rohm and Haas, paved the way with technology that enabled high-quality water-based paints that revolutionized the paint industry. Thanks to this environmentally advanced technology, most painting today is faster, easier and more environmentally conscious-so easy that it has become the quintessential do-it-yourself project for millions of us.
Every time we paint, each of us is working just a little bit of chemical magic. Here’s a peek at what’s going on behind the scenes. Rohm and Haas prepares these emulsions by mixing acrylic polymers – long chains of specially designed molecules – in water. Paint manufacturers take these polymers, then formulate them with additives (many also made by Rohm and Haas) that make the paint flow better, or preservatives that make them resistant to mildew once they are applied. The acrylic polymers stay suspended in water until the mixture is transferred to the painted surface, the wood trim, vinyl or aluminum siding, or stucco outside our homes, for example. The water in these coatings evaporates quickly once the paint is applied. The acrylic molecules link tightly together to make a very tough, durable paint film that lasts for many years against elements like extreme temperatures, wind and sun, as well as during periods of surface expansion and contraction that result from moisture and temperature fluctuations.
Acrylic emulsions also enable paint manufacturers and consumers to avoid many harsh, potentially harmful chemicals once needed when painting. They emit very low levels of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) during manufacture and application. With water-based emulsions, today’s acrylic paints are easy to use and simple to clean up with nothing more complicated than soap and water.
Just another example of the commitment Rohm and Haas has to making the impossible possible.