Wes Huff
Head of Development Rheology Polymer
BYK USA

New Ways for Waterborne 2K Epoxy
Historically conventional solventborne epoxy technologies dominated the primer and mid-coat application areas within the protective coatings market. These systems offer exceptional overall performance. However, continued VOC regulations as well as the industry desire to move towards more environmentally friendly options have placed an emphasis on developing waterborne technologies for use in this formulation space. Waterborne epoxy systems have been in use for several years, typically in less challenging service environments; however, with recent advancements in waterborne epoxy technologies the protective coatings market is now making greater use of waterborne epoxy systems in more demanding applications. Rheology is an important aspect for these systems as it has direct impact on properties such as anti-sagging, anti-settling and application properties. Existing waterborne rheology modifiers technologies display limited functionality in these next-generation systems, and there are obvious limitations on their effectiveness. This presentation will not only provide an overview of the limitations seen with existing rheology modifiers technologies but will also highlight recent developments that are allowing waterborne epoxy systems to close the performance gap with traditional solventborne and solvent-free systems.