Synthesis and characterization of water-reducible polyester-acrylate used in automotive paint industry

Nowadays environmental concerns, have shifted various coating industries, including automotive industry, to the use of water-based coatings. Polyesters by creating a double bond in the resin backbone they will be able to obtain the potential of reaction with acrylic monomers to achieve purposeful functionality. They considered as one of the most widely used components in automotive basecoat industry. In this study a polyester resin was produced using adipic acid, cardura E10, trimethylol propane and fumaric acid. It was then grafted with acrylic acid and butyl acrylate monomers to enhance hydrophilicity and water dispersibility. Synthesized resin, after neutralization by triethylamine, can be dispersed in water and form a water-reducible polyester acrylate dispersion. Numerical and weight average molecular weight of this resin were reported by GPC test at 980 and 2069 respectively with a PDI of 2.1. The acid and hydroxyl values of the product were 105 and 205, respectively. The final product’s particle size were measured at 168.1 nm using the DLS method. The stability of the dispersion was confirmed by the zeta potential test with an average value of -88.9 mV. The curing process in accompany with a melamine resin was verified by the cross cut adhesion test which was reported 3B.