Niccolò Rivato – ddchem
By the late 1960s the use of water in surface coatings was well established via vinyl-related emulsions and water-based alkyds. Extending the use of water into the more sophisticated two-pack coatings of that time, e.g. epoxy and polyurethane, was to prove much more difficult. In the case of epoxies, it was to take more than a decade from the time of inception to acceptance as coatings of real importance to industry and society¹.
It is only in the last decades, however, that waterborne epoxy resin systems for ambient cured coatings have attracted much attention thanks to new technologies and formulating experience.
Producers of additives and co-solvents now have a selection of specific raw materials for these formulations, that allow an easier formulation of high-performance waterborne epoxy coatings.
Compared to their solvent-based counterparts, waterborne products offer many advantages²:
• reduced odour;
• reduction in levels of emissions of organic solvents into the atmosphere;
• water is much less expensive than organic solvents and is available nearly everywhere;
• not flammable and reduced toxicity;
• easier clean-up with water.
Waterborne epoxy systems find space in many applications:
Surface coatings (base primers, anti-corrosive coating, etc) – civil engineering – Flooring applications (industrial floor coatings, primers etc).
Generally speaking, waterborne epoxy systems normally feature excellent adhesion on various substrates like metal and concrete and they can also be used on humid or wet surfaces.
ddchem – CHEMISTRY YOU CAN TRUST
ddchem is the Italian leading producer of modified resins and curing agents for epoxy systems. The production plant was created in 2003 but the company has more than 40 years of know-how. The company counts 40 employees and a 43 million turnover last year. An important part of the ddchem market is domestic, but over 70% of the products are exported to over 50 countries around the world. The company does this in collaboration with reliable distribution partners and IMCD Italia S.p.A, which distribute its product lines in the Central and Southern Italy, represents a clear example of a strong and efficient collaboration.
ddchem is committed to innovation by building long-term collaborations and partnerships with clients and distributors through the development of tailor-made products, production under NDA, development of starting formulations, scouting of new sustainable raw materials, application tests etc.
WATERBORNE PRODUCTS
ddchem has been working on its waterborne line products for a long time, and the research and development department is still working constantly on new developments. In collaboration with partners, the company is making high-performance starting formulations to help customers in the transition from solvent-based chemistry to water-based chemistry. All its waterborne products are free of organic solvents, cosolvents and organic acids. All the products are simply made of a reactive polymeric part and water. This means that no VOCs are present in the product at the end of the synthesis.
ITAMID WATER 512 AND 612
Itamid Water 512 belongs to the chemical category of polyamides. This class of compound is widely used for protective coating applications on metals. In general, the polyamides used for this application are very hydrophobic and they are normally dissolved in organic solvents such as xylene to reduce the viscosity for better handling. The company found a way to take advantage of this typical behaviour and used it to create a new and more hydrophilic polyamide that can be dispersed in water. Itamid Water 512 can be formulated with waterborne epoxy resins to achieve high performance in protective coating applications (see the results in Table 1), and civil engineering applications.
Itamid Water 612 is the latest R&D development as a waterborne curing agent. The product is a polyamide synthesized with a novel processing technique. Standard polyamides are produced by reacting fatty acid raw materials with polyamine. In the case of Itamid Water 612, the company was able to find a different and innovative way to produce the polyamide polymer that makes up the core of the product. Thanks to this new technique, ddchem was able to synthesize a product that can react with waterborne epoxy resins as well as with standard liquid epoxy resins. The product features a relatively low viscosity considering that it is supplied with 70% solid content in water. Furthermore, the dilution profile has been improved compared to Itamid Water 512 and the viscosity can be easily reduced with water up to a 40% solid content.
Many of the company’s customers are testing this new development for different applications: protective coating, epoxy primer for flooring and epoxy putty.
BIOBASED
ddchem is committed to implementing biobased raw materials as they are an excellent starting point for achieving climate neutrality goals. All its polyamides are produced starting from vegetable source fatty acids. This means that all the polyamides, including the waterborne polyamides, have a certain biobased content. Itamid Water 512 has a biobased carbon content of 57% (based on the 14C analysis according to ASTM D6866) and Itamid Water 612 has a biobased carbon content of 15-20% (calculated). So, if you want to reach sustainability goals, these biobased products can be a solution for your applications.
ITAMINE WATER 2157 AND 1419
Itamine Water 2157 and 1419 are two water-soluble polyamine adducts based on aliphatic and cycloaliphatic amines respectively. Being naturally soluble in water, the two products are thermodynamically stable in this media remaining stable upon dilution up to a 30% solid content in water. The two products feature a very light Gardner colour, making them perfect for clear coating applications. These products can be easily mixed with waterborne epoxy resins as well as with standard liquid epoxy resins and they find use in water-based anticorrosive coatings and civil engineering applications: (concrete protection, primer for flooring, anti-slip layer, grouts, sealant etc).
References:
[1] Alan D. Wilson, John W. Nicholson and Havard J. Prosser, Waterborne Coatings: Surface Coatings-3 Elsevier applied Science.
[2] Tang, Gongwen & Ren, TingTing & Yan, Zhishan & Ma, Linrong & Pan, Xianhui & Liu, Jing & Hou, Xiangyu & Huang, Xin. (2019). Corrosion resistance of a self-curing waterborne epoxy resin coating. Journal of Coatings Technology and Research. 16. 10.1007/s11998-018-00166-2.
