Preparation of the Core-Shell Silicone-acrylic Latex and Its Film Formation Mechanism

We describe a method via transition emulsion polymerization for the synthesis of phase-separated polymer latex with multilayer core-shell (MLCS) morphology. We used four-step process emulsion polymerization for the preparation of MLCS latex. The acrylic esters were employed as the main monomers for the core and the shell of the latex, which was copolymerized by vinyl siloxane monomer. The transmission electron micrograph (TEM) and dynamic light scattering (DLS) methods were applied to characterize the MLCS emulsion. The core-shell silicone-acrylic structure was clearly shown in the TEM image, and the structure of the MLCS latex particles which contained three glass transition temperatures was further proved by the stochastic temperature-modulated-differential scanning calorimetry (TOPEM-DSC). The DLS analysis show that the average diameter and shells thickness of MLCS latex are corresponding to the TEM image. The whole process of the film formation was carried out using the Horus film formation analyzer. On this basis, the water-based coating with various auxi-liary agents was prepared. The film performances are excellent, such as hardness, acetone resistance, water resistance, alcohol resistance, and indentation resistance.