Water-borne hygienic coatings based on self-crosslinking acrylic latex

A new paper deals with a facile fabrication of environmentally friendly hygienic coatings based on acrylic latex comprising embedded inorganic nanoparticles originating from nanostructured ZnO and MgO, respectively, in the role of antibacterial agents.

The incorporation of surface-untreated powdered nanostructured oxides into the latex was performed during the latex synthesis carried out by a two-step emulsion polymerisation technique. With this technological approach, latexes comprising dispersed inorganic nanoparticles in the content of ca 0.5 – 1.1 wt. % (based on solids) were successfully prepared. For obtaining high-performance coating films, keto-hydrazide self-crosslinking chemistry was introduced into latexes. The antibacterial efficiency of the coatings was evaluated with respect to the type and concentration of incorporated nanoparticles.