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OwnerTrevor John Wear, John Martin Higgins +4inventors
InventorsTrevor John Wear, John Martin Higgins, Andrew Clarke, Andrew Michael Howe, Danuta Gibson, Stephanie Veronique Desrousseaux
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A stimulus-responsive polymer particulate composition, comprising a first monomer, such as an aqueous microgel derived, for example, from N-isopropylacrylamide, may be rendered less susceptible to aggregation at high shear (e.g. at least as high as 106 s−1) by incorporating into the structure of the particle (e.g. by copolymerisation) of a further monomer, which is not a stimulus-responsive polymer-forming monomer. The further monomer may be incorporated in an amount of up to 25 mol % based on the amount of the first monomer. Such modified polymer particles are suitable for inkjet printing applications (e.g. for printing of aqueous microgels onto low-energy surface substrates).
A method of minimizing, or reducing the susceptibility to, high-shear aggregation of a dispersion or formulation of a stimulus-responsive polymer particle composition, comprising, during formation of the stimulus-responsive polymer particle composition, addition of a polymerization initiator to a reaction mixture containing first monomer(s) capable of forming a stimulus responsive polymer, and addition to the reaction mixture of an amount of a further monomer, said further monomer being different from said first monomer, prior to, during or at a time delayed from the initiation of the polymerization reaction of the first monomer, wherein the further monomer is capable of forming a polymer unresponsive to the stimulus.
A method of making a polymeric particle composition comprising discrete particles responsive to an external stimulus, which polymeric particle composition in aqueous dispersion is resistant to aggregation in high-shear fields, which method comprises addition of a polymerization initiator to a reaction mixture comprising a first monomer corresponding to the responsive polymeric compound, wherein the method further comprises the addition to the reaction mixture of a further monomer in an amount of from 0.1 to 25 mol % relative to the first monomer before, during and/or after initiation of the polymerization reaction, wherein the further monomer corresponds to a polymer not responsive to said stimulus and/or the further monomer is more hydrophilic than the first monomer;
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.