Desensitized aqueous thermoplastic polymer dispersions

An insensitive aqueous agglomeration-prone thermoplastic polymer dispersion comprising a mixture comprising ingredients (a) to (d):

• (a) water, as a dispersion medium;
• (b) agglomeration-prone thermoplastic polymer (APTP) particles, which have a maximum particle size volume mean of 5 microns according to PROCEDURE PSM (described later) and are widely dispersed in the water;
• (c) a dispersion-forming effective amount of a dispersing carboxylate salt;
• and (d) an agglomeration-inhibiting effective amount of a dispersion desensitizer;
• wherein the dispersing carboxylate salt is a cation salt of the anion, R—CO2−, a multi-cation salt of a carboxylic acid polymer comprising carboxyl-containing monomer residuals, or a combination thereof;
• wherein when the dispersing carboxylate salt is the multi-cation salt of the carboxylic acid polymer, the insensitive aqueous agglomeration-prone thermoplastic polymer dispersion contains at least 1 weight percent of the carboxyl-containing monomer residuals based on ratio of weight of the carboxyl-containing monomer residuals to combined weight of ingredient (b) plus weight of the multi-cation salt of the carboxylic acid polymer;
• wherein R is an aliphatic radical that is unsubstituted or substituted with from 1 to 6 substituents selected from the group consisting of:
• —OH, —CO2H, or a —CO2− cation salt;
• wherein each cation (including cations of the multi-cation salt) independently is a cation of a metal of Group 1 or 2 of the Periodic Table of the Elements, ammonium (—NH4+), or a mono-, di-, tri-, or tetra-(C1-C60)alkyl substituted ammonium;
• and wherein the APTP particles are exposed to a would-be agglomeration condition and the dispersion desensitizer functions in such a way so as to inhibit agglomeration of the APTP particles in the insensitive aqueous agglomeration-prone thermoplastic polymer dispersion.