Polishing method

In a method of polishing wood, linoleum, asphalt, vinyl, and vinyl asbestos flooring, said composition being capable of forming a high gloss coating film having a Knoop hardness number of at least 0.5, the steps of dissolving monomers consisting essentially of from about 15% to about 25% by weight of an .beta.,.beta.-unsaturated carboxylic acid and at least one ester of acrylic acid or methacrylic acid and up to 50% of other monoethylenically unsaturated monomers, which mmonomers contain no more than about 10% of an additional copolymerizable hydrophilic property-conferring monomer having hydroxyl, amide or amine groups, in a water-miscible higher boiling oxygenated solvent selected from monohydric and polyhydric alcohols and hydroxy ethers, polymerizing said monomers at a temperature of from 100.degree. C. to 175.degree. C. by means of a free-radical initiator under conditions such that a polymer having an intrinsic viscosity, at 30.degree. C. in tetrahydrofuran, of between 0.05 and 0.15 is obtained, and mixing the resulting polymer and solvent with water, said solvent being present in the mixture in an amount between about 3% and 75% based on the combined weights of the acrylic polymer and any wax, was-soluble resin, or alkali-soluble resin, there being 30 to 100 parts by weight of addition polymer and 0 to 70 parts by weight of wax, wax-soluble resin, or alkali-soluble resin, the total of addition polymer and the wax, wax-soluble, or alkali-soluble resin being 100 parts, with an alkaline agent or buffering agent in an amount to give the dispersion a pH of at least about 7.5 and an essentially water-clear appearance, all of said meterials being at a temperature of from about 20.degree. C. to 25.degree. C., applying a coating of said composition to said flooring and drying the coating at ambient temperature, the coating being removable by aqueous ammonia, the solids content of the coating composition being from about 8% to 25% by weight.

In a method of polishing wood, linoleum, asphalt, vinyl, and vinyl asbestos flooring, said composition being capable of forming a high gloss coating film having a Knoop hardness number of at least 05, the steps of emulsifying acrylic monomers comprising from about 15% to about 25% by weight of an .alpha.,.beta.-unsaturated monocarboxylic acid and an ester of acrylic said or methacrylic acid and up to 50% of other monoethylenically unsaturated monomers, which monomers contain no more than about 10% of an additional copolymerizable hydrophilic property-conferring monomer having hydroxyl, amides, or amine groups, in an aqueous medium containing a surface-active agent, a free-radical initiator and a chain transfer agent, and causing interpolymerization of said monomers, the quantity of chain transfer agent and the polymerization conditions being such that a polymer having an intrinsic viscosity, in tetrahydrofuran at 30.degree. C., of between about 0.05 and about 0.15 is obtained, and mixing the resulting polymer dispersion at room temperature with a coalescing agent and an alkaline agent or buffering agent in an amount to give an essentially water-clear appearance, a pH of at least about 7.5, and a solids content of about 8% to 25% by weight, said coalescing agent being present in the mixture in an amount between about 3% and 75%, based on the combined weights of the acrylic polymer and any wax, wax-soluble resin, or alkali-soluble resin, there being 30 to 100 parts by weight of addition polymer and 0 to 70 parts by weight of wax, wax-soluble resin, or alkali-soluble resin, the total of addition polymer and the wax, wax-soluble, or alkali-soluble resin being 100 parts, applying a coating of the composition to said flooring, and drying the coating at ambient temperature, the coating being removable by aqueous ammonia.