Method of preparing dispersions of gelled polymeric microparticles and products produced thereby

A method of producing a dispersion containing from 20 to 60 percent by weight crosslinked acrylic polymer microparticles having a particle size of from 0.1 to 10 microns, said method comprising free radical addition copolymerizing from 0.5 to 15 percent of alpha, beta-ethylenically unsaturated monocarboxylic acid, from 70 to 99 percent of at least one other copolymerizable monoethylenically unsaturated monomer and from 0.5 to 15 percent of crosslinking monomer selected from the group consisting of (1) epoxy group-containing compound and (2) a mixture of alkylenimine and organoalkoxysilane, wherein:

• a. said epoxy group-containing compound is monoepoxide compound which additionally contains ethylenic unsaturation,
• b. said organoalkoxysilane is selected from the group consisting of acrylatoalkoxysilane, methacrylatoalkoxysilane and vinylalkoxysilane, and
• c. said monomer percentages are based on the weight of monomers used in the copolymerization process,
• in the presence of hydrocarbon dispersing liquid which is a solvent for the polymerizable monomers but a non-solvent for the resultant polymer, and polymeric dispersion stabilizer containing at least two segments of which one segment is solvated by said dispersing liquid and a second segment is of different polarity than said first segment and is relatively insoluble in said dispersing liquid, wherein the reaction is carried out at elevated temperature such that the dispersion polymer forms and then is crosslinked.