Polymers containing macromonomers and their use in a method of coating substrates

A method of coating a substrate comprising applying to a substrate an aqueous coating composition comprising an akali-swellable complex hydrophobe associative thickener, said complex hydrophobe associative thickener being prepared by polymerizing monomers comprising:

• (a) about 1-99.9 weight percent of one or more alpha, beta-monoethylenically unsaturated carboxylic acids;
• (b) about 0-98.9 weight percent of one or more monoethylenically unsaturated monomers;
• (c) about 0.1-99 weight percent of one or more complex hydrophobe-containing monoethylenically unsaturated macromonomers;
• and
• (d) about 0-20 weight percent or greater of one or more polyethylenically unsaturated monomers:
• wherein said complex hydrophobe-containing monoethylenically unsaturated macromonomers is represented by the formula:
• ##STR7## wherein:
• R.sup.1 is a monovalent residue of a substituted or unsubstituted complex hydrophobe compound:
• each R.sup.2 is the same or different and is a substituted or unsubstituted divalent hydrocarbon residue:
• R.sup.3 is a substituted or unsubstituted divalent hydrocarbon residue;
• R.sup.4, R.sup.5 and R.sup.6 are the same or different and are hydrogen or a substituted or unsubstituted monovalent hydrocarbon residue;
• and
• z is a value of 0 or greater;
• in which said substituted or unsubstituted complex hydrophobe compound is represented by the formula selected from;
• ##STR8## wherein R.sub.1 and R.sub.2 are the same or different and are hydrogen or a substituted or unsubstituted monovalent hydrocarbon residue, R.sub.3 is a substituted or unsubstituted divalent or trivalent hydrocarbon residue, each R.sub.4 is the same or different and is a substituted or unsubstituted divalent hydrocarbon residue, each R.sub.5 is the same or different and is a substituted or unsubstituted divalent hydrocarbon residue, R.sub.6 is hydrogen, a substituted or unsubstituted monovalent hydrocarbon residue or an ionic substituent, a and b are the same or different and are a value of 0 or 1, and x and y are the same or different and are a value of 0 or greater;
• provided at least two of R.sub.1, R.sub.2, R.sub.3, R.sub.4, R.sub.5 and R.sub.6 are a hydrocarbon residue having greater than 2 carbon atoms in the case of R.sub.1, R.sub.2 and R.sub.6 or having greater than 2 pendant carbon atoms in the case of R.sub.3, R.sub.4 and R.sub.5 ;
• and ##STR9## wherein R.sub.7 and R.sub.8 are the same or different and are hydrogen or a substituted or unsubstituted monovalent hydrocarbon residue, R.sub.9, and R.sub.12 are the same or different and are a substituted or unsubstituted divalent or trivalent hydrocarbon residue, each R.sub.10 is the same or different and is a substituted or unsubstituted divalent hydrocarbon residue, each R.sub.13 is the same or different and is a substituteed or unsubstituted divalent hydrocarbon residue. R.sub.11 and R.sub.14 are the same or different and are hydrogen, a substituted or unsubstituted monovalent hydrocarbon residue or an ionic substituent. R.sub.15 is a substituted or unsubstituted divalent hydrocarbon residue, d and e are the same or different and are a value of 0 or 1, and f and g are the same or different and are a value of or greater;
• provided at least two of R.sub.7, R.sub.8, R.sub.9, R.sub.10, R.sub.11, R.sub.12, R.sub.13, R.sub.14 and R.sub.15 are a hydrocarbon residue having greater than 2 carbon atoms in the case of R.sub.7, R.sub.8, R.sub.11 and R.sub.14 or having greater than 2 pendant carbon atoms in the case of R.sub.9, R.sub.10, R.sub.12, R.sub.13 and R.sub.15.