Oligomeric aqueous finishes

Claim 3

The method of claim 1 wherein the leveling aid polymer is an alkoxide-polymerized polymer wherein at least about 85% by weight of the molecules have chain lengths of about √2n to about 2n mers.

Claim 4

The method of claim 2 wherein the leveling aid polymer is a partially hydrolyzed polymer of at least one ester of methacrylic acid.

Claim 5

The method of claim 3 wherein the leveling aid has the following structural formula: ##STR2## wherein RO is a residue of a chain-regulating alcohol; R 1 0 is the alcohol portion of the monomeric ester of methacrylic acid; n is an integer equal to or greater than 1; x is an integer having a value in the range of from about 1 to about 45, and Z is a cation derived from an alkali metal, ammonia or a tertiary amine.

Claim 6

The method of claim 4 wherein the leveling aid polymer has an acid number in the range of from about 90 to about 200 and has a weight average molecular weight (M w ) in the range of from about 700 to about 2,000.

Claim 7

The method of claim 5 wherein the acid number is in the range of from about 120 to about 160 and the weight average molecular weight (M w ) is in the range of from about 900 to about 1,200.

Claim 8

The method of claim 6 wherein the leveling aid comprises from about 1 to about 50% of the total polish formulation.

Claim 9

The method of claim 6 wherein the leveling aid comprises from about 5 to about 20% of the total polish formulation.

Claim 10

An aqueous composition for floor polishing which comprises from about 10 to about 100 parts by weight of a polymer emulsion; from about 0 to about 90 parts by weight of a wax; from about 1 to about 50 percent by weight solids on total solids of wetting, emulsifying, plasticizing and dispersing agents; from about 0 to about 50 parts by weight of a polyvalent metal compound and from about 1 to about 50 parts by weight of a leveling agent wherein the improvement comprises the leveling agent being a salt of a partially hydrolyzed polymer of methacrylic ester having a carboxy content of at least about 2.6 and an average chain length of from about 6 to about 20 mer units.

Claim 11

An aqueous composition for floor polishing which comprises from about 10 to about 100 parts by weight of a polymer emulsion; from about 0 to about 90 parts by weight of a wax; from about 1 to about 50 percent by weight solids on total solids of wetting, emulsifying, plasticizing and dispersing agents; from about 0 to about 50 parts by weight of a polyvalent metal compound and from about 1 to about 50 parts by weight of a leveling agent wherein the improvement comprises the leveling agent being a salt of a partially hydrolyzed polymer of methacrylic ester having a carboxy content of at least about 2.6 and an average chain length of from about 6 to about 20 mer units.

Claim 12

The composition of claim 9 wherein the leveling aid polymer is an alkoxide-polymerized polymer wherein at least about 85% by weight of the molecules have chain lengths of about √2n to about 2 n mers.

Claim 13

The composition of claim 10 wherein the leveling aid polymer is a partially hydrolyzed polymer of at least one ester of methacrylic acid.

Claim 14

The composition of claim 9 wherein the wetting agent is nonionic, comprising multiple ethylene oxide units.

Claim 15

The composition of claim 11 wherein the leveling aid comprises from about 5 to about 205 of the total polish formulation.

Claim 16

An aqueous composition according to claim 13 wherein the acid number of the leveling aid polymer is in the range of from about 120 to about 160 and the weight average molecular weight is in the range of from about 900 to about 1200.

Claim 17

The composition of claim 14 wherein the wetting agent is from 10 to 25% of a tert-octylphenol modified by 5 ethylene oxide units.

Claim 18

An aqeuous composition according to claim 14 wherein the wetting agent is nonionic selected from ethylene oxide modified alkyl phenols or ethylene oxide modified higher fatty alcohols.

Claim 19

The aqueous composition according to claim 16 wherein the wetting agent is a tert-octylphenol modified by from about 1 to about 40 ethylene oxide units.

Claim 20

An aqueous polish composition which contains a polymer emulsion and, as a leveling aid, a salt of a polymer comprising mer units of methacrylic acid and at least one ester of methacrylic acid, having an average carboxy content of at least about 2.6 and an average chain length, n, of from about 6 to about 20 mer units per molecule.

Claim 21

An aqueous polish composition which contains a polymer emulsion and, as a leveling aid, a salt of a polymer comprising mer units of methacrylic acid and at least one ester of methacrylic acid, having an average carboxy content of at least about 2.6 and an average chain length, n, of from about 6 to about 20 mer units per molecule.

Claim 22

A composition comprised of the polymer of claim 18 with from 1 to 50% of a wetting agent of the nonionic type selected from an ethylene oxide modified alkylphenol, and ethylene oxide modified fatty alcohol, an ethylene oxide modified long chain mercaptan, an ethylene oxide modified fatty acid or an ethylene oxide modified amine.

Claim 23

The composition of claim 18 wherein the wetting agent is from 10 to 25% of a tert-octylphenol modified by 5 ethylene oxide units.

Claim 24

The composition of claim 20 wherein the leveling aid polymer is an alkoxide-polymerized polymer wherein at least about 85% by weight of the molecules have chain lengths of about √2n to about 2n mers.

Claim 25

The composition of claim 21 wherein the leveling aid polymer is a partially hydrolyzed polymer of at least one ester of methacrylic acid.

Claim 26

The composition of claim 22 wherein the leveling aid has the following structural formula: ##STR3## wherein RO is a residue of a chain-regulating alcohol; R 1 O is the alcohol portion of the monomeric ester of methacrylic acid; n is an integer equal to or greater than 1; x is an integer having a value in the range of from about 1 to about 45, and Z is a cation derived from an alkali metal, ammonia or a tertiary amine.

Claim 27

The composition of claim 23 wherein the leveling aid has an acid number in the range of from about 90 to about 200 and a weight average molecular weight in the range of from about 700 to about 2,000.

Claim 28

The composition of claim 24 wherein the acid number is in the range of from about 120 to about 160 and the weight average molecular weight is in the range of from about 900 to about 1,200.

Claim 29

The composition of claim 24 wherein the leveling aid comprises from about 1 to about 50% of the total polish formulation.

Claim 30

The composition of claim 26 wherein the leveling aid comprises from about 5 to about 20% of the total polish formulation.