Emulsifier-free latexes and photographic light-sensitive elements containing them

Claim 1

A photographic element comprising a support and one or more hydrophilic colloid layers including at least one light-sensitive silver halide emulsion layer, wherein at least one of said hydrophilic colloid layers is formed from a coating composition comprising a mixture of an aqueous solution of gelatin and a latex of a copolymer of ethyl acrylate, characterized in that the copolymer comprises 90 to 98% by weight of ethyl acrylate units and 2 to 10% by weight of units of an ionogenic comonomer corresponding to the general formula: ##STR5## wherein: R 1 is hydrogen or methyl, n is 0 or an integer from 1 to 20, L is a trivalent linking moiety of the group consisting of ##STR6## R 2 is a hydrogen atom or an aliphatic branched or unbranched, saturated or unsaturated hydrocarbon group, R 3 is a monovalent chemical bond or a bivalent aliphatic hydrocarbon group, which may be interrupted by the group --COO-- or --CONR--, wherein R is hydrogen or C 1 -C 4 alkyl, Y is a hydrophilic group selected from sulpho, sulphato and phosphono in acid or salt form, wherein at least one of the groups represented by --(CH 2 ) n --, R 2 and R 3 is or comprises a hydrocarbon chain of at least 8 C-atoms, and wherein the copolymer particles in said latex have an average diameter of less than 100 nm.