Floor finish with lightening agent
A jobsite-renewable floor finish comprising a film former and an appropriate amount of a lightness-inducing pigment provides a translucent hardened finish layer having an increased lightness value (as evaluated in relation to an appropriate color space) and a cleaner appearance than a finish made without such pigment.
1 . A jobsite-renewable floor finish comprising a film former and sufficient lightness-inducing pigment to provide a translucent hardened finish layer having an increased lightness value.
2 . A finish according to claim 1 wherein the pigment has a submicron average particle diameter and will diffusely reflect light.
3 . A finish according to claim 1 wherein the pigment is designated opaque or semi-opaque by the National Association of Printing Ink Manufacturers in their NPIRI Raw Materials Data Handbook.
4 . A finish according to claim 1 wherein the pigment is designated a “pigment white” in the Society of Dyers and Colourists Colour Index.
5 . A finish according to claim 1 wherein the pigment comprises zinc oxide, lithopone, titanium dioxide, zinc sulfide, antimony oxide, zirconium oxide, barium sulfate, coprecipitated 3BaSO 4 /Al(OH) 3 , bismuth oxychloride or mixture thereof.
6 . A finish according to claim 1 wherein the pigment comprises titanium dioxide in its rutile form.
7 . A finish according to claim 1 wherein the pigment comprises ultrafine zinc oxide.
8 . A finish according to claim 1 wherein the pigment comprises an organic particle dispersion.
9 . A finish according to claim 1 wherein the film former is water-soluble or water-dispersible.
10 . A finish according to claim 1 wherein the film former comprises a water-soluble or water-dispersible acid-containing polymer crosslinked using a transition metal, alkaline earth metal, alkali metal or mixture thereof
11 . A finish according to claim 10 wherein the transition metal comprises zinc and the polymer is acrylic.
12 . A finish according to claim 1 wherein the film former comprises a radiation-curable polyurethane, polyurethane dispersion, multipart polyurethane or latent one part polyurethane composition containing a blocked isocyanate.
13 . A finish according to claim 1 that when coated at a 50 m 2 /liter coating rate atop patterned vinyl composition floor tiles and evaluated using the L*a*b color space has a lightness value L greater than that obtained in the absence of the pigment and less than about 60.
14 . A finish according to claim 13 wherein the lightness value L is less than about 55.
15 . A finish according to claim 13 wherein the lightness value L is less than about 50.
16 . A finish according to claim 1 wherein the ratio calculated by dividing the lightness value L by the Hiding Power is above about 30, with Hiding Power being determined using a Form 24B Gray Scale chart coated with a 0.015 mm thick layer of hardened finish and measuring the first gray scale bar that can be clearly differentiated from a white background by an observer located three meters from the coated gray scale chart.
17 . A finish according to claim 16 wherein the ratio is above about 35.
18 . A finish according to claim 1 that when coated at a 50 m 2 /liter coating rate atop patterned vinyl composition floor tiles and evaluated using the L*a*b color space has a ratio calculated by dividing the whiteness index by the 500 nm absorbance coefficient that is above about 40.
19 . A finish according to claim 18 wherein the ratio is above about 80.
20 . A finish according to claim 1 containing about 1 to about 75 wt. % pigment based on the total floor finish composition weight.
21 . A finish according to claim 1 containing about 2 to about 60 wt. % pigment based on the total floor finish composition weight.
22 . A floor coating method comprising applying to a flooring substrate a mixture comprising a film former and sufficient lightness-inducing pigment to provide a translucent jobsite-renewable finish having an increased lightness value.
23 . A method according to claim 22 wherein the pigment has a submicron average particle diameter and will diffusely reflect light.
24 . A method according to claim 22 wherein the pigment is designated a “pigment white” in the Society of Dyers and Colourists Colour Index.
25 . A method according to claim 22 wherein the pigment comprises zinc oxide, lithopone, titania dioxide, zinc sulfide, antimony oxide, zirconium oxide, barium sulfate, coprecipitated 3BaSO 4 /Al(OH) 3 , bismuth oxychloride or mixture thereof.
26 . A method according to claim 22 wherein the pigment comprises titanium dioxide in its rutile form.
27 . A method according to claim 22 wherein the pigment comprises ultrafine zinc oxide.
28 . A method according to claim 22 wherein the pigment comprises an organic particle dispersion.
29 . A method according to claim 22 wherein the film former is water-soluble or water-dispersible.
30 . A method according to claim 22 wherein the film former comprises a water-soluble or water-dispersible acid-containing polymer crosslinked using a transition metal, alkaline earth metal, alkali metal or mixture thereof.
31 . A method according to claim 30 wherein the transition metal comprises zinc and the polymer is acrylic.
32 . A method according to claim 22 wherein the film former comprises a radiation-curable polyurethane, polyurethane dispersion, multipart polyurethane or latent one part polyurethane composition containing a blocked isocyanate.
33 . A method according to claim 22 wherein the mixture when coated at a 50 m 2 /liter coating rate atop patterned vinyl composition floor tiles and evaluated using the L*a*b color space has a lightness value L greater than that obtained in the absence of the pigment and less than about 60.
34 . A method according to claim 33 wherein the coated mixture when hard will impart to the floor tiles a cleaner appearance but will permit the pattern to be clearly discerned under normal daytime illumination by an observer standing on the floor tiles.
35 . A method according to claim 33 wherein the ratio calculated by dividing the lightness value L by the Hiding Power is above about 30, with Hiding Power being determined using a Form 24B Gray Scale chart coated with a 0.015 mm thick layer of hardened finish and measuring the first gray scale bar that can be clearly differentiated from a white background by an observer located three meters from the coated gray scale chart.
36 . A method according to claim 35 wherein the ratio is above about 35.
37 . A method according to claim 22 wherein the substrate comprises vinyl sheet flooring, linoleum, rubber sheeting, vinyl composite tiles, rubber tiles, cork or a synthetic sports floor.
38 . A method according to claim 22 wherein the substrate comprises concrete, stone, marble, wood, ceramic tile, grout, Terrazzo or a dry shake floor.
39 . A method according to claim 22 comprising applying to the substrate a multilayer finish comprising at least one layer of an undercoat and at least one layer of a topcoat having different compositions.
40 . A method according to claim 41 wherein at least one layer of the undercoat comprises the pigment
41 . A jobsite-renewable floor finish kit comprising instructions for using the kit to apply the floor finish, wherein the kit contains a film former and sufficient lightness-inducing pigment to provide a translucent jobsite-renewable hardened finish having an increased lightness value.
42 . A kit according to claim 41 wherein the pigment has a submicron average particle diameter and will diffusely reflect light
43 . A kit according to claim 41 wherein the pigment is designated a “pigment white” in the Society of Dyers and Colourists Colour Index.
44 . A kit according to claim 41 wherein the pigment comprises zinc oxide, lithopone, titanium dioxide, zinc sulfide, antimony oxide, zirconium oxide, barium sulfate, coprecipitated 3BaSO 4 /Al(OH) 3 , bismuth oxychloride or mixture thereof.
45 . A kit according to claim 41 wherein the pigment comprises titanium dioxide in its rutile form.
46 . A kit according to claim 41 wherein the pigment comprises ultrafine zinc oxide.
47 . A kit according to claim 41 wherein the pigment comprises an organic particle dispersion.
48 . A kit according to claim 41 wherein the film former is water-soluble or water-dispersible.
49 . A kit according to claim 41 wherein the film former comprises a water-soluble or water-dispersible acid-containing polymer crosslinked using a transition metal, alkaline earth metal, alkali metal or mixture thereof.
50 . A kit according to claim 49 wherein the transition metal comprises zinc and the polymer is acrylic.
51 . A kit according to claim 41 wherein the film former comprises a radiation-curable polyurethane, polyurethane dispersion, multipart polyurethane or latent one part polyurethane composition containing a blocked isocyanate.
52 . A kit according to claim 41 wherein a mixture of the film former and pigment coated at a 50 m 2 /liter coating rate atop patterned vinyl composition floor tiles and evaluated using the L*a*b color space has a lightness value L greater than that obtained in the absence of the pigment and less than about 60.
53 . A kit according to claim 52 wherein the coated mixture when hardened imparts to the floor tiles a cleaner appearance but permits the pattern to be clearly discerned under normal daytime illumination by an observer standing on the floor tiles.
54 . A kit according to claim 52 wherein the ratio calculated by dividing the lightness value L by the Hiding Power is above about 30, with Hiding Power being determined using a Form 24B Gray Scale chart coated with a 0.015 mm thick layer of hardened finish and measuring the first gray scale bar that can be clearly differentiated from a white background by an observer located three meters from the coated gray scale chart.
55 . A kit according to claim 54 wherein the ratio is above about 35.
56 . A kit according to claim 41 comprising an undercoat and topcoat having different compositions.
57 . A kit according to claim 56 wherein at least the undercoat comprises the pigment.