Enhancement of the properties of acrylic wood coatings with the use of biopolymers.

The objective of this study was to enhance the properties of water-borne acrylic coatings by modifying them with biopolymers. Water-borne coatings are more and more commonly used in the wood and furniture industry. To improve the performance of these coatings, there is a need to apply reinforcing agents. Among these, besides the well-studied inorganic nanoparticles, biopolymers are gaining increasing attention. In this study, a base acrylic coating material was filled with biopolymers having a wide variety of properties and functionalities, including nanocrystalline cellulose and two types of liquefied wood, in amounts of 1.0%, 3.0% and 5.0% by dry weight of coating. Two wood species, pine and beech, were selected for coating. Properties of the coatings were determined in order to assess the quality of the new coating formulations. Bearing in mind that the main cause of coating failure during interior exposure is mechanical defects, impact and abrasion resistance tests were performed. The abrasion resistance of the coatings was found to be increased by nanocrystalline cellulose and liquefied wood, most significantly at 1% loading. The results also indicated improvement in the impact resistance of coatings filled with nanocrystalline cellulose. • Biopolymers were applied to enhance the properties of water-borne acrylic coatings • Coatings filled with nanocrystalline cellulose showed higher impact resistance • Abrasion resistance was increased using nanocrystalline cellulose and liquefied wood, most significantly at 1% loading • Liquefied wood and nanocrystalline cellulose act as a fillers and matting agents [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]