Patent ID: 8440752

Claim:
A low-VOC paint, comprising: a latex polymer comprising a surfactant and polymer particles emulsifired or suspended in an aqueous medium, wherein the poloymer particles comprise a homopolymer or copolymer including at least one of an acrylate or a methacrylate; a pigment; and at least 1 percent by weight, based on polymer solids, of a coalescent having the formula: R 1 —(C(O)—X—O)—R 2 wherein: R 1 comprises an aromatic group having at least 3 and less than 100 carbon atoms; X is a divalent organic group comprising one or more nonperoxidic oxygen atoms; R 2 comprises an aromatic group having at least 3 and less than 100 carbon atoms; with the proviso that R 1 and R 2 together do not include any aliphatic unsaturated carbon-carbon bonds; wherein the coalescent has a volatile organic content of less than about 15 wt-%, is nonreactive in the paint, and is dispersible in the paint to form a uniform mixture; wherein the paint contains sufficient TiO 2 pigment to be substantially visually opaque when applied at a thickness of 3 mils (0.0762 mm) and dried; and wherein the total VOC in the paint is no greater than 15 grams per 100 grams polymer solids.