Patent ID: 8110624

Claim:
A low-VOC paint, comprising: a latex polymer comprising a surfactant and polymer particles comprising a homopolymer or copolymer including at least one of an acrylate or a methacrylate; a pigment; and a coalescent; wherein at least 1 percent by weight, based on polymer solids, of the paint comprises a coalescent having the formula: R 1 —(C(O)—X—O) n —R 2 wherein R 1 is an aliphatic hydrocarbyl moiety and comprises 3 to 24 carbon atoms, X is a divalent organic group comprising oxygen atoms and 2 to 8 carbon atoms, n is 1, and R 2 is an organic group comprising 3 to 24 carbon atoms and one carbonyl group; with the proviso that the coalescent does not include any aliphatic unsaturated carbon-carbon bonds; and 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.