CA2031120A1 - Flooring composition having improved heat resistance - Google Patents

Abstract

ABSTRACT

A flooring felt composition comprises various fibers such as cellulose or wood fibers, a synthetic rubber latex binder, fillers, and antioxidants. The binder is a latex copolymer made from a vinyl sub-stituted aromatic monomer, a conjugated diene monomer, an unsaturated acid monomer, and a functional cross-linking agent other than said acid monomer. The floor-ing felt is useful as a backing for linoleum, floor tile, and the like, and has improved heat resistance.

Description

FLOORING COMPOSITION ffAVING IMPROVED
HEAT RESISTANCE

s FIEL~ OF ~HE INVENTIQ~

The present invention relates to a flooring fel~ composition useful as a backing for linoleum or floor tils and contalning a binder which is a latex copolymer made from a vinyl substituted aromatic monomer such as styrens, a conjugated diane monomer such as butadiene, a small amount o~ an unsaturated carboxylic acid such as itaconic acid, and a small amount of a functional cros~linking agent such as hydroxyethyl-acrylatH.

~BQS~
Flooring ~lt~ hav~ long bQon known to the art. However, a per~istent proble~ is that they tend to be degraded by heat in drying ovan3 during tho applica-tion and curing of a top coat to for~ a commercial floor covering.
Variou~ patQnts exi~ts which relate to a terpolymer emul~ion, U.S. Patent No. 4,128,520; a froth-aid, U.S. Patont No. 4,172,067; variou~ latexes as sot ~orth iA U.S. Patent No~. 4,217,395, 4,225,383, 4,331,738, 4,436,857, 4,438,232, 4,503,184, 4,567,099, 4,782,109, and g,857,566; an emulsion such as set ~orth in U.S. Patent No. 4,602,059; and a dispersion such a~
SGt ~orth in U.S. Patent No. 4,661,557.

SU~MA~Y OF T~E~I~VE~TION

Floorlng Selts of th~ prosent inv~ntion generally contain a ma~or amount o~ a generally watsr-insolublo ~iller, a styren~-butadieno typ~ lae~x copolymer, variou~ fibors, and antioxidant~ and ~ave good heat re~istanco. More specifically, a floor~n~

.

felt composition Compri~Qs approximately lOo parts by weight of one or more filler~, from about 5 to about 2s parts by weight o~ one or more different types of fiber, up to about 3 parts by weight of an antioxidant, and from about 5 to about 25 parts by weight of a latex copolymer, said latex copolymsr made by polymerizing a monomer mixture containing (a) fro~ about 20 to about 70 parts by weight of a vinyl substituted aromatic mono~er having fro~ 8 to 15 carbon atom~, (b~ from about 30 to about 70 percent by weight o~ a con~ugated disne having from 4 to about 12 carbon atom~, (c) up to about S
percent by weight o~ an unsaturatsd carboxylic acid, and (d) up to about 5 percent by weight o~ a functional c~os~linking agont other than said uneat~ratod ~ar-boxylic acid.

Th~ latex copoly~er whic~ act~ a~ a binder in a ~looring f~lt compo~ition i~ made from a vinyl sub-stituted aromatic monom~r, a conjugated dien-, an unsaturated carboxylic acid, and a functional cro~-llnking agent other than the carboxylic acid. Considar-ing the vinyl substituted aromatic ~onomer, it can contain ~rom 8 to about 15 carbGn atom~, desirably ~ro-8 to about 12 oarbon atoms, with styrene being pr~-fe~red. Example~ of such monomer~ includ~ alph~-~othylstyreno, 3-m~thyl3tyrenQ vinyltoluene, propyl-styren~, butylstyrens, l-vinylnaphthalen~, 2-vinyl-naphthalen0, and the like. Tho amount of t~- vinyl sub~tituted aromatic monomor i~ generally from about 20 to about 70 percont by weight with from about ~0 eo about 60 percent by weight being preferred, basod upon the total weight o~ th~ latex copoly~er-for~ing ~ono-mers.
Th~ con~ugated dien~ monomer utiliznd In forming the styr~ne-butadiene type copolymer ~ a conjugated diene having from 4 to 12 carbon atom~, desirably ~rom about 4 to 8 carbon atoms, with butadiene being preferred. Exa~plen o~ 6peci~ic conjugated dienes include butadiene, isoprane, 2,3-dimsthyl-1,3-butadiene, 2-methyl-1,3-pentadiene, 3,4-dimethyl-1,3-hexadiene, 4,5-diethyl-1,3-octadienq, hexadiene, and the like. The amount of the conjugated diene monomer i3 generally from about 30 to about 70 percent by weight and preferably from about 40 to about 60 percent by weight based upon the total weight o~ all the monomers forming the latex copolymer binder.
The unsaturated carboxylic acid ia a polycar-boxylic acid such as a dicarboxylic acid. Unsaturated carboxylic acida can b~ utilized which have a total o~
from about 4 to about 10 carbon atoms, and about 2 carboxyl groups, and generally on~ point of unsa~ura-tion. However, it is an important aspect of the present inv~ntion that monocarboxylic acid~ ~uch as acrylic acid as well as methacrylic acid and various darivatives the~eof not bo utilized inasmuch aa they tend to yield poor result~ wlth r~gard to heat ra~istant propertie~ ot the flooring ~elt composition. Thu~, the latex mono~r ~orming compo~ition i3 free from acrylio acid, and ~h~
like. Examplo~ o~ suitabl~ unsaturated acid3 include fumaric acid, itaconic acid, and derivatives thereo~, as well a~ mixtura~ thcreor, with fumaric and itaconic acid b~ing pro~erred. ~ho amount of th~ unsaturated acid i~
g~nerally up to about S percent by weight and pr~rably ~rom about 1 to ab~ut 3 percent by waight based upon ~h-total weight Or the latex copolymer-forming mono~-r~.
Th~ ~unctional crosslinking monomar~ ar-monomera other than th~ unsaturatQd acid~ which ~-rv- to form crosslink~ with entities cuch as fiber~ r~, other latex polym~r particles, and the like. Exa~p~-Or tunctional cro3slinking agents or monomers includ-acrylamide, methacrylamid~, and N-methylolacryla~da, hydroxyethylacrylate, glycidylmethacrylata, and e~e ~ B ~

lik~, as well a~ mixtures thereor. The a~ount o~ the various functional cros~linking agents utilized i8 Up to 5 percent by weight, desixably from about 1 to about 4 percent by weight, and prefQrably from about 2 to about 3 percent by weight bassd upon the total weight of the latex copolymsr-forming monomsr~.
The above-noted monomers for~ing the la~ex copolyoer which serve~ a~ a binder in the present inYention is poly~rized in a conventional manner as i~
well known to th~ art and to the literature. ~hus, polymerization is generally conductad in water in ~he pres~nc~ o~ surfactants, chain tr~nsfer agents, variouR
freo radical initiators, variou~ ch~lating agents, various shortstop co~pounds, ~16ctrolytes, and th0 likQ.
Conaidering the surfactant~, they can be cationic, anionic, or mixtures thereo~ with nonlonics. Examples o~ specific cur~actant~ includo th~ variou alkyl sulfates, th- various alkyl sul~osucoinates, the variou~
alkyl aryl sulPonates, th~ various alpha-olefin sulfo-nates, the various quaternary ammonium salt, the various a~ine salts, the various ~atty or resin acid salts, nonyl or octyl phenol reaction products of ethylene cxido, and tho like. The alkyl portion o~ th~ various sur~actant~ g~norally ha~ fro~ 8 to 18 carbon ato~.
Naturally, an amount oS a surfact~nt i~ utiliz~d to obtain an aquoou~ emul~ion o~ th~ various monomQr~.
G~n~rally, such an a~ount is typically ~ro~ about 0.5 ~o about S or 6 parts by weiqht ~or evqry 100 par~s by weight o~ the monomer~. Other surfactants can be utilized ~uch as thos~ set forth in McCutcheon'~ "Deter-gents and Emulsi~iers, n such a~ the 1990 edition, publish~d by McCutcheon's Division, Allured Publishing Corporation, Ridgowood, New Jers~y, "5urfaco Active Aqents," Schwartz and Perry, Vol. I, Interscience Publisher3, Inc., NQW York, 1958; "SurSace Activity,"
Moilliet, Collio and Black, D. Van Nostrand Company, Inc., New York, 1961; "Organic Chemistry," Fieser an~

2 ~

Fieser, D.C. Heath and Company, ~oston, 1944; and "The Merck Index," Seventh Edition, Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, N.J., 1960, all of which are hereby fully incorporated by reference.
The various chain extenders or molecular weight regulator~ can be conventional compounds as well a~ those known to the art and to the literature.
Accordingly, compounds such a3 triphenyl methane, and carbon tetrachlorido can b~ utilized. However, mercap-tan such a~ the alkyl and/or aralkyl mercaptans having ~rom 8 to about 18 carbon atom~ and preferably from about 12 to about 14 carbon atoms aro preferably util-ized. Th8 tertiary alkyl mercaptans having from 12 to 14 carbon atoms are highly prsferred. Examples of suitable mercaptans include n-octyl mercaptan, n-dodecy~
mercaptan, t-octyl mercaptan, t-dodocyl mercaptan, p-tridecyl mercaptan, tetradecyl mercaptaa, hexadecyl mercaptan, and the lik~, aa well as mixture~ thereor.
The amount of th~ mol~cular weight modifier~ is an effective amount to provid~ for the prop~r retention of the tensil~ strength o~ the copoly~er, for example fro~
about 0.1 to about 5.0 part~ by weight and desirably ~from about 0.2 to about 1.0 parts by weight for every 100 part~ by weight of th~ monomer~.
Th~ ~raa-radical initiator~ which are utilized to polymerize tho varioun monomQrs are utilized in amounts ~ufficiqnt to obtain a de ir~d molecular weighC.
A nultabl~ a~ount is genorally fxo~ about Q.15 to about 2.0 with fro~ about 0.25 to about 1.5 parts being pre-fQrred for evory 100 parta by waight of the monomers.
Convantional freo-radical initiators can be utilized as well as thoso known to the art and to ths literatureO
Specific example~ include ammonium persulfate, potas~iu~
per~ulfate, or sodium persulfate, hydrogen peroxide, and the like. Other free-radical initiator~ can b~ utilized which decompo~- or become active at the temperatur~
utilized during polymerization. Example~ of other free-radical catalysts includa cumene hydroperoxide, diben-zoyl peroxid~, diac~tyl peroxide, dodecanoyl peroxide, di-t-butyl peroxide, dilauoyl peroxide, bis(p-methoxy benzoyl) peroxide, t-butyl peroxy pivalate, dicumyl S peroxida, isopropyl percarbonate, di-sec-butyl peroxidi-carbonate, azobisdimethylvaleronitrile, 2,2'-azobisiso-butyronitrile,2,2'-azobis-2-methyl-butyronitrile,2,2'-azobis(mathylisobutyrate~, and the like, and mixtures therao~. The various persulfate~ are generally pre-ferred in the present invention with the sodium salt thereof being highly pre~erred ~ince it imparts better color to the resulting poly~er when dried.
Chelating agents can be utilized during polymerization to tie up varioua metal impurities as well as to achieve a unifor~ polymerization. ~he amount~ of such chelating agents are qenerally small such as from about 0.01 to about 0.25 part~ by weiqht for every 100 part~ by weight of the monomers. Examples of suitable chelating agent~ include ethylene diamine te~raacetic acid, nitrilotriacetic acid, ci~ric acid, and their ammonium, potassium, and sodiuu salts.
Variou~ shortstop compound~ can also be utilized. Not only do the shortstop compound3 ter~inat~
the poly~erization in the reactor at desired conversion lsvel-, but also prevent further polymarization, cross-linking, etc., during ~tripping, and tha like. Examples o~ suitable shortstop agent~ includa hydroquinono, s~dium sul~ide, hydroxyl ammonium acid sulfate, hydroxyl ammonium sul~ate, sodium diethyl dithiocarbamat~, diethylhydroxyla~in~, sodiu~ dimethyl dithiocarbamae~, pot~38iu~ dimæt~yl dithiocarbamate, dimethylammoniu~
dimathyldithiocarbamata, hydroxylamine sulfaee pluY
sodiumhydro~ultit~, and the like. The amount Or short-stop utilizad i~ ~rom a~out 0.05 to about 0.25 parts by weight for every 100 parts by waight o~ said monomors.
Polym~rization of tha various monom~r~ i~
carried out at a temperature sufficient to activate t~e 2 V ~

Lnitiators and the double bonds o~ the monomer~.
However, extremoly high temperatur~s are avoided sinco they cause a run-away reaction. Too low temperatures are not de~ired since they retard polymerization.
Suitable polymerization temperatures are from about 2C
to about 90C, desirably from about 35C to about 80C, and preferably ~ro~ about 65C to about 77C. Polymeri-zation tima will naturally vary depending upon the type o~ monomers utilized, th~ type o~ initiator utilized, and the degree o~ polymerization de~ired. Hence, typical poly~erization timQ8 can rangc ~rom about 5 to about 35 hours. Polymerization i9 gen~rally carried out to completion and conducted in an acidlc medium wh~n acidic monomers are utllized. Upon completion o the reactlon or the desired degre- o~ polymerization, option~l ba~os can be added to neutralize the latex. Examples o~ such optional base~ include NaOH, XOH, NH~OH, and tho lik-.
The freo radical polymerization can ba carried out according to any conventional method including batch, incremontal, or continuous. The water used during the poly~erization should be ~ree o~ dal~teriou~
material and henc- is often distilled or ion exchan~-d water. The amount o~ water used is sufficient to enabl-the ~ormation o~ an aoulsion and to enablo proper ~i~in~
o~ th~ variou- ingr~dient~ as well a~ to obtain t~-desir~d rato and degro~ o~ polymorizatlon, heat tran--~or, and the lik-. Upon complotion o~ polymerizatlon, the a~ount o~ copolymer or solids content can vary ~roo about 10 percont to about 60 percent by welght and pre~erably from about 50 percent to about 55 perc-n~ by weight.
Desirably, polymerization i~ conductod in an inert atmosphero such a3 nitrogen, helium, argon, ~nd the like, and henc~ it is carried out in a c~o~-d reactor. Tho reactor can be any conventional r-actor and thus havo suitablo ports, agitation mean3, h~ating and cooling mean~, and the like. In accordanco ~l~h , conventional practice, the reactors utilized are gen~r-ally cleaned as by ~lushing with water between polymer-ization to remove trace~ o~ variouq initiators, short-stops, residue~, sur~actant~, and the like.
Once the latex copolymer has been formed, it is generally added to a slurry which contain appro-priata amounts o~ ~illers and ~ibers. The latex copoly-mer can also contain an optional antioxidant in gener-ally small amounts.
In the preparation o~ tha flooring felt compo~ition of- the prasent invention, a slurry contain-ing fiber~ is initially prspared. Th~ various fibers are generally water insoluble and can be natural or synthetic. The fiber are typically wator-disp~r~ible and if not inherently so, dispersibility can be imparted thereto by providing a s~all a~ount of hydrophilic or ionic groupn or charge~ on the fiber as known to tho art. Generally, short ~ibero are preferred, that is fibers having a length og generally less than 1.0 inch and preferably les~ than 0.5 inch. Generally any typc o~ fiber can b~ utilized known to the flooring felt composltion art a3 well aB to the literature and ex-amplQ~ 0~ SpQCi~iC fibers include polya~ter fiber, nylon fiber, polyethylen~ ~ibar, glas~ fiber, boron fib~r, graphite ~ibar, carbon fiber, cellulose fiber as ~ada ~ro~ cotton, woo~ ~iber as obtained from wood pulp, cera~ic fiber, and tha like. Especially pr~err~d in the pre~ent invention are callulose ~ibzrs which inc~ud-~ibers obtainad fro~ wood such a~ kraft fibers. ~e preparation o~ the fi~er slurry generally involv~s soaking the various ~ibers in water and then agitating the 8a~e and applying mild heat so that the agit~e-d slurry solution ig at a temperature o~ ~rom about 10 to about 130F. ~he amount of the fibers is based upon ~00 part~ by weight o~ the basic recipe (dry basis) vh~c~
contains the various latex copolymer~, the varioua fibers, the various filler , a~ well as the opt~onal antioxidants, and generally ia fro~ about 5 or 6 parts to about 25 parts by weight and pre~erably rrom about 7 parts te about 15 part~ by weight ldry basis) based upon 100 parts by weight (dry basis) basic recipe.
Gensrally, any type o~ filler can ba utilized which is known to th~ flooring ~elt art a~ well as to the literatura and such fillers generally have a small particle size. Tha a~ount oP the various fillers is generally from about 30 to about 90 part~ by weight, 10 desirably from about 70 to abou~ 90 parts by weight and preferably from about 80 to about 86 parts by weight based upon 100 part~ by w~ight (dry ba~is) o~ the ba~ic recipe, that i8, the latex copolymer, the fibers, ths filler~ and the antioxidant~. Example~ of suitabl~
15 fillers includ~ various clays such a~ kaoline, calciu~
carbonate, magnesium carbonate, titaniu~ d$oxide, zinc oxide, ~agne~iu~ oxido, silic~, bariu~ sulfata, calcium-based sulfate, diatomaceous ear~h, aluminu~ silicate, magne~ium ~ilicate, mica, barytes, perlite, feldspar, 20 and the like. Clay and talc are gensrally preferred.
The various ~illers are generally added to tha fiber slurry under high mixing or agitation and blended therewith.
To th~ ~iber-fillar slurry ia added t~ abov~
25 doscrib~d agueou~ lat~x copoly~er. Th~ a~ount o~ t~e latox copolymQ~ on a dry ba~i~ i5 fro~ about 5 or 6 ~o about 2S p~rt~ by wsight, and prefer~ly ~ro~ about 8 to about 15 parts by waight based upon 100 parts by wo$ght oP the total basic recipe.
Anothar ba~ic component of thc recipH iY an optional but o~tentime~ de~irable antioxid~nt. T~e amount o~ the antioxidant i3 generally small and typi-cally up to about 2 or 3 part~ by weight (dry basis) based upon 100 parts by weight (dry basis) of th~ basic 35 recipo. Generally any typically antioxidant well kno~n to ths flooring felt art a~ well as to the literature can be utilized such as variou~ diphenyl amines, and ~a ~ 3 ~

like, with speci~ic commercial examples includ$ng Wingstay L, Santo White Crystal~, or any other non-staining, non-discoloring antioxidant.
The akove-noted aqueous slurry, in addition to containing variou~ fibers, variou~ fillers, one or more latex copolymers, and the optional antioxidants, can also contain variou~ additives ~uch as bactericides and fungicides in ef~ectiv~ amounts to achieve their purpose which i8 ganorally les~ than 0.1 parts by weight based upon 100 part~ by weight tdry basis~ of the basic floorinq felt composition.
Aftar addition of the variou~ additive~ to the agueou~ flooring felt 31urry, a destabilizing agent or a flocculating agent i~ addod to precipitat~ and a~-glomerate all o~ the components. Flocculating agents are know~ to tha art and to tho literatur~ and speci ic examples includ~ cationic polymer~, aluo, CaCl2, M~SO~, and the like. Th~ amount o~ flocculating agent i~ an effectiv~ a~ount to generally precipitat~ typically all o~ tha flooring ~elt compo~ition and dQsirably an amount such that the supernatant i8 clear. Such a~ounts will vary ~rom compo~ition to compo~ition, but can be readily determined and ar~ known to those skilled in the art a~
well a~ to th~ litQrature.
Aftor tho agueou~ flooring fRlt composition ha- bo~n ~locculat~d, it is generally applied to a fourdriner wira having a fine ~ized screen thereon.
Vacuu~ i8 applied to removæ thc sxisting water. ~hen tho ~elt i~ dried in an oven. Tha flooring felt com-po~ition has baen found to havo unexpQctedly improved high heat resi~tance.
Tho invention will bo better undar~tood by re~erenco to the following example~.

FURNISH PREPARA~ION
A. Place the rollowing into a William~ stock breaker and disintQgrator bucket and allow to soak for ~ 0 ~
--ll--~iva minutes, then refine ~or 60 minutes ~198 g~is.
bleach~d kraft, 7000 mlis. d~ionized water).
~. Pour the furnish into a 5-gallon bucXet and dilute to 18,750 ml~. with deionized water. Pour into a 15-gallon bucket and add 18,750 of distilled water.
1. Check freenasis:(O.528% furnish)568 Ml. +
432 Ml. deionized wat~r. Racord freeness on work sheet ~should be about 600 CSF).
C. Agitate slurry and heat to 100F.

SLURRY PREPARA~QN
(Thi~ will mak~ threie handshests) A. Dip out 2,500 ~18. oP ths above slurry into a 1-gallon buckot. Begin agitatin~ at 1,000 rpm with a high lift blad~ and add 12.0 gms. Narvon F-3 clay, 31.0 gm8. Afton clay, 27.3 gm~. Dicalite clay, ~.5 gm~. OCF
Glas~iber (grad~ 691-20-1/8).
B. Slowly add 5.00 g~. (wet w~ight) of a 5.0~
Kyoiene 557 (a polyacryla~ide type polymer) solution to the slurry. Allow to mix about 60 seconds.
C. Mix up th~ latex/anti-oxidant solution and dilute with 75 ml~. oS d~ionized water. Add to agi-tating ~lurry.
1. Latax/anti-oxidant solution a. Add 14.0 gm~. o~ dry w~ight latex plus 2.25 pt~. (on latex dry weight) of ANTI-OXIDAN~ (0.69 gma. ~iarco T-558, 42.5 percent fine grind Wingstay L
diipersion~ Ad~u~t amount for othsr A-O disperi3ions).
D. Wait 60 seconds. Start timer and add su~
cient Beitz 1260 (cationic) flocculent aiai a 0.25 p~rc~n~
solution to clear wat~r. Record weight of ~loccul~nt u8ed.
1. Agltato for 10 minutois, th~n add sur~l-cient ~locculent to clear slurry complately. Noto amount, then agltat~ rive more minute3 and check tr~--nas~ and mako h~ndsheot~.

.

Ç~anIA~ STAN4ARD FR~E~
Follow standard CSF freeness procedure~ using 75 ml o~ slurry and 925 ml o~ deionized water.

SHE~
A. Stretch a piece of che~ecloth ovar screen of 8 inch x 8 inch valley sh~et forming mold.
B. Close ~old, add 1 liter of water to the mold.
C. Add 850 mls. o~ the ~lurry to tha mold, stir to dispsrse the ~ibers. Start timor and open drain valve on mold. Record ti~e it takan for water to disappear from the ~urface of ths.~heet. Record thi~ as th~ drain time in second~.
D. Pull vacu~ on the mold ~or 30 s~conds.

COUÇHING
A. Open dr~in box, place thrQ6 9. inch x 9.s inch blotter~ over sha~t.
B. Place an 8 inch x 8 inch S.S. plate on blot-ters.
C. Place roller in center of plate, roll back and forth fi~e time~, starting and ending in center. Re~ov-plata and blotters.
D. Li~t sheot fro~ scresn by chee~ecloth and plac~
on ~re~h blottor with chee~ecloth up. Remov~ c~
cloth.
PR2$$I~G
A. Place sheet on thre~ blotter~ in cent~r o~
pra~. Cover with releaso paper and pre~ at ap-proximately 13.5 ton~ for 60 ~econds.

DRYI~lSi Dry at 215~ ~or ten minutes. Turn shec~ ov-r after flve minute~.

-13- 2 ~ 3 ~E~
obtain caliper, ~heet weight, density, ambient tensile and percent elongation, 360F hot tensile and percent elongation, stiffness, split strength, plas-ticizer (pick-up, ambient t~nsile and elongation, 360F
hot tensile and elongation), and 420F heat age.
ThQ abovo flooring felt had the following r~cipe.
TO~AL ~ECIPE (~ASED ON DRY PARTS) 3l~LL~a DRY PARTS ::
Bleached Xraft 13.20 Narvon F-3 Clay 12.00 Afton Clay 31.00 Dicalit~ Clay 27.30 OCF Glas~iber -1.50 LatQX 14.00 Anti-oxidant 0.2g3 . (2.2S on l~tex) Kymens 557 0.25 The lat~x wa~ prepared a~ follows:

~?J ~

~1 A. P~alymsrizationq Percent A3 Is Pure Butadi~ne 99 . 40 43 . 250 42 . 991 Itaconic Aci~100. 00 1. 250 l . 250 Potass~ P~arsulfatel 100 . 00 o . 300 0 . 300 Sul~ol~ 120 100. 00 0. 330 o . 330 Styrene 99 . 70 52 . 000 5~ . 844 Dow~ax 2Al 45.00 0.267 0.120 HydroxyethylAcrylat~97 . 60 3 . 500 3 . 416 Halupens Na3 40. 00 0 .125 0 . 050 Aerosal A~19640.00 3~750 1.500 D~ionizes:l ~ater100.00 ~ 93.175 B. Reactor Post Potassiu~ Per~ul~ata lO0.00 0.100 0.100 2 0 Sodium Hydroxid~5 0 . 0 01. 7 6 0 0 . 8 8 0 Drew L-198 100. 00 Oq 150 0 .150 Deiorliz~æ~ Water100. 00 ~ 18 .146 C. Po~t Degassing Prox~l GXr, 25 . ~ 0 . 400 Q . 100 D6~ioniz~d Wa~lO0.00 ---; 1.150 T~eor~tis:al Solid3 D 47 . 93 percent ~a~
CHARGE P~OCED~R~
A. Initial Charge As Is Pa~ Pure Parts Itaconic Acid 1.250 1.250 Hampene Na3 0.125 0.050 Dowfax 2A1 0.267 0.120 Aarosal A-196 3.750 1.500 Potassium Persul~ats 0.300 0.300 Deion~zed Water ~ 88.175 Line Temparature out at 160F.
Styrene 7.500 7.478 React ~or 45 Minutea Theoratical Solid~ - 10.84 per~ent B. First Monom~r (Aft~r 45 ~inute3~
Styr~n~ 7.417 7.395 Sul~ol~ 120 0.030 0.030 Butadiene 7.208 7.165 Theoretical Solids ~ 22.35 percent C. Second Monom~r (A~ter 60 Minute~ at 15-17 percont TSC) Styrene 7.417 7.395 Sul~ol~ 120 0.060 0.060 Butadien~ 7.208 7.165 Hydroxyathyl .~crylat~ 0.700 0.683 Delonized Wat6r ~ 1.000 ~haoretical Solid~ - 31. 37 parcent D. Third Monomer (After 45 Minute~ at 21-23 percent TSC) Styrene 7.417 7.395 Sul~ol~ 120 0.060 0.060 Butadi~ne 7.208 7.165 Hydroxy~thyl Acrylate 0.700 0.683 Deionized Water ~ 1.000 Theoretical solids - 38. 37 percent -16- ~ Q ~

E. Fourth Monomer (A~ter 45 Minutes at 26-28 percent TSC) Styrene 7.417 7.3ss ~ul~ol~ 120 0.060 0.060 Butadiene 7.208 7.165 Hydroxyethyl Acrylato 0.700 0.6~3 Deion$zed Water ~ l.Ooo Theoretical Solid3 - 43.96 percent F. Fifth Mono~er (After 45 Minute~ at 30-32 percent TSC) Styrens 7.416 7.394 Sul~ol~ 120 0.060 0.060 Butadien2 . 7.209 7.166 Hydroxyethyl Acrylat~ 0.700 0.683 Deionized Water -- -- l.000 Theoretical solida - 48.53 percant G. Sixth Monomer (After 45 Minute~ at 33-35 percent TSC) Styrene 7.416 7.394 Sulfol~ 120 0.060 0.06~
ButadlenQ 7.~09 7.166 Hydroxyethyl Acrylat~ 0.700 0.683 De~onized Watsr --- - l.ooo TheorQtic~l SolidJ - 52.33 percent H. Po~t Cat~ly~t (After 45 HinutQ~ at 36-38 percent TSC) Potassium Per~ul~ate 0.100 0.100 DeionizQd Water ~ 5.007 Theoretical Solid~ - 51.05 percent I. Post Addltlon ~At 49.5-50.5 parcent TSC) Sodiu~ Hydroxido 1.760 0.880 Drew L-198 0.150 0.150 De$onized Water ----- 8.13g Theoretical Solid~ - 49.31 percent J. Blowover Dsionized Water Flush ----- 5.000 Theoretical 801ida ' 4a.16 percent X. Stripping Strip to Re~idual Styrene Speci~ication L. Post Degassing Additive Proxel GX~ 0.400 O.lOo Deionized WatQr -~ 1.150 Thaorotical Solida - 47.93 parcQnt Deioni2ed water includea all water in recipa.

The above latex copolymer wa~ utili~ed as a binder in the above-noted preparation of a ~looring felt co~po~ition.
E~a~oeL~_L
A hydroxy ethyl acrylate latex was made having the recipe set ~orth above and prepared in accordance with the abcve noted chargo procedure. A flooring felt compositi3n wa~ then made in thæ exact manner as set ~orth hereinabovo with reqard to the ~urn~sh prepara-tion, slurry preparation, etc. Thi~ flooring felt co~po~ition yielded a heat resi~tant value Or 200 seconds .

In an exact identical ~anner as set rorth in Exa~ple 1, the flooring ~clt composition wa3 made except that 1/2 part by weight o~ ths styrene monomer wa~
removed and 1/2 part by weight of an acrylic acid wa.~
sub~tituted there~orQ. This compo~itlon yielded a heat resi3tant valuo o~ 104 3econd~.
~xa~
In an exact ldentical manner as set ~orth in Exampl~ 1, tho flooring falt co~po~ition was made except that 1.5 part~ by weight of the styrene monom~r VDS
removed and l.S part~ by weight of an acrylic acid vas sub~titutQd eherOE~or~ Thi~ co~position yielded a hoat re~istant valuo o~ 62 seconds.
A~ apparent ~ro~ tho abov~ examples, eha ~looring ~slt composition of the present invantlon yield~d an unoxpQctedly high good heat re-~istant valu-.
In contrast, when very small amount~ by waight ot an acryl~c acid wa~ ~ubstituted in th~ latex copoly~cr recipe, a dramatic reduction in the hea~ resl~tan~
valuea were obtalned~
Whilo in accordance with the Patent Statut--, the best mode and prererred embodi~snt ha~ be-n s-t ~oxth, tho scop- o~ th~ invention is not limited th~r~-to, but ratAer by the ~cope o~ the attached claims.

Claims (19)

1. A flooring felt composition, comprising:
from about 30 to about 90 parts by weight of at least one filler, from about 5 to about 25 parts by weight of at least one fiber, optionally, up to about 3 parts by weight of an antioxidant, and from about 5 to about 25 parts by weight of a latex copolymer, said latex copolymer made from a monomer mixture comprising (a) from about 20 to about 70 percent by weight of a vinyl substituted aromatic monomer having from 8 to 15 carbon atoms, (b) from about 30 to about 70 percent by weight of a conjugated diene having from 4 to about 12 carbon atoms, (c) up to about 5 percent by weight of an un-saturated polycarboxylic acid free of acrylic acids, methacrylic acid, and derivatives thereof, and (d) up to about 5 percent by weight of a functional crosslinking agent other than said unsatu-rated carboxylic acid.

2. The flooring felt composition of Claim 1, wherein said vinyl substituted aromatic monomer has from 8 to 12 carbon atoms, wherein said substituted diene monomer has from 4 to 8 carbon atoms, wherein said unsaturated polycaraboxylic acid contains from 4 to 10 carbon atoms, and wherein said functional crosslinking agent is acrylamide, methacrylamide, N-methylolacryl-amide, hydroxyethylacrylate, and glycidylmethacrylate.

3. A flooring felt composition according to Claim 2, wherein the amount of said vinyl substituted aromatic is from about 40 to about 60 percent by weight, wherein the amount of said conjugated diene is from about 40 to about 60 percent by weight, wherein the amount of said acid is from about 1 to about 3 percent by weight, and wherein the amount of said functional crosslinking agent is from about 1 to about 4 percent by weight.

4. A flooring felt composition according to Claim 3, wherein said vinyl substituted aromatic monomer is styrene, wherein said conjugated diene monomer is butadiene, and wherein said an unsaturated acid is itaconic acid, fumaric acid, or blends thereof.

5. A flooring felt composition according to Claim 4, wherein said functional crosslinking agent is hydroxyethylacrylate.

6. A flooring felt composition according to Claim 4, wherein the amount of said fiber is from about

7 to about 15 parts by weight, wherein the amount of said latex copolymer is from about 8 to about 15 parts by weight, wherein the amount of said filler is from about 70 parts to about 90 parts by weight, and wherein the amount of said optional antioxidant is up to about 3 parts by weight.
7. A flooring felt composition according to Claim 6, wherein said fiber is a cellulosic fiber, and wherein said filler is clay or talc.

8. A flooring felt composition according to Claim 5, wherein the amount of said fiber is from about 7 to about 15 parts by weight, wherein the amount of said latex copolymer is from about 8 to about 15 parts by weight, wherein the amount of said filler is from about 80 parts to about 86 parts by weight, and wherein the amount of said optional antioxidant is up to about 3 parts by weight.

9. A flooring felt composition according to Claim 8, wherein said fiber is a cellulosic fiber, and wherein said filler is clay.

10. The cured flooring felt composition of Claim 1.

11. The cured flooring felt composition of Claim 3.

12. The cured flooring felt composition of Claim 4.

13. The cured flooring felt composition of Claim 7.

14. The cured flooring felt composition of Claim 9.

15. A floor covering, comprising a top layer on a substrate, said substrate being the cured composi-tion of Claim 10.

16. A floor covering, comprising a top layer on a substrate, said substrate being the cured composi-tion of Claim 11.

17. A floor covering, comprising a top layer on a substrate, said substrate being the cured composi-tion of Claim 12.

18. A floor covering, comprising a top layer on a substrate, said substrate being the cured composi-tion of Claim 13.

19. A floor covering, comprising a top layer on a substrate, said substrate being the cured composi-tion of Claim 14.