Aiming to tear alkyd-based paints away from their dependency on harmful solvents, many paint manufacturers are designing green painting alkyds that are a variation of the oil-based alkyd paints. Oil-based formulations require the aid of harmful solvents and chemicals to make the application process successful.
There is a need to turn alkyd paints into water-borne formulations. This is not an easy task, because water-based products often run into problems especially during the actual paint application. Water-based formulations suffer from technical problems that are not present in non-water-based paints.
Despite the difficulties, many manufacturers have produced alkyds that are actually fast becoming part of environment-friendly green painting applications. One of these alkyd paint products are what are termed as hybrids. They are designed as primer products using alkyd resins suspended in water. Hybrid alkyd products can be used for interior and exterior green painting operations. They emit very little noxious odor, and are easy to clean with the aid only of water and none of the harmful solvents.
The hybrids also offer flexibility in finish and gloss, ranging from satiny to glossy sheens. As undercoater primers, they are available in a custom range of tints suitable for any kind of need of the facility. As with the alkyd products of old, the hybrids also offer good flow and leveling and maintain the same high degree of performance when it comes to surface penetration, damage resistance, and curing.
And because they are water-borne, they have less VOC content, making it now possible for alkyds to be used in green painting projects.
