CURING AGENTS FOR AQUEOUS EPOXY RESINS

摘要

Provided are epoxy curing agents comprising the reaction product of reactants consisting essentially of a mono-alkylene polyamine having less than about 12 carbon atoms, an alicyclic diamine in an amount of greater than about 10 % of the amine equivalents of said amine component, an aromatic monoglycidyl ether having less than about 18 carbon atoms, and a diglycidyl ether of an aromatic diol having an average degree of oligomerization of less than about 3.5, wherein the ratio of primary amine equivalents of said alkylene polyamine to the total epoxide equivalents of said aromatic glycidyl ether and said diglycidyl ether of an aromatic diol is/are greater than one, and the ratio of epoxide equivalents of said aromatic mono-glycidyl ether to epoxide equivalents of said diglycidyl ether of an aromatic diol is greater than one. The reaction product is preferably employed as a curing agent for an aqueous epoxy resin in a two component coating system wherein said curing agent, essentially free of acids, is mixed with an aqueous epoxy resin emulsion and then the resulting mixture is applied as a continuous coating to a rigid substrate, e.g. as an industrial maintenance coating.