This patent application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/832,989 filed on Mar. 15, 2013 and entitled â€œColor-Changing Wood Filling Compositionâ€ , the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety and made part of the present U.S. utility patent application for all purposes.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The described invention relates in general to compositions for repairing wood and similar surfaces, and more specifically to a wood-filling composition that includes a color-based indicator of dryness.

Current wood fillers are often tinted to match a particular color of a wood surface that requires repair or so the consumer may stain the repaired area to a desired color. However, current commercially available wood fillers do not provide the consumer with an accurate indicator of dryness so that sanding for eventual staining can be performed. Thus, in most cases, the consumer must wait for a predetermined period of time before sanding and staining or simply guess the appropriate time for such activity. Current wood fillers that utilize waterborne formulations technology are affected by relative humidity; thus, when evaluating the condition of such wood fillers, the end user is often left with the inability to know when to continue with the next repair step. Because an incorrect guess can result in an incomplete repair or unacceptable repair quality, there is an ongoing need for a wood-filling composition that includes an accurate visual indicator of dryness.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The following provides a summary of certain exemplary embodiments of the present invention. This summary is not an extensive overview and is not intended to identify key or critical aspects or elements of the present invention or to delineate its scope.

In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, a first wood-filling composition is provided. This composition includes a modified styrene butadiene latex or similar composition; at least one pH indicator, wherein the pH indicator is operative to provide a visual indication that the wood filling composition is dry, and wherein the visual indication is based on a color change of the composition that occurs as the composition dries; and microspheres, wherein the microspheres further include glass, and wherein the microspheres are operative to provide durability and stainability to the wood-filling composition.

In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, a second wood-filling composition is provided. This composition includes at least one modified styrene butadiene latex or the like; at least one pH indicator, wherein the pH indicator is operative to provide a visual indication that the wood filling composition is dry, and wherein the visual indication is based on a color change of the composition that occurs as the composition dries; and microspheres, wherein the microspheres further include glass, and wherein the microspheres are operative to provide durability and stainability to the wood-filling composition.

In yet another aspect of this invention, a third wood-filling composition is provided. This composition includes at least one modified styrene butadiene latex or the like; at least one pH indicator, wherein the pH indicator is operative to provide a visual indication that the wood filling composition is dry, and wherein the visual indication is based on a color change of the composition that occurs as the composition dries; and microspheres, wherein the microspheres further include glass, and wherein the microspheres are operative to provide durability and stainability to the wood-filling composition; and at least one pigment.

Additional features and aspects of the present invention will become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art upon reading and understanding the following detailed description of the exemplary embodiments. As will be appreciated by the skilled artisan, further embodiments of the invention are possible without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. Accordingly, the associated descriptions are to be regarded as illustrative and not restrictive in nature.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Exemplary embodiments of the present invention are described below. Although the following detailed description contains many specifics for the purposes of illustration, a person of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that many variations and alterations to the following details are within the scope of the invention. Accordingly, the following embodiments of the invention are set forth without any loss of generality to, and without imposing limitations upon, the claimed invention.

The present invention relates to a liquid or semi-solid wood-filling composition that includes a visual indicator of dryness following the application of the composition to a surface. This composition further includes one or more styrene butadiene rubber (SBR) polymers and glass or ceramic microspheres that provide superior product performance, primarily with regard to durability and stainability. The visual indicator is based on pH and when the wood filler of the present invention changes color (e.g., purple to white, magenta to beige, etc.) the repaired area is dry enough to be sanded and then painted, stained or otherwise processed without damage to or significant disruption of the wood filling composition.

A first exemplary formulation includes the following ingredients: water; a first pH controller that includes an amino alcohol such as AMP-95Â® manufactured by Angus Chemical Company (2-amino-2-methyl-1-propanol containing 5% water); a non-ionic surfactant such as BurcoÂ® APR-4007 manufactured by Burlington Chemical Co., LLC; a dispersant or anionic detergent polymer such as BurcosperseÂ® AP Liquid manufactured by Burlington Chemical Co., LLC); a freeze-thaw stabilizer such as propylene glycol; a second pH controller such as potassium hydroxide (45% soln.); a SBR polymer such as the modified styrene butadiene latex EncorÂ® DL 215 manufactured by Arkema, Inc.); a bactericide that includes aqueous blends of chlorinated and non-chlorinated isothiazolinones and 2-bromo-2-nitro-1,3-propanediol such as ActicideÂ® LA manufactured by Thor, Inc.; a defoamer that includes insoluble oils, polydimethylsiloxanes and other silicones, alcohols, stearates and glycols or combinations thereof, such as Defoamer XZ manufactured by Nanjing Sixin Scientific and Technological Application Research Institute Co., Ltd; a thickener that includes hydroxypropyl methylcellulose such as Methocelâ„¢ F4M manufactured by The Dow Chemical Company; a first calcium carbonate filler that includes dry ground marble such as CalwhiteÂ® manufactured by Imerys; a second calcium carbonate that includes dry ground calcium carbonate such as #10 Whiteâ„¢ manufactured by Imerys; a first film-forming composition that includes a slow-evaporating glycol ether such as Dowanol DPnP manufactured by The Dow Chemical Company (dipropylene glycol n-propyl ether), a second film-forming composition that includes slow-evaporating, hydrophobic glycol ether such as Dowanol DPnB manufactured by The Dow Chemical Company (dipropylene glycol n-butyl ether); a pH indicator such as o-Cresolphthalein; and glass microspheres such as 3Mâ„¢ Glass Bubbles K20 (density: 0.20 g/cc) manufactured by 3M Company. Example 1 (see below), includes these ingredients in specific percentages by weight. The formulation provided in Example 1 is referred to as Formula ZA55867 and changes from purple to white to indicate the appropriate time for sanding and staining or painting.

Example 1

Raw Material% (by wt.)DescriptionWater11.20â€”AMP-95â€‰Â®0.30pH controllerBurco APR-40070.75surfactant/wetting agentBurcosperse AP Liquid0.75dispersantPropylene Glycol2.50freeze-thaw stabilizerPotassium Hydroxide (45% soln.)0.25pH controllerEncor DL21515.50SBR polymerActicide LA0.10bactericideDefoamer XZ0.10defoamerMethocel F4M0.45thickenerCalwhite41.15calcium carbonate filler#10 White22.00calcium carbonate fillerDowanol DPnP0.55film formerDowanol DPnB0.30film formero-Cresolphthalein0.10pH indicator3M Glass Bubbles K204.00glass microspheres100.00

A second exemplary formulation includes the following ingredients: water; a first pH controller that includes an amino alcohol such as AMP-95Â® manufactured by Angus Chemical Company (2-amino-2-methyl-1-propanol containing 5% water); a wetting agent such as BurcoÂ® APR-4007 manufactured by Burlington Chemical Co., LLC; a dispersant or anionic detergent polymer such as BurcosperseÂ® AP Liquid manufactured by Burlington Chemical Co., LLC); a freeze-thaw stabilizer such as propylene glycol; a first colored pigment such as Joratint Umber 2TC; a second colored pigment such as Joratint Yellow TC; a second pH controller such as potassium hydroxide (45% soln.); a SBR polymer such as the modified styrene butadiene latex EncorÂ® DL 215 latex manufactured by Arkema, Inc.); a bactericide that includes aqueous blends of chlorinated and non-chlorinated isothiazolinones and 2-bromo-2-nitro-1,3-propanediol such as ActicideÂ® LA manufactured by Thor, Inc.; a defoamer that includes insoluble oils, polydimethylsiloxanes and other silicones, alcohols, stearates and glycols or combinations thereof, such as Defoamer XZ manufactured by Nanjing Sixin Scientific and Technological Application Research Institute Co., Ltd; a thickener that includes hydroxypropyl methylcellulose such as Methocelâ„¢ E4M manufactured by The Dow Chemical Company; include a first calcium carbonate filler that includes dry ground marble such as CalwhiteÂ® manufactured by Imerys; a second calcium carbonate that includes dry ground calcium carbonate such as #10 Whiteâ„¢ manufactured by Imerys; a first film-forming composition that includes a slow-evaporating glycol ether such as Dowanol DPnP manufactured by The Dow Chemical Company (dipropylene glycol n-propyl ether), a second film-forming composition that includes slow-evaporating, hydrophobic glycol ether such as Dowanol DPnB manufactured by The Dow Chemical Company (dipropylene glycol n-butyl ether); a pH indicator such as o-Cresolphthalein; and glass microspheres such as 3Mâ„¢ Glass Bubbles K20 (density: 0.20 g/cc) manufactured by 3M Company. Example 2 (see below), includes these ingredients in specific percentages by weight. The formulation provided in Example 2 is referred to as Formula ZA55868 and changes from magenta to beige to indicate the appropriate time for sanding and staining or painting.

Example 2

Raw Material% (by wt.)DescriptionWater11.20â€”AMP-95â€‰Â®0.30pH controllerBurco APR-40070.75surfactant/wetting agentBurcosperse AP Liquid0.75dispersantPropylene Glycol2.50freeze-thaw stabilizerJoratint Umber 2TC0.10color pigmentJoratint Yellow TC0.35color pigmentPotassium Hydroxide (45% soln.)0.25pH controllerEncor DL21515.50SBR polymerActicide LA0.10bactericideDefoamer XZ0.10defoamerMethocel E4M0.45thickenerCalwhite40.68calcium carbonate filler#10 White22.00calcium carbonate fillerDowanol DPnP0.55film formerDowanol DPnB0.30film formero-Cresolphthalein0.12pH indicator3M Glass Bubbles K204.00glass microspheres100.00

While the present invention has been illustrated by the description of exemplary embodiments thereof, and while the embodiments have been described in certain detail, it is not the intention of the Applicant to restrict or in any way limit the scope of the appended claims to such detail. Additional advantages and modifications will readily appear to those skilled in the art. Therefore, the invention in its broader aspects is not limited to any of the specific details, representative devices and methods, and/or illustrative examples shown and described. Accordingly, departures may be made from such details without departing from the spirit or scope of the applicant's general inventive concept.