Vinyl ester resins are a well-known class of materials that result from the esterification of a polyepoxide, usually a diepoxide, with an unsaturated monocarboxylic acid, such as acrylic or methacrylic acid. Those vinyl ester resins are usually highly viscous liquids requiring addition of a monomer, such as styrene, to lower the viscosity to a workable level. During cure, some of the monomer is volatilized. This changes the composition of the cured coating from that which was applied. Also, the escaping organic monomer is environmentally unacceptable.
It would be desirable to have a water-thinnable vinyl ester resin composition that would retain the characteristic properties of those resins.