Aqueous composition containing polyvalent metal salt of an acidic copolymer as a thickener

Claim 1

A COMPOSITION COMPRISING AN AQUEOUS DISPERSION OF A WATER-INSOLUBLE SYNTHETIC LINEAR ADDITION POLYMRIC MATERIAL, SAID AQUEOUS DISPERSION CONTAINING 10 TO 60% BY WEIGHT OF SAID POLYMERIC MATERIAL, SAID POLYMERIC MATERIAL BEING A POLYMER OBTAINED BY VINYL POLYMERIZATION OF MONETHYLENICALLY UNSATURATED MOLECULES, AND A THICKENING AGENT WHICH IS THE SALT OF (1) THE POLYANIONS OF A WATER-INSOLUBLE OF AN ADDITION COPOLYMER OF ABOUT 40 TO ABOUT 60 MOLE PERCENT OF AN A,B-MONOETHYLENICALLY UNSATURATED CARBOXYLIC ACID WITH AT LEASZT ONE OTHER MONOETHYLENICALLY UNSATURATED COMONOMER WHICH NORMALLY WOULD PRODUCE AN INSOLUBLE HOMOPOLYMER, THE COPOLYMER HAVING A VISCOSITY-AVERAGE MOLECULAR WEIGHT OF 350 TO 35,000 AND (2) POLYVALENT METAL CATION, THE AMOUNT OF THE WATER-SOLUBLE SALT BEING IN THE RANGE OF 1/2% TO 10% OF THE WEIGHT OF THE AQUEOUS PHASE, AND THE AMOUNT OF THE CATIONS BEING FROM ABOUT ONE-FIFTHE TO TWO AND ONEHALF TIMES THE EQUIVALENT WEIGHT OF THE POLYANIONS, AND AN EMULSIFIER SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF ANIONIC AND NON-IONIC EMULSIFIERS.