Question: What about science makes you like paint?

Lizzie Eaves answered on 18 Jun 2012:

The thing I find interesting is that for something that seems so boring and simple, paint is actually very complex and has a lot of different science in it!

The part that I study is what’s called the ‘binder’, which makes the paint actually form a film and stick onto the wall. It’s made from a polymer, which is long chains of lots of little units all joined together.

In paint there’s also pigments which make the paint opaque and determine a lot of the properties like how well it lasts with time, colour pigments that determine the colours of the paint, and other chemicals that help keep it stable in the pot so you don’t end up with a load of water and hard sediment!