Patent Application
20210102057
In general, colored, hued, tinted, shaded, and/or patterned polymeric materials (“colored plastics”) are desirable for use in a variety of applications, such as consumer products and polymeric/composite building materials. Such colored plastics provide improved appearance and aesthetic character to the objects into which they are formed. Typically, pigments, including micronized pigments, or dyes may be added to the polymeric materials to produce a colored plastic product for a variety of industrial, commercial and residential uses.
However, traditional colored polymeric materials can fade, lose color, or undergo aesthetically displeasing color changes. Traditional dyes may leach from the polymeric material or may lose color or bleach through thermal degradation or degradation caused by exposure to radiation, such as ultraviolet electromagnetic radiation, photobleaching from sunlight and the like. Leaching is a particular problem for dyes and pigments blended in halogenated polyolefins. As such, polymer materials including such dyes and pigments may have poor color fastness.
In addition, uniform dispersion of traditional pigments and dyes within polymeric material may be difficult. Poor dispersion leads to swirling and color variability within the colored polymeric material. Further, poor dispersion of the dyes and pigments within the plastic article may lead to undesirable mechanical properties. As such, compatibilizers are typically used to disperse dyes and pigments within a polymeric material. Such compatibilizers include a variety of organic compounds that aid in dispersing the dye or pigment. In addition, dyes, pigments and micronized pigments may be dispersed using high shear mechanical processes. However, compatibilizers typically are expensive and may also adversely affect mechanical properties of the colored polymeric material. Pigmentation of mineral filled polymers may even be more challenging since one has to address the inherent whitening of the polymeric material with inorganic fillers such as calcium carbonate, talc, alumina trihydrate etc.
Accordingly, there is a continued need within the industry to provide colored plastics having improved fastness, stability and resistance to bleaching and color leaching.
A dispersed micronized pigment (for instance carbon black and/or metal oxides such as iron oxide and zinc sulfide) such as 11B3323 from Penn Color may be added to Aristech's polymeric (for instance, acrylic) solid surface composition at about 0.5-5 wt %, resulting in a solid surface acrylic composition having an enriched color and improved surface scratch appearance. Other pigments may include 11R3335 (60% Red iron oxide); 11Y3336 (45% yellow iron oxide); 11W3338, 55% zinc sulfide white. The addition of the micronized pigments covers the surface of an aluminum trihydrate (ATH) filler with very small, well-dispersed, pigment particles which helps to cover/hide the white color of ATH and may provide a unique, enriched color appearance to the solid surface. The use of the micronized pigments may also help surface scratches appear less white because of the improved coverage of white ATH.
This technology is directed to a dispersed micronized pigment (for instance, carbon black and metal oxides, including but not limited to iron oxide and zinc sulfide) such as 11B3323 from Penn Color, which may be added to Aristech's acrylic solid surface formulation at about 0.5-5 wt %, or about 0.5-2.5 wt %, or 0.5-1 wt %, resulting in a solid surface with an enriched color and improved surface scratch appearance. A micronized carbon black pigment may also be dispersed in a liquid carrier such as a benzoate ester, butyl acrylate, methyl methacrylate or n-butyl methacrylate to provide better coloration to the polymeric material.
In one embodiment, the polymeric material, which may be an acrylic polymer, includes a pigment dispersed in the filler reinforced polymer matrix. The pigment is bonded to the surface of the reinforcing filler through intermolecular forces such as hydrogen bonding to the surface of the reinforcing filler. Such fillers may include alumina hydrate particulate.
In general, the acrylic solid surface of the polymeric material includes alumina trihydrate (ATH) (CAS No. 21645-51-2, also referred to as aluminum hydroxide or aluminum trihydroxide) having the formula: Al(OH)3. In a particular embodiment, the alumina hydrate particulate material is free of non-alumina ceramic materials, and, in particular, is free of silica and aluminosilicate materials. Note that products such as Onyx Elite 339 or Onyx Elite 300 may be used as the ATH. Onyx Elite 339 is comprised of spherical particles with an average diameter of 16 microns. The water content in the molecular structure of ATH is 35%. It is particularly advantageous to use ATH that has been chemically treated with a coupling agent. Coupling agents can include methacryloxy silanes such as 3-methacryloxypropyl trimethoxy silane or proprietary coupling agents from BYK such as C8002.
The dispersed micronized pigment covers the surface of alumina trihydrate (ATH) filler with very small, well-dispersed, micronized pigment particles which helps cover the white color of ATH and gives a unique, enriched color appearance to the solid surface. It also helps cosmetically with any surface scratches to appear less white because of the improved coverage of white ATH. A typical composition of the subject invention comprises the following, to which is added about 1.27 wt % of micronized carbon black pigment.
Example 1 of a typical production process. See
Chemicals used in Example 1 process
The Silo Process:
The Promoter Process:
Pouring to the Machine Head
The Saw Line
Sanding
This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/909,312, entitled “METHOD FOR PRODUCING ACRYLIC SOLID SURFACE WITH IMPROVED COLOR AND SCRATCH APPEARANCE,” filed Oct. 2, 2019, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 62909312 | Oct 2019 | US |
