Acoustic articles utilizing isocyanate binders and methods of making same
OwnerGraham Tompson, Surendra Khambete +2inventors
InventorsGraham Tompson, Surendra Khambete, Girma Gebreselassie, Anthony Messina
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Abstract
Acoustical panels and methods of making acoustical panels are provided. Isocyanate binder and scrap material are blended together to produce a mixture of recycled material. The mixture of recycled material is formed into a panel, molded to form an acoustic article having a three dimensional contour, and cured via steam. The acoustic article is subjected to trimming operations, and one or more surfaces of the acoustic article may be covered with one or more layers of material. Scrap material generated by the trimming operations are then returned to for reuse.
Claims31
A method of producing an acoustic article, comprising:
- blending isocyanate binder with scrap material to produce a mixture;
- forming the mixture into a flat panel, comprising subjecting the mixture to elevated heat for a period of time sufficient to effect at least a partial curing of the isocyanate binder to bond the scrap material of the mixture together into an integral mass;
- compressing the flat panel in a three dimensional mold to form an acoustic article having a three dimensional contour;
- and
- removing the acoustic article from the mold.
A method of producing an acoustical panel for vehicular use, comprising:
- blending isocyanate binder with scrap material within a vessel to produce a mixture of approximately 80%-95% scrap material by weight and 5%-20% isocyanate binder by weight, wherein the scrap material comprises material selected from the group consisting of fiber scrap and foam scrap;
- forming the mixture into a flat panel, comprising dispensing the mixture onto a platen and subjecting the mixture to elevated heat for a period of time sufficient to effect at least a partial curing of the isocyanate binder to bond the scrap material of the mixture together into an integral mass;
- compressing the flat panel in a three dimensional mold to form an acoustic article having a three dimensional contour;
- removing the acoustic article from the mold;
- subjecting the acoustical panel to trimming operations after the removing step;
- and
- directing scrap material generated by the trimming operations to the vessel.
An acoustic article, comprising:
- a layer of recycled material having approximately 80%-95% scrap material by weight and 5%-20% isocyanate binder by weight, wherein the scrap material comprises material selected from the group consisting of fiber scrap and foam scrap;
- and
- a layer of material attached to the layer of recycled material in contacting face-to-face relationship.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.