Method and apparatus for manufacturing articles of manufacture from sheets having a highly inorganically filled organic polymer matrix

An article of manufacture having an inorganically filled matrix formed by the method comprising the steps of:

• mixing together water, a water-dispersible organic binder, an inorganic aggregate material, and a fibrous material to form a moldable inorganically filled mixture in which the individual components are substantially homogeneously dispersed throughout the mixture, wherein the inorganic aggregate material has a concentration in a range from about 40% to about 95% by weight of total solids in the inorganically filled mixture and wherein the mixture has a yield stress in a range from about 2 kPa to about 5 MPa;
• forming the inorganically filled mixture into a green inorganically filled sheet of a predetermined thickness by passing the mixture between at least one pair of forming rollers without any significant drainage of water in a liquid state from the inorganically filled mixture;
• removing a substantial portion of the water from the green inorganically filled sheet by evaporation to form a substantially dried sheet having a thickness in a range from about 0.01 mm to about 1 cm, the inorganically filled matrix of the sheet comprising a substantially homogeneous mixture of organic binder and aggregate, with the fibrous material substantially homogeneously dispersed within the inorganically filled matrix, wherein the inorganically filled matrix is substantially nonporous;
• and
• fashioning at least a portion of the substantially dried inorganically filled sheet into a desired shape of the article of manufacture.

An article of manufacture having an inorganically filled matrix formed by the method comprising the steps of:

• providing a substantially dried inorganically filled sheet wound onto a spool, the sheet having a substantially flexible inorganically filled matrix, the matrix formed from an inorganically filled mixture comprising water, a water-dispersible organic binder, an inorganic aggregate filler having a concentration in a range from about 40% to about 95% by weight of total solids within the inorganically filled mixture, and a fibrous material, wherein the individual components are substantially homogeneously dispersed throughout the inorganically filled mixture, wherein the inorganically filled sheet is formed without any significant drainage of water in a liquid state from the inorganically filled mixture, wherein the inorganically filled matrix comprises a substantially homogeneous mixture of organic binder and aggregate, has a thickness less than about 1 cm, and degrades after prolonged exposure to water;
• unwinding a portion of the inorganically filled sheet from the spool;
• and
• fashioning at least a portion of the unwound inorganically filled sheet into a desired shade of the article of manufacture.