Chilled temperature polishing method for soft acrylic articles
AssigneeAlcon Laboratories, Inc.
InventorsBryan L. Cremeans, Teresa L. Pickett, Jennia Tucker
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Abstract
A method of polishing articles comprising soft acrylic materials is disclosed. The method includes a polishing step and a cleaning step. In the polishing step a receptacle is charged with polishing beads of various sizes, alumina, sodium hydroxide, water, a surfactant, and the articles to be polished, and agitated for a period of time and at a speed sufficient to remove surface irregularities. The polishing step is completed below the glass transition (Tg) point of the acrylic article being polished but above 0° C. Following the polishing step, the polished articles are cleaned by rinsing them with water for a period of time to clean the surface of the polished articles.
Claims15
A method of polishing an article comprising a soft acrylic material, wherein the method comprises
- a) polishing the article by charging a receptacle with a polishing slurry and the article to be polished, and agitating the receptacle for a period of time and at a speed sufficient to remove surface irregularities from the article, wherein (i) the polishing slurry has a pH of 10 or higher and comprises polishing beads, alumina, sodium hydroxide, a surfactant and water;
- and (ii) the polishing step is conducted at a temperature above 0° C. and below the Tg of the soft acrylic material;
- and
- b) cleaning the polished article by contacting it with water for a time sufficient to clean the surface of the article.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.