Classifications

• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B22—CASTING; POWDER METALLURGY
  • B22C—FOUNDRY MOULDING
  • B22C1/00—Compositions of refractory mould or core materials; Grain structures thereof; Chemical or physical features in the formation or manufacture of moulds
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B22—CASTING; POWDER METALLURGY
  • B22C—FOUNDRY MOULDING
  • B22C1/00—Compositions of refractory mould or core materials; Grain structures thereof; Chemical or physical features in the formation or manufacture of moulds
  • B22C1/16—Compositions of refractory mould or core materials; Grain structures thereof; Chemical or physical features in the formation or manufacture of moulds characterised by the use of binding agents; Mixtures of binding agents
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
  • A63H—TOYS, e.g. TOPS, DOLLS, HOOPS OR BUILDING BLOCKS
  • A63H33/00—Other toys
  • A63H33/001—Toy-moulding appliances; Toy moulding
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B22—CASTING; POWDER METALLURGY
  • B22C—FOUNDRY MOULDING
  • B22C1/00—Compositions of refractory mould or core materials; Grain structures thereof; Chemical or physical features in the formation or manufacture of moulds
  • B22C1/16—Compositions of refractory mould or core materials; Grain structures thereof; Chemical or physical features in the formation or manufacture of moulds characterised by the use of binding agents; Mixtures of binding agents
  • B22C1/20—Compositions of refractory mould or core materials; Grain structures thereof; Chemical or physical features in the formation or manufacture of moulds characterised by the use of binding agents; Mixtures of binding agents of organic agents
  • B22C1/22—Compositions of refractory mould or core materials; Grain structures thereof; Chemical or physical features in the formation or manufacture of moulds characterised by the use of binding agents; Mixtures of binding agents of organic agents of resins or rosins
  • B22C1/2293—Natural polymers
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B44—DECORATIVE ARTS
  • B44C—PRODUCING DECORATIVE EFFECTS; MOSAICS; TARSIA WORK; PAPERHANGING
  • B44C3/00—Processes, not specifically provided for elsewhere, for producing ornamental structures
  • B44C3/04—Modelling plastic materials, e.g. clay
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G09—EDUCATION; CRYPTOGRAPHY; DISPLAY; ADVERTISING; SEALS
  • G09B—EDUCATIONAL OR DEMONSTRATION APPLIANCES; APPLIANCES FOR TEACHING, OR COMMUNICATING WITH, THE BLIND, DEAF OR MUTE; MODELS; PLANETARIA; GLOBES; MAPS; DIAGRAMS
  • G09B19/00—Teaching not covered by other main groups of this subclass
  • G09B19/10—Modelling

Definitions

• the present invention relates to a sand material mixture which is particularly suited as a substitute for modelling clay and which may be shaped in a similar manner to that clay product.
• the sand material mix- ture may advantageously be used also for other purposes, such as an aid in landscape gardening, for constructing landscape sceneries in museums, in aquariums and for similar purposes.
• the invention also concerns a method of producing a sand material mixture of this kind.
• modelling clay has been used for many years.
• An important advantage in modelling clay is that it may be modelled into a great variety of shapes; but it also possesses disadvantages, among them its tackiness and its tendency to foul the surfaces with which the material comes into contact.
• Another drawback is its comparatively poor dimensional stability; i.e. a block formed from modelling clay may be deformed also when exposed to a very light pressure. It is precisely this disadvantageous property that has prohibited the use of modelling clay more extensively for applications wherein the plasticity of that material certainly would have been useful, such as a means for landscape gardeners to construct visual presentations of planned changes of the landscape, as a means for museums in the arrangement of various kinds of exhibitions, and as a material to build landscapes in aquariums.
• the problem encountered in this kind of contexts is precisely that upon its contact with water the modelling clay takes on an increasingly tacky consistency.
• One object of the present invention therefore is to provide a material which is intended to replace modelling clay and which at room temperature lends itself to shaping into dimensionally stable modelling bodies which may subsequently easily be crushed into particles and there- after be directly modelled into new bodies or shapes. Another object is to provide a material of the kind indicated by using raw materials that are not harmful to the environment or to health. A further object is to provide a material of the kind defined which may be used both as a teaching aid and as a material that may be commercially used in connection with visual presentations of landscape-architectural designs and to construct landscape designs in aquariums and landscape designs for model railway constructions.
• a further object of the invention is to provide a method of manufacturing a sand material mixture, a modelling sand mixture, which is suitable as a substitute for modelling clay and may also to be used in other applica- tions, such as a material for use in aquarium landscaping, in designing landscape imitations and the like.
• the invention resides in a sand material mixture comprising on the one hand sand or sand-like materials, and on the other a binding agent which is formed from beeswax, a material similar to beeswax or a material mixture similar to beeswax, and which is solid at room temperature but still exhibits required tackiness.
• the admixture of the components in the sand material mixture is performed in such a manner that the grains of sand or sand-like material will have a coating of the binding agent.
• the admixture is per- formed in such a manner that the discrete sand material grains are coated individually without exhibiting any significant tendency to form aggregates before being compressed at the instance of the intended use.
• the type of sand material mixtures used within this branch of industry generally contains binding agents in the form of resins, thermosetting plastics, linseed oil or similar materials, in order to make the finished bodies, i.e. the casting moulds or the cores resistant to the high temperatures to which they are exposed during casting.
• the binding agents employed generally are not of a type allowing them to be used for the purposes contemplated by the present invention.
• the binding agents intended for casting moulds and mould cores are rather unsuitable for use in toys and similar items for e.g. games and the like.
• the binding agent is used a material which has a high bonding capacity in solid state in order to keep the mould/core structurally integrated at normal handling temperatures but which still is of a nature allowing the foundry sand material to be used repeatedly.
• the binding agent is used for these purposes ethylene glycol, waxes essentially consisting of paraffin wax, etc.
• This publication is concerned merely with the problems arising in connection with the manufacture of casting moulds and casting mould cores and consequently can- not be considered to affect the problems found in connection with pedagogical toys, the manufacture of landscaping designs for model train constructions and architectural designs or in aquarium landscaping designs.
• a similar publication describing the manufacture of mould cores for casting moulds is PI/Derwent ' s Abstract No.
• This publication describes a material intended for the production of intrically modelled cores, and based on a mixture of at least about 70% powdered quartz, 5-10% aluminium oxide, 1.5-3% boric acid, 1-2% stearine and 16-20% of a modelling compound of paraffin wax, synthetic ceresin wax, paraffinic cracking residues and lignite wax additives. In use, this material is compression moulded to the desired modelled bodies at 65-70°C. Since this publication is concerned with the production of intrically modelled cores (inserts) a rock flour is used, i.e. a particulate material of very small grain size.
• US-A-3, 607 , 332 concerns a thermoplastic modelling composition having properties equal to those of modelling clay and being soft and finger-pressure deformable at room temperature.
• a plastic clay-like material together with an organic plasticising vehicle, and the novel feature is that this plastic clay-like material is supplemented with a light-weight filler in the shape of hollow microspheres or hollow platelet- shaped particles, in order to reduce the overall weight of the material mixture.
• the plastic clay-like material is naturally occurring clays, such as kaolinite, mont- morillonite or bentonite.
• the material is a product similar to modelling clay, having high contents of very finely divided particulate material.
• US-A-5, 374 , 384 concerns a modified modelling clay based on finely ground mica particles, carbon black and as the binder material a wax material in semi-solid state and in the shape of fairly thin sheets or slabs that may be cold-rolled, are pliable, and possess a high degree of resistance against sagging or deformation when positioned in the shape of a beam between two points of support.
• US-A-4, 336, 071 concerns a kneadable modelling clay containing 50-70% binding agents, 10-40% plasticisers and solvents, and 5-40% aluminium hydroxide and optionally also pigments and other fillers in amounts up to 10%. Air-dried or air-hardening as well as permanently mould- able compositions are described. The permanently mould- able compositions possess qualities similar to those of modelling clay.
• the grain-shaped material or the sand in the sand material mixture in accordance with the present invention could consist of natural sand, comminuted rock material such as ground marble but could also, although not equally preferred, be a grain-shaped polymeric material or other grain-shaped material, particularly when the raate- rial mixture is intended to be used as a material in for instance imitated landscape designs.
• As the sand-like material could also be used light-weight sand, such as sand-like materials in the form of microspheres . Also mixtures of various types of grain-shaped materials could of course be used.
• the grain-shaped material has a grain size ranging from about 0.02 mm, preferably from about 0.063 mm, to about 3.0 mm, preferably to about 2.0 mm and more preferably to about 1.0 mm.
• the average grain size of the grain-shaped material is in the range from about 0.08 or 0.1 or 0.15 mm to about 0.6 mm or 0.5 mm.
• the binding agent in the sand material mixture in accordance with the present invention should be beeswax, a material similar to beeswax, or a material mixture similar to beeswax, or a mixture of such materials.
• Suitable binding agents of this type include, in addition to natural beeswax, also beeswax substitute material of ceresin wax or a mixture of ozokerite and paraffin waxes or microcrystalline paraffin waxes.
• useful ceresin wax material could be mentioned CEREWAX 2T available from Sveda AB, Sweden, whereas LUNAFLEX® 4919 from H.B. Fuller GmbH, Germany, may be mentioned as one example of a useful microcrystalline wax (a plastic hydrocarbon wax of branched-chain microcrystalline type available from H.B. Fuller GmbH, Germany) .
• Natural beeswax or treated, purified beeswax may be used as beeswax.
• Bivax M.S from Biredskaps- fabriken AB, Sweden
• Bivax vit No. 1 B1015
• Another useful material similar to beeswax is LUNACERA® M (from H.B. Fuller GmbH, Germany), which is a microcrystalline wax having an ozokerite structure and being a well-balanced mixture of linear and branched- chain hydrocarbon waxes.
• LUNAFLEX® 4919 a mouldable hydrocarbon wax having a branched-chain microcrystalline structure, available from H.B. Fuller GmbH, Germany
• paraffin wax 52-54 melting point 52-5 °C
• PA007 paraffin wax available from MB-Sveda AB, Sweden
• the binding agent possesses tackiness properties approximately corresponding to those of beeswax or common beeswax replacement materials. Should the basic components in the binding agent lack these properties, modifying agents or diluents could possibly be added. As diluents may be used fine-particulate materials (having an average grain size below 0.01 mm) and this fine-particulate material is added only after admixture of the binding agent into the sand material.
• tackiness-enhancing substances such as small amounts of paraffin oil, isopropyl palmitate, isopropyl myristate or tall oil.
• tackiness-enhancing materials it is important, however, to ensure that the proportions of added amounts are kept suffi- ciently low to prevent the binding agent mixture from giving off oily materials that may stick to fingers and surfaces with which the material comes into contact.
• colouring of the sand material may be effected by means of a pigment paste consisting of pigments dispersed in a polymer or wax material having a higher melting point than the beeswax or beeswax-like material used as the binding agent in the sand material mixture.
• the amounts admixed into the material depend on the sought-after colour intensity and colour shade. Amounts for admixture of 0.01-1% by weight calculated on the sand material has proved useful and amounts of 0.05-0.5% by weight are preferred.
• colour pigment dispersions that have proved suitable and useful may be mentioned the paste manufactured by Bayer AG, Germany, marketed under designations LEVANYL® LR (a finely divided paste of organic type) and LEVANOX® (finely divided paste of inorganic type) .
• LEVANYL® LR finely divided paste of organic type
• LEVANOX® finely divided paste of inorganic type
• the above pigment pastes may be mixed with a polymer or wax dispersion.
• dispersions are the dis- persions POLIGEN® PE and POLIGEN® RW manufactured and sold by BASF AB, Germany and the dispersions HORDAMEP® PE 34 NEU and LICOMER® Wll sold and manufactured by Hoechst AG, Germany.
• a mixture of pigment paste and a dispersion of the kind referred to are added to the sand and the mixture continues until the pigment paste and the dispersion are carefully blended with the sand.
• the mixture After drying, the mixture forms a layer on the grains of sand, the colour pigment in principle being encapsulated in the polymer or wax material of the dispersion used.
• This coloured sand is subsequently mixed with the binding agent used for the final product, i.e. beeswax, materials similar to beeswax or mixtures of materials similar to beeswax.
• the sand material mixture in accordance with the invention may be used for a great variety of purposes, such as materials for toys, as a pedagogical material, a landscape gardening medium, a material for constructing landscape designs in museums or in aquariums. Because the material in its compacted state, forms a liquid impervious material it may also be used to form a compacted liquid sealing layer in birdbaths and pools.
• a number of discrete grains 10, 11 of a sand material are coated by a thin surface layer 12 of material similar to beeswax.
• two types of sand mate- rial grains are used, i.e. grains of sand 10 of e.g. quartz sand, and microspheres 11 having approximately the same grain size distribution as the grains of sand 10.
• the adhesion of the grains in the modelling body formed by the sand material mixture is of adhesive type and the adhesion strength is determined by the adhesive and cohesive properties of the beeswax-like material.
• Paraffin wax 52-54 Paraffin wax 52-54.
• a paraffin wax the melting point of which ranges between 52 and 54°C and which contains a maximum of 0.5% oil. Marketed under the designation PA007 by MB Sveda AB, Sweden.
• - LEVANOX® a finely divided pigment paste of inorganic type available from Bayer AG, Germany.
• - POLIGEN® PE a polymer dispersion available from BASF AG, Germany.
• Example 1 was repeated using 90% by weight of sand 1-3 MM and 10% by weight of beeswax M.S. The obtained product was tacky but mouldable despite its large grain size. The product proved suitable as building material in the manufacture of stone wall imitations and rock formations in landscape architectural designs or as a material for landscape designs in aquariums.
• Example 1 was repeated using 95% by weight of sand 15KT which was coloured by a yellow version of colour pigment paste LEVANOX®, and 5% by weight of beeswax M.S.
• the product thus obtained proved suitable for producing excellent blocks upon compression and the blocks were easy to work on by means of knives, spoons, drills and other tools.
• the sand material mixture was suitable as building block material for castles and the like.
• the sand material mixture was easy to shape with the aid of hands and fingers. In this process, the grains of sand were compacted so as to be bonded to one another by means of the beeswax.
• the finished modelled bodies having the desired shape could then be interconnected into larger units by being assembled and squeezed together.
• the obtained modelled bodies could subsequently easily be comminuted or disintegrated by being worked on by hands and fingers, allowing the sand material mixture to be reused to form new modelled bodies.
• the sand material mixture could also be employed to construct landscape-architectural imitations for constructing model railways.
• the sand material was poured onto the support and could be shaped in approximately the same way as wet sea sand. After com- paction of the sand material and the shaping of depressions in the surface, the depressions could be filled with water. The water remained in the depressions without penetrating into the subjacent material layer to any significant extent.
• the sealing properties could be further enhanced by directing a jet of hot air by means of e.g. a hairdryer against the depression in order to temporarily fuse the beeswax around the grains of sand at the surface of the depression.
• Example 1 was repeated using 95% by weight of sand 70KT which was coloured with a mixture of a green version of colour pigment paste LEVANYL® and the polymer dispersion POLIGEN® PE, and 5% by weight of beeswax M.S.
• the resulting sand material product proved to be somewhat more tacky than the sand material mixture in Example 3 but possessed excellent modelling properties. It was suitable as a material for the manufacture of imitated architectural landscape designs.
• EXAMPLE 5 In this Example were used 85% by weight of sand 70KT, 5% by weight of beeswax M.S. and 10% by weight of sand 80 G.
• First sand 70 KT and beeswax M.S. were mixed in a mixer designed for the production of foundry sand. The material was heated to a temperature of approximately 65°C, i.e. to a temperature above the melting point of beeswax.
• sand 80 G was added as a diluent while the mixing was continued. The diluent was picked up by the wax layer on the discrete grains of sand 70 KT .
• Example 1 was repeated using 95% by weight of sand 15KT and 5% by weight of 50/50 mixture of LUNACERA® M and LUNAFLEX® 4919. The resulting sand product was drier than the sand product produced by the same sand and 5% by weight of LUNAFLEX® and was suitable for the manufacture of imitated architectural landscape designs.
• Example 1 was repeated using 96% by weight of sand TB-fine and 4% by weight of a 50/50 mixture of beeswax M.S and paraffin wax 52-54. The resulting sand product flowed like sand between the fingers and when compacted resulted in strong blocks. It proved easy to carefully fill the cavity of the mould used.
• EXAMPLE 8
• Example 1 was repeated using 95% by weight of sand 15KT and 5% by weight of LUNACERA® M.
• the sand product thus obtained proved to possess excellent modelling properties.
• the compressed sand lent itself easily to shap- ing by means of a spoon or similar tool, since the grains of sand separated from one another grain by grain. Also after modelling in this manner the modelled body or product possessed an excellently coherent surface of particles securely bonded to one another.
• Example 1 was repeated using 97% by weight of sand TB-fine which was coloured with a mixture of a green version of colour pigment paste LEVANYL® and the polymer dispersion POLIGEN® PE, and 3% by weight of LUNAFLEX® 4919.
• the product thus obtained exhibited excellent particle size distribution and was very suitable for constructing water landscape designs, i.e. imitated architectural-landscape designs comprising ponds and watercourses, owing to the extremely good cohesion of the sand which consequently did not pollute the surface of the water.
• EXAMPLE 10 Example 1 was repeated using 98% by weight of sand 30KT and 2% by weight of CEREWAX 2T. The resulting sand product could be used among other things for the same purposes as the sand material mixture according to Example 9.
• Example 1 was repeated using 98.5% by weight of sand TB-fine which was coloured with a mixture of a blue ver- sion of colour pigment paste LEVANYL® and the polymer dispersion POLIGEN® PE and 1.5% by weight of LUNAFLEX®.
• the resulting product possessed a high degree of plasticity and behaved like wet pure quartz sand but exhibited a higher degree of dimensional stability than that sand in compressed state and never dried out.
• Sand material mixtures in accordance with this Example possess excellent qualities for compacting in toy buckets and moulds and the like.
• Example 1 was repeated using 99% by weight of sand 30KT and 1% by weight of beeswax M.S.
• the resulting product possessed essentially the same properties as the product in accordance with Example 11, although exhibiting less dimensional stability when compacted into a mod- elled body.
• the product still was a considerable improvement over wet pure quartz sand.
• Example 1 was repeated using 99% by weight of sand TB-fine and 1% by weight of LUNAFLEX®.
• the resulting pro- duct possessed approximately the same properties as the product in accordance with Example 11, although having less dimensional stability when compacted into a modelled body. However, the product still was a considerable improvement over wet pure quartz sand.
• Example 1 was repeated using 99% by weight of sand 15KT which was coloured with a mixture of a red version of colour pigment paste LEVANYL® and the polymer dispersion POLIGEN® PE, and 1% by weight of CEREWAX 2T. Also this product had approximately the same properties as the product in accordance with Example 11, although hav- ing slightly less dimensional stability when compressed into a modelled body. However, the product still was a considerable improvement over wet pure quartz sand.
• Example 1 was repeated using 99.25% by weight of sand 15KT and 0.75% by weight of LUNAFLEX®.
• the resulting sand product possessed approximately the same properties as the product in accordance with Example 11, although exhibiting slightly less dimensional stability when compressed into a modelled body. However, the product still was a considerable improvement over wet pure quartz sand.
• EXAMPLES 16-46 AND COMPARATIVE EXAMPLES 47-49 In Examples 16-46 and 48 the various constituents were mixed in the following manner.
• a recipient containing the sand material was posi- tioned on a hot plate, while being stirred continuously during the entire heating process.
• the temperature of the sand had arisen above the temperature of the binding agent (approximately 90°C)
• the heating was discontinued and the binding agent, heated to molten condition, was added successively under continued stirring.
• the stirring of the sand material and the binder agent was effected continuously until the temperature of the wax- coated particles had decreased to below 30°C.
• the material mixture was then transferred to another recipient in which it was allowed to cool to room temperature.
• a measuring container of known volume and weight was used.
• the container When determining the tap density of the sand mate- rials, the container was filled with sand particles and vibrated slightly, whereupon excess sand was scraped off by means of a ruler.
• the same measuring container When determining the density of the material mixtures of sand material and binding agents the same measuring container was filled with a material mix- ture which was compacted by means of the thumbs, whereupon the excess of the compacted material mixture was scraped off by a ruler.
• the measuring container and its contents were weighed. The weight of the measuring container was then subtracted from the weight thus established.
• the bulk density was then calculated as the quotient of the weight of the contents and the weight of the amount of water corresponding to the volume of the measuring container (density 1.0 g/cm ⁇ ).
• Sand Particle The following sand materials, rock flour materials and binding agents were used in the Examples 16-49: Sand Particle:
• Brogardssand 15KT in the following denominated "sand 15KT”. Average grain size 0.15 mm. Tap density 1.65 g/cm- ⁇ Manufactured by Brogardssand AB, Sweden.
• Extendospheres SLG hollow microspheres, average grain size 0.12-1.13 mm, tap density 0.44 g/cm ⁇ .
• - Extendospheres SL 150 hollow microspheres, average grain size 0.10 mm, tap density 0.46 q/cnA .
• Extendospheres SL 100/25, hollow microspheres, average grain size 0.08 mm, tap density 0.37 g/cir ⁇ . Manufactur- ed by Microcell Australia Pty.Ltd., Lindsfield, NSW,
• a proportion of the sand material may be made up from light-weight grains of microsphere types of mineral materials. In this manner it is possible to affect the density and the weight of the sand material. Densities below 1.0 g/cm ⁇ give a sand material product which lends itself to modelling into blocks or other shapes that are able to float on water. From Examples 16-19 appear that by increasing the amount of paraffin oil a softer and tackier tacky structure is obtained in the resulting product. Although the latter has a tendency to stick to the hands when the pro- duct is modelled, the increased amount of paraffin oil imparts improved water resistant properties.
• the comparative Examples 47-49 show that admixture of a finely divided material ("rock flour”) detracts from the properties of the resulting product in various aspects, independently of whether the rock flour is mix- ed into the material prior to or after the addition of the wax material.
• rock flour a finely divided material
• Examples 34-38 show that the sand-like material may consist to more than 50% by weight of a light-weight material. In order to obtain good results the amount of binding agent need to be within the upper part of the range, and preferably be present in amounts of 6-10% by weight, calculated on the weight of the sand material mixture .

Landscapes

• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Materials Engineering (AREA)
• Dispersion Chemistry (AREA)
• Business, Economics & Management (AREA)
• General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
• Educational Technology (AREA)
• Educational Administration (AREA)
• Theoretical Computer Science (AREA)
• Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
• Entrepreneurship & Innovation (AREA)
• Compositions Of Macromolecular Compounds (AREA)
• Toys (AREA)
• Road Paving Structures (AREA)
• Paints Or Removers (AREA)

Priority Applications (4)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=20406194

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (7)

Cited By (5)

Families Citing this family (10)

Citations (3)

• 1997
  • 1997-03-17 SE SE9700970A patent/SE511814C2/sv not_active IP Right Cessation
• 1998
  • 1998-03-10 AU AU64288/98A patent/AU738113B2/en not_active Ceased
  • 1998-03-10 EP EP98909927A patent/EP0969976A1/en not_active Withdrawn
  • 1998-03-10 JP JP54041498A patent/JP2001515420A/ja active Pending
  • 1998-03-10 KR KR1019997008493A patent/KR100598001B1/ko not_active IP Right Cessation
  • 1998-03-10 CN CN98804205A patent/CN1252759A/zh active Pending
  • 1998-03-10 WO PCT/SE1998/000434 patent/WO1998041408A1/en active IP Right Grant

Patent Citations (3)

Non-Patent Citations (3)

Also Published As

Similar Documents

Legal Events