JP5101551B2 - Method and apparatus for manufacturing glass fiber mat, and method for recycling binder - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a glass fiber mat manufacturing method and manufacturing apparatus, and a binder recycling method.

  As is well known, glass chopped strands and glass fiber mats obtained by bonding glass continuous strands with a binder made of an organic resin agent (also called a binder or a secondary binder) include, for example, unsaturated polyester resins, epoxy resins, It is widely used as a reinforcing material that reinforces and strengthens a structural material whose base material is a thermosetting resin such as a phenol resin or a thermoplastic resin such as a super engineering plastic.

  Such a glass fiber mat is formed by depositing glass chopped strands or glass continuous strands on a transport net, and then spraying the binder on the strand deposits from above, and then heating when passing through a heating furnace. And it manufactures by cooling after that and making it solidify (for example, the following patent documents 1-2).

  At this time, since the binder sprayed on the strand deposit is in a dry powder form, the binder falls through the gap of the strand deposit and the conveyance net, and the binder is sufficiently adhered to the strand deposit. The problem of being unable to do so occurred.

  Therefore, there is a case in which a strand deposit is wetted with water in advance before the binder is sprayed so that the binder easily adheres to the strand deposit. That is, water is evenly distributed in advance on the strand deposit deposited in a sheet form on the transport net, and then the binder is sprayed on the wet strand deposit, so that the dispersed binder adheres to the strand surface. To the strand surface.

JP-A-7-138861 JP 7-310268 A

  By the way, even if the binder is spread on the strand deposit wetted with water as described above, a part of the spread binder does not adhere to the surface of the strand constituting the strand deposit, It passes through the net gap of the transfer net. If most of the binder that has not adhered to the strand surface is discarded as it is, a large amount of industrial waste is generated, and a new binder is added to the glass fiber mat manufacturing process by discarding the binder that has not adhered. Need to be introduced in large quantities. For this reason, it is preferable to collect and reuse the binder that has not adhered to the strand surface from the viewpoint of reducing the manufacturing cost and the environment.

  On the other hand, since the binder that did not adhere to the strand surface passes through the strand deposit wetted with water, it is in a state of containing moisture (in many cases, the moisture adhered to the surface of the binder particles). It remains in the state, but may remain in a state where a part of the water is absorbed by the binder particles). Therefore, at the time of reuse, it is necessary to sufficiently remove moisture contained in the binder and return to a dry state. This is because when water remains in the binder to be reused, the binder particles aggregate together in a lump (also called floc) and cannot be spread evenly on the strand deposit, and the bonds between the strands This is because the state becomes uneven.

  In addition, since this kind of binder is softened at a temperature close to the boiling point of water, when the binder containing moisture is heated and dried, the binder particles soften and agglomerate into a lump, making uniform spraying difficult. There is a fear. Therefore, in order to prevent the binder particles from softening during drying, it is the fact that the collected binder is slowly dried over a long period of time in a low temperature state using a sun-dried or indoor constant temperature and humidity chamber, etc. There was a problem that the binder could not be efficiently recycled.

  Further, since this type of binder is a relatively fine powder, it is likely to be charged during handling such as transportation and storage. When the binder particles are charged, there is also a problem in that when the particles are spread on the strand deposit, a problem that the agglomerate is formed and cannot be uniformly distributed to the portions to be spread is likely to occur.

  In view of the above circumstances, an object of the present invention is to efficiently recycle a moisture-containing binder and to obtain a regenerated binder with good dispersibility.

  The method according to the present invention, which was created to solve the above-mentioned problems, is to form a mat by spraying a binder to a strand deposit obtained by wetting a glass chopped strand or a glass continuous strand deposit with water, and solidifying by heating. In the manufacturing method of the glass fiber mat to be shaped, a binder that does not adhere to the strand deposit and contains moisture is collected from the binder spread on the strand deposit, and the collected binder is dried by a vacuum drying process. Thus, it is characterized by being reused as a binder to be spread on the strand deposit. In the present invention, the “moisture-containing binder” includes a binder in which moisture is attached to the surface of the binder particles, a binder in which moisture is absorbed by the binder particles, and a binder in which both of these states are mixed. .

  According to such a method, since the recovered binder (binder containing water) is dried by a reduced pressure drying process, the binder particles are softened during the drying process and prevented from agglomerating in a lump, and compared. It becomes possible to dry in a short time. Therefore, the binder regeneration efficiency can be greatly improved as compared with the conventional method of drying in a sun-dried or constant temperature and humidity chamber.

  In the above method, the binder preferably contains an antistatic agent having an average particle diameter of 1 nm or more and 200 μm or less from the viewpoint of ensuring sufficient fluidity of the binder.

  That is, by doing so, it is easy to perform uniform spraying while preventing aggregation of the binder particles. If the average particle size of the antistatic agent is less than 1 nm, the particle size is too fine to be uniformly mixed (dispersed) with the binder particles, and the antistatic agent tends to be unevenly distributed in the binder, resulting in an antistatic effect. It may not be fully demonstrated. On the other hand, if the average particle size of the antistatic agent exceeds 200 μm, the particle size becomes too coarse, so that it is necessary to use a large amount of antistatic agent in order to exhibit sufficient antistatic properties, which is economically undesirable. . Moreover, since the abundance ratio of the binder adhering to the strand surface of the strand deposit is also lowered, it is difficult to sufficiently obtain a bond between the strands by the binder, leading to a reduction in the strength of the mat. From the viewpoint of improving the flow characteristics (dispersibility) of such a binder, the average particle size of the antistatic agent is more preferably 5 nm or more and 50 μm or less.

  In addition to the above, the antistatic agent contained in the binder is 0.025% by mass or more and 0 in terms of mass with respect to the binder (total mass of binder and antistatic agent: not including the mass of moisture: the same applies hereinafter). It is preferable to set the content to 5% by mass or less.

  With such a content, it is easy to handle the binder when it is transported to a binder packaging bag, for example, a flexible container (also referred to as a flexible container). It is advantageous in that the quality of the glass fiber mat can be prevented from being deteriorated due to uniform spraying, and the quality of the product using the glass fiber mat such as a glass fiber reinforced resin material is improved. That is, it becomes possible to ensure the fluidity (dispersibility) of the binder economically and efficiently.

  If the content of the antistatic agent in the binder is less than 0.025% by mass, a sufficient antistatic effect cannot be obtained, and if it exceeds 0.5% by mass, more fluidity is obtained for the content. Not economical. From such a viewpoint, the content of the antistatic agent in the binder is more preferably 0.1% by mass or more and 0.3% by mass or less.

The antistatic agent according to the present invention is not particularly limited as long as it is in the above-described granular (or powdery) form and can exhibit an antistatic effect. As those applicable to the present invention, inorganic salts, inorganic-organic hybrids, ceramics, ceramics hybrids, or carbon-based antistatic agents are preferable. Specifically, aluminum oxide (Al ₂ O ₃ ), amorphous Alumina (a-Al ₂ O ₃ ), silicon dioxide (SiO ₂ ), amorphous silica (a-SiO ₂ ), carbon (C), water-containing resin material (for example, polyacrylamide) and the like are preferable. In addition, a surfactant containing a molecule having both a positive charge and a negative charge in one molecule can be used after the glass fiber mat has been formed without inhibiting the function of the binder according to the present invention. As long as it does not adversely affect the various performances, it may be used.

  Moreover, in said method, it is preferable to perform a reduced-pressure drying process, stirring the collect | recovered binder (binder containing a water | moisture content).

  In this way, efficient drying of the moisture-containing binder is promoted, and the binder can be dried in a shorter time, which is very advantageous in improving the binder regeneration efficiency. .

  In the above method, the binder is preferably a polyester resin.

  In this way, glass chopped strands or glass continuous strands can be firmly bonded together with a binder, so that a glass fiber mat capable of reinforcing various structural materials can be manufactured. It becomes possible.

  In the above method, if the polyester resin constituting the binder is a bisphenol unsaturated polyester resin, it is preferable because appropriate flexibility can be imparted to the mat firmly bonded by the binder. .

  Further, in the above method, regarding the reduced-pressure drying treatment of the collected binder (binder containing moisture), the binder is prevented from being charged at at least one stage selected from before, during and after the reduced-pressure drying treatment. You may make it mix an agent. The binder recovered without adhering to the strand deposit, even if it contains an antistatic agent at the stage of spreading, is antistatic agent during and / or after passing through the strand deposit wetted with water. May be separated and the antistatic function may be lost or deteriorated. The antistatic function can be regenerated by mixing (adding) an antistatic agent to the collected binder at least at one stage selected from before, during and after the vacuum drying process. .

  When the antistatic agent is mixed during the reduced pressure drying treatment, the antistatic agent may be gradually added while operating the reduced pressure drying apparatus, or may be added at once after drying to a predetermined time. However, from the viewpoint of production efficiency, it is preferable that the processing can be performed without stopping the vacuum drying apparatus, and further, charging is performed before and / or after the vacuum drying process from the viewpoint that it is not necessary to have a complicated configuration of the vacuum drying apparatus. It is more preferable to mix an inhibitor.

Further, the binder recycling method of the present invention for solving the above-mentioned problem is that the glass chopped strand or glass continuous strand deposit is sprayed on the strand deposit moistened with water, and the moisture is removed from the moisture-containing binder. A binder regeneration method for separating the binder and regenerating the binder, wherein the moisture-containing binder is dried by a reduced-pressure drying treatment to reduce the moisture in the binder to 1% by mass or less. .

  With such a regeneration method, aggregation of binder particles due to moisture can be suppressed, and it becomes easy to exhibit stable bonding performance as a binder. If the water content exceeds 1% by mass, dispersibility may be hindered in various processes such as spraying and storage. Here, examples of the “moisture-containing binder” include the following. That is, as described above, the binder and net gap generated by spraying onto the stone deposits wetted with water and passing through the gap between the strands and the net gap of the transfer net and dropping below the transfer net. Binder that has adhered to the periphery of the device through the device, binder that has once adhered to the strand deposit, and scattered to the surroundings due to vibration, etc. It is a binder that has become a surplus generated for various reasons, such as a forced binder.

  The binder in the present invention is mainly for bonding strands as glass fibers, but may be applied to other uses such as a hot melt type adhesive.

  In addition to the above, the method for regenerating a binder of the present invention can increase the drying efficiency and efficiently regenerate the binder if the reduced-pressure drying process is a process that involves a stirring operation.

  The above stirring operation may be a constant speed stirring operation, a stirring operation that changes the stirring speed irregularly according to a program, or the like, and a stirring operation that repeats normal rotation and reverse rotation.

  In addition to the above, the binder recycling method of the present invention relates to a reduced-pressure drying treatment of a moisture-containing binder, and the binder is at least one stage selected from before, during, and after the reduced-pressure drying treatment. You may make it mix an antistatic agent. Thereby, it is possible to regenerate the antistatic function and reliably prevent the binder particles from being charged during various operations performed after the reduced pressure drying process, for example, packing work.

  The apparatus according to the present invention, which was created to solve the above-mentioned problems, is a mat that is obtained by spraying a binder on a strand deposit obtained by wetting a glass chopped strand or a glass continuous strand deposit with water, followed by solidification by heating. In the glass fiber mat manufacturing apparatus, the recovery means for recovering the binder that does not adhere to the strand deposit and contains moisture out of the binder sprayed on the strand deposit, and the binder recovered by the recovery means And a reduced-pressure drying means for drying by a reduced-pressure drying process.

  According to such a structure, the same effect as the above can be enjoyed.

  In the above apparatus, the drying efficiency of the binder can be enhanced when the reduced-pressure drying means includes a stirring means for stirring the binder containing moisture. In addition, optimum efficiency can be realized by appropriately changing the stirring means in accordance with the type and amount of the binder. For example, a rotating stirring bar can be used as the stirring means. The number of blades, the shape, and the like of the stirrer can be appropriately changed as necessary, and two or more stirring bars can be provided. Alternatively, an agitation mechanism other than the agitation element, for example, a structure that rolls a vessel containing a binder containing moisture, or another wing that rotates in the reverse direction to the rotation direction of the agitation element may be provided. Further, as a structure accompanied by mechanical operation such as vibration or swinging other than stirring, a structure used together with a stirring mechanism may be used.

  Moreover, in the manufacturing method and manufacturing apparatus of the glass fiber mat which concern on this invention, it is good also as a structure which added the apparatus which adjusts the spreading | diffusion amount of a binder, a spreading state, etc. as needed. For example, in order to adjust the spraying speed, a throttle structure is attached to the binder spraying port of the spraying device, and the arrangement position of the binder spraying port of the spraying device can be adjusted arbitrarily, so that the binder can be sprayed more uniformly. You may add the structure of incorporating the apparatus which adjusts the airflow state of the vicinity.

  Moreover, in the manufacturing method and manufacturing apparatus of the glass fiber mat according to the present invention, the adhesion of the strand deposit to the strand is improved in the water for wetting the strand deposit as necessary, and the glass fiber mat which is a product You may mix | blend the additive which does not affect the quality of this. For example, you may add a pH adjuster, a foaming agent, etc. to said water. However, it is important that the blending of such additives does not significantly affect the softening, melting, and solidification of the binder due to heating.

  Further, in the method for producing a glass fiber mat according to the present invention, in addition to the above-described antistatic agent, an additive such as a polymerization inhibitor, a polymerization accelerator, an antioxidant, or a colorant may be added to the binder as necessary. You may mix | blend fixed quantity.

  As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to efficiently recycle a moisture-containing binder, and it is possible to obtain a regenerated binder with good dispersibility.

It is a figure which shows notionally the basic composition of the manufacturing apparatus of the glass fiber mat which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a conceptual diagram which shows the reduced pressure drying means of the manufacturing apparatus shown in FIG. It is a figure which illustrates the front-end | tip part of the stirring bar of the reduced pressure drying means shown in FIG.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the glass fiber mat manufacturing apparatus 1 of this embodiment includes, as a basic configuration, a glass strand wound body 2, a cutting blade 3, a transport net 4, a sprinkling means 5, and a binder. Dispersing means 6 and a heating furnace 7 are provided.

  The cutting blade 3 cuts the glass strand 8 drawn out from the glass strand winding body 2 into a predetermined length to form a glass chopped strand 9, and these glass chopped strands 9 are deposited on the transport net 4 and become a strand deposit 10. Is supposed to form. The conveyance net 4 sequentially conveys the strand deposit 10 to the downstream side. The water sprinkling means 5 is a sprayer arranged to spray water 11 from above on the strand deposit 10 transported by the transport net 4. The binder supply means 6 spreads the binder 12 from above on the strand deposit 10 (hereinafter referred to as “hydrated strand deposit 10”) wetted by the water 11 sprayed by the water spraying means 5. . The heating furnace 7 heats the water-containing strand deposit 10 on which the binder 12 is dispersed, and the chopped strands 9 are bonded to each other through the binder 12 by this heating, so that the glass chopped strand mat 13 is manufactured. ing.

  And this manufacturing apparatus 1 is provided with the collection tank 14 as a collection means, and the reduced pressure drying means 15 shown in FIG. 2 as a characteristic structure.

  The recovery tank 14 is disposed below the transport net 4 in order to recover the binder 12 that has fallen below the transport net 4 without adhering to the water-containing strand deposit 10 out of the binder 12 sprayed from the binder supply means 6. Has been placed. That is, a part of the binder 12 sprayed from the binder spraying means 6 falls through the gap between the hydrated strand deposit 10 and the transport net 4 and is collected in the collection tank 14. Although not shown, guide means for guiding the binder 12 scattered around the transport net 4 to the recovery tank 14 may be provided to improve the recovery rate of the binder 12.

  Since most of the binder 12 recovered in the recovery tank 14 has fallen through the hydrated strand deposit 10, the binder 12 is in a state of containing moisture (hereinafter, this binder is referred to as “hydrated binder 12a”). Therefore, in order to reuse the collected water-containing binder 12a as the binder 12 sprayed on the water-containing strand deposit 10, it is necessary to dry the water-containing binder 12a. On the other hand, as the binder 12 sprayed from the binder spraying means 6, for example, a binder mainly composed of a bisphenol unsaturated polyester resin is used. Generally, the softening point is a temperature close to the boiling point of water (100 ° C.) (bisphenol). Many of the unsaturated polyester resins have a softening point of about 115 ° C., and when heated to a temperature at which water evaporation is promoted, the binder may be softened.

  Therefore, when a predetermined amount of the water-containing binder 12a is recovered in the recovery tank 14, the water-containing binder 12a in the recovery tank 14 is charged into the vacuum drying means 15 by the following procedure to perform a vacuum drying process. I have to.

  A conceptual diagram of the vacuum drying means 15 is shown in FIG. The vacuum drying means 15 has a pressure-resistant container 16, and an inlet 16 a is provided at the upper part of the pressure-resistant container 16, and an outlet 16 b is provided at the lower part. The water-containing binder 12a recovered in the recovery tank 14 is charged into the pressure-resistant container 16 through the charging port 16a in a state where an antistatic agent is mixed in advance and is used as a water-containing binder 12b (antistatic agent-added product). . The antistatic agent is, for example, silica particles having an average particle diameter of 1 μm to 20 μm. This antistatic agent suppresses segregation caused by agglomeration of the binder particles during the dispersion of the binder, and also stores or transports the dried binder in a container such as a flexible container. In addition, it is useful for preventing a situation where the binder adheres to the surface of the container or the like in each step due to static electricity and the workability is deteriorated. Here, if the silica particles having an average particle diameter of 1 μm to 20 μm are added so as to be 0.2% by mass with respect to the total amount of the binder, they are mixed evenly under reduced pressure, and there is no need to perform a mixing operation in advance. .

  The pressure-resistant container 16 is configured such that the pressure inside the pressure-resistant container 16 is reduced by degassing the internal gas from the deaeration port 16 c by the decompression pump 17. Specifically, the pressure-resistant container 16 is decompressed to, for example, about 20 to 500 hPa with respect to the atmospheric pressure of 1013 hPa by the decompression pump 17, and the water-containing binder 12b charged therein is dried under reduced pressure. .

  Further, a stirrer 18 such as a stirring blade is disposed inside the pressure-resistant container 16, and this stirrer 18 is, for example, 60 rotations / minute by a motor (not shown) provided outside the pressure-resistant container 16. The water-containing binder 12b that has been charged is agitated.

  In addition, moisture is converted into water vapor from the water-containing binder 12b and is sucked from the deaeration port 16c of the pressure-resistant container 16, but at this time, the binder particles are also slightly sucked together with the water vapor. Therefore, in this embodiment, the decompression pump 17 includes a primary trap 19 made of a porous material and a secondary trap 20 made of a water filter so that the decompression pump 17 is not worn or damaged by the sucked binder particles. , And a capacitor 21 to be connected to the deaeration port 16 c of the pressure-resistant container 16. As a result, of the very fine binder particles of several μm to several hundred μm contained in the sucked water vapor, particularly coarse particles are captured by the primary trap 19. Further, finer particles are captured by a secondary trap 20 provided downstream thereof. And the water vapor which passed the primary trap 19 and the secondary trap 20 is cooled with the capacitor | condenser 21, and is collect | recovered as water.

  Further, although not shown, hot water (for example, about 40 ° C.) having a temperature at which the water-containing binder 12 b is not consolidated is circulated in the walls constituting the pressure-resistant container 16. Thereby, the water-containing binder 12b is warmed to promote the vaporization of moisture.

  After sufficiently removing moisture from the water-containing binder 12b by such an operation, the reduced-pressure drying process is finished, and the dried recycled binder 12c is taken out from the outlet 16b provided below the pressure-resistant container 16.

  Next, operation | movement of the manufacturing apparatus 1 of the glass fiber mat comprised as mentioned above is demonstrated.

  First, the glass strand 8 drawn out from the glass strand wound body 2 is cut into a predetermined length (for example, about 50 mm) by the cutting blade 3 and deposited on the transport net 4 as a glass chopped strand 9, and a strand deposit 10. Is formed. Next, while transporting the strand deposit 10 to the downstream side by the transport net 4, the water supply means 5 sprays the water 11 on the strand deposit 10 from above to wet it, and then wets the strand deposit 10 by the binder supply means 6. The binder 12 is sprayed from above on the water-containing strand deposit 10. Thereafter, the water-containing strand deposit 10 on which the binder 12 is dispersed is heated while passing through the heating furnace 7 while being placed on the transport net, so that the binder 12 attached to the glass chopped strand 9 is softened or The glass fiber mat 13 is manufactured by melting and then solidifying by cooling.

  In such a series of manufacturing processes, the water-containing binder 12a that has fallen below the transport net without adhering to the water-containing strand deposit 10 is recovered by the recovery tank 14 disposed below the transport net 4. . The water content (also referred to as water content or water content) of the water-containing binder 12a is, for example, in the range of 7% by mass to 10% by mass. A predetermined amount of the water-containing binder 12a is recovered in the recovery tank 14. As described above, silica particles having an average particle diameter of 1 μm to 20 μm are added to the recovered water-containing binder 12a as an antistatic agent.

  The water-containing binder 12 b (antistatic agent-added product) adjusted as described above is put into the pressure-resistant container 16 of the vacuum drying means 15.

  The water-containing binder 12b put into the pressure-resistant container 16 is dried under reduced pressure by the vacuum pump 17. At this time, the water-containing binder 12 b is agitated by a stirrer 18 disposed in the pressure-resistant container 16. As a result, the water-containing binder 12b closely adhered to each other by moisture can be finely crushed and the antistatic agent can be mixed evenly, and the vacuum drying treatment of the water-containing binder 12b can be performed more efficiently. Become. Therefore, it becomes possible to separate and dry the moisture contained in the water-containing binder 12b in a short time, and it is difficult to cause a situation in which moisture remains locally. Therefore, the recycle binder 12c having high sprayability can be shortened. It can be obtained in time.

  Specifically, the moisture content of the regenerated binder 12c thus obtained can be, for example, less than 0.5% by mass in terms of mass percentage, and the average particle size can be about 200 μm. it can. Therefore, the particles are not present in the reproduction binder 12c in the form of flocs (lumps), and it is possible to ensure high dispersibility. Therefore, if the recycled binder 12c is put into the above-described binder supply means 6 and sprayed, efficient reuse of the binder 12 can be realized.

  In addition, the recycled binder 12c may contain more moisture than the above moisture content, for example, 0.5% by mass or more and less than 0.8% by mass with an increase in the amount of dry processing per one time. It may contain water. Alternatively, it may contain less moisture than the above moisture content, for example, containing 0.3% by mass or more and less than 0.4% by mass with variation in the amount of dry treatment and average particle size. It may be a thing. Furthermore, there is no problem even if the recycled binder 12c has an average particle size smaller than 200 μm, for example, an average particle size of 100 μm or more and 190 μm or less.

  Further, after the drying under reduced pressure, the classification process may be performed on the reproduction binder 12c. In this way, the reproduction binder 12c can be adjusted to an appropriate particle size, and foreign substances contained in the reproduction binder 12c can be removed.

  In addition, in the glass chopped strand mat 13 manufactured according to the manufacturing method of this invention, the adhesion amount of the reproduction | regeneration binder 12c with respect to the hydrated strand deposit 10 exists in the range of 2-20 mass% with respect to the total mass of a mat. Here, the total mass of the mat is the mass including the binder. In this way, it is possible to manufacture a glass fiber mat 13 that is tough and has high reinforcing properties by subjecting the recycled binder 12c to heat treatment. Further, the binder sprayed on the hydrous strand deposit 10 by the manufacturing method of the present invention may be entirely the recycled binder 12c, or a part thereof may be the recycled binder 12c. In any case, the amount attached to the mat is the same.

  Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the case where the glass chopped strand 9 is used has been described as an example. However, the present invention can also be applied to the case where a glass continuous strand is used.

  The stirrer 18 used in the apparatus according to the present invention may be used in various forms according to the type and amount of the binder. FIG. 3 shows an example of the shape of the stirring bar 18. The stirrer 18 shown in FIG. 3 (A) has a blade 18b disposed at the tip of a blade shaft 18a. The stirrer 18 shown in FIG. 13 (B) is effective when increasing the amount of the binder, and the blade 18b is not flat but bent to make it easy to escape a part of the binder during stirring. It is designed to reduce the heavy load. The stirring bar 18 shown in FIG. 13C is arranged on the blade shaft 18a with the bending angle of the blade 18b larger than that in FIG. 3B. The shape of the wing 18b is not limited to these examples, and a wing having an appropriately improved shape can be employed.

  The present inventors conducted the following tests on the binder and evaluated the binder regeneration results.

  Table 1 shows the binder playback conditions and playback results.

  First, evaluation No. which is an example. 1, a water-containing binder 12b (water content is 10% by mass) in which spherical synthetic silica (average particle size: 7 μm) manufactured by Mizusawa Chemical Co., Ltd. was added as an antistatic agent so as to be 0.2% by mass with respect to the total amount of the binder. Then, the drying process was performed for 3 hours while performing the vacuum process by the vacuum drying means 15 {using the stirring bar 18 shown in FIG. 3B) of the manufacturing apparatus 1 described above. When the moisture content of the regenerated binder obtained by such a reduced-pressure drying treatment was measured using a Karl Fischer moisture meter (manufactured by Hiranuma Sangyo Co., Ltd.), it was sufficiently low as 0.5% by mass. Aggregates that could be generated were not observed, and the floc property was good. In addition, a glass fiber mat was produced using this recycled binder, and the resulting fiberglass mat was subjected to a tensile strength measurement and visual observation to comprehensively evaluate the sprayability of the recycled binder. was gotten.

  Evaluation No. which is an example. 2 uses AEROXIDER (registered trademark) ALuC (aluminum oxide obtained by a high-temperature hydrolysis method) having an average primary particle size of 13 nm instead of silica particles as an antistatic agent, and this antistatic agent is used as a binder. The water-containing binder 12b (water content is 10% by mass) added so as to be 0.3% by mass with respect to the evaluation No. Under reduced pressure drying treatment under the same conditions as in 1. In addition, evaluation No. When evaluated in the same manner as in No. 1, the moisture content of the recycled binder was as low as 0.6% by mass, the binder was not agglomerated, the flocking property was good, and the sprayability was satisfactory. It was.

  Evaluation No. which is an example. In No. 3, an anionic surfactant was used in place of the silica particles as the antistatic agent, and the water-containing binder 12b (water content was 7% by mass) was evaluated as No. 3. It dried under reduced pressure on the same conditions as 1 and 2, {Agitator 18 uses what is shown in Drawing 3 (C)}. In addition, evaluation No. When the same evaluation as 1 and 2 was performed, the moisture content of the recycled binder was as low as 0.8% by mass, the binder was not agglomerated, the flocking property was good, and there was no problem with the sprayability. Met.

  Evaluation No. which is an example. In No. 4, as an antistatic agent, evaluation No. A crystalline silica particle size adjusted product (average particle size 6 μm) different from 1 was used. Further, the vacuum drying treatment was also performed using an apparatus different from the above-described vacuum drying means 15. That is, although illustration is omitted, the reduced-pressure drying apparatus used in this evaluation imparts vibration generated by a vibration motor to a dryer provided with a batch-type vertical cylindrical heated material holding container. In response to this vibration, the water-containing binder 12b (moisture content is 9% by mass) is dried in the container with a circumferential turning motion and a vertical motion. Using this reduced pressure drying apparatus, a reduced pressure drying treatment for 3 hours was performed under a reduced pressure lower than the atmospheric pressure. When evaluated in the same manner as described above, the moisture content of the recycled binder was as low as 0.5% by mass, the binder was not agglomerated, the flocking property was good, and the sprayability was not hindered. .

  Next, as a comparative example, evaluation no. 5 was done.

  Sample No. No. 5 is an evaluation no. The same antistatic agent as that in No. 1 was used and evaluated under the same conditions. Different from 1. The obtained recycled binder had no problems with respect to moisture content, flocking property, and sprayability, but the drying time required to obtain this recycled binder reached 10 hours, and the recycling efficiency There was a problem in terms of.

  Evaluation No. of Example 1 to evaluation no. 4 and Comparative Example No. 5, it was confirmed that according to the present invention, it is possible to efficiently recycle the moisture-containing binder and to obtain a regenerated binder excellent in sprayability and antistatic properties.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Glass fiber mat manufacturing apparatus 2 Glass strand wound body 3 Cutting blade 4 Conveying net 5 Sprinkling means 6 Binder spraying means (binder spraying apparatus)
7 Heating furnace 8 Glass strand 9 Glass chopped strand 10 Strand deposit, hydrous strand deposit 11 Water 12 Binder 12a Hydrous binder 12b Hydrous binder (antistatic additive added product)
12c Recycled binder 13 Glass chopped strand mat 14 Recovery tank 15 Vacuum drying means 16 Pressure resistant container 17 Pressure reducing pump 18 Stirrer 18a Stirrer blade shaft 18b Extension blade 19 Primary trap 20 Secondary trap 21 Capacitor

Claims (9)

In a method for producing a glass fiber mat, a binder is applied to a strand deposit obtained by wetting a glass chopped strand or a glass continuous strand deposit with water, and the mixture is heated and solidified to form a mat.
Among the binders sprayed on the strand deposit, the binder that does not adhere to the strand deposit and contains moisture is recovered, and the recovered binder is dried by a reduced pressure drying process and sprayed on the strand deposit. A method for producing a glass fiber mat, wherein the glass fiber mat is reused as a binder.   The method for producing a glass fiber mat according to claim 1, wherein the binder contains an antistatic agent having an average particle diameter of 1 nm to 200 µm.   The method for producing a glass fiber mat according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the drying under reduced pressure is performed while stirring the collected binder.   The method for producing a glass fiber mat according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the binder is a polyester-based resin.   The method for producing a glass fiber mat according to claim 4, wherein the polyester resin is a bisphenol unsaturated polyester resin.   The anti-static agent is mixed with the binder in at least one stage selected from before, during, and after the reduced-pressure drying treatment with respect to the reduced-pressure drying treatment of the collected binder. The manufacturing method of the glass fiber mat in any one of Claims 1-3. A method for regenerating a binder, wherein a glass chopped strand or glass continuous strand deposit is dispersed in a water-wet strand deposit, and the moisture is separated from the water-containing binder to regenerate the binder.
A method for regenerating a binder, wherein the binder containing moisture is dried by a reduced pressure drying treatment to reduce the moisture in the binder to 1% by mass or less. In an apparatus for producing a glass fiber mat, a binder is applied to a strand deposit obtained by wetting a glass chopped strand or a glass continuous strand deposit with water, and the mixture is heated and solidified to form a mat.
Among the binders sprayed on the strand deposit, a recovery means for recovering a binder that does not adhere to the strand deposit and contains moisture, and a reduced pressure for drying the binder recovered by the recovery means by a vacuum drying process An apparatus for producing a glass fiber mat, comprising: a drying means. The apparatus for producing a glass fiber mat according to claim 8 , wherein the vacuum drying means includes a stirring means for stirring the recovered binder.

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