PT107354A - AGGLOMERATED COMPOSITION OF FEATHERS AND / OR FEATHERS - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a product consisting of a compound of feathers and / or agglomerated feathers. THE COMPOSITE IS ESSENTIALLY ESTABLISHED BY FEATHERS AND / OR FEATHERS, BUT IT MAY BE OBTAINED WITH FORMULATIONS OF FEATHERS AND / OR PENS COMBINED WITH OTHER MATERIALS OF EQUAL OR LESS QUANTITY WITH RESPECT TO THE MASS OF FEATHERS AND / OR PENS. ADDITIONALLY, THE AGGLOMERANT SYSTEM USED IN THE PROCESS MAY BE FREE OF FORMALDEAD. THIS INVENTION ALLOWS THE PRODUCTION OF NEW PRODUCTS WITH SPECIAL CHARACTERISTICS AND PROPERTIES THAT REVEAL APPLICATION POTENTIAL IN SPECIFIC AREAS BUT ALSO IN TRADITIONAL AREAS, ESPECIALLY IN THE CONSTRUCTION, FURNITURE, AUTOMOBILE, RAILWAY. PULLEY-BASED AGGLOMERATES AND / OR FEATHERS PRESENT THERMAL, ACOUSTIC AND MECHANICAL PROPERTIES THAT ARE TRANSLATED INTO NEW PRODUCTS INCREASING THE SUPPLY RANGE IN THE AGGLOMERATE AND COMPOSITE MATERIAL SECTOR AND COULD BE AN ALTERNATIVE TO WOODEN AGGLOMERATES.

Description

DESCRIPTION " Conglomerate Feather & / or Feather Composite "

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION: The present invention relates to a product which translates into a bird feather and / or feather composite produced using a patented, formaldehyde-free agglomeration process based on a polybutadiene-polyurethane polymer . The composite consists essentially of feathers and / or feathers, although it may be obtained with feather and / or feather formulations in combination with other materials (eg, cellulosic, cork, ceramic) in equal or lesser amounts relative to the feather mass and / or feathers. This product represents a way of exploiting / recovering feathers and / or feathers from birds, waste generated in the processing and slaughtering industries, particularly in poultry slaughterhouses. This type of waste has no commercial use and presents several problems related to its final destination. Additionally, the binder system used in the process may be free of formaldehyde, meeting the most demanding environmental criteria and an alternative to the current production processes of fiber and particle agglomerates using formaldehyde based binders. The present invention allows the production of new products with special characteristics and properties which reveal application potential in specific areas but also in traditional areas such as in the building, furniture, automobile and railway industries, for example replacing particleboard and of wood fibers of different densities, including medium density and high density plates. Feather and / or feather agglomerates exhibit thermal, acoustic and mechanical properties that translate into new products, increasing the range of offerings in the agglomerates and composites sector and may be an alternative to wood pellets. The composite is produced using feathers and / or feathers, residues resulting from the industrial units for preparation and / or processing of clean poultry meat, such as slaughterhouses or poultry slaughterhouses, which are dried and crushed after washing and disinfection to obtain particles / fibers of suitable size to subsequently be incorporated into the process of producing the agglomerates.

The composites incorporate different amounts of feathers and / or feathers, which can reach 95% (dry weight) of the total mass of the agglomerate (final product). Feathers and / or feathers (poultry row residues) thus constitute the main raw material of this product and may be used in different formulations, varying, for example, their percentage proportion to the binder system used.

The composites are produced by pressing, molding or even extrusion of the feathers / feathers after their impregnation and / or spraying and / or mixing with the binder.

In addition, part of the feathers / feathers can be replaced by other raw materials, such as ceramic, glass, textile, footwear, wood processing waste, without compromising the physical properties of the composite. In this way, a new product (feather-based composite) is obtained with unique characteristics and properties, resulting in a product with potential to be integrated in several sectors and also add value to the poultry industry through the valorization of its waste.

Summary of the Invention: The product object of the present invention consists of a composite of feathers and / or agglomerated feathers. The composite is produced with a proprietary binder system consisting of a hydroxyl endbanding polybutadiene and a diisocyanate (PT103702 and PCT / IB2007 / 053124).

The ground feathers and / or feathers are homogenized with the binder system (by impregnation and / or spraying and / or mixing processes) and hot pressed (60 -100 ° C) in continuous press, fixed or mold, for the production of composites. The binder system used in the process is free of formaldehyde thus constituting an alternative to the current binders based on formaldehyde and meeting the environmental criteria. The final product, composed of feather and / or feather agglomerates, has thermal, acoustic and mechanical properties, increasing the range of offerings in the agglomerates and composites sector and may be an alternative to wood pellets produced with resin based formaldehyde or with natural resins.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION: The valorisation and optimization of the manufactured products constitute a constant challenge and a factor of crucial importance for the competitiveness and the very survival of the companies. It is also increasingly recognized that product enhancement and optimization must include an environmental concern and industrial practices should minimize environmental impacts. Adopting " environmentally friendly " it was essentially imposed by legislation, but companies quickly realized that they too could play a very significant role in productivity, image, customer relationships, regulatory and supervisory bodies and society in general. The poultry industry is a strategic sector with growing economic importance in the Portuguese economy. The penalties are a by-product of the poultry industry without appreciation and significant use, and are therefore a waste for the poultry industry with associated environmental problems. The large volume of feathers produced annually and deposited in landfills makes difficult the management of the space in the landfills and shows the urgency in creating processes of valorization for this residue. The Portuguese poultry industry produces on average 20 x 106 kg of feathers per year. Poultry Farming Centers are currently, through legal instruments, namely the Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control Regime, responsible for ensuring that waste resulting from the units is sent to operators duly legalized for this purpose, and should be privileged the options of recycling and other forms of recovery and the principle of proximity and self-sufficiency at national level.

Feathers consisting of 91% protein (β-keratin), 8% water and 1% lipids are 100% biodegradable. However, biodegradability is a much slower process than most biological polymers, which limits their application or use in recovery processes such as composting (organic fertilizer production). The composite of bird feathers and / or feathers, the object of this invention is a form of recovery of a residue and is a safer alternative with respect to human health and indoor air quality, since the system binder may not use formaldehyde, ie it may be classified as " NAF " and " NAUF " (NAF - " No added formaldehyde "; NAUF - " No added Urea Formladehyde "). PAT US 2005/0205226 AI at 0002 and 0003 and claims 1 to 8 explicitly states that the invention consists of a polyurethane plate reinforced with glass and fiberglass beads, with only the stiffer part of the feathers being used, with a structural reinforcing function, which can not be considered the main component of the slab, which differs from the present invention consisting of a composite in which the plies are the main component (greater than 50% by weight and up to 95%) and where the full sentence is used (beards, barbarians and rachis). In said document (PAT US 2005/0205226 A1) the feather barbs are used in a volumetric percentage ranging from 5 to 80%, which in terms of mass corresponds to a small percentage relative to the polyurethane used. In fact, PAT US 2005/0205226 A1, discloses a polyurethane sheet having a small percentage by weight of feathered beads and / or glass fibers used as structural reinforcing agents. Rather, the present invention consists of a composite of feathers containing a percentage of feathers ranging from 50 to 95% relative to the mass of the final product. It also uses feathers in their entirety and not only a part (barbules), so it does not require any process of separation of the different structural components of feathers. In addition, the polybutadiene-polyurethane polymer, used as a binder, constitutes not more than 20% of the mass of the composite.

The present invention is a composite containing up to 95% by weight of feathers (using feathers and / or ground feathers) agglomerated with a polybutadiene-polyurethane polymer, polyurethane based binders, polyphenols, or the like, used in a percentage that can vary between 5 and 40% by mass, according to the properties desired for the final product. The subject compound of the present invention obeys the following production steps after receiving feathers from poultry slaughter centers: • Washing and disinfecting of feathers and / or feathers; • Drying of feathers and / or feathers; • Crushing feathers and / or feathers; • Mixing of the particles and fibers obtained by crushing the feathers and / or feathers with the binder system. • Pressing / molding or extruding the feather / binder mixture using a temperature range of between 60 and 280 ° C; • Finishes (optional) with application of protective film or plate coating (lacquers and / or paints and / or other additives);

Detailed Description of the Invention: 1. Preparation of Feather and / or Feather Particles and / or Feathers a) Washing and Disinfecting Feathers and / or Feathers. Washing and disinfection are intended to sanitize (eliminate micro-organisms normally present in feathers) and to remove fats and other residues that may be considered as contaminants. Various processes may be used for this purpose, for example the following two step method: i) the feathers are dipped into an alkaline aqueous solution containing 0.2-0.55% anionic and / or nonionic surfactants (eg dodecylsulfate sodium) and 0.1-0.7% sodium hypochlorite and stirred for 30-60 minutes by mechanical means; (ii) The feathers are then transferred to an aqueous solution of hydrogen peroxide (0.1-0.8%) and stirred an additional 1 hour to complete the sanitizing process (this process reduces the microbial load by about 95% ). b) Drying of feathers and / or feathers

The washed pens may be dried with dry air flow and / or in a ventilated oven at temperatures below 100øC until residual values of relative humidity of less than 10% are obtained. c) Crushing of feathers and / or feathers

The washed and dried feathers are milled in a knife mill to obtain particles and fibers of the desired size selected by the sieve associated with the mill (common dimensions range from 0.5 to 10 mm). 2. Production of the feather and / or feather composite (a) Spraying and mixing the feather particles and / or feather fibers and / or ground feathers with the binder system. The binder system is mixed with the feather and / or feather particles and / or feathers by mechanical means until a homogeneous mixture is obtained. b) The mixture obtained in the previous paragraph is pressed / extruded or shaped until a solid composite product is obtained. The pressing, for example, can be performed by three processes: i) continuous pressing process - the mixture is deposited in the form of " mattress " on a conveyor belt and pressed in motion at a temperature between 60 and 280 ° C for the period of time necessary for the polymerization to obtain a solid particle and / or feather fiber composite and / or featherweight composite board; ii) batch pressing process - the mixture is deposited in the form of " mattress " in a fixed press generally consisting of several tray-like stages which allow the pressing of several plates at the same time at a temperature between 60 and 280 ° C during the time required for the polymerization to obtain a solid sheet of composite base of particles and / or feather and / or feather fibers; iii) Molding - the mixture is deposited and molded. The mold is oven-dried for the time required for polymerization, at a temperature ranging from 60 to 280 ° C, and deformed to obtain a solid sheet of particle and / or feather and / or feather fiber composite. The process described above results in the production of agglomerated composites with a binder percentage of 5 to 20% by weight, with densities ranging from 500 to 1100 kg / m 3, a modulus of elasticity of from 0.210 to 1.750 N / mm 2, a breaking stress between 0.7 and 2.2 MPa, an internal resistance between 0.78 and 1.3 N / mm2 and an attenuation of sound waves with a noise reduction coefficient of between 0.3 and 0.7.

Example 1.

Sample prepared with a mixture of particle and / or feather and / or feather fibers obtained by milling of knives having a sieve having a mesh of 0.5 mm in diameter and a percentage of binder of 10% by weight and pressing at a temperature of 80 ° C over a period of 2 hours. The composite has a density of 917 kg / m 3, a modulus of elasticity of 0.212 N / mm 2, a breakdown voltage of 1.26 N / mm 2, an internal resistance of 0.97 N / mm, an attenuation of sound waves with noise coefficient of 0.4, a thermal conductivity coefficient of 0.032 W / m ° C, a 24-h swell percentage of 1.2% and an attenuation of electromagnetic waves corresponding to the X-ray region.

Example 2.

Sample prepared with a mixture of particle and / or feather and / or feather fibers obtained by grinding in a knife mill having a sieve having a mesh size of 2.0 mm in diameter and a percentage of binder of 10% by weight and pressing at a temperature of 80 ° C over a period of 2 hours. The composite has a density of 825 kg / m 3, a modulus of elasticity of 1.75 N / mm 2, a breakdown voltage of 1.08 N / mm 2, an internal resistance of 0.84 N / mm, a wave attenuation with a noise coefficient of 0.3, a thermal conductivity coefficient of 0.037 W / m ° C, a 3.7% swell percentage of 3.7% and an attenuation of the electromagnetic waves corresponding to the X-ray region.

Vila Real, December 12, 2013

Claims (8)

1. Agglomerated feather or feather products characterized in that they are produced as follows: (a) Preparation of feathers and / or feathers and / or feathers: (i) Feathers are immersed in an aqueous alkaline solution and stirred for 30-60 minutes by mechanical processes; (ii) The feathers are then transferred to an aqueous solution of hydrogen peroxide at a concentration of 0.1-0.8 grams per 100 ml and shaken for 30-60 minutes to complete the sanitization process, significantly reducing microbial load: (a) Drying of feathers and / or feathers: The washed feathers may be dried in a dry air stream and / or in a ventilated oven at temperatures below 100 ° C until a relative humidity of less than 10% ; a2) Crushing of feathers and / or feathers: The washed and dried feathers are milled in a knife mill to obtain particles and fibers of the desired size, selected by the sieve, in sizes ranging from 0.5 to 10 mm, associated with the mill ; b) Production of the feather and / or feather composite: bl) Spray and admixture of feather particles and / or feather fibers with the binder, wherein the binder system is mixed with the particles and / or feathers. fibers of the feathers and / or feathers by mechanical processes until obtaining a homogeneous mixture; b2) The blend obtained in the previous paragraph is pressed, extruded or shaped until a solid composite product is obtained. Agglomerated feather or feather product according to the preceding claim characterized in that the pressing is performed by three processes: i) continuous pressing process - the mixture is deposited in the form of " mattress " on a conveyor belt and pressed in motion at a temperature between 60 and 280 ° C for the period of time necessary for the polymerization to obtain a solid particle and / or feather fiber and / or feather fiber composite board; ii) batch pressing process - the mixture is deposited in the form of " mattress " in a fixed press, generally consisting of several tray-like stages which allow the pressing of several plates at the same time, at a temperature between 60 and 280 ° C during the time necessary for the polymerization to obtain a solid composite plate based on particles and / or feathers and / or feathers; iii) mold pressing - the mixture is deposited and pressed in a mold, the oven being placed in the oven for the polymerization time, at a temperature ranging from 60 to 280 ° C, and deformed to obtain a solid base plate of feathers and / or feathers and / or feathers. Agglomerated feather or feather product according to claim 1 characterized in that it contains up to 95% by mass of agglomerated feathers. Agglomerated feather or feather product according to the preceding claim characterized in that the binder (polybutadiene polymer, polybutadiene-polyurethane, polyurethane based binders, polyphenols, natural binders or the like is used in a proportion which may vary between 5 and 40 % by mass, according to the properties desired for the final product. Agglomerated feather or feather product according to the preceding claim characterized in that it can be used in industries such as construction, furniture, automobile, railway, machinery construction, protective and security material. The agglomerated feather or feather product according to the preceding claims characterized in that it has properties similar to particle agglomerates and wood fibers. An agglomerated feather or feather product according to the preceding claim characterized in that it is possible to obtain products of various densities. An agglomerated feather or feather product according to the previous claims, characterized in that it has, among other things, thermal and acoustic insulation properties, electromagnetic wave attenuation, namely in the X-ray range. Vila Real, December 12, 2013