TWI570229B - Artificial snow material and method of producing the same - Google Patents

Description

Artificial imitation snow and manufacturing method thereof

The invention relates to a granular composition mainly composed of inorganic salt particles and combined with a polymer solution as artificial snow in normal temperature, which is different from low temperature artificial snow which is produced mainly by water.

Generally, the artificial snow system is mainly composed of water, and the snow is made by the snow making mechanism in a low temperature environment (about 0 ° C), so it is not suitable for snow making in the subtropical zone, or it can only make snow in a low temperature space with indoor air conditioning. This method is limited by natural environmental conditions, and the production process needs to freeze the water into snow through heat exchange technology, and the snow making process consumes a lot of energy and has environmental concerns.

Therefore, people have successively developed the following various types of artificial snow that can be applied to non-cold areas. For example, the conventional artificial snow is mainly composed of superabsorbent polymer, which can quickly absorb moisture, expand and gel in a short time, and form a spherical artificial snow with color, appearance and looseness similar to natural snow. Particles. However, this polymer gelation The feeling of the back becomes soft and sticky, and the particles do not adhere to each other, and cannot truly simulate the touch of natural snow.

In order to increase the mechanical properties of artificial snow, artificial snow with strontium ferrite as the main body and magnetic properties has been developed in recent years. The strontium ferrite powder is formed, sintered, washed, dried, and magnetized to produce artificial snow, which has good cohesiveness, damping dispersibility and lubricity. However, the production process requires a lot of procedures, and the sintering temperature is as high as 1000~1300 °C, which also consumes a lot of energy.

There is also a "snow-and-snow" technique in which the plasticized material is fixed to the ground. The shape includes a brush shape, a comb shape or a mushroom, and is laid on the ground in a carpet-like manner for skiing. However, this method is limited to the type fixed on the ground, only provides the sliding function, and cannot be used for other snow entertainment such as snowman or snowball fight.

In view of this, there is a need for a room temperature artificial snow which is similar to natural snow in appearance, touch and mechanical properties, and which is simple in production and easy to lay on a ski slope.

The invention provides an artificial imitation snow which simulates the appearance, touch, cohesiveness and damping dispersibility of natural snow, so that it can be used for laying snow at various temperatures for various kinds of snow entertainment (such as skiing, snowman and snowballing). ). In addition, this artificial snow material can be naturally decomposed in nature and therefore relatively environmentally friendly.

The invention further provides a method for manufacturing artificial imitation snow, which has a simple manufacturing process, can be implemented at room temperature without any low temperature environment, and is easy to be laid on a large amount of slides to achieve low energy consumption and low cost.

An embodiment of the present invention provides an artificial imitation snow comprising: a plurality of inorganic salt particles; and a polymer solution layer which is coated on the surface of the inorganic salt particles in a gel form, wherein the polymer solution layer is water-soluble It consists of a polymer and an aqueous solvent.

In one embodiment, the weight percentage of the inorganic salt particles in the artificial imitation snow is 72% to 97%, the weight percentage of the water-absorbing polymer is 0.00035% to 1%, and the weight percentage of the aqueous solvent is 2% to 26%. .

In one embodiment, the cation of the inorganic salt particle comprises a Group 1 metal ion and an ammonium ion, and the anion comprises a halogen ion, a nitrate ion, a sulfate ion, a carbonate ion, and a phosphate ion.

In one embodiment, the inorganic salt particles have a particle size ranging from less than 10 mm.

In one embodiment, the water-absorbing high molecular polymer comprises a linear polymer or copolymer of acrylamide, starch grafted acrylonitrile, acrylate, methacrylate, and carboxymethylcellulose salt.

In one embodiment, the aqueous solvent comprises pure water and an aqueous solution containing at least one of ethanol, isopropanol, and glycerin.

Another embodiment of the present invention provides a method for producing artificial snow, comprising: mixing a water-soluble polymer and an aqueous solvent to dissolve a polymer in an aqueous solvent to form a polymer solution; and mixing the polymer The solution and the plurality of inorganic salt particles are formed by uniformly coating the polymer solution on the surface of the inorganic salt particles to form a polymer solution layer, thereby completing artificial snow.

Yet another embodiment of the present invention provides a use of a granular composition as artificial imitation snow, the granular composition comprising: a plurality of inorganic salt particles; and a polymer solution layer, which is coated on the surface of the inorganic salt particles in a gel form. The polymer solution layer is composed of a water-soluble water-absorbing polymer and an aqueous solvent.

In one embodiment, the particulate composition can be used as a ski slope and for making various three-dimensional shapes.

10‧‧‧Artificial imitation snow

12‧‧‧Inorganic salt particles

14‧‧‧ polymer solution layer

100‧‧‧ ski slopes

200‧‧‧ Snowman

The first figure shows a schematic view of the structure of the artificial imitation snow of the present invention.

The second figure shows a flow chart for the production of the artificial imitation snow of the present invention.

The third figure shows a schematic view of laying a ski slope with the artificial imitation snow of the present invention.

The fourth figure shows a schematic view of a three-dimensional shape made by the artificial imitation snow of the present invention.

Hereinafter, embodiments according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, which are readily understood by those skilled in the art. The authoring of the invention may take a variety of variations, and should not be limited to only those embodiments. The description of the well-known part is omitted in the present invention, and the same reference numerals denote the same elements in the present invention.

The first figure shows a schematic view of the structure of the artificial imitation snow according to the present invention. The artificial imitation snow 10 in the present embodiment comprises: a plurality of inorganic salt particles 12; and a polymer solution layer 14 which is gel-coated with inorganic The surface of the salt particles 12, wherein the polymer solution layer 14 is composed of a water-soluble water-absorbing polymer and an aqueous solvent.

Among them, the inorganic salt particles 12 are white crystals, which are used to simulate the crystal particles of natural snow and the loose texture, and are soluble in an aqueous solvent (solubility greater than 10 ^-4 M) to dissociate the anions and cations, and the generated ions do not The high molecular polymer reacts and precipitates. Therefore, the cation of the inorganic salt particles 12 may be a Group 1 metal ion and an ammonium ion, and the anion may be a halogen ion, a nitrate ion, a sulfate ion, a carbonate ion, and a phosphate ion. In the present embodiment, the inorganic salt particles 12 may be sodium chloride, but in another embodiment not shown, the inorganic salt particles 12 may also be composed of sodium carbonate, sodium sulfate, potassium phosphate, potassium nitrate or ammonium chloride. And other materials.

Among them, inorganic salt particles 12 are widely available sources, and there are van der Waals and Coulomb forces between the particles and thus attract each other. This attraction can be used to simulate the cohesiveness of natural snow. When the particle size is smaller, The larger the contact area, the stronger the cohesiveness; in addition, the inorganic salt particles 12 are dispersible solids, which can produce damping dispersibility, and the appropriate cohesiveness facilitates the pinching of the artificial imitation snow 10 during snow entertainment. It is in a predetermined shape without being spread out, or the damping dispersion can simulate the skiing experience of shoveling snow. Therefore, the particle size of the inorganic salt particles 12 is less than 10 mm. In the present embodiment, the particle size of the sodium chloride particles may be from 100 μm to 500 μm. In another embodiment not shown, sodium chloride particles may be used as needed. The particle diameter may be from 100 μm to 150 μm or from 150 μm to 350 μm.

The component of the polymer solution layer 14 may be a polymer solution, and is formed of a water-soluble water-absorptive polymer and an aqueous solvent. The polymer solution layer 14 is uniformly coated on the surface of the inorganic salt particles 12 to increase the cohesiveness and water retention of the artificial snow 10 . In this embodiment, the polymer solution is an aqueous solution in which sodium polyacrylate is mixed with water.

Among them, the water-absorbing high molecular polymer is soluble in an aqueous solvent and can generate a long chain of molecules having an electric group. The inorganic salt particles 12 or the water-absorbing high-molecular polymer can provide ions which are different from the long-chain electrical properties of the molecules, thereby forming a bridge between the ions and the long chains of the molecules through electrostatic attraction, and also contributing to the increase of the artificial snow-like 10 Cohesion.

In addition, the water-absorbing polymer absorbs moisture in the air, and absorbs moisture to slow down the rate of solvent evaporation, so that the water-absorbing polymer remains dissociated to form a bridging state, and the artificial imitation snow can maintain its cohesiveness without Will become dry and hard. because In another embodiment not shown, the water-absorbing polymer may also be a linear polymer of acrylamide, starch grafted polyacrylonitrile, carboxymethyl cellulose salt, acrylate or methacrylate. Alternatively, the copolymer may be replaced by, but not limited to, polyacrylamide, sodium carboxymethylcellulose, and the like.

Among them, the aqueous solvent is a solvent capable of dissolving the water-absorbent polymer, or a solution having a volatile substance. When the artificial imitation snow 10 is held in the hand, the evapotranspiration of the aqueous solvent takes a little heat, and the contact portion feels the temperature drop, which simulates the cold touch of natural snow. Thus, in another embodiment not shown, the aqueous solvent may be replaced by water in an amount of from 5 to 30% by weight of ethanol, isopropanol, or an aqueous solvent in which the two are mixed in any ratio.

Among them, the aqueous solvent is a solvent capable of dissolving the water-absorbent polymer, or a solution containing a polyol functional molecule to increase the water retention effect of the artificial snow 10 to increase the life. Thus, in another embodiment not shown, the aqueous solvent can be replaced by water in an amount of from 1% to 20% by weight aqueous glycerol.

Wherein, the ratio of the weight ratio of the high molecular polymer:aqueous solvent in the polymer solution may be 1:100 to 1:20000, forming a colloidal liquid solution having fluidity instead of hydrogel which is expanded by water, and uniformly and inorganic salts The granules 12 are mixed. The concentration of the sodium polyacrylate aqueous solution disposed in this embodiment may be 1:200 to 1:10000. In another embodiment not shown, the concentration of the aqueous sodium polyacrylate solution may be 1:500 to 1:4000.

The weight percentage of the inorganic salt particles 12 is, for example, 72% to 97%, the weight percentage of the water-absorbing polymer can be 0.00035% to 1%, and the weight percentage of the aqueous solvent can be 2% to 26%. In the artificial snow 10 of the present embodiment, the weight percentage of sodium chloride may be 80% to 95%, the weight percentage of sodium polyacrylate may be 0.00035% to 1%, and the weight percentage of water may be 4% to 20%.

The second figure shows a flow chart for the production of the artificial imitation snow of the present invention. In this embodiment, the artificial snow 10 of FIG. 1 can be manufactured according to steps S01 and S02, but not limited thereto. First, in step S01, a water-soluble polymer and an aqueous solvent are mixed to dissolve the polymer in an aqueous solvent to form a polymer solution. For example, 1 g of sodium polyacrylate is dissolved in 500 g of water to form an aqueous solution of sodium polyacrylate at a concentration of 1:500. Next, in step S02, the polymer solution and the plurality of inorganic salt particles 12 are mixed so that the polymer solution uniformly coats the surface of the inorganic salt particles 12 to form the polymer solution layer 14. For example, the above sodium polyacrylate aqueous solution is poured into a sodium chloride particle having a particle size of 150 μm to 350 μm and a total weight of 3,500 g, and uniformly stirred, thereby forming a sodium polyacrylate aqueous solution layer on the surface of the sodium chloride particles, thus completing the white color. Artificial imitation snow 10 of the granule composition.

In the artificial snow 10 according to the above embodiment, the form of the white particle composition depends on the crystal form of the inorganic salt particles 12 used (for example, but not limited to, sodium chloride is a cubic crystal) and particle diameter.

In other words, the granular composition of the inorganic salt particles 12 and the polymer solution layer 14 can be used as the artificial snow 10 . Granular composition can be further applied to snow The entertainment, such as the ski slope diagram of the third figure, can directly lay the artificial snow 10 produced in the above embodiment on the ski slope 100, and lay the appropriate thickness according to requirements. In addition, the evapotranspiration of the polymer solution layer 14 by the solvent can be improved by spraying an appropriate amount of the polymer solution or the aqueous solvent on the slideway that has been used for a period of time, or directly laying a new layer of artificial imitation snow 10 thereon. Or the problem of hard and brittle artificial snow 10 caused by the extrusion of weight.

The artificial imitation snow 10 is easily shaped by the cohesive effect between the particles and the particles under the pinching of the external force, and various stereoscopic shapes can be produced without being scattered. For example, as shown in the schematic diagram of the snowman of the fourth figure, the artificial snow 10 produced in the above embodiment can be kneaded into the main body of the snowman 200. Further, the surface of the snowman 200 becomes hard when the solvent is evaporated, so that the shape can be maintained for a long time without being scattered.

The artificial imitation snow 10 provided by the above embodiments of the present invention can simulate the appearance, touch, cohesiveness and damping dispersibility of natural snow, and is easy to be laid on a large amount of slides, so that the slides can be laid at normal temperature for each Snow entertainment. Since the raw materials used are inexpensive, manufacturing at room temperature reduces energy consumption, thereby greatly reducing costs.

The illustrations and descriptions of the present invention are merely preferred embodiments of the present invention, and are not intended to limit the implementation of the present invention, and those who are familiar with the art are subject to the changes in the spirit of the present invention. Or the modifications should be covered by the following patent application in this case.

10‧‧‧Artificial imitation snow

12‧‧‧Inorganic salt particles

14‧‧‧ polymer solution layer

Claims (8)

An artificial imitation snow comprising: a plurality of inorganic salt particles, the proportion by weight of the artificial imitation snow is 72% to 97%, soluble to produce anions and cations, and the generated ions are not combined with the high molecular polymer a reaction solution; and a polymer solution layer coating the surface of the inorganic salt particles in a gel form, the polymer solution layer being composed of a water-soluble water-absorbing polymer and an aqueous solvent, and the water absorption is high Molecular polymer: The weight ratio of the aqueous solvent is 1:100 to 1:20000. The artificial imitation snow according to claim 1, wherein the cation of the inorganic salt particle comprises a Group 1 metal ion and an ammonium ion, and the anion comprises a halogen ion, a nitrate ion, a sulfate ion, and a carbonate ion. And phosphate ions. The artificial imitation snow according to claim 1, wherein the inorganic salt particles have a particle diameter of less than 10 mm. The artificial imitation snow according to claim 1, wherein the water-absorbing polymer comprises a linear polymer of acrylamide, starch grafted acrylonitrile, acrylate, methacrylate and carboxymethylcellulose salt. Or a copolymer. The artificial imitation snow according to claim 1, wherein the aqueous solvent comprises pure water and an aqueous solution containing at least one of ethanol, isopropyl alcohol and glycerin. A method for producing artificial snow, comprising: mixing a water-soluble water-absorbing polymer and an aqueous solvent, the water-absorbing polymer: the weight ratio of the aqueous solvent is 1:100 to 1:20000, Forming a polymer solution by dissolving the water-absorbing polymer in the aqueous solvent; and mixing the polymer solution and the plurality of inorganic salt particles to uniformly coat the inorganic salt particles with the polymer solution Forming a polymer solution layer to complete the artificial snow, wherein the inorganic salt particles account for 72% to 97% by weight of the artificial snow, soluble in anions and cations, and produced These ions do not react with the high molecular polymer to precipitate. The use of a granular composition as artificial imitation snow, the granular composition comprising: a plurality of inorganic salt particles, the proportion by weight in the granular composition is 72% to 97%, soluble in anion and cation, and produced The ions do not react with the high molecular polymer to precipitate; and a polymer solution layer coating the surface of the inorganic salt particles in a gel form, the polymer solution layer being composed of a water-soluble water-absorbing polymer and An aqueous solvent is composed, and the water-absorbing polymer: the aqueous solvent has a weight ratio of 1:100 to 1:20000. The use of artificial imitation snow as described in claim 8 wherein the granular composition can be used as a ski slope and various three-dimensional shapes.