WO2007073025A1

WO2007073025A1 - A synthetic marble and a preparation method thereof

Info

Publication number: WO2007073025A1
Application number: PCT/KR2006/002774
Authority: WO
Inventors: Yong Jun Choi
Original assignee: Hyup Sung High-Tech Co., Ltd.
Priority date: 2005-12-21
Filing date: 2006-07-14
Publication date: 2007-06-28
Also published as: KR100605090B1; CN101090927B; CN101090927A

Abstract

The present invention relates to an artificial marble having various surface appearances and the natural, elegant feeling of pure marble, comprising a panel and a color-layer of marble figure/pattern on one surface of the panel, wherein the color-layer of marble figure/pattern includes an unsaturated polyester resin, pearls and wax. In addition, the present invention relates to a preparation method thereof.

Description

A SYNTHETIC MARBLE AND A PREPARATION METHOD THEREOF

Technical Field

The present invention relates to an artificial (synthetic) marble and a preparation method thereof. More particularly, the present invention relates to an artificial marble having various surface appearances and the natural, elegant feeling of pure marble, by reaction of an unsaturated polyester resin with pearls and wax, and the preparation method thereof.

Background Art

Limestone and dolomite have undergone a contact metamorphism or a regional metamorphism and subsequently re-crystallization to give the look of natural marble. Natural marble, when grinded, reveals a particular pattern with many colors and a signature polished sheen, thus it is used as an interior and an exterior material for building structures. However, a building material made from natural marble is expensive; as well, its thickness is usually more than 10 mm and its volume and weight are massive, thus it has drawbacks which limit its use. Therefore, all possible efforts have gone into the production of an artificial marble that is not only cheaper than natural marble but also has similar aesthetic properties to those of natural marble. However, an artificial marble having various surface appearances and the natural look and feeling of pure marble has not yet been developed.

To solve these problems, the inventor developed an artificial marble of an excellent workable and light weight, with various surface appearances and the natural, elegant feeling of pure marble, by using an unsaturated polyester resin, pearls and wax.

Disclosure of the Invention

The objective of the present invention is to provide an artificial marble having various surface appearances and the natural look and feeling of pure marble, comprising a panel and a color-layer of a marble figure/pattern on one surface of the panel, wherein the color-layer of a marble figure/pattern includes an unsaturated polyester resin, pearls and wax.

Another objective of the present invention is to provide a preparation method for an artificial marble having various surface appearances and the natural look and feeling of pure marble, comprising the following steps: making a blocking on the edges of one surface of the panel to form a space with the desired height; providing an unsaturated polyester resin, pearl and wax into the space; curing the resin mixture; and removing the blocking from the edges.

In order to achieve the objective of the present invention, it is to provide an artificial marble having various surface appearances and the natural look and feeling of pure marble, comprising a panel and the color-layer of a marble figure/pattern on one surface of the panel, wherein the color-layer of a marble figure/pattern includes an unsaturated polyester resin, pearls and wax.

Within the present invention, a panel generally includes an MDF, a board, an acryl, a marble having inferior quality, a backlight, and the like. There is not a limit to the size and thickness of the panel, but they are appropriately determined in consideration of the ease of preparation.

Unsaturated polyester resins of the present, generally being used in building material, are two-component type or three-component type unsaturated polyester resins, which can afford to form a membrane (layer) with a certain thickness when curing. Preferably, unsaturated polyester resin of a non-wax type may be used. In addition, a modified unsaturated polyester resin may be used for improvement of the physical properties such as hardness, dimensional stability, shrinkage rate and/or gloss.

Pearl is a kind of pigment which is added to a common furniture paint to create an elegant color. Pearl includes pearly pearl, gold pearl, copper pearl, silver pearl, and the like. The present invention uses at least one kind of pearl. Depending on the kind of pearl and the proportion of an added pigment, a marble surface having various colors can be created.

In the present invention, wax means all the types of wax used to polish a product. Therefore, wax is for furniture, automobile, and industrial, gloss oil, oil and compound, but it is not limited herewith. One may also use oil or fat having a corresponding property to wax for the polish of furniture. Preferably, a wax comprised of water as a solvent and silicon oil as a main component may be used.

In principle, when using an unsaturated polyester resin paint in building material, it has been forbidden to use pre-treated wax, because the wax commonly lacks a compatibility with unsaturated polyester resin. According to the present invention, however, when wax is dripped on to an unsaturated polyester resin, it reacts with unsaturated polyester resin around wax drops. Unexpectedly, the reaction causes a formation of an artificial marble having various surface appearances (shape/pattern/color) and the natural look and feeling of pure marble.

According to the present invention, it is desirable that an artificial marble comprises an unsaturated polyester resin of 1000 parts by weight, pearl of 1 ~ 100 parts by weight and wax of 0.1 ~ 10 parts by weight.

If pearl is less than 1 part by weight or more than 100 parts by weight, it is difficult to produce a marble having the natural look and feeling of pure marble figure/pattern. If wax is less than 0.1 parts by weight or more than 10 parts by weight, it is difficult to produce a marble having the natural look and feeling of pure marble figure/pattern, too.

Moreover according to the present invention, if needed, an artificial marble can further comprises a pigment of red color, yellow color, etc., which is commonly used in paint. Depending on the desired color-tone concentration of marble, the amount of the pigment may be varied. Specifically, a pigment may be added up to 30 parts by weight on the basis of unsaturated polyester resin of 1000 parts by weight. If the pigment is more than 30 parts by weight, it may produce marble patterns/figures which are too strong. Further, this results in the retardation of curing the resin.

Another way to achieve the objective of the present invention, which is to provide a preparation method of an artificial marble having various surface appearances and the natural look and feeling of pure marble, is to take the following steps: i) making a blocking on the edges of one surface of the panel to form a space with a desired height; i i ) providing an unsaturated polyester resin of 1000 parts by weight, pearl of 1 - 100 parts by weight and wax of 0.1 ~ 10 parts by weight into the space; iii) curing the resin mixture; and removing the blocking from the edges. In the preparation method according to the present invention, the terms such as panel, unsaturated polyester resin, pearl, and wax have the same meanings as defined above.

In step i), the making a blocking, as illustrated Fig. 1, is performed by treating the edges on one surface of the panel with means such as an adhesive tape or a wood lathe to create a space (frame) for a membrane (layer) of the resin mixture. The thickness (height) of the blocking corresponds to the thickness of a desired membrane, and preferably its thickness is 1 ~ 10mm. If it is less than lmm, the thickness of the membrane is too thin so the pattern blurs. Moreover, if it is more than 10mm, a crack may appear on the marble figure/pattern layer.

In step ii ), providing the components is performed by generally mixing the unsaturated polyester resin with pearl and dripping the wax. Specifically, the providing is performed by φ dripping wax onto the formed space on the panel, and then adding a mixture of unsaturated polyester resin and pearl; (2) adding a mixture of unsaturated polyester resin, pearl and wax into the space on the panel; (3) adding a mixture of unsaturated polyester resin and pearl into the space on the panel, and then dripping wax; or © dripping some wax on to the space on the panel, and then adding a mixture of unsaturated polyester resin and pearl, and then dripping the rest of wax.

As shown in Fig. 2 ~ Fig. 5, according to ways φ ~ ©, an artificial marble having a surface appearance with various figures and patterns may be produced.

In step i i ), a pigment can be further added into the mixture of unsaturated polyester resin and pearl, depending on the desired color, if needed. The pigment means that as defined above. When the pigment is added, as shown in Fig. 6 and Fig. 7, an artificial marble having a more colorful appearance may be produced.

In step iii), the membrane (layer) formed in the space of the panel in step ii ) is left for 1 ~ 24 hours at room temperature to be cured. After curing is completely, the blocking on the edges is removed and a complete artificial marble is produced.

As the occasion demands, before step i), if the panels are treated by wiping with thinner (with wet cloth), the adhesive property between unsaturated polyester resin and the panel becomes better. The thinner includes a poly-thinner for furniture. In addition, as the occasion demands, after step iii), polishing the prepared artificial marble is further performed by grinding its surface or by coating it with an unsaturated polyester resin. Grinding is commonly conducted with a grind paper. In the case of coating, a common film coating paper is used, or as disclosed in another patent application of the applicant (Korean patent application No. 2005-2011), a transparent unsaturated polyester resin is injected between the surface of the artificial marble and one surface of a glass plate coated with a release agent, then the marble and the glass are pressed against each other, and after curing the resin, the glass plate is detached from the marble to form a high-glossy coating on the marble.

The artificial marble produced may be finished to cut the edges of the panel which had a blocking.

Brief Description of the Drawings

Fig. l is a perspective view of the panel provided a blocking for preparing the artificial marble according to the present invention. Fig. 2 is a photograph showing a surface of an artificial marble obtained according to Example 1.

Fig. 3 is a photograph showing a surface of an artificial marble obtained according to Example 2.

Fig. 4 is a photograph showing a surface of an artificial marble obtained according to Example 3.

Fig. 5 is a photograph showing a surface of an artificial marble obtained according to Example 4.

Fig. 6 is a photograph showing a surface of an artificial marble obtained according to Example 5. Fig. 7 is a photograph showing a surface of an artificial marble obtained according to Example 6.

Fig. 8 is a cross-sectional view of an artificial marble (before removal of the blocking) according to the present invention.

(An explanation of the reference number in the drawings) 1 : panel 2: blocking 3: thickness of blocking (space height)

4: color-layer of marble figures/patterns

Best mode for carrying out the Invention

The present invention is further illustrated by the following examples, but these examples should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention.

Example Example 1

On four edges of one surface of the MDF panel (having a width of 1,500mm, a length of 910mm, and a thickness of 40mm), a blocking was made with the masking tape having a width of 50mm to form the space with the height of 3 mm. Wax (2g, made by OKONG Co.) was dripped onto the formed space, then a marble figures/patterns layer was formed by adding 3.6kg from the mixture of 18kg unsaturated polyester resin

(made by Shinkwang Paint Co.), 6Og pearly pearl (Merck) and 3Og gold pearl (Merck). Then, curing was carried out at room temperature for 24 hours, and then the masking tape was removed from the edges to produce an artificial marble. A photograph of the surface of the artificial marble was represented in Fig. 2.

Example 2

On four edges of one surface of the MDF panel (having a width of 1,500mm, a length of 910mm, and a thickness of 40mm), a blocking was made with the masking tape having a width of 50mm to form a space with a height of 3mm. Then the formed space was wiped by rubbing with a wet clothing of poly-thinner. Then, in the formed space, a marble figures/patterns layer was formed by adding 3.6kg from the mixture of

18kg unsaturated polyester resin (made by Shinkwang Paint Co.), 6Og pearly pearl (Merck), 30g copper pearl (Merck), and 1Og wax (made by OKONG Co.). Then, curing was carried out at room temperature for 24 hours, and then the masking tape was removed from the edges to produce an artificial marble. A photograph of the surface of the artificial marble was represented in Fig. 3.

Example 3 On four edges of one surface of the MDF panel (having a width of 1,500mm, a length of 910mm, and a thickness of 40mm), a blocking was made with the masking tape having a width of 50mm to form a space with a height of 3mm. Into the formed space was added 3.6kg from mixture of 18kg unsaturated polyester resin (made by Shinkwang Paint Co.), 6Og pearly pearl (Merck) and 3Og copper pearl (Merck), on which 2g wax (made by OKONG Co.) was dripped to form a marble figures/patterns layer. Then, curing was carried out at room temperature for 24 hours, and then the masking tape was removed from the edges to produce an artificial marble. A photograph of the surface of the artificial marble was represented in Fig. 4. Example 4 On four edges of one surface of the MDF panel (having a width of 1,500mm, a length of 910mm, and a thickness of 40mm), a blocking was made with the masking tape having a width of 50mm to form the space with the height of 3mm. A part of Wax (2g, made by OKONG Co.) was dripped onto the formed space, then it was added 3.6kg from the mixture of 18kg unsaturated polyester resin (made by Shinkwang Paint Co.), 6Og pearly pearl (Merck) and 5Og gold pearl (Merck), and then the rest of the wax (2g) was dripped to form a marble figures/patterns layer. Then, curing was carried out at room temperature for 24 hours, and then the masking tape was removed from the edges of the artificial marble. And then, 2kg transparent unsaturated polyester resin (made by Shinkwang Paint Co.) was injected between the surface of the marble figures/patterns layer and a glass plate coated with a release agent (Hyundai Co.) and were pressed against each other. After curing the resin, the glass plate was detached from the marble to produce a high-glossy coating artificial marble. A photograph of the surface of the artificial marble was represented in Fig. 5. Example 5 The same procedure as in Example 4 was conducted except that 1 g of red paint (Merck) further was added to the mixtures of unsaturated polyester resin and the pearls. A photograph of the surface of the artificial marble was represented in Fig. 6.

Example 6

The same procedure as in Example 4 was conducted except that 1 g of red paint (Merck) further was added to the mixtures of unsaturated polyester resin and the pearls. A photograph of the surface of the artificial marble was represented in Fig. 7.

As confirmed by the photographs shown in Fig. 2 ~ Fig. 7 of the surface of the artificial marble according to the present invention, by the preparation method of the present, it is possible to produce an artificial marble having various surface appearances and the natural, elegant feeling of pure marble.

Industrial Applicability

According to the present invention, an artificial marble having various surface appearances and the natural, elegant feeling of pure marble can be obtained. Further, the artificial marble according to the present invention is superior to natural marble in that it is lightweight and has high workability. Therefore, it can be used as material for interiors and exteriors of buildings and for top panels of furniture.

In particular, it can be used for top panels of furniture such as dining tables, cabinets, tables, drawers, and the like, for exterior materials, for a top panel of kitchen sink, for wall panels or toilet units, for washstands and interior decorations, and the like, as a substitute for expensive natural marble.

Claims

What is claimed:

1. A preparation method of an artificial marble having various surface appearances the natural, elegant feeling of pure marble, comprising the steps of: i) making a blocking on the edges of one surface of the panel to form a space with a desired height; ii ) providing an unsaturated polyester resin of 1000 parts by weight, pearl of 1 - 100 parts by weight and wax of 0.1 ~ 10 parts by weight into the space; iii) curing the resin mixture; and removing the blocking from the edges, wherein in step ii ), the providing the components is performed by one selected from the group consisting of:

(D dripping wax on to the formed space on the panel, and then add a mixture of unsaturated polyester resin and pearl;

(2) adding a mixture of unsaturated polyester resin, pearl and wax into the space on the panel;

(3) adding a mixture of unsaturated polyester resin and pearl into the space on the panel, and then drip a wax; and

2. The preparation method according to claim 1, wherein in step ii ), a pigment is further added into the mixture less than 30 parts by weight.

3. The preparation method according to claim 1, wherein before step i), the panels are treated by wiping with thinner.

4. The preparation method according to claim 1, wherein after step iii), polishing the artificial marble is further performed by grinding its surface, or by coating it with a common film-coating paper or with an unsaturated polyester resin.

5. An artificial marble made by the preparation method according to one or more of claims 1 ~ 4, wherein the artificial marble has various surface appearances and the natural, elegant feeling of pure marble.

6. An artificial marble having various surface appearances and the natural, elegant feeling of pure marble, comprising a panel, and on one surface of the panel, a marble figure/pattern layer comprising an unsaturated polyester resin of 1000 parts by weight, pearl of 1-100 parts by weight and wax of 0.1 ~ 10 parts by weight.

7. The artificial marble according to claim 6, wherein the marble figure/pattern layer further includes a pigment less than 30 parts by weight.