Reinforced board

Abstract

A composite board comprises feather barb reinforced resin. The resin is typically polyurethane, which may be foamed or unfoamed. One or both surfaces can be reinforced by embedded fiberglass mats. The products are hard, heat and weather resistant, flexible, stronger than plywood, light and screw retentive. The board is be molded from a polyurethane precursors-feather barb slurry with or without blowing agents and with or without one or two polyurethane saturated fiberglass mats embedded in the surface. Alternatively the board can be molded continuously using conveyor belts. The polyurethane is the same throughout in the fiberglass reinforced surface and the feather barb reinforced core, whether foamed or not.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0001] This invention relates to boards, siding, and similar products limited only by imagination of those skilled in the art. [0002] The invention includes a polyurethane core, unaffected by heat moisture and cold, which may be foamed or unfoamed. The polyurethane is reinforced by feather barbs. Feathers have two portions the quill and barbs growing from the quill. The separated barb portion is used as reinforcement. The product is hard, heat and weather resistant, and has screw retention, flex and tensile strength. [0003] The invention also includes a process of manufacture of board products comprising the steps of forming and curing a slurry of polyurethane precursors and feather barbs in molds or on conveyors. The polyurethane may foamed during the process. [0004] Preferably one or both faces of the board are reinforced by fiberglass mats embedded in its surface which are present during curing of the slurry. [0005] Although the invention is described and r...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0010] In one broad aspect the invention is directed to a cured resin board reinforced by feather barbs. Preferably the resin is polyurethane resin, more preferably foamed polyurethane resin. Preferably the board has a fiberglass mat embedded in at least one surface, more preferably both. The polyurethane may contain crosslinking agents, fillers, dyes, pigments, reinforcing agents, and similar additives as known to those skilled in the art. When foamed the polyurethane resin typically has densities of from about 5 to 10 lbs / cubic foot, or from about 0.08 to about 0.16, densities can vary from 1½ to 62½ lbs / cubic foot, or from about 0.025 (highly foamed) to about 1 (solid). While the feather barbs are preferably those from flight feathers having lengths in the case of chicken feathers up to about 1½ inches (3¾ cm), other feathers may be used, such as duck, geese and turkey flight feather barbs, which are longer, body feather barbs which are shorter, and chopped feather barbs, which may be as short as 80 microns (μm) or even shorter. Feather barbs from just about any species however exotic may be used, Grassman for example refers to ostrich and peacock feather barbs. As those skilled in the art are aware the commonest available feather barbs are those from domestic poultry used for food. Any avian feather barbs, conveniently fowl feather barbs, more preferably waterfowl feather barbs, even more preferably domestic fowl feather barbs, and most preferably domestic waterfowl feather barbs may be used. The boards may vary from about ¼ inch (6 mm) thick in the case of solid polyurethane resin, although it can be about 3 / 16 inch (5 mm) thick, having two fiberglass mats about 1 / 32 inch (0.8 mm) thick each, with a solid core about ⅛ inch (3 mm) up to about 1 inch thick, and about ¼ inch (6 mm) in the case of foamed polyurethane resin, up to 6 inches (15 cm) thick, in general the thicker the board the more foamed it is (the higher the foam content). The proportions of feather barbs is calculated by relative volume as mixed with the slurry, since the feather barbs are extremely light compared with the resin. In practice proportions by volume of from about 5% up to about 80% by volume of the resin-feather barb mixture have been found satisfactory by strength tests. Addition of feather barbs have been found to improve tensile strength, and screw resistance, to make the product light weight, and to make significant cost savings. Screw resistance is of significance in broadening application of the boards. Embedding a fiberglass mat throughout a surface of the board improves flex resistance considerably, generally both surfaces are so reinforced, but this is not necessary in every application. In general the resin itself, without feather barb reinforcement or fiberglass mat surface reinforcement is too brittle.

[0012] Preferably process and curing and, if applicable, foaming are performed at 100° F. (38° C.), which reduces viscosity from about 600 centipoise at room temperature to about 100 centipoise.

Problems solved by technology

Although feather barbs are known attempts to form a reinforced resin board using a mat of chicken feather barbs failed.

This was apparently due to failure of the resin to impregnate fully the feather barb mat, leaving voids in the cured reinforced resin.

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