Roofing materials

Abstract

A roofing or siding system having an improved average resulting reflectivity. The roofing and / or siding system is at least partially coated with a plurality of granules. The granules have an average reflectivity of at least about 55% and an average hardness of over about 3 Moh's.

Description

[0001] The present invention claims priority on U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60 / 347,714 filed Jan. 11, 2002 entitled “Roof With Highly-Reflective Particles”, which is incorporated herein by reference. [0002] The present invention relates to a roofing and / or siding materials, and more particularly to improved roofing and / or siding materials having increased reflectivity.INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE [0003] U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,379,358; 3,255,031; 3,479,201; 3,528,842; 4,120.132; 4,288,959; 4,478,869; 5,088,259; 5,474,838; 5,540,971; 5,573,810; 5,695,373; 5,813,176; 5,965,626; 6,110,846; 6,194,519; 6,207,593; 6,296,912; 6,296,921; 6,341,462; and 6,360,511 are incorporated herein by reference to illustrate various types of roofing and / or siding systems on which the granular material of the present invention can be used, to also illustrate various manufacturing techniques for making such roofing and / or siding systems, and / or to further illustrate various types of prior art gran...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0008] The present invention relates to roofing and / or siding materials and a method of making such materials having improved reflectivity, and more particularly to a granular material and method of applying the granular material to the surface of the roofing and / or siding materials resulting in improved the roofing and / or siding reflectivity. The present invention is applicable to all types of roofing and / or siding materials including, but not limited to, shingles, cap sheet roll roofing, modified bitumen, foam roofing, built-up roofing (BUR), metal roofing and / or siding, plastic roofing and / or siding, and wood roofing and / or siding.

[0009] Roofing systems having a bitumen- or asphalt-based water-resistant layer are well-known. Due to their chemical composition, these water-resistant layers are highly absorptive of radiation. In fact, these roofing layers may be regarded in an uncoated state as black-body absorbers; that is, they effectively absorb almost all of the radiation that impinges upon them. Such asphalt surfaces absorb radiation, thereby resulting in increased temperature which can result in thermal degradation of the roofing system and / or increase the cooling costs of the roofed structure. In warmer regions, the bitumen- or asphalt-based layer can be heated to temperatures that significantly soften the bitumen- or asphalt-based water-resistant layer, thereby exposing the softened layer to damage by foot traffic, as well as damage to an individual's shoes. As a result of these undesirable consequences of bitumen- or asphalt-based roofing coatings, a layer of granules is typically applied to the surface of the bitumen- or asphalt-based layer. The granules have been found to increase the life of the bitumen- or asphalt-based layer, and in some cases, reduce the temperature of the roof surface when exposed to the sunlight. The granules are also used to alter the appearance of the roof surface, provide weather protection to the roof surface, improve the fire rating of the roofing surface, reduce photo degradation of the roofing surface, improve impact resistance of the roofing surface (e.g. hail damage, foot traffic), improve slip resistance of the roofing surface, and / or provide an anti-blocking effect when the roofing material is rolled after manufacture. As a result, it is now common to embed a layer of roofing granules in an exposed surface of such a roofing system, whether that system be discrete membrane panels such as shingles, rolled membrane products (e.g. modified bitumen, cap sheet roll roofing), or formed in place membranes, such as are formed by mopping liquid bitumen- or asphalt based roofing material atop a roofing base.

Problems solved by technology

Such asphalt surfaces absorb radiation, thereby resulting in increased temperature which can result in thermal degradation of the roofing system and / or increase the cooling costs of the roofed structure.

In warmer regions, the bitumen- or asphalt-based layer can be heated to temperatures that significantly soften the bitumen- or asphalt-based water-resistant layer, thereby exposing the softened layer to damage by foot traffic, as well as damage to an individual's shoes.

As a result of these undesirable consequences of bitumen- or asphalt-based roofing coatings, a layer of granules is typically applied to the surface of the bitumen- or asphalt-based layer.

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