Foam envelope for sealing large volumes

Abstract

The article includes a tube and at least one thermoplastic pouch inserted within the tube, the tube including an upper section, a lower section, an inner section, and an outer section, the tube including an inner layer and an outer layer, the inner layer being a permeable nonwoven fabric and the outer layer being a semi-permeable membrane that is permeable to vapor but impermeable to liquids, the tube having a plurality of holes penetrating the inner and outer layers of the upper and / or lower section of the tube, the pouch being positioned within the tube such that the pouch contacts the lower and inner sections of the tube, and the pouch contains a foamable composition.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to foams used to fill cavities, cracks and crevices to improve sealing and insulation of buildings, and more specifically to foam systems contained within a sealed envelope such as a tube that can be placed within a volume to be sealed. Such a system that reduces installation time and the amount of foam raw material waste is desired by the market. [Background technology]

[0002] U.S. Patent No. 10,384,378 by O'Leary et al. describes a system for sealing large volumes or gaps that includes a flexible envelope that can take the shape of the volume when filled with a foamable composition, expanding the envelope to the boundaries of the volume. The foamable composition can be integral to the envelope or can be bulk-supplied by an external device. The foamable composition can be one or more parts, typically two parts such as polyisocyanate and polyol, in which case the two parts must be kept separate until foaming is desired. Separation can be accomplished by providing multiple compartments with a mixing device to deliver the ingredients to the interior. The envelope can include ribs for structural strength and shaping, and leak holes around the perimeter of the envelope for increased adhesion and sealing. The envelope can also include perforations for an overall modular seal or to separate portions of the envelope to seal irregular shapes.

[0003] U.S. Patent No. 8,882,483 to O'Leary et al. describes a system for sealing or insulating large volumes. The system includes an envelope having a wall defining an interior. The interior is configured to receive a foamable composition. The envelope is initially configured in a contracted configuration. The foamable composition is configured to be inserted into the interior of the envelope. The envelope is configured such that the foamable composition expands the envelope to fill large gaps.

[0004] U.S. Patent No. 9,561,606 by O'Leary et al. discloses a system for sealing large volumes or gaps, including a flexible envelope that can take the shape of the volume when filled with a foamable composition that expands the envelope to the volume's boundaries. The foamable composition can be integral to the envelope or can be bulk-supplied by an external device. The foamable composition can be one or more parts, typically two parts such as polyisocyanate and polyol, in which case the two parts must be kept separate until foaming is desired. Separation can be achieved by providing multiple compartments with a mixing device to deliver the ingredients to the interior. The envelope can include ribs for structural strength and shaping, and leak holes around the envelope for increased adhesion and sealing. The envelope can also include perforations for an overall modular seal or to separate portions of the envelope to seal irregular shapes.

[0005] U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 20210198411 by Certain Teed LLC teaches methods, apparatus and systems for insulating walls, ceilings, floors and other building structural associated cavities with foam insulation. In one aspect, the disclosure provides a method for providing expanded foam insulation to a building cavity. The method includes dispensing a quantity of expanded foam insulation into a cavity, the expanded foam insulation being dispenseable and expandable to provide an expanded foam insulation, the expanded foam insulation being formed from a premix including at least one polyol, at least one polyisocyanate, a blowing agent, and an encapsulated catalyst, the encapsulated catalyst including a plurality of catalyst capsules, each catalyst capsule including a quantity of catalyst and a capsule shell encapsulating the catalyst, the dispensing being performed to apply a force to the encapsulated catalyst sufficient to break the capsules and release the catalyst, the released catalyst initiating a reaction with the at least one polyol and the at least one isocyanate, and then allowing the dispensed quantity of expanded foam insulation to substantially finish expanding after the expanded foam insulation is dispensed into the cavity, thereby forming an expanded foam insulation in the cavity.

[0006] PCT Publication No. WO2020123232 by Davlin et al. discloses a method and system for applying foam insulation into a surface or cavity, including a sheet with an aperture, where the sheet covers or partially covers the surface or cavity with the aperture adjacent the surface or cavity. A pressure-activated foamer for foaming is coupled to the sheet. The pressure-activated foamer includes a frangible outlet seal having a rupture position. The pressure-activated foamer is positioned such that in the rupture position, foam has a path from the frangible outlet seal through the aperture and into the surface or cavity. The sheet is connected to cover or partially cover the surface or cavity, and the pressure-activated foamer is activated, causing foam to flow into the surface or cavity. Summary of the Invention [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The present invention provides an article 10 comprising a tube 11 having a length L, a width W and a height H, and at least one thermoplastic pouch 12 having a length l and a width w inserted within the tube, The tube includes an upper section 13, a lower section 14, an inner section 15, and an outer section 16; The tube includes an inner layer 17 and an outer layer 18, the inner layer 17 being a permeable nonwoven fabric, and the outer layer 18 being a semi-permeable membrane that is permeable to vapor but impermeable to liquids; The tube has a through-thickness Gurley air permeability of 1 to 2,000 seconds; The tube has a tensile modulus in the L direction of 300 to 450 MPa and a tensile modulus in the W direction of 200 to 320 MPa, The tube has a plurality of holes extending through the inner layer 17 and the outer layer 18 of the upper section 13 and / or the lower section 14 of the tube 11; The pouch length l is greater than the pouch width w. The pouch is positioned within the tube such that the pouch contacts the lower section 14 and the inner section 15 of the tube, and the pouch extends over an area W that is less than or equal to 45% of the entire tube width W. maxextends across the tube width W at Pouch 12 relates to article 10 and contains a foamable composition.

[0008] Methods of using the articles are also disclosed. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] 1 is a perspective view of an article of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 1 is an end view of an article of the present invention. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a top view of one embodiment of a pouch. [Figure 4] FIG. 13 is a plan view of another embodiment of a pouch. [Diagram 5] FIG. 1 is an end view of an article inserted into a gap space between building joint surfaces. [Figure 6] FIG. 1 is an end view of a building joint. [Figure 7] FIG. 1 is an end view of a window to building wall joint with a tube inserted into the gap between the window and the building wall. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0010] Goods FIG. 1 shows an article generally at 10 including a tube 11 having a length L, width W and height H, and at least one pouch 12 inserted within the tube. In some embodiments, the width W and height H of the tube are the same dimensions, i.e., the tube has a circular cross-section. The width W and / or height H of the tube may vary depending on the application. In one example, a circular unexpanded tube may have an outside diameter of 50-100 mm. The length L of the tube should be, at a minimum, long enough to cover the length of the gap within the cavity to be filled with foam.

[0011] tube As shown in FIG. 2, the tube includes an upper section 13, a lower section 14, an inner section 15, and an outer section 16. The inner section 15 faces the interior of the building, while the outer section 16 faces the exterior. The tube includes an inner layer 17 and an outer layer 18, the inner layer 17 being a nonwoven fabric, and the outer layer 18 being a semipermeable membrane, such as a flash-spun polyethylene nonwoven fabric or a microporous thin film, an SMS sheet, or an SMMS sheet, which is permeable to vapors but impermeable to liquids. The SMS sheet is a three-layer structure including a spunbond layer, a meltblown layer, and a spunbond layer. Although the SMS sheet has three constituent layers, the SMS sheet is sold in the industry as a unitary rolled product, and therefore is considered a single layer 18 for the purposes of this specification. The SMMS sheet is a four-layer structure including a spunbond layer, two meltblown layers, and a spunbond layer. Although there are four constituent layers in the SMMS sheet, SMMS sheet is sold in the industry as a unitary rolled good and, therefore, is considered a single layer 18 for purposes of this specification.

[0012] The tube has a through-thickness Gurley air permeability of 1 to 2000 seconds as measured in accordance with EN ISO 5636-5:2013. This range is sufficient to allow gas to escape during the foam expansion process.

[0013] The tube must be flexible enough to expand during the foaming process, but not so flexible that it bursts. A tube having a L-direction tensile modulus of 300-450 MPa and a W-direction tensile modulus of 200-320 MPa according to EN ISO 527-1:2019 meets this requirement. In some embodiments, the tube has a L-direction tensile modulus of 340-440 MPa and a W-direction tensile modulus of 205-305 MPa.

[0014] Except where the tube has a circular cross section, the upper section 13 and the lower section 14 are of the same size, and the inner section 15 and the outer section 16 are of the same size but smaller than the sizes of the upper section 13 and the lower section 14. Preferably, the ratio of the tube width W to the tube height H is between 20:1 and 2.3:1.

[0015] In some embodiments, the tube has two spaced apart flow restrictors 19a and 19b extending along the length of the tube that are attached to the outer surface 20 of the outer layer 18 of the tube at the upper section 13 of the tube. These flow restrictors are shown in both Figures 1 and 2.

[0016] In another embodiment, the tube has two spaced apart flow restrictors 19c and 19d extending along the length of the tube that are attached to the outer surface 20 of the outer layer 18 of the tube at the lower section 14 of the tube. These flow restrictors are shown in FIG.

[0017] In yet another embodiment, the tube has two spaced apart flow restrictors 19a and 19b in the upper section and two spaced apart flow restrictors 19c and 19d in the lower section 14 of the tube, these four flow restrictors extending along the length of the tube and attached to the outer surface 20 of the outer layer 18 of the tube.

[0018] The tube has a plurality of holes, shown as black dots in FIG. 1, penetrating the inner layer 17 and outer layer 18 of the tube at the upper section 13 and / or lower section 14 of the tube, and if two spaced apart flow restrictors 19a and 19b are present at the upper section 13 of the tube and / or if two spaced apart flow restrictors 19c and 19d are present at the lower section 14 of the tube, the holes are restricted to the portion of the tube between the two spaced apart flow restrictors 19a and 19b and / or the two spaced apart flow restrictors 19c and 19d. The holes may be circular, square, rectangular, hexagonal or other shape and are arranged randomly, in a line or in some other arrangement. A preferred pattern is two rows of lines spaced about 10 mm apart. Typically the holes are spaced apart from each other by about 2-10 mm. 2 The spacing between the holes is about 4 to 30 mm.

[0019] In a preferred embodiment, the inner layer 17 of the tube 11 is a nonwoven fabric of spunbond polypropylene fibers, an exemplary material also available under the trade name Typar® from DuPont de Nemours Inc., Wilmington, Del. In some embodiments, the polymer of the fibers has a tenacity of 240 to 430 kg / m 3 has a density of

[0020] In another embodiment, the outer layer 18 is a nonwoven sheet of flash-spun polyethylene fibers, an exemplary material also available from DuPont under the trade name Tyvek®. In some embodiments, the polymer of the fibers has a viscosity of 930 to 970 kg / m 3 has a density of

[0021] Pouch The pouch 12 is thermoplastic and has a length l and a width w, as shown in Figure 3, where the length l is greater than the width w. The pouch 12 is positioned within the tube 11 such that the pouch 12 contacts the lower section 14 and the inner section 15 of the tube. As shown in Figure 2, the pouch width is within a range W which is less than or equal to 45% of the tube width W. max1. The pouch extends across the tube width W at a distance W from the wall 27. This is a desirable feature as it prevents the pouch from being punctured when the tube is installed in the cavity. For example, FIG. 7 shows a typical installation where a portion of a building wall is shown as 27, portions of a window frame are shown as 28a and 28b, and the window glass is 29. The tube 11 is inserted between the wall 27 and the window frame 28a. A fastening means 30, such as a nail or screw, connects the window frame 28a to the wall 27 and holds the window assembly in place. The fastening means 30 penetrates the tube 11 and, if present, between the two flow restrictors 19a and 19b and / or between the two flow restrictors 19c and 19d. The extent to which the pouch extends across the tube width W is referred to as W. max By limiting the value of the fastening means to be less than or equal to 45% of the tube width W, the risk of the fastening means perforating the pouch is eliminated.

[0022] The pouch 12 contains a foamable composition.

[0023] Preferably, there are multiple pouches 12 in the tube 11. The spacing between adjacent pouches may vary, but is typically 50-1000 mm, preferably 400-600 mm, more preferably 450-550 mm or even 300-500 mm. Preferably, adjacent pouches are connected to each other by a connecting means such as a thermoplastic tape or ribbon.

[0024] In one embodiment, all components of the foamable composition are in one pouch but remain inactive until an initiation step is enabled, which can be by means such as ultrasound, gas pressure blast, heat, or appropriate frequencies in the electromagnetic spectrum such as infrared or ultraviolet light.

[0025] In another embodiment, as shown in Figures 3 and 4, the pouch 12 comprises a first compartment C1 and a second compartment C2, the compartments being separated by at least one frangible barrier 21, the first compartment C1 containing a first foamable composition component and the second compartment C2 containing a second foamable composition component. In Figure 3, there is only one frangible barrier 21, while in Figure 4, there are two frangible barriers 21a and 21b separating the first and second compartments.

[0026] In one embodiment, the first section C1 and the second section C2 each have a length of about 70 mm, a width of about 30 mm, and a thickness of about 12 mm. In some embodiments, the first section and the second section may have different lengths.

[0027] If multiple pouches are present, the multiple pouches may have the same or different lengths.

[0028] By frangible barrier is meant a material that separates two compartments but can be easily broken by a disruptive means to allow the chemical components of the two compartments to intimately mix and react to form a foam. Suitable materials for frangible barriers include ethylene copolymer ionomers such as Surlyn® available from Dow, Midland, MI. Suitable disruptive means include mechanical, ultrasonic, gas pressure blast, heat, or suitable frequencies of the electromagnetic spectrum such as infrared or ultraviolet. Exemplary mechanical disruptive means are manual manipulation, hammers, rollers, or rod pullers.

[0029] 4, the static mixer 22 is located between two spaced apart frangible barriers 21a and 21b that separate the first and second compartments. Static mixers are devices well known in the fluid mixing art.

[0030] In some embodiments, the pouch structure is a multi-layer assembly, for example, of 3-7 or 4-6 components. An exemplary structure for a pouch is an ionic resin layer, such as Surlyn®, a first adhesive or tie layer, a first polyester layer, a second adhesive or tie layer, and a second polyester layer. The second polyester layer may have a metal coating deposited on its outer surface, the coating being about 30 nanometers thick. A preferred metal material is aluminum. An alternative form for the second polyester layer is a metal foil, such as aluminum, with a typical thickness of about 50 micrometers.

[0031] A suitable adhesive is Bynel®. Another exemplary construction includes a layer of Surlyn®, a layer of Bynel® adhesive, an ethylene vinyl alcohol (EVOH) copolymer layer, a layer of Bynel® adhesive, a layer of low density polyethylene (LDPE), and a layer of oriented polyethylene (OPET).

[0032] Preferably, the two edges of the tube 11 are sealed by suitable means such as adhesive bonding or ultrasonic welding, as shown at 32 in Figure 7. Also shown in Figure 7 is a vapor control layer or liquid sealant 31 covering the inner section 15 of the tube 11 and extending partially onto the upper section 13 and lower section 14 of the tube 11. This vapor control layer may be made from polyethylene, ethylene vinyl alcohol copolymer (EVOH) or polyvinyl alcohol (PVOH) or a metal foil such as aluminum.

[0033] Foamable Composition By foamable composition is meant a composition where when all ingredients are combined and the reaction is initiated or activated, the ingredients of the foamable composition in the pouch 12 react to form an expandable foam, which then bursts the pouch 12, expands the tube 11, and escapes through the tube holes in the upper section 13 and / or lower section 14 of the tube and between the two spaced apart flow restrictors 19a and 19b and / or 19c and 19d extending along the length of the tube, if present, to fill the gap 26 between the building joints 24 and 25 of the building structure as shown in FIG. 6, and then cures in place, thus providing an airtight and water impermeable seal.

[0034] In an embodiment where the pouch comprises a first compartment C1 and a second compartment C2, the first foamable composition component in the first compartment C1 comprises an isocyanate and the second foamable composition component in the second compartment C2 comprises a polyol. The isocyanate composition may be formulated to have a monomeric diisocyanate content of less than 1 weight percent or even less than 0.1 weight percent, such formulations being well known to those skilled in the art. The second foamable composition component may further comprise a catalyst and / or a blowing agent.

[0035] In some embodiments, the composition may also include particles with major dimensions of 1 mm or less that act as nuclei for bubble formation, thus imparting small pore sizes to the expanded foam. Exemplary particles are graphite, microballoons, and calcite. For polyurethane foam compositions, these additional particles are incorporated into the second foamable composition component (polyol). Non-polyurethane two-component chemicals are also suitable as foamable compositions, for example those based on epoxy or silicone systems. In this case, the nucleation particles remain separated from both major components until the time of mixing. This requires that these particles are located in a third compartment as shown between the two frangible barriers 21a and 21b in FIG. 4. Other particles may function to aid in the mixing of the reagents. For example, ferromagnetic or magnetic particles can enhance mixing when an external magnetic source is applied. This magnetic source is a magnetic field or a magnetic rod. Other particles may respond to an external ultrasonic source and then enhance mixing.

[0036] Other functionality-imparting additives are flame retardants, pigments and fillers such as fibers, filaments, fibrils, and pulps such as glass or aramid pulp. In some embodiments, the addition of p-aramid pulp, present in an amount of 0.05 to 3.0 weight percent of the foam composition, has been shown to be beneficial. This type of pulp includes highly fibrillated chopped p-aramid fibers having lengths of 1,000 micrometers or less. Preferably, the fiber diameter is about 50 micrometers. The pulp can be added to either the first foamable composition component, i.e., the isocyanate, or the second foamable composition component, i.e., the polyol. Foamed polyurethane compositions incorporating p-aramid pulp exhibit improved compressive strength and modulus with similar expansion and acceptable flexibility compared to foamable compositions without the pulp additive. This improved compression or modulus enhances the impact absorption properties of sealed gaps in window surfaces, a desirable property in buildings where window expansion occurs in hot weather, for example.

[0037] A desirable property of the expanded foam is that it should be flexible enough to be compressed by at least 10%, more preferably at least 20% or at least 50%, when tested according to standard EN 826:2013.

[0038] Another desirable feature of the foam is that after one week of expansion, the foam should shrink no more than 20%, preferably no more than 10%, of the original expanded foam dimensions when tested according to the method disclosed in standard EN 1604:2013. This evaluation is performed at ambient temperature as well as at temperature cycles from -10 to +50°C.

[0039] In some embodiments, the foamable material contained in each pouch is the same. In some other embodiments, the foamable material contained in one pouch is different from the foamable material contained in another pouch, for example, some pouches may contain foamable materials that upon reaction provide a foam with a higher density but lower expansion than foam produced from other pouches, and the foamable materials contained in these other pouches have different chemical compositions. Such a feature can reduce or even eliminate the need for mechanical fastening of the window with nails or screws.

[0040] Practicality The invention described above finds utility in new construction or in the retrofit of existing buildings where there are gaps to be filled. Typical applications include sealing the gap between a window and a wall, between a door and a wall, between a wall and a roof, between two walls, and sealing the gap between two adjacent prefabricated building panels or modules. These are sometimes referred to as building joints.

[0041] Method for sealing gaps between building joints In one embodiment, a method for sealing the gap 26 between building joints 24 and 25 includes: Providing an article 10 including a tube 11 and at least one thermoplastic pouch 12 inserted within the tube 11, The tube 11 has a length L, a width W and a height H, and the at least one thermoplastic pouch 12 has a length l and a width w; The tube includes an upper section 13, a lower section 14, an inner section 15, and an outer section 16; The tube includes an inner layer 17 and an outer layer 18, the inner layer 17 being a nonwoven fabric, and the outer layer 18 being a semipermeable membrane that is permeable to vapor but impermeable to liquids; The tube has a through-thickness Gurley air permeability of 1 to 2,000 seconds; The tube has a tensile modulus in the L direction of 300 to 450 MPa and a tensile modulus in the W direction of 200 to 320 MPa, The tube has a plurality of holes extending through the inner layer 17 and the outer layer 18 of the upper section 13 and / or the lower section 14 of the tube; The pouch length l is greater than the pouch width w. The pouch is positioned within the tube such that the pouch contacts the lower section 14 and the inner section 15 of the tube, and the pouch extends over an area W that is less than or equal to 45% of the entire tube width W. max extends across the tube width W at The pouch 12 contains a foamable composition; inserting the article 10 into the gap 26 between building joints 24 and 25; activating the foamable composition in the pouch 12 such that the components of the foamable composition react to form an expanding foam, which then bursts the pouch 12, expands the tube 11 and escapes through the tube holes located in the upper section 13 and / or the lower section 14 of the tube and, if present, between the two spaced apart flow restrictors 19a and 19b in the upper section 13 of the tube and / or the two spaced apart flow restrictors 19c and 19d in the lower section 14 of the tube, which flow restrictors extend along the length of the tube, the expanding foam filling the void 26 between the building joints 24 and 25 of the building structure and then curing in situ into a foamed structure that provides an airtight and water impermeable seal. Includes.

[0042] In some embodiments, the effervescent material contained in one pouch is different from the effervescent material contained in another pouch.

[0043] An optional step in the above method is to apply an adhesive means to either the lower section 14 of the tube 11 or the upper surface 23 of the building joint prior to inserting the tube 11 into the void 26. This adhesive means, which may be, for example, double-sided tape or hot melt adhesive, helps to hold the tube in the correct position.

[0044] In an alternative embodiment, a method for sealing the gap 26 between building joints 24 and 25 includes: Providing an article 10 including a tube 11 and at least one thermoplastic pouch 12 inserted into the tube 11, the pouch 12 including a first compartment C1 and a second compartment C2, the compartments being separated by at least one frangible barrier 21 or two frangible barriers 21a and 21b, the tube including an upper section 13, a lower section 14, an inner section 15 and an outer section 16; The tube includes an inner layer 17 and an outer layer 18, the inner layer 17 being a permeable nonwoven fabric, and the outer layer 18 being a semi-permeable membrane that is permeable to vapor but impermeable to liquids; The tube has a through-thickness Gurley air permeability of 1 to 2,000 seconds; The tube has a tensile modulus in the L direction of 300 to 450 MPa and a tensile modulus in the W direction of 200 to 320 MPa, The tube has a plurality of holes extending through the inner layer 17 and the outer layer 18 of the upper section 13 and / or the lower section 14 of the tube; The pouch length l is greater than the pouch width w. The pouch is positioned within the tube such that the pouch contacts the lower section 14 and the inner section 15 of the tube, and the pouch extends over an area W that is less than or equal to 45% of the entire tube width W. max extends across the tube width W at The pouch 12 contains a foamable composition; inserting the article 10 into the gap between building joints 24 and 25; Activating the foamable composition within the pouch by breaking the frangible barrier 21 or 21a and 21b separating the first section C1 and the second section C2 of each compartment of the pouch 12 by a breaking means, thereby allowing the first composition and the second composition to mix, react and form an expandable foam, which then bursts the pouch 12, expands the tube 11 and escapes through the tube holes located in the upper section 13 and / or the lower section 14 of the tube 11 and between the two spaced apart flow restrictors 19a and 19b and / or 19c and 19d, if present, extending along the length of the tube 11 to fill the void 26 between the building joints 24 and 25 of the building structure and then hardens in situ into a foamed structure providing an airtight and water impermeable seal. Includes.

[0045] The disruption means can be mechanical, ultrasonic, gas pressure blast, heat or any suitable frequency in the electromagnetic spectrum such as infrared or ultraviolet. Exemplary mechanical disruption means include manual manipulation, hammers, rollers or rod extraction.

[0046] In some embodiments, the effervescent material contained in one pouch is different from the effervescent material contained in another pouch.

[0047] An optional step in the above method is to apply an adhesive means to either the lower section 14 of the tube 11 or the upper surface 23 of the building joint prior to inserting the tube 11 into the void 26. This adhesive means, which may be, for example, double-sided tape or hot melt adhesive, helps to hold the tube in the correct position.

[0048] Test Method The free rise density of the foam was measured according to ASTM D7487-13: Standard Practice for Polyurethane Raw Materials: Polyurethane Foam Cup Test.

[0049] The dynamic compressive strength and compressive modulus of the foams were measured according to EN ISO 844-2021: Rigid Cellular Plastics. EXAMPLES

[0050] All parts and percentages are by weight unless otherwise specified. Examples made in accordance with the invention are indicated by numerical values. Control or comparative examples are indicated by letter.

[0051] The article of Example 1 may be evaluated within the void space between two building components, the space having nominal dimensions of 4.2 m length, 77 mm width and 25 mm thickness.

[0052] Comparative Example A was evaluated in a gap space between two building components, which had nominal dimensions of 4.2 m length, 77 mm width and 25 mm thickness.

[0053] In Example 1, the outer layer 18 is Tyvek® window tape grade 1310PT, a polyethylene terephthalate-polyamide nonwoven film available from DuPont de Nemours Inc, Wilmington, Del. The inner layer 17 can be a 60 gsm sheet of Typar® SF20, also from DuPont. In Example 1, holes 2 mm in diameter were placed in a zigzag pattern in two spaced apart lines in the upper section 13 of the tube.

[0054] The foamable material may consist of four pouches of Instapak® QuickRT® packaging foam from Sealed Air Corporation, Elmwood Park, NJ. Each pouch contained two compartments separated by a frangible barrier, one compartment containing the polyol and the other compartment containing the isocyanate. Two of the pouches contained 75 g of reactive material and two of the pouches contained 100 g of reactive material, yielding a total of 350 g of foamable composition. The frangible barrier may be broken by manual manipulation, allowing the reagents to react and form the foam.

[0055] Comparative Example A represents the current state of the art in the industry and consisted of injecting a one-component polyurethane foam sealant, InstaStik Flex+, from DuPont into the gap and allowing the foamable material to expand, cure, and solidify. Any foam extending beyond the plane of the exterior surfaces of the two building components was removed and smoothed flush. DuPont's Tyvek® Window Tape Sealant Grade 1310PT was then applied over the smoothed foam, overlapping the building components. The amount of foam was 375 g.

[0056] The measured installation times included prep work, pouch installation, foam activation, foam expansion and curing, finishing steps, and flashing application. An example was deemed satisfactory and beneficial to the industry if the installation time was 30 minutes or less. Example 1 had an installation time of less than 30 minutes, while Comparative Example A had an installation time of about 60 minutes.

[0057] Further improvements The benefit of enhanced compressive tensile and modulus performance from the cured foam was achieved by the addition of p-aramid pulp to the foamable composition. The pulp, DuPont merge 1K1957, had a nominal fiber diameter of 50 micrometers and a fiber length of less than 1 mm. The pulp was added to the polyol component of the isocyanate-polyol foamable composition such that the pulp comprised 0.4 weight percent (Example 2) or 0.8 weight percent (Example 3) of the composition. The isocyanate (Voronate™ M230) comprised 60 weight percent of the foamable composition, and the polyol component comprised the remaining 40 weight percent. The polyol component included 32 weight percent Voranol™ polyether polyol, 6 weight percent water, and 2 weight percent catalyst. In the examples containing p-aramid pulp, the amount of polyol was reduced by 0.4 or 0.8 weight percent. The sample without the pulp component was the control (Comparative Example B). These compositions were foamed and specimens were subjected to compression and modulus testing, and the resulting values ​​were normalized to account for variations in foam density (free rise density) of the test samples.

[0058] The test standard was EN ISO 844-2021. The foamed test samples had a thickness of 16 mm, and each foamed test sample was compressed by 3 mm. The dynamic compressive strength was measured by applying a strain of 18.75%, and then the compressive load was released for 60 seconds. This procedure was repeated four more times. The compressive modulus was measured according to the EN ISO 844-2021 standard. The results are shown in Table 1.

[0059] [Table 1]

Claims

1. An article 10 comprising a tube 11 having length L, width W and height H, and at least one thermoplastic pouch 12 having length l and width w, which is inserted into the tube, The tube includes an upper section 13, a lower section 14, an inner section 15, and an outer section 16. The tube comprises an inner layer 17 and an outer layer 18, wherein the inner layer 17 is a permeable nonwoven fabric, and the outer layer 18 is a semipermeable membrane that is permeable to vapor but impermeable to liquid. The tube has a Gurley permeability in the thickness direction of 1 to 2,000 seconds. The tube has a tensile modulus in the L direction of 300 to 450 MPa and a tensile modulus in the W direction of 200 to 320 MPa. The tube has a plurality of holes that penetrate the inner layer 17 and outer layer 18 of the upper section 13 and / or the lower section 14 of the tube. The pouch length l is greater than the width w. The pouch is positioned inside the tube such that it contacts the lower section 14 and the inner section 15 of the tube, and the pouch is within a range W of 45% or less of the total width W of the tube. max And extends in a direction that crosses the tube width W, and The pouch 12 contains an article 10 containing a foaming composition.

2. The pouch 12 is the first compartment C 1 and the second section C 2 The compartment is separated by at least one fragile barrier 21, and the first compartment C 1 This contains the first foaming composition component, and the second compartment C 2 The article 10 according to claim 1, wherein the article contains a second foaming composition component.

3. A method for sealing the gap 26 between building joints 24 and 25, A step of providing an article 10 comprising a tube 11 and at least one thermoplastic pouch 12 inserted inside the tube 11, The tube 11 has a length L, a width W, and a height H, and the at least one thermoplastic pouch 12 has a length l and a width w. The tube includes an upper section 13, a lower section 14, an inner section 15, and an outer section 16. The tube comprises an inner layer 17 and an outer layer 18, wherein the inner layer 17 is a permeable nonwoven fabric, and the outer layer 18 is a semipermeable membrane that is permeable to vapor but impermeable to liquid. The tube has a Gurley permeability in the thickness direction of 1 to 2,000 seconds. The tube has a tensile modulus in the L direction of 300 to 450 MPa and a tensile modulus in the W direction of 200 to 320 MPa. The tube has a plurality of holes that penetrate the inner layer 17 and outer layer 18 of the upper section 13 and / or the lower section 14 of the tube. The pouch length l is greater than the width w. The pouch is positioned inside the tube such that it contacts the lower section 14 and the inner section 15 of the tube, and the pouch is within a range W of 45% or less of the total width W of the tube. max And extends in a direction that crosses the tube width W, and The pouch 12 contains the foaming composition, step, The step of inserting the article 10 into the gap 26 between the building joints 24 and 25, A step of activating the foaming composition in the pouch 12 so that the components of the foaming composition react to form an expandable foam, the foam then bursts the pouch 12, expands the tube 11, and escapes through the tube holes in the upper section 13 and / or the lower section 14 of the tube, and between two spaced flow limiters 19a and 19b and / or two spaced flow limiters 19c and 19d that, if present, extend along the length of the tube, to fill the gap 26 between the building joints 24 and 25 of the building structure, and then hardens in place to form a foamed structure, thus providing an airtight and water-impermeable seal. A method that includes this.

4. A method for sealing the gap 26 between building joints 24 and 25, A step of providing an article 10 comprising a tube 11 and at least one thermoplastic pouch 12 inserted inside the tube 11, The tube 11 has a length L, a width W, and a height H, and the at least one thermoplastic pouch 12 has a length l and a width w. The tube includes an upper section 13, a lower section 14, an inner section 15, and an outer section 16. The tube comprises an inner layer 17 and an outer layer 18, wherein the inner layer 17 is a permeable nonwoven fabric, and the outer layer 18 is a semipermeable membrane that is permeable to vapor but impermeable to liquid. The tube has a Gurley permeability in the thickness direction of 1 to 2,000 seconds. The tube has a tensile modulus in the L direction of 341 to 441 MPa and a tensile modulus in the W direction of 207 to 308 MPa. The tube has a plurality of holes that penetrate the inner layer 17 and outer layer 18 of the upper section 13 and / or lower section 14 of the tube. The pouch length l is greater than the width w. The pouch 12 is positioned inside the tube such that it contacts the lower section 14 and the inner section 15 of the tube, and the pouch is within a range W of 45% or less of the total width W of the tube. max And extending in a direction that crosses the tube width W, The pouch 12 includes a first compartment C 1 and a second compartment C 2 and the compartments are separated by at least one frangible barrier 21 or 21a and 21b The pouch 12 contains the foaming composition, step, The step of inserting the article 10 into the gap between the building joints, The first section C of each compartment of the pouch 12 1 and the second section C 2 Steps include: activating the foamy composition in the pouch by destroying the fragile barrier 21 separating the first and second compositions with a destructive means, thereby enabling the first and second compositions to mix, react, and form an expandable foam, the foam then bursting the pouch 12, expanding the tube 11, and escaping through the tube holes in the upper section 13 and / or the lower section 14 of the tube 11, and between two spaced flow limiters 19a and 19b and / or 19c and 19d extending along the length of the tube 11, if present, filling the gap 26 between the building joints 24 and 25 of the building structure, and then curing in place to form a foamed structure, thus providing an airtight and water-impermeable seal; A method that includes this.

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