Components for manufacturing environmentally friendly mattress pads, methods for manufacturing environmentally friendly mattress pads, and environmentally friendly mattress pads.

Abstract

The composition for manufacturing environmentally friendly insoles includes recycled polymer scraps, recycled fiber scraps, and a polyether adhesive. The average particle size of the recycled polymer scraps and recycled fiber scraps is 0.3 mm to 5 mm. The recycled polymer scraps are made of thermoplastic polyurethane and / or ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer and are derived from recycled insole bodies, waste generated during the manufacturing process of thermoplastic polyurethane and / or ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer, and scraps generated during the manufacturing of insole bodies. The recycled fiber scraps are made of plant fibers, animal fibers, and / or synthetic fibers and are derived from fabrics attached to recycled insole bodies. Based on 100 parts by weight of the polyether adhesive, the content of recycled polymer scraps is 260 to 340 parts by weight, and the content of recycled fiber scraps is 10 to 100 parts by weight.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] This invention relates to the recycling and processing of plastics, and in particular to components for manufacturing environmentally friendly mats, methods for manufacturing environmentally friendly mats, and environmentally friendly mats made from said components. [Previous Technology]

[0002] Currently, most insoles on the market have a pad made of thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) or ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer (EVA). Since insoles need to be in contact with the soles of the feet for a long time, most of them also have a fabric layer, such as breathable fiber cloth, attached to the surface of the pad to improve the breathability of the insole.

[0003] Due to rising environmental awareness, many manufacturers are attempting to recycle insoles and reprocess them to create new insoles. However, existing processing methods do not separate the fabric layers from the insole body first, resulting in the presence of rags in the recycled material. This makes it difficult to reprocess the recycled material into insoles, or affects the physical properties of the resulting insoles, rendering them unusable as insoles. Therefore, existing processing methods must first separate the fabric layers from the insole body one by one to ensure that the recycled material does not contain rags. However, this makes the entire recycling, processing, and manufacturing process cumbersome and time-consuming. [Summary of the Invention]

[0004] In view of this, one object of the present invention is to provide an environmentally friendly pad manufacturing composition that, although it contains both recycled polymer scraps and recycled fiber scraps, still enables the environmentally friendly pad made therefrom to have physical properties suitable for use as a shoe insole pad.

[0005] Another object of the present invention is to provide a method for manufacturing an environmentally friendly mat, which is simpler and more time-saving than conventional recycling and manufacturing methods.

[0006] Another object of the present invention is to provide an environmentally friendly pad, which is made of the components of the present invention and has physical properties suitable for use as a shoe insole pad.

[0007] To achieve the aforementioned objective, one aspect of the present invention provides a composition for manufacturing environmentally friendly insoles, comprising recycled polymer scraps, recycled fiber scraps, and a polyether-type adhesive. The recycled polymer scraps have an average particle size of 0.3 mm to 5 mm and are made of thermoplastic polyurethane and / or ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer. Furthermore, the recycled polymer scraps originate from recycled insole pads or from recycled insole pads combined with at least one of the following: waste generated during the manufacturing process of thermoplastic polyurethane and / or ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer, and scraps generated during the manufacturing of insole pads. The recycled fiber scraps have an average particle size of 0.3 mm to 5 mm and are made of plant fibers, animal fibers, synthetic fibers, or a mixture of at least two of the foregoing. Furthermore, the recycled fiber scraps originate from fabric attached to the pad of a recycled insole. Based on 100 parts by weight of the polyether adhesive, the content of the recycled polymer scrap is 260 to 340 parts by weight and the content of the recycled fiber scrap is 10 to 100 parts by weight.

[0008] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the average particle size of the recycled polymer fragments and the recycled fiber fragments is 0.5 mm to 1.5 mm.

[0009] To achieve the aforementioned objective, another aspect of the present invention provides a method for manufacturing an environmentally friendly mat, comprising: a recycling step, a crushing step, a heating and mixing step, and a cooling and molding step.

[0010] The recycling step is: collecting recycled insoles or collecting at least one of the following: waste generated during the manufacturing process of recycled insoles and thermoplastic polyurethane and / or ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer, and scraps generated during the manufacturing of the insole body, to obtain recycled material. The recycled insole includes an insole body and fabric attached to the insole body. The material of the insole body is thermoplastic polyurethane and / or ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer, and the material of the fabric is plant fiber, animal fiber, synthetic fiber, or a mixture of at least two of the above.

[0011] The crushing step is: crushing the recycled material to obtain recycled polymer fragments and recycled fiber fragments with an average particle size of 0.3 mm to 5 mm.

[0012] The heating and mixing step is as follows: based on 100 parts by weight of the polyether adhesive, 260 to 340 parts by weight of the recycled polymer scrap and 10 to 100 parts by weight of the recycled fiber scrap are heated and uniformly mixed with the polyether adhesive to obtain the composition.

[0013] The cooling and molding step is as follows: the composition obtained in the heating and mixing step is placed in a mold, cooled and molded, and then demolded to obtain an environmentally friendly mat.

[0014] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the crushing step is performed by crushing the recycled material using a shredder.

[0015] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the heating and mixing step is performed using a steam heating method with a temperature range of 100°C to 140°C.

[0016] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the cooling molding step is performed by placing a mold containing the composition in an oven at a temperature of 50°C to 60°C for 5 to 8 hours to cool it.

[0017] To achieve the aforementioned objective, another aspect of the present invention provides an environmentally friendly mat made from the components for manufacturing environmentally friendly mats of the present invention.

[0018] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the environmentally friendly pad has: a tear strength of 0.6 kg / cm or higher when measured according to ASTM D624 standard test method; an impact resilience of 24% to 28% when measured according to ASTM D2632 standard test method; a specific gravity of 0.19 to 0.27 g / cm3 when measured according to NIKE test specification G43; and an ASKER C hardness of 26 to 48 when measured according to NIKE test specification G45.

[0019] According to the present invention, an environmentally friendly pad manufacturing composition, an environmentally friendly pad made from the environmentally friendly pad manufacturing composition, and a method for manufacturing the environmentally friendly pad can be provided, so that the environmentally friendly pad, although containing recycled fiber scraps, still has the physical properties suitable for use as a shoe insole, and the manufacturing method of the present invention has the advantages of simplified process and time saving.

Implementation Method

[0020] The technology of the present invention will be described in more detail below with reference to specific embodiments of the present invention. However, the described embodiments and / or examples are only some embodiments and / or examples of the present invention, and not all embodiments and / or examples. Based on the embodiments and / or examples of the present invention, various modifications and variations made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the present invention are all within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0021] The present invention provides a composition for manufacturing an environmentally friendly mat, comprising: recycled polymer scraps, recycled fiber scraps, and a polyether adhesive.

[0022] Recycling polymer scrap

[0023] The material of the recycled polymer scrap can be thermoplastic polyurethane, ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer, or a mixture thereof. Furthermore, the average particle size of the recycled polymer scrap is preferably 0.3 mm to 5 mm, more preferably 0.5 mm to 1.5 mm. If the average particle size of the recycled polymer scrap is less than 0.3 mm, the adhesion between the scraps will be reduced, thereby affecting the formability of the subsequent environmentally friendly mat; if the average particle size of the recycled polymer scrap is greater than 5 mm, it will be more difficult to control the hardness of the subsequently produced environmentally friendly mat.

[0024] The recycled polymer scraps may be taken solely from the pads of the recycled insoles, or may be taken from the pads of the recycled insoles and at least one of the following: waste generated during the manufacture of thermoplastic polyurethane and / or ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymers and scraps generated during the manufacture of the pads of the insoles.

[0025] Recycled fiber scraps

[0026] The recycled fiber scraps can be plant fibers, animal fibers, synthetic fibers, or a mixture of at least two of the aforementioned. Furthermore, the average particle size of the recycled fiber scraps is preferably 0.3 mm to 5 mm, more preferably 0.5 mm to 1.5 mm. If the average particle size of the recycled fiber scraps is less than 0.3 mm, the adhesion between the scraps will be reduced, thereby affecting the formability of the resulting environmentally friendly mat; if the average particle size of the recycled polymer scraps is greater than 5 mm, it will be more difficult to control the hardness of the resulting environmentally friendly mat.

[0027] Recycled fiber scraps can be taken from the fabric attached to the pad of the recycled insole. In practical applications, the recycled insole can be directly shredded, that is, without separating the fabric layers and pad of the insole, both recycled polymer scraps and recycled fiber scraps can be obtained at the same time.

[0028] The polyether-type adhesive in this invention is not particularly limited, as long as it can uniformly mix and firmly bond the recycled polymer fragments and recycled fiber fragments.

[0029] In the composition for manufacturing the environmentally friendly mat of the present invention, based on 100 parts by weight of polyether adhesive, the content of recycled polymer scrap is preferably about 260 to 340 parts by weight, and the content of recycled fiber scrap is preferably about 10 to 100 parts by weight, more preferably about 40 to 100 parts by weight. If the content of recycled polymer scrap is less than 260 parts by weight, the physical properties of the resulting environmentally friendly mat will deteriorate; if the content of recycled polymer scrap is more than 340 parts by weight, the physical properties of the resulting environmentally friendly mat will also deteriorate, especially the hardness will be too high. In addition, if the content of recycled fiber scrap is less than 10 parts by weight, the content of recycled polymer scrap will be too high, which is less environmentally friendly; if the content of recycled fiber scrap is more than 100 parts by weight, the physical properties of the resulting environmentally friendly mat will deteriorate.

[0030] On the other hand, the present invention also provides an environmentally friendly pad, which is made from the components for manufacturing environmentally friendly pads described above. Although the environmentally friendly pad contains recycled fiber scraps, it still has the physical properties suitable for use as an insole. Preferably, the environmentally friendly pad has: a tear strength of 0.6 kg / cm or higher when measured according to ASTM D624 standard test method; an impact resilience of 24% to 28% when measured according to ASTM D2632 standard test method; a specific gravity of 0.19 to 0.27 g / cm3 when measured according to NIKE test specification G43; and an ASKER C hardness of 26 to 48 when measured according to NIKE test specification G45.

[0031] In another aspect, the present invention also provides a method for manufacturing an environmentally friendly mat. Please refer to Figure 1. The manufacturing method of the present invention includes the following steps.

[0032] Recycling Step S1: Obtain recycled material, which is recycled insole or recycled insole combined with at least one of the following: waste generated during the manufacturing process of thermoplastic polyurethane and / or ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer, and scraps generated during the manufacturing of the insole body. The recycled insole includes an insole body and fabric attached to the insole body. The material of the insole body may be thermoplastic polyurethane, ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer, or a mixture thereof, and the material of the fabric may be plant fiber, animal fiber, synthetic fiber, or a mixture of at least two of the foregoing.

[0033] Crushing step S2: Crush the recycled material obtained in recycling step S1 to obtain recycled polymer fragments and recycled fiber fragments with an average particle size of 0.3 mm to 5 mm.

[0034] In this invention, the crushing step S2 can be performed by using a shredder to crush the recycled material.

[0035] Heating and mixing step S3: The recycled polymer scraps, the recycled fiber scraps, and the polyether adhesive are heated and mixed evenly to obtain a composition, wherein, based on 100 parts by weight of the polyether adhesive, the content of the recycled polymer scraps is 260 to 340 parts by weight and the content of the recycled fiber scraps is 10 to 100 parts by weight.

[0036] In this invention, the heating and mixing step S3 can be performed using steam heating, and the heating temperature range is 100°C to 140°C. If the heating temperature is below 100°C, water vapor cannot be generated, thus preventing the reaction with the adhesive; if the heating temperature is above 140°C, the properties of the adhesive will be damaged, thereby affecting the physical properties of the resulting environmentally friendly mat.

[0037] Cooling and molding step S4: Place the components obtained in the heating and mixing step S3 into a mold, cool and mold, and then demold to obtain the environmentally friendly mat.

[0038] In this invention, the cooling molding step S4 can be performed by placing the mold containing the components in an oven at a temperature of 50°C to 60°C for 5 to 8 hours. If the cooling temperature is below 50°C, the drying efficiency will be poor due to the low temperature; if the cooling temperature is above 60°C, the physical properties of the resulting environmentally friendly mat will be affected. In addition, if the cooling time is less than 5 hours, the mat will not be completely cooled, while 8 hours of cooling is sufficient to completely cool the mat.

[0039] According to the present invention, an environmentally friendly pad manufacturing composition, an environmentally friendly pad made by the environmentally friendly pad manufacturing composition, and a method for manufacturing the environmentally friendly pad are provided, so that the environmentally friendly pad contains recycled fiber scraps but still has the physical properties suitable for use as a shoe insole. Furthermore, the manufacturing method of the present invention has the advantages of simplified process and time saving.

[0040] The technical content of the present invention will be further described below through specific embodiments. However, these embodiments are only for illustrating the present invention and should not be construed as limiting the present invention.

[0041] Example 1

[0042] The recycled insole was shredded into recycled polymer fragments and recycled fiber fragments with an average particle size of 3 mm using a shredder. 170 parts by weight of the recycled polymer fragments, 50 parts by weight of the recycled fiber fragments, and 50 parts by weight of the polyether adhesive were heated and mixed at approximately 120°C using steam heating to obtain a composition. The aforementioned composition was placed in a mold and cooled in an oven at 50°C to 60°C for 6 hours to obtain the environmentally friendly insole body of Example 1.

[0043] The environmentally friendly mat prepared in Example 1 was subjected to physical property tests such as tear strength, impact resilience, specific gravity and ASKER C hardness according to ASTM D624, ASTM D2632, NIKE test specification G43 and NIKE test specification G45, and the test results are recorded in Table 1 below.

[0044] Example 2

[0045] The environmentally friendly pad of Example 2 was prepared in a manner substantially the same as that of Example 1, except that: the recycled material was waste generated during the manufacturing process of recycled shoe insoles and thermoplastic polyurethane and / or ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer; the recycled polymer scraps were 150 parts by weight and the recycled fiber scraps were 35 parts by weight.

[0046] The environmentally friendly mat prepared in Example 2 was also tested for physical properties such as tear strength, impact resilience, specific gravity and ASKER C hardness. The test results are recorded in Table 1 below.

[0047] Example 3

[0048] The environmentally friendly pad of Example 3 was prepared in a manner substantially the same as that of Example 1, except that: the recycled material was recycled shoe insoles, waste generated during the manufacturing process of thermoplastic polyurethane and / or ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer, and scraps generated during the manufacturing of shoe insoles; the recycled polymer scraps were 130 parts by weight and the recycled fiber scraps were 20 parts by weight.

[0049] The environmentally friendly mat prepared in Example 3 was also tested for physical properties such as tear strength, impact resilience, specific gravity and ASKER C hardness. The test results are recorded in Table 1 below.

[0050] Comparative Example 1

[0051] The environmentally friendly mat of Comparative Example 1 was prepared in a manner substantially the same as that of Example 1, except that the average particle size of the recycled polymer scrap and the recycled fiber scrap was not 0.3 mm to 5 mm.

[0052] The results showed that Comparative Example 1 could not be successfully molded into a pad.

[0053] Comparative Example 2

[0054] The environmentally friendly mat of Comparative Example 2 was prepared in a manner substantially the same as that of Example 2, except that: the recycled polymer scraps were 75 parts by weight, the recycled fiber scraps were 75 parts by weight, and the polyether adhesive was 35 parts by weight.

[0055] The results showed that Comparative Example 2 could not be successfully molded into a pad.

[0056] Test Method

[0057] ASTM D624 Test (Tear Strength Test) The environmentally friendly mats of Examples 1 to 3 were tested using a tensile testing machine according to the ASTM D624 test specification. The detailed steps are as follows: The environmentally friendly mats of Examples 1 to 3 were cut into 50.8 mm × 50.8 mm specimens. The thickness of the specimens was measured. The speed of the tensile testing machine was set to 500 mm / min. The specimens were clamped between the upper and lower clamps, and the machine was started. The maximum tensile force after the specimen broke was recorded. The tear strength was calculated using the following formula: Tear Strength = Maximum Tensile Force ÷ Thickness (Formula 1)

[0058] ASTM D2632 Test (Impact Resilience Test) The environmentally friendly mats of Examples 1 to 3 were measured using a universal tensile testing machine according to the ASTM D2632 test specification. Detailed steps were as follows: The environmentally friendly mats of Examples 1 to 3, with a thickness between 12.5 ± 0.5 mm, were cut into 50.8 mm × 50.8 mm test pieces. The test pieces were placed on the test platform and centered. The piston rod was adjusted to gently press the test piece to fix it. The wrench was pulled to make the piston fall and rebound. The test was performed 6 times, and the average of 3 tests was taken. The results were recorded in Table 1.

[0059] NIKE Test Specification G43 (Specific Gravity) Following NIKE Test Specification G43, the environmentally friendly pads from Examples 1 to 3 were cut into 50.8 mm × 50.8 mm test pieces, with three test pieces prepared for each example. The mass (m) was measured using an electronic balance (accurate to 0.001 g), and the thickness (a) of each test piece was measured using a vernier caliper. The specific gravity (ρ) was calculated according to Formula 2 below, and the average value of the three test pieces was calculated. The results were recorded in Table 1.

[0060] NIKE Test Specification G45 Following NIKE Test Specification G45, the environmentally friendly pads from Examples 1 to 3 were prepared into test pieces with a thickness of 6 mm. Under a test environment of 22±2℃ and 50%±5% humidity, hardness was measured based on the test area and hardness test location shown in the figure below, and the results are recorded in Table 1.

[0061] [Table 1] Tear strength (Kg / cm) Shock resilience (%) Specific gravity (g / cm) 3 ) ASKER C hardness Example 1 1.59-2.09 26-28 0.2536~0.2709 39-48 Example 2 1.49-1.83 26-28 0.2216~0.2400 35-41 Example 3 0.65-1.01 24-26 0.1959~0.2106 26-38 Comparative Example 1 Unable to form Comparative Example 2 Unable to form

[0062] As can be seen from the test results in Table 1, compared with the comparative example which could not be formed into a pad at all, the environmentally friendly pads of Examples 1 to 3 made from the composition for manufacturing environmentally friendly pads of the present invention, although containing recycled fiber scraps, still have a tear strength of 0.6 kg / cm or higher, an impact resilience of 24% to 28%, a specific gravity of 0.19 to 0.27 g / cm3, and an ASKER C hardness of 26 to 48, etc. It is evident that the composition of the present invention can indeed be used to manufacture environmentally friendly pads with properties suitable for shoe insole pads.

[0063] As can be seen from the above results, the composition and manufacturing method provided by the present invention can effectively reuse recycled insoles, waste or scraps to make insole bodies suitable for use as insoles, which is very environmentally friendly. Moreover, compared with the conventional method of using recycled insoles to manufacture insole bodies, the manufacturing method of the present invention does not require the process of separating the fabric layer from the insole body, so the manufacturing process is simpler, the manufacturing time is relatively reduced, and the production efficiency is correspondingly improved. [Simplified Explanation of the Diagram]

[0064] Figure 1 shows a flowchart of the manufacturing method of the present invention.

Claims

1. A composition for manufacturing an environmentally friendly insole, comprising: recycled polymer scraps with an average particle size of 0.3 mm to 5 mm, wherein the recycled polymer scraps are made of thermoplastic polyurethane and / or ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer, and wherein the recycled polymer scraps originate from the insole body of a recycled shoe insole or from the insole body of a recycled shoe insole combined with at least one of the following: waste generated during the manufacturing process of thermoplastic polyurethane and / or ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer and scraps generated during the manufacturing of the insole body; recycled fiber scraps with an average particle size of 0.3 mm to 5 mm, wherein the recycled fiber scraps are made of at least one selected from the group consisting of plant fibers, animal fibers and synthetic fibers, and wherein the recycled fiber scraps originate from fabric attached to the insole body of the recycled shoe insole; and a polyether-type adhesive; wherein, based on 100 parts by weight of the polyether-type adhesive, the content of the recycled polymer scraps is 260 to 340 parts by weight, and the content of the recycled fiber scraps is 10 to 100 parts by weight.

2. The composition for manufacturing an environmentally friendly mat as claimed in claim 1, wherein the average particle size of the recycled polymer fragments is 0.5 mm to 1.5 mm.

3. The composition for manufacturing an environmentally friendly mat as claimed in claim 1, wherein the average particle size of the recycled fiber scrap is 0.5 mm to 1.5 mm.

4. The composition for manufacturing an environmentally friendly mat as claimed in claim 1, wherein the content of the recycled fiber scrap is 40 to 100 parts by weight based on 100 parts by weight of the adhesive.

5. A method for manufacturing an environmentally friendly insole, comprising the following steps: a) a recycling step: collecting at least one of the following: recycled insoles or waste generated during the manufacturing process of recycled insoles and thermoplastic polyurethane and / or ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer, and scraps generated during the manufacturing of the insole body, to obtain a recycled material. The recycled insole includes an insole body and a fabric attached to the insole body. The material of the insole body is thermoplastic polyurethane and / or ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer, and the material of the fabric is at least one selected from the group consisting of plant fibers, animal fibers, and synthetic fibers; b) a crushing step: crushing the recycled material to obtain recycled polymer fragments and recycled fiber fragments with an average particle size of 0.3 mm to 5 mm; c) a heating and mixing step: heating and uniformly mixing the recycled polymer fragments, the recycled fiber fragments, and a polyether-type adhesive to obtain a composition, wherein... Based on 100 parts by weight of the polyether adhesive, the content of the recycled polymer scrap is 260 to 340 parts by weight, and the content of the recycled fiber scrap is 10 to 100 parts by weight; wherein the heating and mixing step is carried out using steam heating, and the heating temperature range is 100°C to 140°C; and d) cooling and molding step: the composition is placed in a mold and cooled at a temperature of 50°C to 60°C for 5 to 8 hours, and after cooling and molding, it is demolded to obtain an environmentally friendly mat.

6. In the method for manufacturing the environmentally friendly mat as described in claim 5, the recycled material is shredded by a shredder in the crushing step.

7. The method for manufacturing an environmentally friendly mat as claimed in claim 5, wherein the cooling molding step is performed by placing the mold containing the composition in an oven.

8. An environmentally friendly mat, made from the composition for manufacturing environmentally friendly mats as described in any one of claims 1 to 4.

9. The environmentally friendly matting material as described in claim 8, wherein the environmentally friendly matting material has: a tear strength of 0.6 kg / cm or higher when measured according to ASTM D624 standard test method; an impact resilience of 24% to 28% when measured according to ASTM D2632 standard test method; a specific gravity of 0.19 to 0.27 g / cm3 when measured according to NIKE test specification G43; and an ASKER C hardness of 26 to 48 when measured according to NIKE test specification G45.

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