Cork Bottle Stopper Manufacturing with Polyurethane Binder and Steaming
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing reconstituted cork stoppers for bottles, such as agglomerated or micro-agglomerated corks, lack the aesthetic appeal of natural corks and can be identified by consumers due to differences in the roll and mirrors, leading to prejudice and rejection, while attempts to make them visually similar have been unsuccessful due to the forces involved in bottling and uncorking.
Innovation Solution
A manufacturing process involving cutting and gluing cork sheets onto the mirrors and roll of a semi-finished stopper with a polyurethane binder, followed by steaming and sanding, to create a stopper with a uniformly reduced diameter, mimicking the appearance of natural corks and ensuring resistance to bottling and uncorking forces.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If reconstituted cork granules are used to manufacture stoppers, then homogeneity of structure and permeability characteristics are improved, but aesthetic appearance deteriorates compared to natural corks
Solution Approach 1:
The invention uses a composite structure combining reconstituted cork granules (for homogeneity and permeability) with natural cork sheets (for aesthetic appearance). The natural cork sheets are applied to the mirrors and roll of the reconstituted cork stopper, creating a composite material solution that achieves both structural homogeneity and visual appeal.
2Shape
If natural cork sheets are glued onto the roll of reconstituted cork stoppers, then aesthetic appearance is improved, but mechanical integrity deteriorates due to separation under bottling and uncorking forces
Solution Approach 1:
The invention changes the physical-chemical parameters of the binder system by using polyurethane binders with specific adhesive properties and applying controlled steaming treatment. This transforms the bonding mechanism to achieve both aesthetic appearance and mechanical integrity under bottling and uncorking forces.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention utilizes phase transition through steaming treatment to activate the polyurethane binder and ensure proper adhesion of cork sheets to the reconstituted cork stopper. The steaming process transforms the binder from an inactive state to an activated bonding state, ensuring mechanical integrity.
3Ease of manufacture
If traditional gluing methods are used for cork sheets, then manufacturing simplicity is maintained, but adhesion strength deteriorates under bottling forces
Solution Approach 1:
The invention uses steaming as a phase transition process to activate the polyurethane binder and ensure strong adhesion. This method maintains manufacturing simplicity while dramatically improving adhesion strength under bottling forces compared to traditional gluing methods.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The process results in stoppers that visually resemble natural corks, maintaining mechanical integrity and performance, with soaking, elastic return, and extraction forces comparable to traditional corks, while reducing the presence of TCA to trace levels.
Implementation Method 1
gluing one of said cork sheets onto the roll of a semi-finished stopper of reduced diameter by means of a deposit of a binder suitable for food contact
Implementation Method 2
followed by steaming
Data Source
Figure 1
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Figure 4~5
AI summary
A method for manufacturing a stopper for sealing a bottle so that it can be forced into the neck of the bottle, comprising the following steps: - cutting (a) sheets of cork to be glued onto the mirrors and the roll of the stopper, - gluing (2a,2b,2c) one of said sheets of cork onto the roll of the semi-finished stopper of reduced diameter by means of a deposit of a binder suitable for food contact, followed by steaming, and - gluing (3a,3b,3c) each of the other sheets of cork onto each mirror of the semi-finished stopper of reduced diameter by means of a deposit of a binder suitable for food contact, followed by steaming, the semi-finished stopper of reduced diameter being a crushed cork stopper glued under pressure with a polyurethane binder, having a uniformly reduced diameter of a thickness equal to twice the thickness of a sheet of cork glued onto the roll.