Thermal Break Profile Assembly for Recyclable Frame Separation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing thermally insulated composite profiles for windows, doors, or facades face challenges in high-quality recycling due to inextricable connections between insulating webs and metal profiles, leading to mixed demolition waste that is difficult and costly to separate and recycle.
Innovation Solution
A profile arrangement featuring a plastic insulating web with predetermined breaking points and form-fit connections allows easy separation from metal profiles, enabling high-quality recycling by designing the insulating web to detach from the profiles at defined force thresholds.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If insulating webs are fixed in undercut grooves to create shear-resistant mechanical connections, then the mechanical strength and thermal insulation performance are improved, but the difficulty of separation for recycling increases
Solution Approach 1:
The insulating web is segmented into a first insulating web portion and a second insulating web portion separated by a predetermined breaking point. This segmentation allows the insulating web to be easily separated at the breaking point while maintaining strong mechanical connections through the undercut grooves at the ends, thus resolving the contradiction between connection strength and ease of separation.
Solution Approach 2:
A predetermined breaking point is intentionally created in the insulating web before the profile is assembled and used. This preliminary weakness is designed to fail at a specific location under controlled conditions, enabling easy separation for recycling while maintaining the structural integrity during normal use. The breaking point is positioned such that it will fail before the undercut groove connections fail.
2Reliability
If aluminum profiles are used for their excellent technical properties, then durability and wear resistance are improved, but energy consumption and CO2 emissions increase due to primary aluminum production
Solution Approach 1:
The profile arrangement is designed to enable easy recovery and recycling of aluminum profiles by facilitating the separation of insulating webs through predetermined breaking points. This design supports the recovery of aluminum material for recycling, reducing the need for primary aluminum production and associated energy consumption while maintaining the durability benefits of aluminum through repeated recycling cycles.
3Temperature
If insulating bars are thermally separated to prevent condensation and thermal bridges, then thermal insulation performance is improved, but the complexity of material separation for recycling worsens
Solution Approach 1:
The insulating web is divided into segments with a predetermined breaking point, creating distinct separation zones. This segmentation maintains the thermal insulation function by keeping the insulating material between the aluminum profiles, while simultaneously simplifying recycling by providing a clear, predetermined separation point that reduces the complexity of material sorting.
Solution Approach 2:
The predetermined breaking point enables the easy extraction of the insulating web from between the aluminum profiles. This extraction simplifies the recycling process by allowing the insulating material to be removed separately from the metal profiles, reducing the complexity of material separation while maintaining thermal insulation performance during the product's service life.
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
Enables selective dismantling and pure recycling of demolition waste, reducing disposal costs and environmental impact by simplifying the separation of materials.
Implementation Method 1
thermally separated by one or more plastic insulating webs
Implementation Method 2
designed to engage in a groove of the first profile or of the second profile and to form a form-fit connection there
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2(1)~2(4)
Figure 3(1)~3(4)
AI summary
The invention relates to a profile arrangement (1) in particular for forming a frame construction, preferably a door, window or roof arrangement, wherein the profile arrangement (1) comprises a first profile (2) made of a light metal, a second profile (3) made of a light metal and an insulating arrangement (4) made of a plastic material. The insulating arrangement (4) connects the first profile (2) to the second profile (3) while simultaneously preventing a thermal bridge.According to the invention, it is particularly provided that, within the framework of a recycling process, the insulating arrangement (4) is at least substantially separable from the first profile (2) and/or the second profile (3), wherein the insulating arrangement (4) has at least one insulating web area (5) which is connected to the first profile (2) via a first end area and to the second profile (3) via a second end area, wherein at least one predetermined breaking point (7) is provided in an area of the first end area and/or the second end area of the at least one insulating web area (5).