Patent ID: 6245174
Filing Date: 2001-06-12
Classification: B29C,B29L,F16L,Y10S,Y10T

Abstract:
A method of making a dimensionally heat recoverable tubular article comprising a spirally-wrapped, cross-linked polymeric sheet comprising polyethylene, overlapping layers of the cross-linked sheet having been directly fused to each other to form a consolidated tubular article, the consolidated tube having a thickness of at least 2.2 mm comprising;(i) spirally wrapping a cross-linked, heat recoverable, polymeric sheet comprising polyethylene to form a tubular configuration comprising two or more overlapping layers of the spirally wrapped sheet;(ii) positioning the wrapped sheet to surround a support mandrel; and(iii) heating the sheet to a temperature sufficient to cause direct fusion between the adjacent cross-linked overlapped layer of the sheet.