Abstract:
A biodegradable environment protective pad and a method of manufacturing the same. The method includes the steps of: leveling a middle net fabric; inserting the middle net fabric between two rollers for transporting the middle net fabric; coating a polymeric material on the middle net fabric; baking the middle net fabric to foam or cure the coated polymeric material; and cooling the middle net fabric to harden the polymeric material.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    (1) Field of the Invention 
         [0002]    The invention relates to a biodegradable environment protective pad and a method of manufacturing the same, and more particularly to an environment protective pad having a multi-function property and a method of manufacturing the same, wherein the pad can even biodegrade directly with microbes in the earth so that the pad can degrade into fine flakes or even completely disappear in the natural environment. 
         [0003]    (2) Description of the Prior Art 
         [0004]    Because the coal oil chemical materials (e.g., plastic and PVC) are widely used and popularized, a lot of plastic solid trash coming therewith has become the hidden worry of the environment contamination. According to the investigation made by the U.S. GALLUP company, the amount of the solid trash in the U.S. cities reaches about 0.216 billion tones in 2000 A.D., wherein the waste plastic occupies 9.8% in weight and more than 30% in size. The waste plastic occupies 15% in Taiwan, so it is a great harm to the environmental ecology. 
         [0005]    Currently, the technology of manufacturing the pads having composite functions can be used to manufacture pads, such as anti-slipping pads (nets), exercise pads, Yoga pads, floor pads and walk-learning pads, having the product property aiming on the endurance and the malleability. The target of the pads is to hold the functionality for a long time. Thus, the main component of the pad contains substantially 100% of durable material, and the pad often contains poisoned substances, such as heavy metals, phenol, AZO dyes, cadmium, vinyl chloride monomer (VCM), nonylphenol or organictin. So, this kind of waste can exist in the environment for several thousands of years. 
         [0006]    The reason for causing this multi-function pad to contain the poisoned substance comes from the conventional main material, plasticizer. The typical plasticizer must contain the substance such as phthalate, and this kind of poisoned plasticizer almost covers more than 90% of the required amount of the plasticizer in the market. The main reason is that the phthalate substance enables the plastic product to be soft and easily curved during the manufacturing process. So, although this kind of plasticizer has been regarded as a harmful substance in the world, the plasticizer is greatly used in the global plastic industry because the plasticizer is cheap and can be easily manufactured. 
         [0007]    More than 90% of the kinds of the plasticizers (containing the phthalate kind) includes: 
         [0008]    BBP, benzyl phthalate; 
         [0009]    DBP, dibutyl phthalate; 
         [0010]    DEHP, di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate; 
         [0011]    DINP, diisononl phthalate; 
         [0012]    DOP, di-octyl phthalate; 
         [0013]    DNOP, DI-N-OCTYL phthalate; 
         [0014]    DOA, dioctyl adipate; 
         [0015]    NBS, N-butyl stearate; and 
         [0016]    TOTM, tri(2-ethyl hexyl) trimellitate. 
         [0017]    In addition, if an environment protective material (e.g., an environment protective dloctyl alcohol ester) and a polymer-natural (e.g., amylase, fibrin or the like) are used in order to satisfy the environment protection requirement, the following feature occurs. The formability of the composite mainly including the environment protective materials is worse than that of the composite mainly including the conventional plasticizer (i.e., the plasticizer with the poisoned substance mentioned hereinabove). So, in addition to the system programming and setting in the aspect of the apparatus control, the operation and management of the associated quality control system in the middle and post stages of the manufacturing processes become more important. 
         [0018]    Thus, it is an important subject of the invention to design a pad, which is beneficial to the environment ecology and has the typical plastic property of use, so as to satisfy the future development trend and the environment protecting requirement in the world. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0019]    The invention provides a biodegradable environment protective pad and a method of manufacturing the same using special materials and special manufacturing processes. Thus, the pad has the multi-function effect and may be biodegraded directly with the microbe in the earth through the nutritive source of the polymer-natural contained in the pad after the pad is thrown away and buried in the earth for a predetermined period of time. Thus, the pad can be degraded into fine flakes and then disappear under the natural environment and within the predetermined period of time so that the loading to the environment can be reduced and the environment protective effect can be obtained. 
         [0020]    In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the invention provides a biodegradable environment protective pad. The pad includes a middle net fabric and at least one polymeric material layer. The middle net fabric has an upper surface and a lower surface. The at least one polymeric material layer is coated on one of the upper and lower surfaces of the middle net fabric, and the polymeric material layer is made of a predetermined formula, which is mainly composed of a polymeric natural material, an environment protective dloctyl alcohol ester and a polyvinyl chloride (PVC). 
         [0021]    The invention also provides a method of manufacturing a biodegradable environment protective pad. The method includes the steps of: providing and leveling a middle net fabric and continuously outputting the middle net fabric; inserting the middle net fabric between two rollers for transporting the middle net fabric; coating a polymeric material formed of a predetermined formula on the middle net fabric; baking the middle net fabric until the polymeric material foams or cures; and cooling the middle net fabric to harden the polymeric material. 
         [0022]    Further aspects, objects, and desirable features of the invention will be better understood from the detailed description and drawings that follow in which various embodiments of the disclosed invention are illustrated by way of examples. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0023]      FIG. 1  is a schematic illustration showing a method of manufacturing an environment protective pad according to the invention. 
           [0024]      FIG. 2  is a schematic illustration showing a structure of the environment protective pad of the invention. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
       [0025]    The invention provides a biodegradable environment protective pad and a method of manufacturing the same. The pad includes a polyester fiber or a natural woven material serving as a support frame, and a polymeric material (hereinafter referred to as PER material) formed of a predetermined formula is coated on the support frame. The biodegradable environment protective pad may be manufactured through a coating device storing the polymeric material and a build-in pressuring device, such as an air compressor, to perform the material dispensing, pressured coating, high-temperature drying and instantaneous cooling and hardening steps. 
         [0026]    However, the used polymeric material, such as a polymer-natural including amylase or fibrin, does not have the high formability as the plastic, and the control of the property of the polymeric material and the facture usage is worse than that of the plastic material. Thus, the material ratio conversion of the property and the strict setting and control of the manufacturing processes have to be performed so that a biodegradable environment protective pad, such as an anti-slipping pad, an anti-slipping net, an exercise pad, a Yoga pad, a floor pad or a walk-learning pad, according to the invention may be manufactured. 
         [0027]    As shown in  FIG. 1 , the manufacturing method includes the following steps. First, a middle tensile support frame is provided. The support frame may be regarded as a net fabric, which is composed of a polymer of a polyester fiber, or a natural plant fiber such as jute, cotton or bamboo charcoal. Next, at least two rollers  21  and  22  are provided. The rollers  21  and  22  have the same rotation directions and rotating speeds, which may be controlled independently. Thus, the levelness of the net fabric may be advantageously adjusted. The middle net fabric  11  is inserted between the rollers  21  and  22  for transporting the middle net fabric  11 . Then, an upper (or lower) coating machine  31  (or  32 ) filled with the polymeric material is used to coat the polymeric material  12  on the leveled middle net fabric  11  according to a predetermined formula so as to form a semi-facture. The upper (lower) coating machine  31  (or  32 ) is disposed on at least one of the upper and lower surfaces of the middle net fabric  11 . The exterior and the overall structure of the semi-facture may become more uniform through the uniform material supplying of the material feeding rollers of the coating machine. Next, a baking area  4  having a predetermined high-temperature is provided to dry the material and heat the middle net fabric  11  until the polymeric material foams or cures. The baking area  4  includes a high-temperature unit  41  and an ultra-high-temperature unit  42  disposed on the upper and lower surfaces of the semi-facture. The two units  41  and  42  may be infrared lamp heaters. In addition, the predetermined high-temperature is controlled to range mainly from 150 to 220 degrees centigrade. Then, a low-temperature area  5  capable of instantaneously cooling is provided to harden the polymeric material. The low-temperature area  5  provides the predetermined low-temperature based on 5 degrees centigrade so that the environment protective pad  1  of the invention can be formed. Next, the cooled and hardened environment protective pad  1  is directly cut into sheet-like pads  63  through the operations of a cutting machine  61  and an automatic counter  62 . 
         [0028]    Referring to  FIG. 2 , the environment protective pad  1  includes a middle net fabric  11  having upper and lower surfaces, and polymeric material layers  12  and  13  coated on the upper and lower surfaces of the middle net fabric  11 . The polymeric material layers  12  and  13  are formed of a predetermined formula, which is mainly composed of a polymeric natural material, an environment protective dloctyl alcohol ester and a polyvinyl chloride (PVC). 
         [0029]    The polymeric material includes at least two compositions. The first composition is mainly composed of a dloctyl alcohol ester, a polyvinyl chloride and a polymer-natural, which may be vegetable jelly, fibrin or amylase. The second composition is mainly composed of a polymer-natural, which may be vegetable jelly, fibrin or amylase, cross-linking with a polyol and a Isocyanate or acrylic resin, or mixing with a polyolefin material TPO or TPV, which pertains to a thermalplastic elastomer (TPE). Thus, the environment protective value possessed by the polymeric material is that no poisoned substance, such as azo dyes, cadmium, vinyl chloride monomer (VCM), nonylphenol, or organictin, is contained, and that the biodegradable function is possessed. 
         [0030]    In summary, the biodegradable environment protective pad and the method of manufacturing the same according to the invention have the following advantages. First, the formed pad have multiple functions and may serve as an exercise pad, a Yoga pad, a walk-learning pad, an anti-slipping floor pad or an anti-slipping net. Second, after the formed pad is thrown away and buried in the earth for a predetermined period of time, the nutritive source of the polymer-natural contained in the pad can directly biodegrade with the microbe in the earth. Thus, the pad can be degraded into fine flakes and then disappear under the natural environment and within the predetermined period of time so that the loading to the environment can be reduced and the environment protective effect can be obtained. 
         [0031]    New characteristics and advantages of the invention covered by this document have been set forth in the foregoing description. It is to be expressly understood, however, that the drawings are for the purpose of illustration only and are not intended as a definition of the limits of the invention. Changes in methods, shapes, structures or devices may be made in details without exceeding the scope of the invention by those who are skilled in the art. The scope of the invention is, of course, defined in the language in which the appended claims are expressed.