Improvements in Fireproofing and Heat and Sound Insulating Compounds and Method of Producing the same.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 1st Aug., 1899-Accepted, 23rd Sept., 1899
Improvements in Fireproofing and Heat and Sound Insulating
Compounds and Method of Producing the same.
I, EMIL RUEFF, of 30, Mount Morris Park, West, in the City, County and
State of New York, United States of America, Manufacturer, do hereby declare
the nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to be performed,
to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
-
This invention relates to improvements in fireproofing and heat and sound
insulating media and has for its object to produce a compound and a method of
making the same which compound may be used for building blocks, boiler
coverings and in like situations where a non-conducting fireproof compound is
desirable.
To this end the invention consists in the process and article hereinafter set
forth and claimed.
In carrying out my invention I produce a compound of magnesia different from
the ordinary carbonate of magnesia of commerce, in- that it has a greater
percentage of water than the said ordinary carbonate of magnesia. The carbonate
of magnesia of commerce is either the light carbonate of magnesia, the heavy
carbonate of magnesia, or the mineral magnesite. The light carbonate of
magnesia may be said to have the following two formulae:
magnesite.
In producing alkaline magnesite, I may proceed in various ways; one way to
produce alkaline magnesite is as follows:
I mix one part of powdered calcined magnesite with twenty parts of water
and conduct to such mixture while in a state of agitation carbonic acid gas
under a pressure of about 25lbs. per square inch, until the mixture has absorbed
less than one part by weight of the carbonic acid gas, so as to prevent the
Di Q77

page_text: formation of a normal carbonate of magnesia. The whole mass is then heated
gradually to a temperature less than or preferably to about 160° F., drained,
dried and may then be compressed under a pressure of from 200 to 1000lbs.
per square inch into the desired shape. This material may be, as stated, used
by itself, but by preference in admixture with a fibrous material such as asbestos,
paper pulp, saw dust, vegetable fibres, and so on, but I prefer to use asbestos.
If a mixture of alkaline magnesite with fibrous material is to be produced, I
may mix the fibrous material with the alkaline magnesite directly or I may
add the fibrous material to the alkaline magnesite while the latter is in the
state of formation or also to the raw material from which the alkaline magnesite
is to be obtained.
In carrying out my invention I may proceed in various ways, one of which is
as follows::
I take 80lbs. of powdered calcined magnesite
12lbs. of fibrous material such as asbestos, and
1600lbs. of water.
and mix the same intimately. I then aerate the mixture with carbonic acid
. or a gaseous medium containing carbonic acid gas under a pressure of 25lbs.
per square inch for a length of time determined by the quality of the product
desired and the amount of carbonic acid which the gaseous medium contains.
When the desired action has taken place I heat the mass gradually to about
160° Fahrenheit, drain the mass, dry it and finally compress it to the desired shape
under a pressure of from 200 to 1000lbs. per square inch. The alkaline mag-
nesite acts upon the asbestos chemically after the compression of the mass and
thereby a very close union of the constituents ensues, which greatly contributes
to the hardening of the mass.
The chemical action of the alkaline magnesite upon the asbestos is shown by
the facts that dilute hydrochloric acid removes from the original mixture only
the alkaline magnesite, while, if the substances have been in contact for some
time, hydrochloric acid does not only dissolve the magnesite of the alkaline
magnesite, but also magnèsia from the asbestos; the latter alone does not lose
any magnesia by treatment with acid.
The article thus obtained is a carbonate of magnesia which contains less
carbonic acid and more chemically bound water than any other commercial
carbonate of magnesia heretofore produced. The alkaline magnesite thus
obtained differs from the ordinary magnesite in that it contains in proportion to
its magnesia less carbon dioxide than ordinary magnesite and also in that it
contains chemically combined water which is not present in ordinary magnesite.
The ordinary magnesite is a heavy and dense mineral, while the article which I
produce is a very finely divided and light product. It will, of course, be well
understood that the asbestos is used as a binder.
The excess of chemically bound water and the method of preparing the mass
vastly improves the condition of the substance. It is very light in weight, and
unlike other articles of the same class, it possesses great tensile strength and
elasticity, and is able to withstand not only the roughest handling, but also the
severest test to which any building material used for lining interior walls,
ceilings etc., may be subjected. This substance has great resistance to the
influence of heat, and may be used for fireproofing, and being a non-conductor
of sound, may be also used as an isolating lining for covering walls, ceilings,
ice boxes, safes, etc., and may be used as a pipe or boiler covering. It can be
handled in the same manner as wood, as it may be sawed, filed or nailed.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is:
1. The herein described method of producing a non-conducting sheathing or
covering material, which consists in mixing calcined magnesite with fibrous

page_text: material in the presence of water, and thereupon treating the mass with less
carbon dioxide than is necessary to produce a normal carbonate, heating and
drying the mass and finally compressing it into the desired form.
2. The herein described compound, to wit, alkaline magnesite containing an
excess of chemically bound water as set forth.
3. The herein described composition comprising alkaline magnesite containing
an excess of chemically bound water combined with a fibrous material associated
together in a solid mass.
A. M. & WM. CLARK,
Chartered Patent Agents, 53, Chancery Lane, London.