Patent Description:
Polystyrene, or polystyrene foam, is a material that is widely used in many sectors due to its light weight and low thermal conductivity.

Polystyrene is a particularly economical material, as the expansion process only requires water vapour; the air inside the polystyrene as a result of the expansion process gives it its high thermal insulation characteristics, without reducing its mechanical properties.

This material has numerous applications: as well as being used for various types of packaging, it is widely used in the sea and in commercial and tourist ports, aquaculture, fishing and marine activities, for example for making buoys, floats and jetties.

One area in which the material can be widely used, again related to marine activities, is in the manufacture of crates for the storage, transport and display of fish in markets, which are typically made of polystyrene because this material allows long-term preservation of the ice on which the fish product is placed.

Fish crates are widely used in Europe, and very often they are not collected and recycled, and indeed very often they are thrown directly into the sea when they are too dirty or broken. In Italy alone, it is estimated that <NUM> million disposable polystyrene crates are consumed every year.

A major drawback of polystyrene is that it never fully biodegrades and can pose a serious threat to marine life and, consequently, to human health: in water, polystyrene tends to crumble, forming microplastics (plastic particles typically ranging in size from <NUM> micrometers to <NUM> millimetres) that are mistaken for food by marine fauna, and then enter the food chain all the way to humans.

It has been estimated that more than one million microplastics can be produced from a single fish crate once it is dispersed in the sea and begins its degradation process.

Another application in which large quantities of polystyrene foam are used is for thermal insulation layers in buildings; these layers may consist of panels, or else they may be formed by filling hollow spaces of walls with spherules of the material. Again polystyrene, both in form of panels and as free spherules, complicates disposal during building demolition or renovation work because it has to be separated from other rubble and landfilled separately to prevent its dispersion into the environment. In addition, another problem with the use of polystyrene in the building industry is that this material is not fire resistant, contrary to the requirements of new industry regulations.

In view of the recognised level of pollution from polystyrene, the first measures have already been taken regarding its use, and containers and cups made from this material have been banned.

The aim of the present invention is to make available a process for producing products which have lightness and thermal insulation characteristics similar to polystyrene and which can therefore be used as a substitute, but which do not present the pollution problems of polystyrene. Another purpose of the invention is to make available manufactured articles obtained by said process.

<CIT> relates to the preparation of low bulk density alkali metal silicate particles. <CIT> discloses a process for the preparation of silicate foams. <CIT> describes the preparation of sodium silicate foam granules.

These purposes are achieved according to the present invention, which in a first aspect relates to a process for producing expanded sodium silicate spherules or a manufactured article formed by said spherules, comprising the following steps:.

In a second aspect, the invention relates to a manufactured article obtained by the process described above.

<FIG> schematically shows a plant for carrying out the process of the invention.

In the description below, all percentages are by weight unless otherwise indicated.

In the first step of the invention, a), a mixture is prepared comprising a first component comprising an acidic aqueous solution and a second component selected from an alkyl-trialkoxysilane and a mixture between an alkyl-trialkoxysilane and a tetraalkoxysilane, in the ratios indicated above.

The aqueous solution with pH between <NUM> and <NUM> (first component) is prepared by addition to distilled water of an acid selected from hydrochloric acid, nitric acid, chloric acid and perchloric acid; preferably, these acids are added to the water in the form of their concentrated solutions. The pH can be checked in real time using a pH meter during the addition of the acid to the water. Alternatively, calibrated additions can be made to the water of solutions of these acids at known concentrations following preliminary tests; for example, the inventors have verified that pH values in the desired range can be obtained by adding solutions of these acids at a concentration of <NUM> N to distilled water at volume ratios of between <NUM>:<NUM> and <NUM>:<NUM> between the water and the acid solution. Preferably, the pH of the water solution (first component) is maintained at values between <NUM> and <NUM>, which can be obtained by adding acid solutions of the cited acids at a concentration of <NUM> N to distilled water in volume ratios of <NUM>:<NUM> to <NUM>:<NUM> between the water and the acid solution.

The second component used in step a) is selected from an alkyl-trialkoxysilane and a mixture of an alkyl-trialkoxysilane and a tetraalkoxysilane.

Alkyl trialkoxysilanes are compounds of general formula (I):
<CHM>
wherein R and R', equal or different from each other, are C1-C4 alkyl radicals.

The most common alkyl-trialkoxysilane, and preferred for the purposes of the present invention, is methyl-triethoxysilane (R = methyl, R' = ethyl), known in the industry by the abbreviation MTES.

Tetraalkoxysilanes are compounds of general formula (II):
<CHM>
wherein the R" groups are C1-C4 alkyl radicals.

The most common tetraalkoxysilanes are tetramethoxysilane (R" = methyl), generally referred to by the abbreviation TMOS, tetraisopropoxysilane (R" = isopropyl) and, most importantly, tetraethoxysilane (R" = ethyl), commonly referred to by the abbreviation TEOS, which is preferred for the purposes of the present invention (when tetraalkoxysilane is present in the second component).

As mentioned above, the alkyl trialkoxysilane may constitute by itself the second component of the mixture of step a), in which case its amount may vary between <NUM> and <NUM>% by weight of said mixture. If a mixture of an alkyl-trialkoxysilane and a tetraalkoxysilane is used as a second component, their ratio by weight may vary between <NUM>:<NUM> and <NUM>:<NUM>.

Alkyl-trialkoxysilanes and tetraalkoxysilanes are compounds widely commercially available; the two preferred compounds for the purposes of the present invention are sold for example by Evonik Resource Efficiency GmbH, Essen (Germany) under the name Dynasylan® A (TEOS) and Dynasylan® MTES (MTES) or by the company Wacker Chemie Italia (Segrate, MI) under the name WACKER® SILICATE TES <NUM> (TEOS) and WACKER® SILANE M1-TRIETHOXY (MTES).

The two components (acidic aqueous solution and silane(s)) are introduced in the desired ratios into a container and in step b) of the process the mixture is allowed to react under stirring for at least <NUM> hours, preferably at least <NUM> hours, at a temperature between <NUM> and <NUM>. At this stage, hydrolysis of the silanes takes place, with the formation of a sol comprising water, hydrolysed silane compounds and the alcohol (or mixture of alcohols) corresponding to the R, R' and possibly R" radicals of the initial silanes. The sol is kept under mild agitation, to avoid its gelling.

Optionally, upon completion of step b), a further step b') can be carried out, consisting in diluting the sol obtained in step b) with a C1-C6 alcohol, preferably a C1-C3 alcohol, more preferably an alcohol selected among methanol, ethanol, and isopropanol. The alcohol can be added in such an amount to constitute between <NUM>% and <NUM>%, preferably between <NUM>% and <NUM>% by weight, of the total weight of the sol obtained in step b'). Since the sodium silicate employed afterwards is insoluble in alcohols, the addition of an alcohol to the sol in step b') offers a further control parameter to the process, ensuring the non-coalescence of the spherules under formation in the following step c) even at higher sodium silicate/sol ratios; besides, since the sodium silicate solution is highly basic, it could induce the gelling of the sol into which it is dripped, and the inventors have observed that the addition of alcohols to the sol avoids or relents this gelation, allowing a longer operation time with the same sol.

The sol obtained in step b) or in step b') can be kept in the container in which it was formed if this is suitable for carrying out steps c) and d) of the process or transferred to a suitable reactor.

In step c), an aqueous solution of sodium silicate of formula (SiO<NUM>)x·(Na<NUM>O)y in which the x/y ratio can vary between <NUM> and <NUM> is dripped into the sol. Aqueous sodium silicate solutions of varying compositions are widely known in inorganic chemistry (often referred to as "water glass") and are used in numerous sectors, for example in agriculture, construction, the ceramics industry and as an ennobling agent and adhesive in paper. These solutions are widely available commercially; in Italy, for example, they are sold by the company Ingessil s. of Montorio (Verona, Italy), in a line of products called Nacoren. These solutions differ from each other in the molar ratio between SiO<NUM> and Na<NUM>O and in the concentration of the inorganic components in water, which may vary between <NUM>% and <NUM>% by weight of sodium silicate (intended as the sum SiO<NUM> and Na<NUM>O), leading to densities varying between approximately <NUM> and <NUM>/ml, and have a pH ranging from <NUM> to <NUM>. All these solutions are suitable for the purposes of the present invention: solutions with a higher concentration of inorganics are preferred for productivity reasons.

The aqueous sodium silicate solution may optionally be added with glycerol and/or coloring agents.

The inventors have observed that the addition of small amounts of glycerol to the sodium silicate aqueous solution gives rise to an enhancement of the expansion of the final spherules. Glycerol may be added to the sodium silicate aqueous solution in such an amount to constitute between <NUM>% and <NUM>%, preferably between <NUM>% and <NUM>% by weight of said solution; the increase in volume of the final spherules obtained with the addition of these amounts of glycerol can reach up to <NUM>% compared to the volume of spherules obtained without the use of glycerol.

Coloring agents for addition to the aqueous sodium silicate solution can selected in a wide range of compounds; for instance, it is possible to use a food coloring (in form of powder, liquid or gel), acryl or vinyl dyes, or water-based dyes (for instance, those produced and sold by Siegwerk Italy SpA, Oleggio (Novara), Italy). These coloring agents are added in amounts sufficient to obtain the desired color intensity in the final article, that can be determined with a few preliminary tests; generally, the desired results are obtained adding coloring agents in such an amount to constitute between <NUM>% and <NUM>% by weight of the aqueous sodium silicate solution (both in case glycerol is also added, and in case this latter component is not added).

For dripping the aqueous sodium silicate solution into the sol, it is preferable to use a silicone dripper, which prevents the viscous liquid from sticking. The drip head can be made in many ways, for example it can be a silicone tube wound in a spiral on a support and perforated along its entire length, or sections of silicone tube of equal size, also perforated, arranged in a radial pattern around a central support. The sodium silicate solution is forced out of the holes in the silicone tubes by overpressure, achieved by means of a pump.

The sodium silicate solution in contact with the sol immediately coagulates into small spheres (spherules), due to the combined action of the pH difference (sodium silicate solutions have a pH ranging between <NUM> and <NUM>, whereas the sol is acidic) and the presence of alcohol in the sol, in which sodium silicate is insoluble. The spherules have variable dimensions, which can be controlled by adjusting the size of the holes in the silicone tubes and the pressure exerted on the liquid by the pump. Typically, the spherules have a diameter comprised between <NUM> and <NUM>, most commonly between <NUM> and <NUM>. In some cases, the drops of sodium silicate solution, due to the impact with the sol during dripping, break up to form spherules of about <NUM> in size; these are normally removed with the sol in filtration step d).

The spherules have a higher density than the sol and therefore settle on the bottom of the reactor by gravity. To prevent them from compacting, the sol is kept gently stirred, for example by a mechanical stirrer or magnetic anchor. In order not to impair the spherule formation process, the stirrer should rotate at a moderate speed of between <NUM> and <NUM> rpm, preferably around <NUM> rpm.

In step d) of the process, the spherules are separated from the sol by filtration. For this purpose, the portion of the sol volume containing the spherules is transferred to a second container which has a filter at its lower surface. The filter retains the spherules but allows the sol to flow out. Sol leaving the second container is preferably sent to a recovery tank and from there recirculated to step a). To aid this step, a gas (preferably nitrogen) is preferably flowed into the second container to help transport the liquid phase.

In this step, the sol is almost completely separated from the spherules, except for a very small amount that remains in the form of a thin film that wets the surface of the spherules.

Finally, in the last step of the process, the spherules derived from step d) are thermally treated, keeping them separated (step e) or in contact in a mould (step f), causing their expansion.

In the first option, step e) is carried out, in which the spherules are subjected to a thermal treatment between <NUM> and <NUM>, keeping them separated, to obtain discrete expanded spherules as the final product. The heat treatment causes the spherules to expand due to the development of gas (air and water vapour) contained in the starting material.

The spherules can be loaded onto trays or a conveyor belt, preferably provided with recesses or holes with diameter lower than the diameter of the spherules, to aid keeping the spherules in place and spaced apart during movement of the tray or belt.

The heating of the spherules can be achieved employing for instance a tunnel oven in case of transport with a conveyor belt, or with a microwave oven or with infrared lamps in case of spherules transported on conveyor belt and on trays. Other ways of transporting the spherules into the heated zone of an oven, or other heating means, will be apparent to the skilled person.

These spherules are not part of the present invention.

In the second, alternative option, in the final step of the process a manufactured article is produced.

In this option, in step f) the sodium silicate spherules with a thin layer of sol on their surface are transferred to a closed mould having the shape of the desired final manufactured article. The mould can be filled in various ways, e.g., by gravity or injection, depending on the type of mould. The mould normally consists of two halves, a lower part which forms the initial container into which the spherules are transferred, and a counter-mould which is held in the desired position against the spherules by a press, forming the complete mould. The two parts of the mould are preferably covered with paper, which serves to keep the product compact and, once the process is over, will be useful to protect the inside of the manufactured article, comprised of the dried spheres.

The closed mould is then heated to a temperature comprised between <NUM> and <NUM>; the duration of the heat treatment is typically between <NUM> and <NUM> minutes and is shorter the higher the temperature and the lower the thickness defined by the mould.

The heat treatment causes the spherules to expand due to the development of gas (air and water vapour) contained in the starting material; the expansion of the spherules causes them to compact and leads to the formation of a manufactured article that occupies the entire space inside the mould; during this operation the compression of the press is maintained.

After the heat treatment, the mould is opened, recovering the finished manufactured article.

<FIG> schematically shows an example of a possible plant for implementing steps c), d) and f) of the process.

The plant, <NUM>, consists of the reactor <NUM>, in which the sol prepared in steps a) and b) is produced or transferred. In an upper wall of the reactor <NUM> there is a dripper <NUM>, through which the sodium silicate solution is dripped into the sol. A stirrer, <NUM>, is immersed in the sol to keep the formed spherules (shown in the figure as element <NUM>) in motion and prevent them from packing and compacting on the bottom of the reactor.

The bottom of the reactor <NUM> is connected to a discharge line on which there is a shutoff valve <NUM>, which is kept closed during the performance of step c), and is opened for the performance of step d). By opening the valve <NUM>, the part of the volume of sol in which the spherules are present is passed into the second container <NUM>; at the bottom of the second container there is a filter, <NUM>, which allows the flow of sol but retains the spherules (the spherules in the second container are identified as element <NUM>'). On the discharge line from the second container, downstream of the filter <NUM>, there is a diverter valve <NUM> which, during the discharge of sol from the second container, directs it towards the recovery tank <NUM>, from which the sol is then recirculated to the reactor <NUM> by means of a pump. The emptying of the container <NUM> from the sol is facilitated by having nitrogen flow into the container itself from the appropriate inlet duct (indicated in the figure by the wording "N<NUM> in"); the slight overpressure created by the influx of nitrogen is discharged when the spherules are dropped into the mould <NUM>; for greater safety, it is also possible to provide for the presence of a release valve (not indicated in the figure) at the top of the container <NUM>.

Once the emptying of the container <NUM> is complete, the filter <NUM> is removed and the valve <NUM> is moved to a position where the spherules fall into the lower part of the mould, <NUM>, for carrying out step f).

The picture does not show the counter-mould and press used during the heat treatment of expansion and compaction of the spheres in step f).

The material of the invention has a similar appearance to polystyrene, is white, light (density values between <NUM> and <NUM>/cm<NUM>) and has a thermal insulation coefficient of about <NUM> W/mK, essentially equal to that of expanded polystyrene; unlike expanded polystyrene, however, the products of the invention (manufactured articles) have better mechanical stability with increasing temperature (expanded polystyrene has a softening T in the range between <NUM> and <NUM>), they are not flammable and, above all, they dissolve completely when immersed in water for a long time without giving rise to environmental pollution problems.

The invention will be further illustrated by the following examples.

This example refers to the production of an article of the invention in the form of a disc having a diameter of <NUM> and a thickness of <NUM>.

<NUM> MTES (Evonik), <NUM> TEOS (Evonik), <NUM> distilled water and <NUM> of a <NUM> N HCl solution were introduced into a container. The resulting mixture was left to react during stirring at room temperature (approximately <NUM>) for <NUM> hours. During this time, the silane components are hydrolysed, resulting in a sol.

The sol was transferred to a reactor equipped with a magnetic anchor stirrer.

A commercial sodium silicate aqueous solution having concentration <NUM>% by weight, in which the sodium silicate had formula (SiO<NUM>)x·(Na<NUM>O)y with x/y = <NUM> (Nacoren 330F, Ingessil s. ), was slowly dripped into the sol.

The dripping was achieved by pumping the sodium silicate solution, at a pressure of <NUM> bar, into a perforated silicone tube (<NUM> diameter holes) placed at the top of the reactor approximately <NUM> from the free surface of the sol, so as to avoid as far as possible the formation of small spherules caused by the "bouncing" of the sodium silicate solution in contact with the sol; the silicone tube was wound in a spiral around a support. The sol was kept stirred by means of a magnetic anchor rotating at <NUM> rpm. On contact with the sol, the drops of sodium silicate solution formed liquid spherules immiscible in and dispersed in the sol, having a diameter comprised between <NUM> and <NUM>, which were deposited on the bottom of the reactor.

The spherules were discharged from the bottom of the reactor into a tank below, where excess sol was removed from the surface of the spherules by a flow of nitrogen at a pressure of <NUM> bar.

The spherules thus obtained were then discharged, through the opening of a discharge valve at the bottom of the tank, into the lower part of a cylindrical mould with a thickness of <NUM> and a diameter of <NUM>; when the level of the spherules reached the edge of the lower part of the mould, this was closed with a counter-mould and the complete mould was placed in a ventilated oven at a temperature of <NUM> for a period of <NUM> minutes.

After heat treatment, the manufactured article was extracted from the mould, thus obtaining the finished product (Sample <NUM>). The weight of the manufactured product was measured and found to be <NUM>, with a bulk density of <NUM>/cm<NUM>.

In the test of this example, the thermal conductivity of Sample <NUM> produced in Example <NUM> was measured.

The measurement of thermal conductivity was carried out following the procedure of UNI EN <NUM>:<NUM>.

Briefly, in this procedure the sample is placed between a heating element and a cooling element; the heating element consists of a central measuring element and a guard ring maintained at the same temperature as the central element, so that a one-dimensional heat flow is generated through the test sample.

The thermal conductivity is provided by the following relationship: <MAT> wherein:.

A LASERCOMP FOX <NUM> instrument (TA Instruments®) was used for the test. The test was conducted under the following laboratory conditions: temperature <NUM> ± <NUM>, relative humidity <NUM> ± <NUM>%.

The measured thermal conductivity value was <NUM> W/mK.

The preparation of Example <NUM> was repeated under identical conditions, but with three different compositions of the alkyl-trialkoxysilane/tetraalkoxysilane component used to make the sol.

In the three cases, the amounts of MTES and TEOS were as follows:.

The bulk density was measured on Samples <NUM>-<NUM> and was similar to that measured on Sample <NUM>.

This example refers to the formation of a colored product, obtained by adding a pink food coloring to liquid sodium silicate.

In a container, <NUM> of MTES (Evonik) were reacted with <NUM> of H<NUM>O acidified with <NUM> <NUM> N hydrochloric acid.

The mixture was left under stirring for <NUM> hours, obtaining a sol.

<NUM> of an alcohol mix was added to the sol, and the resulting mixture was kept under gentle stirring; the alcohol mix was a commercial blend comprising, by weight, about <NUM>% ethanol and about <NUM>% isopropanol.

The same Nacoren 330F aqueous sodium silicate solution employed in Example <NUM> was used as source of sodium silicate. This solution was colored by addition of a liquid pink food coloring (product Decora, code <NUM>, sold by Karma S. of Salerno, Italy), in a percentage of <NUM>% b.

The formulation of this type of dye also includes glycerol: this component, as already mentioned, helps to increase the expanding capability of the material.

The colored sodium silicate solution was then made to drip inside the diluted sol as described in Example <NUM>, using a perforated silicone spiral into which the material was pumped with a pressure of <NUM> bar.

Once the desired quantity of spherules had been obtained, <NUM> of these were discharged from the bottom of the reactor into a tank and the excess sol was removed from the surface of the spherules by a flow of nitrogen at a pressure of <NUM> bar.

The thus produced spherules were inserted inside a semi-closed Teflon-coated mold, which means that a lid is laid over the lower half of the mold, but the mold is not sealed; the mold had a square geometry, with lateral size 10x <NUM>. The mold was placed inside an industrial microwave oven, in which the drying and expansion process took place.

Once drying was complete, the product was extracted from the Teflon-coated mold: a 10x10x2 cm panel of pink colored silicate foam was obtained.

This example refers to the production of discrete, separate spherules of expanded sodium silicate.

In a container <NUM> of MTES (Evonik) were reacted with <NUM> of H<NUM>O acidified with <NUM> <NUM> N hydrochloric acid.

The same aqueous sodium silicate solution employed in Example <NUM> (Nacoren 330F) was made to drip inside the sol using a manifold system comprising <NUM> perforated silicone branches; sodium silicate was pumped into these branches of perforated pipe, with a pressure of <NUM> bar.

The spherules formed in the previous step were recovered and the excess sol was removed as described in Example <NUM>. The spherules were placed on a Teflon-coated carpet, taking care to keep them spread on the carpet and separated from one another. The carpet crossed a hot air tunnel at <NUM> in <NUM> minutes, causing the drying and expansion of the spherules.

Claim 1:
Process for producing expanded sodium silicate spherules or a manufactured article formed by said spherules, comprising the following steps:
a) preparing a mixture comprising <NUM> to <NUM>% by weight of a first component consisting of an acidic aqueous solution having a pH comprised between <NUM> and <NUM>, and <NUM> to <NUM>% by weight of a second component selected from an alkyl-trialkoxysilane and a mixture of an alkyl-trialkoxysilane and a tetraalkoxysilane, said acidic solution prepared by addition to distilled water of an acid selected from hydrochloric acid, nitric acid, chloric acid and perchloric acid;
b) allowing the mixture to react for at least <NUM> hours at a temperature comprised between <NUM> and <NUM>, obtaining a sol;
b') optionally, diluting the sol obtained in step b) with a C1-C6 alcohol or a mixture thereof;
c) dripping into the sol, maintained under gentle stirring, an aqueous sodium silicate solution having formula (SiO<NUM>)x·(Na<NUM>O)y wherein the ratio x/y may vary between <NUM> and <NUM>, obtaining sodium silicate spherules at the bottom of the sol container;
d) removing the sol by filtration, recovering the sodium silicate spherules having the surface covered with a thin layer of sol;
e) subjecting the sodium silicate spherules having the surface covered with a thin layer of sol, obtained in step d), to a thermal treatment at a temperature between <NUM> and <NUM>, keeping them separated, obtaining dry spherules of expanded sodium silicate;
or, alternatively,
f) transferring the sodium silicate spherules having the surface covered with a thin layer of sol, obtained in step d), into a closed mould having the shape of the desired final article and bringing them into the mould at a temperature comprised between <NUM> and <NUM>, obtaining a manufactured article.