AU2008100894B4 - 4mEco - Google Patents

Description

1 Description The current innovation is a material for building walls, both internal and external, as an alternative to bricks and other environmentally inefficient materials used in construction. The material combines clean, organic, recycled material in a unique way. The resulting building material is: [a] Economical to produce - it uses materials that are recycled and would otherwise be disposed of with associated financial and environmental costs. As the material can be formed on or off site into the appropriate sizes or shapes for a construction project, including curved walls, there is reduced wastage and therefore lower cost. There is a saving on consumption of new resources whilst reducing stockpiles of industrial waste. The material does not require firing, compression or vibration all of which use costly energy. Other energy and resource use in the production is minimized, including water. [b] Environmentally superior to currently used materials - the material is termite resistant therefore no blocides are needed in the production, installation or maintenance of the material. The thermal Insulation reduces domestic energy consumption and is suited to passive solar design. Due to the binding of its 80% organic component the material offers carbon sequestration. [c] Aesthetically attractive - the finish is similar to travertine but can also be coloured, textured, painted or rendered to suit individual applications. [d) Excellent thermal and acoustic attenuation properties [e] Fire resistant - due to dense molecular structure [f] Shock resistant - meets Australian Standards for strength The material is suitable to be used in a number of ways including slip-form construction, pre-fabricated panels, brick or block production, and spray application, 2 The combination and proportions of the component ingredients work together with the final product owing its properties to the careful development of the correct proportions. The components are: Newspaper pulp (recycled) - 35% (water content 50%) Sawdust - 35% Portland Cement - 140/ Stearic Acid - 1% Builders' hydrated lime - 15% All dry components should be mixed together (sawdust, cement and lime), and the wet components combined (newspaper pulp and Stearic Acid); the two batches are then combined and well-mixed. The material should be damp (similar to a paste) for form construction; extra water can be added if the material is to be used for spray application. The material requires no compression or vibration, it air dries in form, cures in approximately 4 hours (depending upon mass) and attains maximum strength in approximately 28 days.

Claims (4)

1. A fire resistant, composite building material, suitable for indoor and outdoor use, comprised of 35% recycled newspaper pulp, 35% sawdust, 14% Portland Cement, 1% stearic acid and 15% builders' hydrated lime.

2. A method of producing a composite building material comprising the ingredients as outlined in Claim 1 whereby dry components (sawdust, Portland Cement and hydrated lime) are combined in one separate batch, wet components (recycled newspaper pulp and stearic acid) are combined in another separate batch and the two batches are combined to form a resultant mixture. The resultant mixture is air dried in a form, without compression or vibration, and cures in approximately 4 hours and acquires maximum strength in approximately 28 days.

3. The method of producing a composite building material as outlined In Claim 2 wherein additional water is added, so that the resultant mixture can be used for spray application,

4, A composite building material comprising the ingredients as outlined in Claim 1 and produced by the method as outlined in Claim 2 or Claim 3 that requires very low use of energy to produce, that uses waste materials that would otherwise be destroyed or incur cost to be removed, that does not require the use of biocides and that has minimal environmental impact during and after production.