Classifications

• • E—FIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
  • E04—BUILDING
  • E04C—STRUCTURAL ELEMENTS; BUILDING MATERIALS
  • E04C2/00—Building elements of relatively thin form for the construction of parts of buildings, e.g. sheet materials, slabs, or panels
  • E04C2/02—Building elements of relatively thin form for the construction of parts of buildings, e.g. sheet materials, slabs, or panels characterised by specified materials
  • E04C2/10—Building elements of relatively thin form for the construction of parts of buildings, e.g. sheet materials, slabs, or panels characterised by specified materials of wood, fibres, chips, vegetable stems, or the like; of plastics; of foamed products
  • E04C2/24—Building elements of relatively thin form for the construction of parts of buildings, e.g. sheet materials, slabs, or panels characterised by specified materials of wood, fibres, chips, vegetable stems, or the like; of plastics; of foamed products laminated and composed of materials covered by two or more of groups E04C2/12, E04C2/16, E04C2/20
  • E04C2/246—Building elements of relatively thin form for the construction of parts of buildings, e.g. sheet materials, slabs, or panels characterised by specified materials of wood, fibres, chips, vegetable stems, or the like; of plastics; of foamed products laminated and composed of materials covered by two or more of groups E04C2/12, E04C2/16, E04C2/20 combinations of materials fully covered by E04C2/16 and E04C2/20
• • E—FIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
  • E04—BUILDING
  • E04B—GENERAL BUILDING CONSTRUCTIONS; WALLS, e.g. PARTITIONS; ROOFS; FLOORS; CEILINGS; INSULATION OR OTHER PROTECTION OF BUILDINGS
  • E04B1/00—Constructions in general; Structures which are not restricted either to walls, e.g. partitions, or floors or ceilings or roofs
  • E04B1/62—Insulation or other protection; Elements or use of specified material therefor
  • E04B1/74—Heat, sound or noise insulation, absorption, or reflection; Other building methods affording favourable thermal or acoustical conditions, e.g. accumulating of heat within walls
  • E04B1/76—Heat, sound or noise insulation, absorption, or reflection; Other building methods affording favourable thermal or acoustical conditions, e.g. accumulating of heat within walls specifically with respect to heat only
  • E04B1/7654—Heat, sound or noise insulation, absorption, or reflection; Other building methods affording favourable thermal or acoustical conditions, e.g. accumulating of heat within walls specifically with respect to heat only comprising an insulating layer, disposed between two longitudinal supporting elements, e.g. to insulate ceilings
  • E04B1/7658—Heat, sound or noise insulation, absorption, or reflection; Other building methods affording favourable thermal or acoustical conditions, e.g. accumulating of heat within walls specifically with respect to heat only comprising an insulating layer, disposed between two longitudinal supporting elements, e.g. to insulate ceilings comprising fiber insulation, e.g. as panels or loose filled fibres
  • E04B1/7662—Heat, sound or noise insulation, absorption, or reflection; Other building methods affording favourable thermal or acoustical conditions, e.g. accumulating of heat within walls specifically with respect to heat only comprising an insulating layer, disposed between two longitudinal supporting elements, e.g. to insulate ceilings comprising fiber insulation, e.g. as panels or loose filled fibres comprising fiber blankets or batts
• • E—FIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
  • E04—BUILDING
  • E04B—GENERAL BUILDING CONSTRUCTIONS; WALLS, e.g. PARTITIONS; ROOFS; FLOORS; CEILINGS; INSULATION OR OTHER PROTECTION OF BUILDINGS
  • E04B1/00—Constructions in general; Structures which are not restricted either to walls, e.g. partitions, or floors or ceilings or roofs
  • E04B1/62—Insulation or other protection; Elements or use of specified material therefor
  • E04B1/74—Heat, sound or noise insulation, absorption, or reflection; Other building methods affording favourable thermal or acoustical conditions, e.g. accumulating of heat within walls
  • E04B1/76—Heat, sound or noise insulation, absorption, or reflection; Other building methods affording favourable thermal or acoustical conditions, e.g. accumulating of heat within walls specifically with respect to heat only
  • E04B1/78—Heat insulating elements

Definitions

• This invention pertains to mineral fiber insulation products. More particularly, this invention relates to mineral fiber insulation batts having a facing adhered thereto.
• insulation batts are to reinsulate the attic spaces of residential dwellings.
• reinsulation batts are unfaced in order to avoid introducing a new vapor barrier within the insulation layers within the attic.
• Manufacturers 1 recommendations for reinsulation of attic spaces is to either use an unfaced batt, or to physically perforate the facing on a faced product by providing knife slits or other perforations in the material.
• One of the problems with installing additional insulation batts in an attic space is that it is difficult for the insulation batts to be slid into place.
• the unfaced reinsulation batt has a high coefficient of kinetic friction when pushed along the existing surface i.e., the unfaced existing attic insulation. This is particularly true at the edges of the attic space where the roof slope meets the attic floor. The amount of friction between two mineral batts is considerable, and it is not easy to slide the reinsulation batt along the surface of existing batts in the attic space.
• Encapsulated insulation packages are known in the art. Mclaughlin, in U.S. Patent 2,113,068 and Parker, in U.S. Patent 2,913,104, each disclose insulation packages in which mineral wool is covered by a wrapper.
• a very important aspect of any insulation product for retrofit situations is that the product must be nonflammable, i.e., it must pass the ASTM E84 flame spread test with a flame spread rating of 25 or less.
• One of the problems associated with some of the encapsulated mineral fiber insulation batts of the prior art is that the adhesive used to adhere the facing to the batt would itself contribute to a flam ability problem. The adhesive prevents the product from passing the flame spread test with a flame spread rating of 25 or less. Such products invariably require expensive fire retardants to pass the test.
• Another problem with encapsulated insulation batts proposed to date is that the encapsulation materials prohibitively increase the cost of the insulation batt.
• the insulation product should be at least in part highly porous to enable the rapid compression of the batt for packaging, and the batt must be capable of nearly full recovery upon the opening of the package. It is to be understood that although the product of the invention is designed for retrofit insulation in a residential attic, the product can also be used in other insulation applications such as insulating wall cavities, basement ceilings, residential new construction, and insulation for commercial buildings.
• the facing is of sufficiently low mass as to exhibit a flame spread rating of 25 or less in the adhered condition and in the absence of fire retardants, and where the batt is capable of recovering to a predetermined thickness after release from compression to one-fourth of the predetermined thickness. It has been found that by using a very thin facing material, the product can pass the ASTM flame spread test, even when the facing is adhered to the mineral fiber batt with an adhesive.
• the facing is vapor permeable.
• At least one of the opposed side surfaces of the batt is either uncovered, or covered with a highly porous membrane, to enable quick air escape from the batt under conditions of rapid compression.
• the facing material is less than or equal to 1.02E-5 meters (l mil) in thickness, preferably less than or equal to 6.10E-6 meters (0.6 mil) in thickness, and most probably less than or equal to 4.06E-6 meters (0.4 mil) in thickness.
• the coefficient of kinetic friction of the faced batt is less than one when the faced batt is dragged across a surface of an unfaced glass fiber batt having a density of about 8.01- 12.81 Kg/M 3 (0.5 to about 0.8 pounds per cubic foot).
• This low coefficient of kinetic friction enables the do- it-yourself attic installation installer to push or slide the batt of the invention across the top of existing insulation in the attic, thereby facilitating easy installation of the retrofit batts into the farthest reaches of an attic.
• the polymeric facing is adhered to both major surfaces of the batt with a fastening means.
• the fastening means is a small amount of adhesive material.
• the adhesive material is of a sufficiently small amount as to enable the insulation batt not to exceed a flame spread rating of 25 by the ASTM E84 flame spread test, while being sufficient to bond the facing to the mineral fiber batt and enable the batt to be picked up and handled by the facing.
• polymeric facing is adhered to one or both of the opposed side surfaces of the batt.
• the facing is not necessarily adhered to either of the major surfaces.
• Figure 1 is a perspective view of a mineral fiber insulation batt having a facing material on the major surfaces.
• Figure 2 is a mineral fiber insulation batt having facing material on both the major surfaces and on the side surface.
• Figure 3 is a schematic view of apparatus used in a test to evaluate the coefficient of kinetic friction of faced insulation batts.
• insulation batt 10 is generally rectangular and has major surfaces 12, side surfaces 14, and end surfaces 16. Attached to the major surfaces is an encapsulation material or polymeric facing material 18. This material can be anything suitable to contain the dust and provide a low kinetic friction surface.
• the material is a polymeric material, and most preferably it is a polyethylene.
• a specific polyethylene material found to be useful is a high density, high molecular weight polyethylene.
• the facing is comprised of polypropylene.
• a preferred polypropylene facing is a biaxially oriented polypropylene.
• the facing on the major surfaces can be vapor permeable or vapor impermeable.
• a vapor impermeable membrane can be rendered vapor permeable by means of perforating the facing material.
• the facing material is less than or equal to 1.02E-5 meters (1.0 mil) in thickness, preferably less than or equal to 6.10E-6 meters (0.6 mil) in thickness, and most preferably less than or equal to 4.06E-6 meters (0.4 mil) in thickness.
• the facing material must be sufficiently thin to avoid high material costs and to minimize fuel contributed during fire testing.
• the facing material is attached to the major surfaces of the batt by any suitable fastening means, such as adhesive 20.
• the fastening means could also be, for example, velcro attachment means, sticking or a heat sealing process.
• a suitable adhesive is a pressure sensitive hot melt, such as HL-2707 from H.B. Fuller Company, applied at a rate of 2.15E+0 Gm/M 2 (0.2 grams per square foot) .
• the fastening means must provide a bond between the facing and the mineral fiber batt sufficient to enable the batt to be handled by the facing material. Therefore, the fastening means acts to prevent relative movement between the facing and the batt.
• the fastening means particularly if it is an adhesive, must be of sufficiently low mass so as to not unduly increase the flame spread of the batt with the facing in the adhered condition.
• the flame spread test is the ASTM E84 test. The measurement under the ASTM E84 flame spread test must be taken with the facing material in the adhered condition. Further, the mass of the facing material and the adhesive material is sufficiently low to pass the flame spread test with a flame spread rating of 25 or less in the absence of fire retardants.
• the term "absence of fire retardants” means that the material either actually contains no fire retardants, or contains fire retardants in such an insubstantial amount that the facing, in the adhered condition, would still pass the flame spread test with a flame spread rating of 25 or less if the fire retardant were left out of the product. This provides a considerable enhancement over the art in terms of material costs since a fire retardant is not needed.
• the test consists of determining the extent to which flames travel along the product under specified conditions when the product is exposed to a flame at one end.
• the side surfaces are uncovered. This enables rapid compression of the batt during a packaging operation. Since most insulation batts are highly compressed during packaging and transport, it is important for the air within the insulation package to be released rapidly during the compression process.
• the insulation batt can be provided with side facing material 22.
• the side facing material can be any material to contain the dust within the insulation product, while still being sufficiently porous to enable the rapid evacuation of air from within the batt during compression.
• the most expedient facing material may be the same facing material used on the major surfaces, but being highly perforated.
• the facing material can be cut to produce flaps to enable air escape during compression, but present a rather solid- looking appearance under static conditions.
• Additional side facing materials useful for this invention would be any scrim or other open-weave material, woven or nonwoven, made from polymeric fibers or glass fibers.
• the side facing material has openings in at least 10 percent of its surface during the compression process.
• the side facing material 22, as well as the facing material 18, is adhered to the batt.
• the facing material imparts a structure to the batt which enhances its handleability and installability in residential attics. Further, since the facing material covers the batt, any surface irregularities which would constitute a visual surface defect are covered up. Consequently, a certain amount of scrap or recycled glass fiber material may be added to the product without detracting from its visual appearance.
• the mineral fiber insulation batt can be made with a lower amount of organic binder material than would otherwise be the case.
• the amount of binder material is within the range of from about 1 to about 7 percent by weight of the unfaced batt. Most preferably, the binder comprises between 1 and 4.6 percent by weight of the unfaced batt. Such binders are well known to those skilled in the art.
• the facing material is that it must be sufficiently slippery to enable the batt to be pushed or slid into place on top of the existing attic insulation material.
• the coefficient of kinetic friction of the faced batt is less than 1.0, when the faced batt is pulled or dragged across a surface of an unfaced glass fiber batt having a density of about 8.01- 12.81 Kg/M 3 (0.5 to about 0.8 pounds per cubic foot).
• ASTM test D 2534-88 is a standard test method for determining the coefficient of kinetic friction for wax coatings. A test dynamically similar to D 2534-88 was used to determine the coefficient of kinetic friction of various facing materials suitable for use with mineral fiber insulation. A reference batt of R-13 glass fiber insulation was constructed.
• the reference batt has a density of about 11.21 Kg/M 3 (0.7 pounds per cubic foot) and measures 3.048 meters by 3.048 meters (one foot by one foot) by about 9.2 cm (3-5/8 inches).
• the reference batt was faced on the top side and unfaced on the bottom.
• the batt was dragged at a speed of 50.8 cm (20 inches) per minute across the various surfaces to be tested in accordance with the general principles of ASTM D 2534-88, and the coefficient of kinetic friction was determined by measuring the amount of frictional resistance encountered.
• FIG. 3 The apparatus used is shown in Fig. 3 in which reference batt 24 having facing 26 is pulled across the testing surface 28.
• the reference batt was pulled by means of wire 30, which after being turned upwardly around roller 32, was connected to a force measuring device. Any device suitable for measuring the load on the wire, such as a force transducer or Instron load cell 34, could be used.
• the coefficient of kinetic friction is the measurement of the frictional force between the bottom surface of the reference batt and the top surface of the testing surface or facing material 28 to be tested.
• EXAMPLE The reference batt was dragged across five different materials according to the test procedure outlined above, with the following results.
• Unfaced glass fiber batt 7.73 The above data show that the faced batt has a small fraction of the friction exhibited by the action of sliding one unfaced batt across the other.
• the coefficient of kinetic friction is within the range of from about 0.7 to about 0.9, and most preferably it is anything less than or equal to 1.0.
• the batt is capable of recovering to a predetermined thickness after release from compression to one-fourth of that predetermined thickness.
• the batt can be compressed to a thickness of 3.8 cm (1.5 inches), and upon release from the packaging material, the batt will self-recover to the thickness of 15.24 cm (6 inches).
• the batt is capable of recovering to a predetermined thickness after release from compression to one-sixth of that predetermined thickness.
• the mineral fiber insulation batt of the invention can be used for additional insulation in the attic space of a residential dwelling which has already been insulated.

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• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Architecture (AREA)
• Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
• Civil Engineering (AREA)
• Structural Engineering (AREA)
• Acoustics & Sound (AREA)
• Electromagnetism (AREA)
• Wood Science & Technology (AREA)
• Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
• Building Environments (AREA)
• Laminated Bodies (AREA)
• Braking Arrangements (AREA)
• Thermal Insulation (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Publications (2)

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Family Applications (1)

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• 1993
  • 1993-06-03 EP EP93914377A patent/EP0701645B1/de not_active Revoked
  • 1993-06-03 JP JP7501693A patent/JPH08511070A/ja active Pending
  • 1993-06-03 AU AU44060/93A patent/AU4406093A/en not_active Abandoned
  • 1993-06-03 WO PCT/US1993/005328 patent/WO1994029540A1/en not_active Ceased
  • 1993-06-03 ES ES93914377T patent/ES2105283T3/es not_active Expired - Lifetime
  • 1993-06-03 KR KR1019950705446A patent/KR100189213B1/ko not_active Expired - Fee Related
  • 1993-06-03 DE DE69313306T patent/DE69313306T2/de not_active Revoked

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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