Innovative Method for the Production of Structural Elements of the Construction Industry

摘要

A major Italian producer of ceramic tiles conceived a method to reinforce the back of their large decorative elements, used mostly for exterior facades, with glass fiber. The application of a glued layer of woven glass fiber dramatically improves all mechanical characteristics of the tile while reducing thickness and weight. Advantages in terms of raw material, transportation costs, ease of application, safety and resistance to mechanical and thermal shock are easy to understand and quantify. To apply the glass fiber, the client required metering and mixing equipment with the ability to spray a two-component polyurethane adhesive on the back of the tile during its continuous manufacturing process. After a comprehensive series of laboratory trials, Cannon identified the best possible option, designed a solution able to perform under such stressful conditions and supplied to this customer a Cannon two-component high pressure machine fitted with an LN spray head mounted on a traverse oscillating head holder. A special adhesive formulation was chosen, providing optimum bonding characteristics between clay and glass mat which imparted superior mechanical properties with a very thin layer of polyurethane. The finished tiles can measure up to 360 by 120 cm, and their thickness and weight have been reduced by 65% in comparison with the previous generation of ceramic coverings along with significant improvements in shock and elongation resistance even under stressful hot-cold cycles.