EASILY TRANSPORTABLE VOLUME-REDUCING AGENT FOR POLYSTYRENE FOAM

• Main Authors: CLAUDIA IOBIINO, HARVEY KATZ, DAVID WASHBURNE, JEFFREY D MARSHALL, DICK IANTOSCA
• Format: Patent
• Language: English
• Published: 02.12.1998
• Edition: 6
• Subjects: ACYCLIC OR CARBOCYCLIC COMPOUNDS; AFTER-TREATMENT NOT COVERED BY SUBCLASSES C08B, C08C, C08F,C08G; CHEMISTRY; CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES RELATED TO WASTEWATERTREATMENT OR WASTE MANAGEMENT; COMPOSITIONS BASED THEREON; GENERAL PROCESSES OF COMPOUNDING; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; INDEXING SCHEME ASSOCIATED WITH SUBCLASSES B29B, B29C OR B29D, RELATING TO MOULDING MATERIALS; MAKING GRANULES OR PREFORMS; METALLURGY; ORGANIC CHEMISTRY; ORGANIC MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS; PERFORMING OPERATIONS; PREPARATION OR PRETREATMENT OF THE MATERIAL TO BESHAPED; RECOVERY OF PLASTICS OR OTHER CONSTITUENTS OF WASTE MATERIALCONTAINING PLASTICS; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS; TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINSTCLIMATE CHANGE; THEIR PREPARATION OR CHEMICAL WORKING-UP; TRANSPORTING; WORKING OF PLASTICS; WORKING OF SUBSTANCES IN A PLASTIC STATE, IN GENERAL; WORKING-UP

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain a safe, nontoxic vol.-reducing agent which, when brought into contact with a polystyrene foam, disintegrates cell membranes of the foam and gives an easily transportable compressed polystyrene (including a gel substance) by using a dibasic acid ester or a combination of dibasic acid esters as the agent. SOLUTION: This agent is selected from among aliph. dibasic acid esters having relatively high boiling points or from among combinations of such dibasic acid esters. Examples of the ester are dimethyl glutarate, dimethyl adipate, and dimethyl succinate. Examples of the combination are 50 wt.% or higher dimethyl adipate, 5-40 wt.% dimethyl glutarate, and 45-10 wt.% dimethyl succinate; 50 wt.% or higher dimethyl adipate and 50 wt.% or lower dimethyl glutarate; 50 wt.% or higher dimethyl glutarate, 5-40 wt.% dimethyl adipate, and 45-10 wt.% dimethyl succinate; and 50 wt.% or higher dimethyl glutarate and 50 wt.% or lower dimethyl adipate. A poystyrene foam is reduced in vol. by disintegrating its cell membranes with the agent and then is transported to a place where to be recycled.