Supercritical noble gases and coloring methods
View Patent ↗A coloring system can include a noble gas, colorant, and one or more vessels configured to convert the noble gas into a supercritical fluid, and/or receive and color an article of manufacture with the noble gas in the supercritical fluid state. A coloring process can include converting a noble gas into a supercritical fluid state; dissolving, suspending, or absorbing a colorant into the supercritical noble gas, and coloring an article of manufacture with the noble gas in the supercritical fluid state. A coloring composition can include a noble gas in a supercritical fluid state, and a colorant located in the supercritical noble gas.
1. A composition comprising:
a colorant;
a supercritical fluid consisting essentially of a noble gas having the colorant dissolved, suspended, or absorbed in the supercritical fluid; and
an article of manufacture located in the supercritical fluid.
2. The composition of claim 1 , wherein the colorant is one of the following:
a dye;
an organic dye;
an inorganic dye;
a pigment; or
a stain.
3. The composition of claim 1 , wherein the composition is devoid of a volatile organic compound.
4. The composition of claim 1 , wherein the colorant is present in a sufficient amount to color an article of manufacture which is in contact with the noble gas in the supercritical fluid state.
5. The composition of claim 1 , wherein the article of manufacture includes a textile, polymer, plastic, wood, ceramic, glass, metal or alloy, or combination thereof.
6. A coloring system comprising:
a noble gas;
a colorant that is miscible in the noble gas when in a supercritical state;
one or more vessels configured to:
convert the noble gas into a supercritical fluid; and
receive and color an article of manufacture with the noble gas in the supercritical fluid state having the colorant dissolved, suspended, or absorbed in the supercritical noble gas; and
a separator vessel fluidly coupled to the one or more vessels and configured to decompress the supercritical noble gas to separate the noble gas from the colorant and/or colorant byproduct, wherein the separator vessel includes a gas outlet and a solids/liquids outlet.
7. The coloring system of claim 6 , further comprising a noble gas storage vessel configured to store the noble gas in a supercritical fluid, gaseous, or liquid state.
8. The coloring system of claim 6 , further comprising a cooling unit configured to receive the noble gas in a supercritical fluid state or gaseous state and to reduce the temperature of the noble gas to a liquid state for storage in a noble gas storage vessel.
9. The coloring system of claim 6 , further comprising an additional substance dissolved, suspended, or absorbed in the supercritical noble gas selected from a different noble gas, carbon dioxide, air, oxygen, nitrogen, water, alcohols, aldehydes, amines, hydrocarbons, aromatic hydrocarbons, phenols, bleaches, or combinations thereof.
10. The coloring system of claim 9 , wherein the additional substance is as follows:
the alcohol is selected from a group consisting of methanol, ethanol, butanol, propanol, and hexanol;
the ketone is selected from a group consisting of acetone, acetyl ketone, and hexanone;
the aldehyde is selected from a group consisting of formaldehyde and acetyldehyde;
the hydrocarbon is selected from a group consisting of methane, ethane, propane, butane, ethylene, and propylene; or
the halogenated hydrocarbon is selected from a group consisting of iodoethane, methylene chloride, and chloroform.
11. A coloring process comprising:
converting a noble gas into a supercritical fluid state;
combining a colorant with the noble gas in the supercritical fluid state within a coloring vessel;
coloring an article of manufacture with the noble gas in the supercritical fluid state having the colorant dissolved, suspended, or absorbed in the supercritical noble gas;
decompressing the supercritical noble gas to a gaseous state; and
separating the noble gas from the colorant and/or colorant byproducts in a separator vessel.
12. The coloring process of claim 11 , further comprising combining an additional substance with the noble gas, wherein the additional substance is selected from a different noble gas, carbon dioxide, air, oxygen, nitrogen, water, alcohols, aldehydes, amines, hydrocarbons, aromatic hydrocarbons, phenols, bleaches, or combinations thereof.
13. The coloring process of claim 12 , wherein the additional substance is as follows:
the alcohol is selected from a group consisting of methanol, ethanol, butanol, propanol, and hexanol;
the ketone is selected from a group consisting of acetone, acetyl ketone, and hexanone;
the aldehyde is selected from a group consisting of formaldehyde and acetyldehyde;
the hydrocarbon is selected from a group consisting of methane, ethane, propane, butane, ethylene, and propylene; or
the halogenated hydrocarbon is selected from a group consisting of iodoethane, methylene chloride, and chloroform.
14. The coloring process of claim 11 , wherein the coloring comprises generating bubbles in the presence of the article of manufacture.
15. The coloring process of claim 11 , wherein the coloring comprises agitating the article of manufacture.
16. The coloring process of claim 15 , wherein the agitating is from mechanical agitation.
17. The coloring process of claim 15 , wherein the agitating is from bubble generation.
18. The coloring process of claim 11 , further comprising cooling the noble gas from a gaseous state to a liquid state after being separated from the colorant or colorant byproducts.
19. The coloring process of claim 11 , further comprising;
introducing the noble gas in the supercritical fluid state into a coloring vessel where the colorant and article of manufacture have been previously introduced.
20. The coloring process of claim 11 , further comprising storing the noble gas in a supercritical fluid, gaseous, or liquid state after being separated from the colorant and/or colorant byproducts.