METHOD OF PRODUCING A GLUELESS DUSTLESS COMPOSITE FLOORING MATERIAL SYSTEM
A method of producing a glueless dustless composite flooring material system providing PVC-based flooring having waterproof layers providing different qualities of hardness, wear-resistance, sound deadening, and decorative patterns, avoiding the use of moisture-susceptible compressed cellulose-based filler, with layers fused together, avoiding the manufacturing complexity and delamination risks of using glue or adhesive, with a quickly-cured, UV-cured top coating providing long-lasting high performance and shortening and simplifying the manufacturing, which can be done in a sheet-form, essentially continuous-run manner, with an ability to quickly and simply change the optional design printing and texturing produced, and having an optional underlayment layer.
1 - 22 . (canceled)
23 . Composite flooring material segments, each composite flooring material segment comprising:
(i) a flooring base layer comprising a mixture of PVC resin and calcium carbonate, wherein said mixture is free of glue, and
wherein said flooring base layer is a resultant of extrusion of the mixture at elevated temperature and pressure, mold-forming the extruded mixture into said flooring base layer, and cooling said flooring base layer;
(ii) a waterproof flooring face layer comprising a decorative face sublayer and a wearing face sublayer fused onto a top face of said decorative face sublayer,
where said flooring face layer is fused onto a top face of said flooring base layer by hot-melt overlaying of said layers; and
(iii) a cured waterproof flooring coating layer, applied on top of said flooring face layer,
wherein said flooring coating layer is the resultant of coating said flooring face layer with a UV-curing plastic resin and UV curing said coating of UV-curing plastic resin by exposure to UV light.
24 . (canceled)
25 . The composite flooring material segments of claim 23 , where said flooring base layer is free of compressed cellulose material.
26 . The composite flooring material segments of claim 23 , where said flooring base layer is a waterproof layer.
27 . The composite flooring material segments of claim 23 , where said mixture comprises, by weight, between 20% and 35% polyvinylchloride, and between 63% and 73% calcium carbonate.
28 . The composite flooring material segments of claim 23 , where said mixture comprises, by weight, between 2% and 2.5% calcium/zinc heat stabilizer, between 1.6% and 2.5% chlorinated polyethylene elastomer, between 0.6% and 1.7% acrylic polymer modifier, between 0.2% and 0.25% internal lubricant, and between 0.32% and 0.62% high melting point polymer.
29 . (canceled)
30 . The composite flooring material segments of claim 23 , where said decorative face sublayer is a PVC decorative polymer film.
31 . The composite flooring material segments of claim 30 , where a design is printed onto said PVC decorative polymer film.
32 . The composite flooring material segments of claim 30 , where said PVC decorative polymer film further comprises a colored film.
33 . The composite flooring material segments of claim 23 , where said wearing face sublayer is a PVC wear-resistant polymer film.
34 . The composite flooring material segments of claim 33 , where said PVC wear-resistant polymer film is transparent.
35 . The composite flooring material segments of claim 23 , where said flooring coating layer is transparent.
36 . The composite flooring material segments of claim 23 , where said flooring coating layer further comprises a gritty particulate material.
37 . The composite flooring material segments of claim 23 , where said flooring coating layer further comprises aluminum oxide.