Carpet waste composite

1. A composite adapted for use as a building material, the composite comprising:

processed carpet waste, wherein the processed carpet waste comprises (i) a reduced amount of inorganic filler present within an unprocessed carpet waste, and (ii) a melted polypropylene and an unmelted nylon; and

between about 2% and about 10% binding agent by weight of the composite.

2. The composite of claim 1 , wherein the composite comprises about 5% binding agent, by weight.

3. The composite of claim 1 , wherein the composite further comprises up to about 65% natural fibers, by weight of the composite in intimate association with the processed carpet waste and the binding agent.

4. The composite of claim 1 , wherein the processed carpet waste includes a material selected from the group consisting of wool, nylon, polyester, polypropylene, jute, sisal, and combinations thereof.

5. The composite of claim 3 , wherein the natural fibers are selected from the group consisting of wood chips, wood flour, wood flakes, sawdust, flax, jute, hemp, kenaf, rice hulls, abaca, and combinations thereof.

6. The composite of claim 1 , further comprising an additive selected from the group consisting of a colorant, a fire retardant, a fiberglass, a mold inhibitor, and combinations thereof.

7. The composite of claim 1 , wherein the processed carpet waste comprises at least one of post-industrial waste and post-consumer waste.

8. The composite of claim 1 , wherein after submersion testing according to ASTM D1037-96A, the composite exhibits water absorption of not more than about 3%, by weight.

9. The composite of claim 1 , wherein the processed carpet waste comprises at least one of a pelletized carpet waste and a fiber carpet waste.

10. A method of manufacturing a composite adapted for use as a building material, the method comprising the steps of:

applying heat and pressure to a processed carpet waste and a binding agent to form the composite at a temperature and for a time period sufficient to melt a plurality of materials comprising the processed carpet waste; and

cooling the composite while applying pressure to the composite.

11. The method of claim 10 , wherein the processing step comprises at least one of chopping, shredding, grinding, contaminant separating, pelletizing, agglomerating, pulverizing, fine grinding, and fiberizing the carpet waste.

12. The method of claim 10 , wherein the step of applying heat and pressure occurs in a first cycle press, and wherein the step of cooling the composite while applying pressure occurs in a second cycle press.

13. The method of claim 10 , wherein the step of applying heat and pressure and the step of cooling the composite while applying pressure occur in a first cycle press.

14. The method of claim 10 , wherein the step of applying pressure heats the composite material to a temperature of about 100° F. to about 600° F.

15. The method of claim 14 , wherein the step of applying pressure heats the composite material to a temperature of about 200° F. to about 550° F.

16. The method of claim 15 , wherein the step of applying pressure heats the composite material to a temperature of about 340° F. to about 420° F.

17. The method of claim 15 , wherein the step of applying pressure heats the composite material to a temperature of about 420° F. to about 500° F.

18. The method of claim 10 , wherein the processed carpet waste comprises unmelted carpet waste.

19. The method of claim 10 , further comprising the step of mixing the processed carpet waste and the binding agent.

20. The method of claim 10 , wherein the composite comprises about 90% to about 98% processed carpet waste, by weight.

21. The method of claim 20 , wherein the composite comprises about 95% processed carpet waste, by weight.

22. A composite building material manufactured according to the process of claim 10 .

23. The method of claim 10 , wherein the carpet waste comprises fibers comprising at least one of polypropylene, nylon, and polyester.

24. The method of claim 10 , wherein the heating and pressing step comprises applying heat and pressure to the processed carpet waste and the binding agent to form the composite at a temperature and for a time period sufficient to melt substantially all materials comprising the processed carpet waste.

25. A method of manufacturing a composite adapted for use as a building material, the method comprising the steps of:

applying heat and pressure to a processed carpet waste and a binding agent to form the composite material; and

cooling the composite material while applying pressure to the composite material;

wherein the step of applying heat and pressure occurs in a first cycle press, and wherein the step of cooling the composite while applying pressure occurs in a second cycle press.

26. A method of manufacturing a composite adapted for use as a building material, the method comprising the steps of:

processing a carpet waste to obtain a processed carpet waste;

applying heat and pressure to the processed carpet waste and a binding agent to form the composite; and

actively cooling the composite while applying pressure to the composite, wherein the composite is cooled under pressure for a time period and to a reduced temperature sufficient to reduce warping of the composite.

27. The method of claim 26 , wherein the step of actively cooling the composite while applying pressure cools the composite to a temperature of about 300° F. to about 32° F.

28. The method of claim 26 , wherein the step of actively cooling the composite while applying pressure cools the composite to a temperature of about 250° F. to about 180° F.

29. The method of claim 26 , wherein the step of actively cooling the composite while applying pressure cools the composite to a temperature of about 80° F.

30. The method of claim 26 , wherein the pressure applied during the applying heat step and the actively cooling step is substantially constant.

31. The method of claim 26 , wherein the step of actively cooling the composite while applying pressure occurs for a time period of about 60 seconds to about 360 seconds.