Method of recycling acrylic resin, composition for acrylic artificial stone, and article of artificial stone

1. A method of decomposing a polymeric (meth)acrylic resin, the method comprising:

thermally decomposing the polymeric (meth)acrylic resin in a substantially oxygen-free atmosphere to generate a gas-phase product; and

converting at least a portion of the gas-phase product to a (meth)acrylic monomer-containing component by condensing at least a portion of the gas-phase product.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1 , further comprising isolating an inorganic-containing component from a non-gas-phase product of the thermal decomposition.

3. The method as claimed in claim 2 , wherein the inorganic-containing component includes aluminum oxide.

4. The method as claimed in claim 2 , further comprising, after isolating the inorganic-containing component, oxidizing the inorganic-containing component to generate aluminum oxide.

5. The method as claimed in claim 4 , wherein the oxidation includes heating the inorganic-containing component in an oxygen-containing atmosphere at a temperature of about 900° C. to about 1,200° C.

6. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the (meth)acrylic monomer-containing component has a viscosity less than that of the polymeric (meth)acrylic resin at room temperature.

7. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the polymeric (meth)acrylic resin is a waste resin.

8. The method as claimed in claim 7 , wherein the waste resin includes waste acrylic artificial stone, waste polymethylmethacrylate resin, or mixtures thereof at least some of which has a weight average molecular weight of greater than 150,000.

9. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the polymeric (meth)acrylic resin is a solid at room temperature.

10. The method as claimed in claim 1 , further comprising:

condensing a first portion of the gas-phase product generated by heating at a temperature of about 200° C. to about 250° C.; and

condensing a second portion of the gas-phase product generated by heating at a temperature of about 250° C. to about 450° C., the first and second portions being separate.

11. The method as claimed in claim 10 , wherein:

the first portion contains water, and

the second portion contains the (meth)acrylic monomer-containing component.

12. The method as claimed in claim 1 , further comprising conducting at least one distillation of the (meth)acrylic monomer-containing component after condensing the (meth)acrylic monomer-containing component.

13. A composition for acrylic artificial stone, the composition comprising:

a (meth)acrylic monomer; and

an inorganic material, wherein:

at least one of the (meth)acrylic monomer and the inorganic material is contained in a component generated by decomposing a polymeric (meth)acrylic resin.

14. The composition as claimed in claim 13 , wherein the polymeric (meth)acrylic resin is decomposed using a method that includes:

thermally decomposing the polymeric (meth)acrylic resin in a substantially oxygen-free atmosphere to generate a gas-phase product; and

converting at least a portion of the gas-phase product to a (meth)acrylic monomer-containing component by condensing at least a portion of the gas-phase product.

15. The composition as claimed in claim 13 , further comprising particles of pulverized acrylic artificial stone, the particles having a size of about 0.1 mm to about 5 mm.

16. The composition as claimed in claim 13 , wherein:

the (meth)acrylic monomer forms about 0.1 to about 90% by weight of a (meth)acrylic resin syrup,

the inorganic material forms at least a portion of an inorganic filler, and

the composition includes:

about 100 weight parts of the (meth)acrylic resin syrup,

about 100 to about 200 weight parts of the inorganic filler,

about 0.1 to about 10 weight parts of the crosslinking agent, and

about 0.1 to about 10 weight parts of the polymerization initiator.

17. The composition as claimed in claim 16 , wherein the (meth)acrylic monomer is combined with a second (meth)acrylic monomer and a poly(meth)acrylate in the (meth)acrylic resin syrup,

about 5 to about 80% by weight of the (meth)acrylic resin syrup is the second (meth)acrylate monomer,

the second (meth)acrylic monomer includes at least one of methacrylic acid, methyl methacrylate, ethyl methacrylate, isopropyl methacrylate, n-butyl methacrylate, or 2-ethyl hexyl methacrylate, and

about 5 to about 80% by weight of the (meth)acrylic resin syrup is the poly(meth)acrylate.

18. The composition as claimed in claim 16 , wherein the inorganic filler includes at least one of calcium carbonate, aluminum hydroxide, silica, alumina, barium sulfate, or magnesium hydroxide.

19. The composition as claimed in claim 16 , wherein:

the composition includes a crosslinking agent, and

the crosslinking agent includes one or more of ethylene glycol dimethacrylate, propyleneglycol dimethacrylate, glycerol trimethacrylate, trimethylpropane trimethacrylate, bisphenol A, or dimethacrylate.

20. An article of artificial stone, comprising:

a (meth)acrylic polymer matrix; and

an inorganic material in the (meth)acrylic polymer matrix, wherein:

the (meth)acrylic polymer matrix is a polymer of a (meth)acrylic monomer, and

at least one of the (meth)acrylic monomer and the inorganic material is contained in a component generated by decomposing a polymeric (meth)acrylic resin.

21. The article as claimed in claim 20 , wherein the polymeric (meth)acrylic resin is decomposed using a method that includes:

thermally decomposing the polymeric (meth)acrylic resin in a substantially oxygen-free atmosphere to generate a gas-phase product; and

converting at least a portion of the gas-phase product to a (meth)acrylic monomer-containing component by condensing at least a portion of the gas-phase product.

22. A method of making an article of artificial stone, the method comprising:

preparing a composition; and

curing the composition, wherein:

the composition includes a (meth)acrylic monomer and an inorganic material, at least one of the (meth)acrylic monomer and the inorganic material being contained in a component generated by decomposing a polymeric (meth)acrylic resin.

23. A method of making an article of artificial stone, the method comprising:

thermally decomposing a polymeric (meth)acrylic resin in a substantially oxygen-free atmosphere to generate a gas-phase product;

converting at least a portion of the gas-phase product to a (meth)acrylic monomer-containing component by condensing at least a portion of the gas-phase product;

forming a composition that includes a (meth)acrylic monomer and an inorganic material, the (meth)acrylic monomer being obtained from the (meth)acrylic monomer-containing component; and

curing the composition.