The present invention relates to a method for making a leather laminate having a textured surface, and leather laminates made by this method. The laminates comprise a leather layer bonded to a reinforcing fabric with an adhesive, the reinforcing fabric providing strength to the laminate. The method involves dry milling the laminate in humid air, during which the reinforcing fabric constrains the laminate causing the textured surface to form.

A method for adhesively bonding two substrates by means of a moisture-curable adhesive composition, wherein at least one of the substrates includes at least 40 wt.-% of a mixture, said mixture consisting of: between 15 and 99 wt.-% of at least one thermoplastic polymer; between 1 and 85 wt.-% of at least one elastomer; and wherein the moisture-curable adhesive composition includes: at least one polymer containing silane groups; between 10 and 40 wt.-% of at least one polymeric plasticizer; between 0.1 and 5 wt.-% of at least one amino-functional alkoxysilane; between 0 and 5 wt.-% of at least one C1-C12-alkyl-functional alkoxysilane. The method yields adhesively bonded substrates without the requirements of using migrating plasticizers and pre-treating of the substrates.

A novel engineered wood product and method of making same that withstands the stresses, both natural and man-made, that cause warp, twist and bow.

A method of producing a building panel, including: providing a core, applying a balancing layer having a first moisture content on a first surface of the core, the balancing layer comprising a sheet impregnated with a thermosetting binder, applying a surface layer having a second moisture content on a second surface of the core, the surface layer comprising a thermosetting binder, adjusting the first moisture content of the balancing layer such that the first moisture content of the balancing layer is higher than the second moisture content of the surface layer prior to curing, and curing the surface layer and the balancing layer by applying heat and pressure. Also, a semi-finished product adapted to be cured for forming a building panel.

A novel engineered wood product and method of making same that withstands the stresses, both natural and man-made, that cause warp, twist and bow.

A method of accelerating the reduction of residual stress in a bonded structure is provided. The method can include: providing a bonded structure having at least two substructures, wherein the substructures are bonded together with an adhesive; and submitting the bonded structure to a high-humidity environment having a relative humidity of at least 75%. The method can also include a step of submitting the bonded structure to an low-humidity environment having a relative humidity of at most 20%. According to the method, the bonded structure can have a first residual stress at a first time and a second residual stress at a second time, wherein an absolute value of the first residual stress is greater than an absolute value of the second residual stress. According to the method, the residual stress at the second time can be about zero.

A method of making large ultrathin free-standing polymer films without use of a sacrificial layer includes the steps of providing a substrate, applying a polyelectrolyte material to said substrate, applying a polymer material onto said substrate and onto said polyelectrolyte material, and directly delaminating said polymer material from said substrate and said polyelectrolyte to produce the ultrathin free-standing polymer film.

A composite system for the reinforcement of physical structures includes a plurality of unidirectional fibers arranged with respective longitudinal axes generally parallel to each other over a substantial portion of a length of each unidirectional fiber. The plurality of unidirectional fibers are non-mechanically connected. A resinous material adheres the plurality of unidirectional fibers to each other such that each one of the plurality of unidirectional fiber is adhered to at least one adjacent one of the plurality of unidirectional fibers along a substantial portion of the length of the adjacent one of the plurality unidirectional fibers.

A method of preparing an aerogel composite, which includes a wetting pretreatment step for suppressing the generation of air bubbles in a fibrous material such as a mat, and a step of impregnating the fibrous material with a precursor by injecting the precursor in a vessel under a reduced pressure. The method provides a high quality, high insulation aerogel-impregnated composite without air bubbles.

A composite system for the reinforcement of physical structures includes a plurality of unidirectional fibers arranged with respective longitudinal axes generally parallel to each other over a substantial portion of a length of each unidirectional fiber. The plurality of unidirectional fibers are non-mechanically connected. A resinous material adheres the plurality of unidirectional fibers to each other such that each one of the plurality of unidirectional fiber is adhered to at least one adjacent one of the plurality of unidirectional fibers along a substantial portion of the length of the adjacent one of the plurality unidirectional fibers.