The present invention provides a continuous process for solid-state expansion of a biopolymer, e.g., polylactic acid, which can be used to manufacture reduced-density thermoplastic materials with improved physical and thermal properties. By incorporating multiple stages of heating into the process as a means to regulate heat flux, unprecedented control of microstructure and crystallinity can be achieved. Thermoplastic sheets with the distinct cellular characteristics imparted by the process disclosed herein were found to be thicker and stronger than materials prepared by conventional processes. Thermoforming sheets with such characteristics enabled the production of light-weight, thermally-stable, compostable products that resist warping, and are thus suitable for a range of industrial applications.

A roof system includes a roof deck, a weighted cover board disposed upwardly adjacent the roof deck and a plurality of fasteners coupling the weighted cover board to the roof deck.

A roof system includes a roof deck, a weighted cover board disposed upwardly adjacent the roof deck and a plurality of fasteners coupling the weighted cover board to the roof deck.

The present disclosure is directed to a physically crosslinked, closed cell continuous multilayer foam structure comprising at least one foam polypropylene/polyethylene layer with a TPU cap layer. The multilayer foam structure can be obtained by coextruding a multilayer structure comprising at least one foam composition layer with at least one cap composition layer, irradiating the coextruded structure with ionizing radiation, and continuously foaming the irradiated structure.

In the method for the continuous production of a heat-insulated, corrugated line pipe (1) with at least one inner pipe (2), a corrugated outer jacket of the line pipe is first produced by means of an extruder (27) and a corrugator (28) and the inner pipe arranged in a foil tube together with a foam-forming starting material is guided into the corrugator, in which the outer jacket of the line pipe which has been corrugated before is filled with the heat-insulating foam. The device (10) provided for carrying out the method has a protective pipe (26) by means of which the inner pipe surrounded by the foil tube can be guided separately from the extrusion and corrugation of the outer jacket into the corrugator.

In a handrail including a carcass, a stretch inhibitor within the carcass, and a sliding layer bonded to the carcass, at least a portion of the carcass has a gas phase dispersed in a solid polymer matrix. The gas phase can reduce a density of the carcass by at least 5% or 10%, or about 15%, as compared to a density of the polymer matrix. The carcass can have a generally uniform distribution of gas bubbles in the polymer matrix, which can define a generally closed cell structure in the polymer matrix. The gas phase can be formed of particles of a syntactic foam dispersed in the polymer matrix. The handrail can further include a cover. The carcass and the cover can be formed of thermoplastic materials, and the cover can represent between 10 and 30% of the overall TPU required for the handrail.

In a handrail including a carcass, a stretch inhibitor within the carcass, and a sliding layer bonded to the carcass, at least a portion of the carcass has a gas phase dispersed in a solid polymer matrix. The gas phase can reduce a density of the carcass by at least 5% or 10%, or about 15%, as compared to a density of the polymer matrix. The carcass can have a generally uniform distribution of gas bubbles in the polymer matrix, which can define a generally closed cell structure in the polymer matrix. The gas phase can be formed of particles of a syntactic foam dispersed in the polymer matrix. The handrail can further include a cover. The carcass and the cover can be formed of thermoplastic materials, and the cover can represent between 10 and 30% of the overall TPU required for the handrail.

Disclosed herein are physically crosslinked, closed cell continuous multilayer foam structures that include a coextruded foam layer containing at least one of polypropylene and polyethylene and a crosslinked, coextruded cap layer containing at least one of polypropylene and polyethylene. The multilayer foam structure can be obtained by coextruding a multilayer structure comprising at least one foam composition layer and at least one cap composition layer, irradiating the coextruded structure with ionizing radiation, and continuously foaming the irradiated structure.

A synthetic resin skin material, including a base cloth and a vinyl chloride resin skin layer that is formed on the base cloth and that includes a vinyl chloride resin having a degree of polymerization of 1,600 to 3,000 and includes 3 parts by mass to 20 parts by mass of a silicon-acrylic copolymer with respect to 100 parts by mass of the vinyl chloride resin, and a manufacturing method thereof.

A synthetic resin skin material, including a base cloth and a vinyl chloride resin skin layer that is formed on the base cloth and that includes a vinyl chloride resin having a degree of polymerization of 1,600 to 3,000 and includes 3 parts by mass to 20 parts by mass of a silicon-acrylic copolymer with respect to 100 parts by mass of the vinyl chloride resin, and a manufacturing method thereof.