MOLDING MATERIAL

Abstract

The invention relates to a molding material, consisting of or comprising an organic binder, the organic binder being a wax or comprising a wax; and a filler mixture, the filler mixture comprising or consisting of a mineral filler and a fibrous material, wherein the wax is contained in the molding material in a content of between 3% by weight and 23% by weight, and wherein the mineral filler is contained in the molding material in a content of between 75% by weight and 95% by weight. The invention further relates to a molded part made of such a molding material, a method for producing a molded part, and the use of a molding material for forming a molded part.

Claims

1. A molding material comprising: an organic binder, the organic binder being a wax or comprising a wax, and a filler mixture, the filler mixture comprising a mineral filler and a fibrous material, wherein the molding material contains between 3% by weight and 23% by weight of the wax, and wherein the molding material contains between 75% by weight and 95% by weight of the mineral filler.

2. The molding material according to claim 1, wherein: the wax is selected from the group consisting of: vegetable wax; rice wax; castor wax; sunflower wax; sugarcane wax; carnauba wax; candelilla wax; animal wax; wool wax; beeswax; mineral wax; paraffin wax; montan wax; synthetic wax; and stearin.

3. The molding material according to claim 1, wherein: the mineral filler is selected from the group consisting of: water-insoluble alkali; and alkaline earth metal compounds.

4. The molding material according to claim 3, wherein: the mineral filler comprises calcium carbonate.

5. The molding material according to claim 1, wherein: the molding material contains between 1% by weight and 15% by weight of the fibrous material.

6. The molding material according to claim 1, wherein: the fibrous material is selected from the group consisting of: natural fibers; cellulose fibers; synthetic fibers; textile fibers; paper fibers; and recycled fibers.

7. The molding material according to claim 6, wherein: the fibrous material is a natural fiber selected from the group consisting of: bagasse; wood; cotton; hemp; flax; kenaf; coconut; pineapple; palm; banana; water hyacinth; sea grass; bamboo; reed; grass; and straw.

8. The molding material according to claim 1, wherein: the length of the fibers is less than 10 mm.

9. The molding material according to claim 1, further comprising: 75% by weight to 85% by weight calcium carbonate, 10% by weight to 20% by weight wax, and 1% by weight to 5% by weight cellulose fibers.

10. A container, comprising a molding material according to claim 1.

11. A method for producing a molded part, comprising: providing or obtaining the molding material according to claim 1, forming a moldable mass by heating the molding material to a temperature between 50° C. and 150° C., shaping the moldable mass into a molded part, and cooling the moldable mass for solidifying the molding material.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein: the shaping of the moldable mass is done by one or more of: shell casting; injection molding; transfer molding; extrusion; deep-drawing; calendering; rotational molding; pressure bag molding; compression molding.

13. (canceled)

14. The molding material according to claim 1, wherein: the length of the fibers is less than 2 mm.

15. The molding material according to claim 1, wherein: the length of the fibers is between 100 μm and 1000 μm.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENT(S)

Example

[0053] In an exemplary embodiment, the production of a storage box made of a molding material composition according to the invention is described.

[0054] The molding material has the following composition: 80% by weight calcium carbonate as mineral filler, 17% by weight rice wax as organic binder and 3% by weight cellulose fibers. The calcium carbonate (food grade, >99%) is a powder presenting an average particle diameter of about 90 μm. The cellulose fibers are wood fibers presenting an average length of about 200 μm.

[0055] After mixing the components, the mixture is heated to approx. 90° C. to melt the organic binder and form a moldable mass. In a mixing device, the molding material is mixed to homogeneity and subsequently introduced into an injection mold. The mixing device is a compounding apparatus typically used in the plastic industry. The injection mold comprises the mold for a container and the mold for a corresponding screw cap.

[0056] After solidification of the molding compound at a temperature of the mold of less than 50° C., the molded products can be removed from the mold. The wax content in the molding compound ensures an easy demolding even without the use of a release agent.

[0057] The material of the obtained container has a density of about 2.3 g/cm.sup.3. As a result, it conveys a high-quality hand feel and may be used for packaging high-quality cosmetic products.

[0058] The material of the container is completely recyclable. Since substantially no chemical crosslinking reactions take place when processing the molding compound, the material is re-meltable. Due to the low melting temperature of the wax, the energy consumption is low, yet safe usability is ensured at common use temperatures.