METHOD AND COMPOSITION FOR LIGHTNING PROTECTION

Abstract

A particulate composition suitable for protection against lightning is disclosed. The particulate composition comprises of a particulate matter comprising a mineral compound, preferably black tourmaline, capable of emitting negatively charged ions continuously, a grinding auxiliary agent, and a liquid medium. The particulate composition is embedded in a substrate, coating or mixed into the granules of composite roofing to protect people, objects and structures from lightning by developing a negatively charged cloaking shield to prevent the attraction of negatively charged lightning from striking. The composition infused or applied on a subject continuously emits negative ions sufficiently producing a protective electromagnetic cloaking shield restricting the wicking action of positive ions up from ground surface and thereby restricting the formation of positive streamers that reach upwards towards the stepped leaders of lightning.

Claims

1. A particulate composition suitable for protection against lightning, the composition comprising of: a particulate matter comprising a mineral compound capable of emitting negatively charged ions continuously; a grinding auxiliary agent; and a liquid medium; wherein the composition is embedded in a substrate, coating or mixed into the granules of composite roofing to protect people, objects and structures from lightning by developing a negatively charged cloaking shield to prevent the attraction of negatively charged lightning from striking.

2. The particulate composition of claim 1, wherein the particulate matter comprises black tourmaline powder.

3. The particulate composition of claim 2, wherein the black tourmaline powder is present in the composition in an amount of 10 wt % based on 100 wt % of the composition.

4. The particulate composition of claim 1, wherein the grinding auxiliary agent is present in the composition in an amount of 3 wt % based on 100 wt % of the composition.

5. The particulate composition of claim 1, wherein the liquid medium comprises de-ionized water which is present in the composition in an amount of 87 wt % based on 100 wt % of the composition.

6. The particulate composition of claim 2, wherein an average particle size of black tourmaline in the composition is 190 nm.

7. The particulate composition of claim 2, wherein the composition when embedded in a substrate, coating or roofing granules continuously emits negative ions sufficiently producing a protective electromagnetic cloaking shield restricting the wicking action of positive ions up from ground surface and thereby restricting the formation of positive streamers that reach upwards towards the stepped leaders of lightning.

8. The particulate composition of claim 2, wherein the composition when embedded in a substrate or coating emits far infrared waves such that a person using an article with a coating of the composition will be easier to find with thermal imaging equipment used by first responders and search and rescue teams.

9. The particulate composition of claim 2, wherein the composition when embedded in a coating or roofing granules provides anti-microbial and anti-fungal properties.

10. The particulate composition of claim 2, wherein the composition when embedded in a coating or roofing granules provide anti-fading properties.

11. The particulate composition of claim 2, wherein articles and structures which may be infused with or protected by using the composition includes but not limited to paint, coatings, rigid or flexible article of clothing, landscaping materials, in the form of a tarp, hat, helmet, umbrella, outdoor gear, footwear, tree wrapping protection, foundation or flag pole wrapping system, lotion or aerosol, temporary or permanent platform, walkway, wind turbines or wind industry equipment, buildings, airports, airplanes, nautical and boating equipment, sports equipment, and sporting venues.

12. A method of preparation of a particulate composition suitable for protection against lightning, the method comprising the steps of: mixing a particulate matter with a grinding auxiliary agent and a liquid medium in specific proportions to make a particulate mixture; mechanically agitating the particulate mixture to make an initial dispersion; grand milling the dispersion with a grinding media for a specific duration; and cooling the dispersion to room temperature conditions.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the particulate matter comprises black tourmaline powder in an amount of 10 wt % based on 100 wt % of the composition.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein the grinding auxiliary agent is present in the composition in an amount of 3 wt % based on 100 wt % of the composition.

15. The method of claim 12, wherein the liquid medium comprises de-ionized water which is present in the composition in an amount of 87 wt % based on 100 wt % of the composition.

16. The method of claim 12, wherein the dispersion is milled for a duration of three hours.

17. The method of claim 12, wherein an average particle size of black tourmaline in the composition after milling is 190 nm.

18. The method of claim 12, wherein the composition is used for textile and clothing infusion.

19. The method of claim 12, wherein the composition is used as a surface treatment agent, embedded in a substrate, paint, coating.

20. The method of claim 12, wherein the composition is mixed into the granules of composite roofing.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWING

[0023] Elements in the figures have not necessarily been drawn to scale in order to enhance their clarity and improve understanding of these various elements and embodiments of the invention. Furthermore, elements that are known to be common and well understood to those in the industry are not depicted in order to provide a clear view of the various embodiments of the invention, thus the drawings are generalized in form in the interest of clarity and conciseness.

[0024] FIG. 1 illustrates a graph showing a relationship between milling time, particle diameter and poly-disparity index of a particulate composition according to a particular embodiment of the present invention;

[0025] FIG. 2 illustrates a graph showing a particle diameter distribution with milling time in the particulate composition; and

[0026] FIG. 3 illustrates a graph showing a relationship between the strength of negative ions emission and tourmaline content of different surface treatment agents prepared from the particulate composition.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0027] In the following discussion that addresses a number of embodiments and applications of the present invention, reference is made to the accompanying drawings that form a part hereof, and in which is shown by way of illustration, specific embodiments in which the invention may be practiced. It is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

[0028] The present invention provides a particulate composition and a method of preparation of the same used for the intended purpose of protection against damaging lightning. The invention is aimed at being able to protect people, structures and objects from being struck by lightning by using a method and process of pairing a negatively charged mineral compound with the negative polarity of lightning. Since like charges repel each other, lightning instead selects from a preferred field of positively charged subjects, thus making the negatively charged subject invisible and safe from lightning strikes.

[0029] One embodiment of the present invention provides a particulate composition comprising of a particulate matter comprising a mineral compound capable of emitting negatively charged ions continuously, a grinding auxiliary agent, and a liquid medium in specific proportions. Although other synthetically or organically produced elements could be substituted, the present invention specifies exemplary combinations of the mineral Black Tourmaline which has been proven to emit negative ions continuously and when applied or infused correctly provides a negatively charged ionic cloak of protection. Tourmaline had been widely researched for applications towards air and water purification, fabrics, coatings and cosmetics due to its ability to release and emit negative ions and also for its antifungal protection. The emitting performance of Black Tourmaline is transferable using various delivery systems embedded in a substrate, coating or mixed into the granules of composite roofing to protect people, objects and structures from lightning by developing a negatively charged cloaking shield to prevent the attraction of negatively charged lightning from striking.

[0030] The particulate composition continuously emits negative ions sufficiently producing a protective electromagnetic cloaking apparatus restricting the formation of positive streamers and restricting the wicking action of positive ions up from an agitated Earth's surface. Any organic or synthetic compound or substance emitting negative ions can be used in this method and process, but one embodiment of the present invention utilizes is a mineral compound defined as a select subspecies of Black Tourmaline because it never quits emitting negative ions and is common, plentiful in the environment and requires little processing.

[0031] The present invention provides a method of preparation of the particulate composition which is further used for infusion or as a surface treatment agent. The method comprises the steps of mixing a particulate matter with a grinding auxiliary agent and a liquid medium in specific proportions to make a particulate mixture. The particulate matter used here is black tourmaline powder. The liquid medium used is de-ionized water. Any conventional grinding auxiliary agent such as silica, alumina, talc or inorganic salts may be used. The black tourmaline powder, the grinding auxiliary agent and the de-ionized water is mixed to together in a proportion of 10:3:87 wt % based on 100 wt % of the composition. The particulate mixture is mechanically agitated to make an initial dispersion (NT). The dispersion is then grand milled with a grinding media such as 0.3 mm zirconia for a specific duration and then cooled to room temperature conditions. The ideal duration of time is three hours. A stable and high quality dispersion or anti-caking emulsion should be used.

[0032] The relationship between the particle size and milling process time is shown in FIG. 1. When milling time lasted up to 90 min, the particle average diameter (d50) decreased to 240 nm and finally to 190 nm. The poly-dispersion index (PDI), which is a measure of the distribution of particle size populations in a given sample, should reach 0.220. The numerical value of PDI ranges from 0.0 (for a perfectly uniform sample with respect to the particle size) to 1.0 (for a highly poly-disperse sample with multiple particle size populations). Values of 0.2 and below are most commonly deemed acceptable in practice for nanoparticle materials. FIG. 2 shows the final particle diameter distribution with a milling time of 180 min.

[0033] One exemplary method of protection from lightning is with coatings or topical treatments or penetrating infusions of the particulate composition, prepared by the above-mentioned method, to any article of clothing, object or structure to prevent or restrict positive streamers by continuously emitting sufficient negative ions. Top down protection for people would be considered but not limited to a hat, helmet, umbrella, rain poncho or any article of clothing, protective shoes, protective socks, outdoor gear, sports equipment, nautical and boating equipment, lotion or aerosol. For structures it would be in the form of roofing, paint or coatings, landscaping materials whether residential or commercial, in the form of a tarp, tree wrapping protection, foundation or flag pole wrapping system, temporary or permanent platform, walkway, anything to do with sport stadiums, airports, airplanes, wind turbines or wind industry equipment, radio, TV and cell tower protection systems.

[0034] The particulate composition uses black tourmaline, which emits far infrared waves. A person using an article of clothing, outdoor gear or equipment with a topical coating of the composition with significant strength will be easier to find with thermal imaging equipment used by first responders and search and rescue teams.

[0035] The particulate composition may be used for textile infusion. Using flexible and absorbent substrates, the composition may be infused by the conventional technique of soaking an absorbent flexible substrate with an aqueous mixture of the composition, pressing the resultant soaked substrate to remove any excess surfactant, and then drying it. Vary the concentrations to vary the protection. In the following procedure the particulate composition was infused into textile fibers using an electrostatic spinning method. Using this method the textiles rapidly adsorbed the nano sized tourmaline particles inside and on the surface of the textile fibers. The various levels of negative ions to be released were documented. The method for testing and measuring the negative ions were based on the People's Republic of China Building Material Industry Standard JC/T 1016-2006 Testing on negative ion concentration of materials to control the environmental conditions with temperature at 231 C. and relative humidity at 505% using Air Ions Counter (COM-3600F, Japanese com-system Co. Ltd)

[0036] 10 g of the particulate composition (NT) and 3 g of a proofing agent (TP) is mixed with 87 g of deionized water as the solution to prepare a surface treatment agent A1 (tourmaline content 1 wt %). The textiles are then dipped into the surface treatment agent for 30 seconds and then dried for 5 seconds at 160 C. The content formulation for various other versions of surface treatment agent is shown in Table 1 and was prepared with the same process. The series of textiles was treated with agent C after being treated by agent B1, B2, B3 and numbered B1C, B2C, B3C. The samples have same treatment process with the different nano tourmaline content named as follows; Treated A, Treated B, Treated BC. The average particle size of tourmaline in all the surface treatment agents is 190 nm.

TABLE-US-00001 TABLE 1 Dispersion Agent Deionized No. NT (/g) (/g) water (/g) A1 10 3 87 A2 30 3 67 A3 50 3 47 B1 10 0 90 B2 30 0 70 B3 50 0 50 C 0 3 97

[0037] FIG. 3 shows the relationship between the strength of negative ions emission and tourmaline content of different surface treatment agents. As shown in FIG. 3, different treatment processes have different negative ions performance levels. Both of Treated A and Treated BC showed the progressive quantity of negative ions being emitted by increasing nano tourmaline content. Although the negative ions emitted would increase by increasing nano tourmaline content, the maximum content of nano tourmaline was limited and decreased to less than 60 g/L since the balance should be considered between the cost, the high hardness of cloth and low gloss of cloth. Treated A and Treated BC compared with Treated B showed lowest negative ions emitting performance because the waterproofing treatment weakened the water molecular interaction with surface particles of the textile fibers.

[0038] The same content of nano tourmaline and three-proofing agents exhibited a dramatic difference between Treated A and Treated BC. Treated Textile A released a larger amount than Treated Textile BC. This unusual behavior can be explained by surface particle content. With the Treated Textile BC tourmaline particles adsorbed on the surface maybe covered with the water proofing agent, while Treated Textile A shows crowded particle relationship.

TABLE-US-00002 TABLE 2 Tourmaline content Treated A Treated B Treated BC (g/L) (ions/cm3) (ions/cm3) (ions/cm3) 0 52 123 51 10 1031 1543 456 30 3134 5672 1621 50 6153 9253 3254

[0039] Table 2 is the relationship between the negative ion emitting performance and tourmaline content for the three treatment processes. All textiles with the Treated B process used a waterless proofing treatment. Although textiles with Treated B process can reach the maximum performance for emitting negative ions up to 9253 ions/cm3, waterproofing is the basic and suggested finishing application for textiles. Therefore, process for Treated Textile A is one suggested and exemplary performance level where the performance of the negative ions emitted can be up to 6153 ions/cm3 max. These techniques could be applied easily over a wide variety of surfaces apart from textiles.

[0040] As protection for structures, the particulate composition may be applied in the manufacturing process as part of the building's roof. The primary element of a roofing composition includes a particulate mixture that includes a particulate substrate, a hardness enhancer and a pigment. In the case of the present invention, for lightning protection the pigment will include tourmaline, hardness enhancer may include a clay, and the particulate substrate may include a feldspar. A method of making the composition may include mixing the particulate substrate, the hardness enhancer, and the pigment to form a particulate mixture, heat treating the particulate mixture, and coating the heat treated mixture with a hydrophobic coating.

[0041] The particulate composition of the present invention also promotes anti-fungal properties when incorporated with roofing granules. Mineral-surfaced asphalt shingle roofing can support the growth of discoloring algae. The present invention provides anti-fungal and anti-microbial properties that prevent algae growth.

[0042] Black roofing granules often fade to gray. A composition, containing black tourmaline particles of a specific size and an inorganic binder, suitable for use as a color coating on inorganic substrates provide a greater resistance to fade than conventional coating compositions. The particles have a mean particle size in the range of about 150 nm to about 500 nm and a surface area per weight of particles of about 20 m.sup.2/g or less. The composition is useful in producing coated inorganic granules for specific uses, such as roofing granules.

[0043] The foregoing description of a particular embodiment of the present invention has been presented for the purpose of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise form disclosed. Many modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teachings. It is intended that the scope of the present invention not be limited by this detailed description, but by the claims and the equivalents to the claims appended hereto.