Self-hardening plastic compositions and porous bodies prepared therefrom

Claim 1

A PLASTIC COMPOSITION, HAVING A PROPERTY OF HARDENING AT ROOM TEMPERATURE TO FORM A RIGID, POROUS BODY THAT IS RESISTANT TO CORROSIVE ATTACK BY AQUEOUS ACID SOLUTIONS AND BY AQUEOUS ALKALI SOLUTIONS, WHICH COMPOSITION COMPRISES A MASS OF CALCINED PETROLEUM COKE GRANULES HAVING OUTER SURFACES THEREOF WETTED WITH A LIQUID FURAN RESIN CONTAINING AT LEAST 50 PER CENT BY WEIGHT OF CHEMICALLY COMBINED FURFURYL ALCOHOL, A RESINHARDENING CATALYST CONSISTING ESSENTIALLY OF FROM 40 TO 80 PER CENT BY WEIGHT OF BENZENE SULFONYL CHLORIDE AND FROM, 20 TO 60 PER CENT OF TRICHLOROACETIC ACID, AND A FINELY-DIVIDED FILLER OF THE GROUP CONSISTING OF AMORPHOUS CARBON, GRAPHITE THE MIXTURES OF AMORPHOUS CARBON AND GRAPHITE, THE FINELY DIVIDED FILLER BEING IN AMOUNT SUFFICIENT TO THICKEN THE LIQUID FURAN RESIN AND LIMIT ABSORPTION OF THE SAME BY THE CALCINED PETROLEUM COKE GRANULES, AND THE LIQUID FURAN RESIN BEING IN AMOUNT SUFFICIENT FOR SURFACE-WETTING OF THE CALCINED PETROLEUM COKE GRANULES AND INSUFFICIENT TO FILL COMPLETELY THE INTERSTICES BETWEEN SAID GRANULES.