Method for making decorative resin-wood composites and the resultant product

Claim 2

An improved process for making decorative resin-wood composites; said process being of the type wherein pieces or fragments of wood are submerged in an exothermically polymerizable resin within a mold to form a resin-wood composite; and the resin is exothermically cured whereby the heat of exothermia during polymerization causes substantial heating of the composite; wherein the improvement comprises the steps of: using a liquid epoxy resin and maintaining the temperature of the composite during exothermic polymerization at about ambient temperature; said resin being polymerized in the presence of a polymerization reagent having the least reactive character at the same ambient temperature.

Claim 3

The method of claim 1, wherein the improvement further comprises the step of heating the wood to a homogeneous temperature before submerging it into the resin; said temperature being at least as high as the peak temperature of exothermia at which the resin is maintained during polymerization.

Claim 4

The method of claim 2, wherein the wood is heated to a temperature which is higher than the peak temperature of exothermia.

Claim 5

The method of claim 3, wherein a resin is maintained at about ambient temperature by ventilating the resin during polymerization.

Claim 6

An improved process for making decorative resin-wood composites; said process being of the type wherein pieces or fragments of wood are submerged in an exothermically polymerizable resin within a mold to form a resin-wood composite; and the resin is exothermically cured whereby the heat of exothermia during polymerizing causes substantial heating of the composite; wherein the improvement comprises the steps of: (a) using a liquid epoxy resin which is polymerizable at ambient temperature and polymerizing the resin in the presence of a polymerization reagent having the least reactive character at the same temperature; and cooling the composite during the polymerization to a temperature which at its peak will prevent gas in the wood from forming bubbles in the resin; (b) using pieces of wood, previously heated before submersion, to a homogeneous temperature which is higher than the peak temperature attained by the resin during the cooling.

Claim 7

An improved process for making decorative resin-wood composites; said process being of the type wherein pieces or fragments of wood are submerged in an exothermically polymerizable resin within a mold to form a resin-wood composite; and the resin is exothermically cured whereby the heat of exothermia during polymerizing causes substantial heating of the composite; wherein the improvement comprises the steps of: (a) using a liquid epoxy resin which is polymerizable at ambient temperature and polymerizing the resin in the presence of a polymerization reagent having the least reactive character at the same temperature; and cooling the composite during the polymerization to a temperature which at its peak will prevent gas in the wood from forming bubbles in the resin; (b) using pieces of wood, previously heated before submersion, to a homogeneous temperature which is higher than the peak temperature attained by the resin during the cooling.

Claim 8

The process of claim 5, wherein the cooling is conducted so that the temperature of the resin is increased in a plurality of steps during the polymerization.

Claim 9

The process of claim 6, wherein the peak temperature attained in the first step is between -10° C. and +20° C.

Claim 10

A product constituted by a mass of polymerized epoxy resin and fragments of included wood obtained by the process of claim 1, wherein the product is substantially free of bubbles in the resin.

Claim 11

A product constituted by a mass of polymerized epoxy resin and fragments of included wood obtained by the process of claim 2, wherein the product is substantially free of bubbles in the resin.