Hyper-fine cement

• US 8,226,879 B2
• Filed: 09/05/2008
• Issued: 07/24/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 09/05/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: EPG (ENGINEERED NANOPRODUCTS GERMANY) AG
• Original Assignee: EPG (ENGINEERED NANOPRODUCTS GERMANY) AG
• Inventors: Genolet, Luis, Schmidt, Helmut
• Primary Examiner(s): Del Sole, Joseph
• Assistant Examiner(s): KENNEDY, TIMOTHY J
• Application Number:
  US12/676,506
• Publication Number:
  US 20100193982A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,418 Days
• Field of Search: 264/15, 264/36.2, 264/344, 264/426, 106/713, 106/739, 106/748
• US Class Current: 264/426
• CPC Class Codes: C04B 2111/28 Fire resistance, i.e. materials resistant to accidental fires or high temperatures
• CPC Class Codes: C04B 2111/70 Grouts, e.g. injection mixtures for cables for prestressed concrete
• CPC Class Codes: C04B 2111/72 Repairing or restoring existing buildings or building materials
• CPC Class Codes: C04B 24/122 Hydroxy amines
• CPC Class Codes: C04B 28/04 Portland cements
• CPC Class Codes: C04B 7/527 obtaining cements characterised by fineness, e.g. by multi-modal particle size distribution
• CPC Class Codes: C09K 8/46 containing inorganic binders, e.g. Portland cement

Abstract

The invention relates to a process for producing a hyper-fine cement, in which cement is wet milled in a nonaqueous solvent, if appropriate in the presence of a grinding aid, as a result of which a hyper-fine cement having a particle size D₅₀ of <1 μm is obtained.

The hyper-fine cement is suitable for sealing or strengthening porous molded articles, rock or porous formations, in particular for the gastight sealing of natural gas reservoirs and also for making polymer materials or components composed of pressed textiles or natural fibers fire resistant.

Claims

1. A process for producing a hyper-fine cement, wherein the process comprises wet milling a cement or a cement clinker in a non-aqueous solvent that comprises isopropanol in the presence of a grinding aid that is different from the non-aqueous solvent to obtain a hyper-fine cement having a particle size D₅₀ of <

1 μ

m, and at least partly separating the non-aqueous solvent and the grinding aid from the hyper-fine cement obtained after milling, a weight ratio of solvent to cement being from 0.05 to 5, and a weight ratio of grinding aid to cement being from 0.01 to 1.5.

2. The process of claim 1, wherein the non-aqueous solvent is separated by at least one of filtration, centrifugation, decantation, and distillation.

3. The process of claim 1, wherein the process further comprises drying moist hyper-fine cement which remains after milling and partial removal of other components to obtain a free-flowing powder.

4. The process of claim 1, wherein the cement or cement clinker is milled in at least one of a ball mill and a rotational ball mill.

5. The process of claim 1, wherein the grinding aid is selected from one or more of glycols, amines and salts thereof, hydroxycarboxylic acids, lignosulfonates, and fatty acids and salts thereof.

6. The process of claim 1, wherein the grinding aid comprises triethanolamine.

7. The process of claim 1, wherein the process further comprises mixing the hyper-fine cement in dry form with water to form a low-viscosity slurry.

8. The process of claim 1, wherein the cement comprises portland cement.

9. The process of claim 1, wherein a weight ratio of grinding aid to cement is from 0.1 to 0.2.

10. The process of claim 1, wherein a weight ratio of solvent to cement is from 0.3 to 1.0.

11. The process of claim 9, wherein a weight ratio of solvent to cement is from 0.3 to 1.0.

12. A process for producing a hyper-fine cement, wherein the process comprises wet milling of a cement or a cement clinker in a non-aqueous solvent which comprises isopropanol and in the presence of a grinding aid selected from one or more of glycols, amines and salts thereof, hydroxycarboxylic acids, lignosulfonates, and fatty acids and salts thereof to obtain a hyper-fine cement having a particle size D₅₀ of <

1 μ

m, and at least partly separating the non-aqueous solvent and the grinding aid from the hyper-fine cement obtained after milling, a weight ratio of solvent to cement being from 0.05 to 5, and a weight ratio of grinding aid to cement being from 0.01 to 1.5.

13. The process of claim 12, wherein the non-aqueous solvent is separated by at least one of filtration, centrifugation, decantation, and distillation.

14. The process of claim 12, wherein the process further comprises drying moist hyper-fine cement which remains after milling and partial removal of other components to obtain a free-flowing powder.

15. The process of claim 12, wherein the cement is milled in at least one of a ball mill and a rotational ball mill.

16. The process of claim 12, wherein the process further comprises mixing the hyper-fine cement in dry form with water to form a low-viscosity slurry.

17. The process of claim 12, wherein a weight ratio of grinding aid to cement is from 0.1 to 0.2.

18. The process of claim 12, wherein a weight ratio of solvent to cement is from 0.3 to 1.0.

19. The process of claim 17, wherein a weight ratio of solvent to cement is from 0.3 to 1.0.

20. A process for producing a hyper-fine cement, wherein the process comprises wet milling a cement or a cement clinker in at least one of a ball mill and a rotational ball mill in a non-aqueous solvent which comprises isopropanol and in the presence of a grinding aid which comprises triethanolamine to obtain a hyper-fine cement having a particle size D₅₀ of <

1 μ

m, and at least partly separating the non-aqueous solvent and the grinding aid from the hyper-fine cement obtained after milling, a weight ratio of solvent to cement being from 0.3 to 1.0, and a weight ratio of grinding aid to cement being from 0.1 to 0.2.