Coating processes – Plant member or animal specimen coating
Reexamination Certificate
1999-09-30
2004-12-28
Cameron, Erma (Department: 1762)
Coating processes
Plant member or animal specimen coating
C427S387000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06835411
ABSTRACT:
This invention relates to the use of certain siloxane and silane materials for the conservation of organic and inorganic materials. More specifically, this invention deals with a method of impregnating organic and inorganic materials with siloxanes and silanes and ultimately curing such materials to provide preservation properties to such materials. An especially significant use of the method is to preserve and conserve ancient artifacts.
Plastination and/or conservation are terms that are often used in this art to denote the preservation of perishable biological specimens, especially soft, putrifiable materials with high water content. During the plastination method, water, and part or all of the fat (if present), are replaced by a curable resin system or elastomer system in order to optimize the preservation of the materials and to optimize the natural appearance of the material or enhance its aesthetic appearance.
Plastination is utilized therefore, in the preservation of whole body organs and bones, both animal and human, for pathological and anatomical studies; in zoology for the plastination of small animals, such as beetles, spiders, frogs, and reptiles, such as turtles, salamanders; in botany, for fungus and higher plant specimens; archeology for the preservation of wood, ceramics, pottery, glass, leather, jewelry, and the like.
Preservation techniques have also been used in the treating of books, newspapers, photographs and materials of a like nature.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Plastination utilizes many different curable materials, for example, polyepoxides, polyesters, silicone rubbers, and the like.
The inventors herein are aware of several patents which show the use of certain materials for plastination processes.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,106,261, which issued Jan. 25, 1938 to Weidemann deals with a process in which the specimen which is to be treated is immersed in bleach. The specimen is then washed with water to remove essentially all of the bleach and the specimen is set in a dehydrating solution of alcohols, acetone or combinations thereof. Finally, the specimen is dried and coated with a clear lacquer to impregnate or encapsulate the specimen. There is no clear definition of the make up of the clear lacquer.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,205,059 which issued on May 27, 1980 to Von Hagens uses a more elaborate process in which the process starts out with the replacement of the water content of the specimen, in this case, animal or vegetable tissue, with an organic solvent which is volatile in a vacuum and at ambient temperature. Then, the specimen, which contains solvent, is held in contact with a fluid precursor polymer system in a vacuum and at a specified temperature until the solvent is volatilized and replaced in the specimen by the polymeric system. The curable system is stated as being capable of being polymerized into a solid, water insoluble, synthetic resin. The specimen to then subjected to a “drying down” time in which the excess polymeric system is allowed to flow by gravity from the specimen. The specimen is then held under polymerization conditions until the resin is cured. Claim 6 of that reference discloses that the resin is “a silicone rubber”. The curable silicone rubber was described as a fully compounded curable material.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,244,992 which issued Jan. 13, 1981 to Von Hagens is a divisional of the aforementioned U.S. patent and therefore does not need additional discussion herein.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,278,701 which issued Jul. 14, 1981 to van Hagens, disclaimed the '059 patent, and the subject matter therein is the same as the '059 patent except that it does not disclose the “ambient temperature” limitation of the '059 patent.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,320,157 which issued Mar. 16, 1982 is directed to a method of converting cut sections of bio tissue into examinable plastinated sheet by a method which includes pre-treating to render the specimen suitable for impregnation, thereafter, impregnating with a fluid precursor, compressing the specimen between two parallel panels, filling the resulting formation with impregnating fluid, curing the fluid and removing the plates.
THE INVENTION
This invention deals with new and novel methods of conserving and preserving organic and inorganic materials through the use of novel processes not heretofore found in the prior art.
With more specificity, this invention deals in one embodiment with a method of conserving organic and inorganic materials, wherein the method comprises (I) impregnating a material selected from (a.) organic materials and (b.) inorganic materials with a curable polymeric system comprising (i) a siloxane polymer or a mixture of siloxane polymers having an average of at least two silanol groups per molecule and (ii) sufficient crosslinker or a mixture of crosslinkers to crosslink a significant portion of the siloxane polymer or mixture of siloxane polymers (i), and thereafter, (II) exposing the product of (I) to a catalyst or a mixture of catalysts for a time sufficient to initiate the cure of to the product of (I), wherein the crosslinkers are selected from the group consisting of hydrolyzable silanes having the formula RSi(OR′)
3
wherein R is selected from the phenyl group, hydrogen, vinyl, or an alkyl group having from 1 to 12 carbon atoms and R′ is selected from hydrogen, vinyl, or an alkyl group having from 1 to 8 carbon atoms.
Yet another embodiment is a method in which the product of (II) is subjected to a treatment to cure the curable system formed by the siloxane polymer and the crosslinker of this method.
Still further, another embodiment of this invention is a method of preserving organic and inorganic materials, the method comprising a step (I) in which a material selected from (a.) organic materials and (b.) inorganic materials, is impregnated with a crosslinker or a mixture of crosslinkers sufficient to crosslink a significant portion of a siloxane polymer or a mixture of siloxane polymers having an average of at least two silanol groups per molecule; (II) thereafter, impregnating the product of (I) with siloxane polymer or a mixture of siloxane polymers having an average of at least two silanol groups per molecule, and (III) thereafter, exposing the product of (II) to a catalyst or a mixture of catalysts for a time sufficient to initiate curing of the product of (II).
As in the first embodiment, this process can be extended to include a step to cure the product of (II).
Another embodiment of this invention is a method of preserving organic and inorganic materials, wherein the method comprises (I) impregnating a material selected from (a.) organic materials and (b.) inorganic materials with a siloxane polymer or a mixture of siloxane polymers having an average of at least two silanol groups per molecule and (II) thereafter, impregnating the product of (I) with a crosslinker or a mixture of crosslinkers sufficient to crosslink a significant portion of the siloxane polymer or a mixture of siloxane polymers having an average of at least two silanol groups per molecule. Thereafter, (III), exposing the product of (II) to a catalyst or a mixture of catalysts for a time sufficient to initiate curing of the product of (II).
As before, an additional step can be used which subjects the specimen, that is treated by this method, to a curing step.
Turning to another embodiment of this invention, it has been discovered that the method embodied in the first embodiment can be modified to a method of preserving organic and inorganic materials, wherein the method comprises (I) impregnating a material selected from organic materials and inorganic materials with a cyclosiloxane or a mixture of cyclosiloxanes having an average of at least two silane hydrogens per molecule and thereafter, exposing the product created thereby to a catalyst or a mixture of catalysts for a time sufficient to initiate curing of the product. As before, an additional step can be used which subjects the specimen, that is treated by this method, to a curing step.
Still further, an embodiment of this
Hamilton Donny Leon
Klosowski Jerome Melvin
Smith Charles Wayne
Cameron Erma
De Cesare Jim L.
Dow Corning Corporation
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