Carpet backing comprising natural compounds

Abstract

A carpet or carpet tile comprising a biobased backing is provided. The resultant carpet tile has advantages in terms of environmental issues and reduces the need for fossil fuels. The backing is made using a backing composition comprising a resin, an oil, optionally a thermoplasticelastomer, and a filler material.

1 . A carpet or carpet tile comprising a textile top cloth, a precoating layer and a backing layer, wherein said backing layer comprises a backing composition, wherein said backing composition comprises:
 a natural resin, preferably a rosin or rosin derivative;   a natural oil which is optionally refined or modified, preferably a vegetable oil which is optionally refined or modified;   optionally, a thermoplastic elastomer; and   a filler.   
     
     
         2 . The carpet or carpet tile according to  claim 1 , wherein said backing composition comprises:
 from about 5% to about 50% (w/w) natural resin;   rom about 0.1% to about 20% (w/w) natural oil;   from about 0% to about 10% (w/w) thermoplastic elastomer; and   from about 50% to about 95% (w/w) filler.   
     
     
         3 . The carpet or carpet tile according to  claim 1 , wherein the backing composition has a Ring and Ball softening point as determined using the method described in EN1427:2007 in the range of 60-180° C. and/or a needle penetration at 25° C. as determined using the method described in EN1426:2007 in the range of 0.2-200×0.1 mm. 
     
     
         4 . The carpet or carpet tile according to  claim 1 , wherein the natural resin is rosin or a derivative thereof. 
     
     
         5 . The carpet or carpet tile according to  claim 1 , wherein the vegetable oil is selected from the group consisting of rapeseed oil, refined rapeseed oil, sunflower oil, refined sunflower oil and refined high oleic sunflower oil. 
     
     
         6 . The carpet or carpet tile according to  claim 1 , comprising a backing composition comprising from about 0.1% to about 5% (w/w) of the thermoplastic elastomer. 
     
     
         7 . The carpet or carpet tile according to  claim 6 , wherein the thermoplastic elastomer is a copolymer of ethylene and vinyl acetate. 
     
     
         8 . The carpet or carpet tile according to  claim 6 , wherein the thermoplastic elastomer is a block copolymer of polystyrene and polybutadiene (SBS). 
     
     
         9 . The carpet or carpet tile according to  claim 6 , wherein the thermoplastic elastomer is a polyolefin polymer. 
     
     
         10 . The carpet or carpet tile according to  claim 6 , wherein the thermoplastic elastomer is a polyhydroxyalkanoate. 
     
     
         11 . The carpet or carpet tile according to  claim 1 , wherein the filler is selected from calcium carbonate (limestone), silicates, silicas, oxides of silica, carbonates, sulfates, oxides of antimony, aluminium trihydrate, carbon black, talcum, clays, kaolin, and organic fillers. 
     
     
         12 . The carpet or carpet tile according to  claim 1 , wherein the backing composition further comprises between 0 and 2% (w/w) of an anti-oxidant. 
     
     
         13 . The carpet or carpet tile according to  claim 1 , which is essentially free of bitumen. 
     
     
         14 . The carpet or carpet tile according to  claim 1 , which is essentially free of a hydrocarbon wax. 
     
     
         15 . A method for preparing the carpet or carpet tile according to  claim 1 , said method comprising the steps of:
 providing a precoated top cloth comprising a top side comprising yarn or fibers and a back side comprising a precoating layer;   preparing the backing composition as defined in  claim 1 , and   applying said backing composition onto said precoating layer.   
     
     
         16 . The carpet or carpet tile according to  claim 4 , wherein the rosin or derivative thereof comprises esterified rosin, hydrogenated rosin, phenolic rosin, or terpenic rosin. 
     
     
         17 . The carpet or carpet tile according to  claim 11 , wherein the filler is an organic filler comprising wood chips, wood flour, shell flour, plant material, or a recycled material. 
     
     
         18 . The carpet or carpet tile according to  claim 17 , wherein the organic filler comprises plant material comprising plant fibers, plant shells, or plant residue. 
     
     
         19 . The carpet or carpet tile according to  claim 17 , wherein the organic filler comprises a recycled material comprising recycled rubber, recycled plastic, or recycled fibers.