U.S. patent application number 12/165233 was filed with the patent office on 2009-01-01 for method of fabricating integrally insulated concrete wall or wall components.
This patent application is currently assigned to COMPOSITE TECHNOLOGIES CORPORATION. Invention is credited to Robert T. Long, SR..
Application Number | 20090000241 12/165233 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 40158794 |
Filed Date | 2009-01-01 |
United States Patent
Application |
20090000241 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Long, SR.; Robert T. |
January 1, 2009 |
Method of Fabricating Integrally Insulated Concrete Wall or Wall
Components
Abstract
A method for forming integrally insulated concrete sandwich
walls or wall components is disclosed. The walls are fabricated by
casting the walls vertically and pumping the concrete from the
bottom of the form or from sides near the base. Walls fabricated
thus can be used in commercial, industrial, residential, and
agricultural buildings. These walls can be cast on-site or in a
manufacturing plant.
Inventors: |
Long, SR.; Robert T.; (Ames,
IA) |
Correspondence
Address: |
DAVIS, BROWN, KOEHN, SHORS & ROBERTS, P.C.;THE DAVIS BROWN TOWER
215 10TH STREET SUITE 1300
DES MOINES
IA
50309
US
|
Assignee: |
COMPOSITE TECHNOLOGIES
CORPORATION
Boone
IA
|
Family ID: |
40158794 |
Appl. No.: |
12/165233 |
Filed: |
June 30, 2008 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
60937519 |
Jun 28, 2007 |
|
|
|
Current U.S.
Class: |
52/742.14 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B28B 23/0068 20130101;
E04G 11/18 20130101; B28B 7/0064 20130101; B28B 13/021 20130101;
B28B 13/022 20130101; E04G 21/04 20130101; E04G 21/0472
20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
52/742.14 |
International
Class: |
E04G 21/00 20060101
E04G021/00 |
Claims
1. A method of fabricating a section of an integrally insulated
concrete sandwich wall component in a plant or on-site, comprising
the steps of: (a) providing a form having a bottom panel, a pair of
upright, opposing side panels and insulation supported between the
side panels; (b) providing an opening in or near the bottom of the
form; and (c) introducing plastic concrete into the form through
the opening.
2. The method of claim 1, further comprising a second opening in or
near the bottom of the form and introducing the plastic concrete
into the form simultaneously through both openings.
3. The method of claim 2, wherein plastic concrete of a first type
is introduced into the form through the first opening and plastic
concrete of a second type is introduced into the form through the
second opening.
4. The method of claim 3, wherein the first type of concrete is a
different color than the second type of concrete.
5. The method of claim 3, wherein the first type of concrete has a
different aggregate composition than the second type of
concrete.
6. The method of claim 3, wherein the first type of concrete forms
substantially against a first of the upright panels and the second
type of concrete forms substantially against the second of the
upright panels.
7. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of sealing
the form and producing a vacuum in the form to assist in
introducing the concrete into the form.
8. The method of claim 1, wherein the plastic concrete is
introduced from a pressurized hopper.
9. The method of claim 8, wherein the pressure is produced by a
pressurized fluid.
10. The method of claim 1, wherein the two side panels have
textures on their interior surfaces that are different from each
other.
Description
[0001] This application claims priority to U.S. Patent Application
Ser. No. 60/937,519, filed Jun. 28, 2007.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] The invention generally relates to method of fabricating
integrally insulated concrete walls or wall components. This
invention is an improvement of existing methods of fabricating the
integrally insulated concrete wall or wall components.
[0003] Integrally insulated concrete walls (also known as sandwich
walls) are well known in the art and offer a number of advantages
to the residential, commercial, institutional and agricultural
industry building construction. These walls are typically cast at a
manufacturing plant or on-site. The walls can be cast horizontally
or vertically and when cast vertically; the concrete is placed from
top of the forms.
[0004] Integrally insulated concrete walls contain two outer layers
or wythes of concrete sandwiching rigid insulation board.
Connectors are used to tie the outer layer concrete with the inner
layer concrete through the insulation. The connectors can be
metallic or non-metallic. Typically, the rigid insulation board is
a type of extruded polystyrene, expanded polystyrene, or
polyisocyanurate or other rigid board insulation. Many types of
connectors, both metallic and non-metallic, are available in the
market.
[0005] One of the current fabrication techniques for plant cast
wall panels is casting the panels horizontally in a casting bed.
This method requires a large floor area in the plant and requires a
secondary finishing operation to the top surface of the concrete.
In the other method of plant cast panels, wall panels are cast
vertically but the concrete is placed from the top of the form. In
this method concrete is dropped from the top and requires
substantial vibration to achieve a smooth finish to exterior
surfaces of the concrete wythes. The disadvantage of dropping
concrete from the top is that concrete tends to segregate and hence
the drop height is often limited to eight feet which limits the
wall height that can be poured. Dropping concrete also leads to an
increase in entrained air. Additionally, placement of concrete can
be difficult if not impossible when the exterior wythe thickness is
less than three inches, a limitation which limits the minimum
thickness of walls that can be formed. With increased thickness of
the wythes, the weight of the wall component is more, this limiting
the size of the wall component that can be transported to a remote
location and increasing the cost of such shipping.
[0006] In the horizontal site cast application, also known as
tilt-up, the panels are cast horizontally on the floor slab of the
building. Typically in this method, the fascia wythe is placed
first and then the insulation and connectors are placed on top of
the fascia wythe while the concrete is still plastic. The
structural wythe reinforcing is then placed on top of the
insulation after about 24 hours or after the fascia concrete has
hardened sufficiently. Finally, the structural wythe concrete is
placed and finished.
[0007] In the vertical site cast application, the walls are formed
in place with insulation and reinforcing and then the concrete is
placed from the top of the form into the form with or without a
tremie. When the concrete is dropped from the top of the form, the
components of the concrete tend to segregate and also the concrete
tends to entrain air. The concrete must be vibrated to consolidate
the concrete and for concrete to flow into the large pockets
typically left due to the restriction to concrete flow between the
formwork due to the presence of reinforcing and door and window
openings. However, this vibration process will cause the entrained
air to travel towards the formwork and cause for surface
blemishes.
[0008] In the present invention, the method of fabrication is
improved by setting up the vertical forms in a manufacturing plant
or on-site and introducing the concrete from the base or near the
base in both wythes simultaneously.
[0009] The primary objective of the present invention is an
improved method of fabrication of integrally insulated concrete
wall that results in wall components that may have different
surface finishes on the two outwardly facing surfaces.
[0010] Another objective of the present invention is the ability of
setting up the formwork anywhere with little site preparation since
the formwork can be self contained with adjustable sides, base and
adjustable bulkhead.
[0011] Yet another objective of the present invention is to pump
concrete from the bottom or near the base. This method eliminates
the need for vibrating concrete.
[0012] Another objective of the present invention is to be able to
construct vertical cast sandwich walls with thinner interior and/or
exterior wythes.
[0013] A further objective of this invention is its ability to use
different colored concrete or concrete with different properties in
the fascia wythe and the structural wythe simultaneously.
[0014] Yet another objective is to construct taller single pour
walls without segregation of concrete.
[0015] Yet another objective is to eliminate or limit insulation
displacement during concrete placement.
[0016] Still another objective is to use a vacuum and/or
pressurized air, fluid or both to assist in placing the concrete in
the form.
[0017] These and other objectives become apparent from the
following description of the invention.
SUMMARY OF INVENTION
[0018] In the present invention of fabricating integrally insulated
concrete wall, the wall panels are fabricated by casting the walls
or wall components vertically and pumping the concrete from the
bottom of the form or from sides near the base. Walls and wall
components fabricated thus can be used in commercial, industrial,
residential, and agricultural buildings. These panels can be cast
on-site or in a manufacturing plant. The formwork for the panels
contains a fixed vertical form and a moveable base form. The
bulkheads are adjustable to accommodate various thickness of wall
and various lengths of the wall. Once the height and length of the
wall component is set, the reinforcing, insulation and the
connectors are placed in the form. The end form is then placed to
close the form. A ball valve, gate valve, plunger valve, or other
similar valve system is used on or near the bottom of the form to
introduce concrete in both wythes simultaneously. The wall panel
can be one single panel or it can be multiple panels poured
parallel to each other or it can be a multiple sided module.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0019] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the formwork and panel
with preferred non-metallic connectors connecting the two wythes of
concrete.
[0020] FIG. 2 is a cross sectional view of an alternative
embodiment of the present invention wherein the formwork is
provided with airtight seals and placement of the concrete in the
form is assisted by a vacuum that communicates with the top of the
form.
[0021] FIG. 3 is a cross sectional view of an alternative
embodiment of the present invention wherein a concrete hopper is
charged with a pressurized air, fluid or both to force the plastic
concrete into the form without the need for a concrete pump.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0022] Illustrated in FIG. 1, generally at 2 is the preferred
embodiment of metal fixed vertical form for forming concrete
sandwich wall components, including concrete sandwich walls. This
form can also be made of other materials. Movable base 3 is an
adjustable base so that different height and thickness walls can be
constructed. This base 3 preferably includes a leveling mechanism
to keep the base 3 level even if the ground is not level on-site.
The base 3 contains one or more openings 4 with ball valve, a gate
valve or a plunger valve or similar valve (not shown) to pump
concrete from the bottom. Adjustable bulkheads 5 are set on top of
the movable base 3 with help of magnets or other means to keep it
in place. With adjustable and interchangeable bulkheads 5, the
length and thickness of the wall can be adjusted. After the
bulkheads 5 are setup for the correct wall length and thickness,
the reinforcing 9 for the wythe adjacent to the fixed form is
placed. Then insulation 6 and the connectors 7 are placed in the
form 2. In the preferred embodiment, the insulation 6 is extruded
polystyrene board insulation with fiber composite connectors 7.
After placing the insulation 6, the reinforcing 9 for the other
wythe is placed and the movable form 10 is placed at the correct
location. In the preferred embodiment, another set of one or more
openings 4 with a ball valve, a gate valve or a plunger valve or
similar valve are located in the base closer to the movable form
10. The whole assembly may be braced with braces 11 on both sides
of the form 2.
[0023] Concrete is then pumped from the bottom through opening 4
either with one pump or more pumps. When different colored or
different properties concretes are used for two wythes, each type
of concrete is pumped with different pump. The rate of pumping
concrete is adjusted such that the concrete in both wythes fills up
to substantially the same height simultaneously. In the alternate
method of pumping, the concrete can be pumped from the sides near
the base through the openings 12 on either or both sides or from
the end of the form 2. The pumping is continued until the concrete
raises to the top of the form 2 or to the required height of the
wall. If needed, lifting devices (not shown) are placed near the
top of the forms using magnets or tied to the reinforcing 9. When
the concrete has hardened sufficiently, the forms are removed after
the lifting lines are attached to the lifting hardware which is
placed in the concrete during the fabrication process.
[0024] The multiple openings 4 allow plastic concrete to enter the
form from both sides of the insulation 6. If desired, concrete can
be provided from different sources to the different wythes on
opposite sides of the insulation 6. Accordingly, different types of
concrete can be used for the different wythes simultaneously. For
example, one of the wythes may be formed of a concrete that is a
different color that the concrete that forms the other wythe. In
another example, concrete of different physical properties can be
used to form the different wythes as may be advantageous if one of
the wythes is an outside wall exposed to the elements and the other
is a protected inside wall.
[0025] Haring openings 4 and 12 are particularly applicable if the
form 2 is divided into regions that are not common at the bottom of
the form 2, as is the case if a door opening was being formed.
Without multiple openings 4 and 12, the plastic concrete would need
to fill up the form on one side of the door opening until it
exceeded the height of the door opening and then would pour down
the height of the door opening into the other chamber of the form
2.
[0026] Some of the alternate embodiments are to cast another wall
on the other side of fixed form, which becomes the common form for
both walls or wall components, to add another section of wall,
perpendicular or at an angle to one or both ends of the wall.
Another embodiment is to fabricate more than two walls or wall
components side by side.
[0027] An advantage of the present invention is that introducing
plastic concrete into the bottom of the form 2, rather than pouring
it in from the top as is done in the prior art, assists in forcing
air out of the plastic concrete in the form 2, thus reducing the
need for vibration or other methods for removing air and reducing
the occurrence of voids in the formed concrete due to air pockets.
Introducing the plastic concrete into the bottom of the form 2 is
also advantageous in that it reduces the hydraulic pressure that is
imposed on the form 2 and insulation 6 by the plastic concrete
compared to the conventional method wherein the plastic concrete is
poured into the top of the form. Filling of the two sides of the
form at the same time reduces the differential in pressure on the
integrally located insulation and reduces the need for
reinforcement of the insulation with the result that a greater
variety of connectors can be used.
[0028] In an alternative embodiment, a form 16 is constructed so
that it is air tight, including, for example, a top cover 18 (FIG.
2). The interior of the form 16 is placed in communication with a
vacuum chamber 20 or other source of a vacuum. Plastic concrete is
provided in a hopper 22 that is connected to a pair of openings 24
and 26 on either side of the form 16. Valves 28 and 30 control the
flow of plastic concrete 36 into the form 16. In operation, once
the form 16 has been constructed and sealed, concrete is placed in
the form 16 by opening of the valves 28 and 30 and connecting the
vacuum source. The vacuum assists on drawing the concrete from the
concrete hopper 22 into the form 16 and also assists in the removal
of air from the form 16.
[0029] In another alternative embodiment, an alternative concrete
hopper 32, 38 is provided with a bladder 40 or similar system for
applying a positive pressure to the concrete to assist in forcing
the plastic concrete 36 from the hopper 32 into the form 44 (FIG.
3). Pressurized fluid 34, such as air, another gas, or a liquid, is
introduced above the bladder 40 through a supply line 42. In this
way, pressurized concrete is provided without the need for
expensive and high maintenance concrete pumps. It is of course
possible to combine the systems of FIG. 2 and FIG. 3 wherein both a
vacuum is created on the top of the form and pressurized fluid
assists in introducing the plastic concrete into the form. If the
plastic concrete has sufficiently low viscosity, such as some so
called self consolidating concretes, gravity alone would be
sufficient to force the plastic concrete into the form.
[0030] The foregoing description and drawings comprise illustrative
embodiments of the present inventions. The foregoing embodiments
and the methods described herein may vary based on the ability,
experience, and preference of those skilled in the art. Merely
listing the steps of the method in a certain order does not
constitute any limitation on the order of the steps of the method.
The foregoing description and drawings merely explain and
illustrate the invention, and the invention is not limited thereto,
except insofar as the claims are so limited. Those skilled in the
art who have the disclosure before them will be able to make
modifications and variations therein without departing from the
scope of the invention.
* * * * *