WO1997023693A1 - Facing elements, partitions and linings consisting of such elements, and method for making same - Google Patents

Abstract

A facing element (1) consisting of a galvanised steel sheet (3) provided in the workshop with a plaster body (7) applied to one surface thereof in the form of batched plaster. The batched plaster body may be cast or sprayed onto the galvanised sheet. Alternatively, the batched plaster may be cast on paper or cardboard, whereafter the sheet is pressed onto the plaster. Such elements may be assembled back-to-back in pairs to form partitions, or applied on a wall to form a lining.

Description

 FACING ELEMENTS, PARTITIONS AND LINERS CONSISTING OF SUCH ELEMENTS AND THEIR MANUFACTURING METHOD.

TECHNOLOGICAL BACKGROUND

1. TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a construction element qualified as a facing element, of a new type, making it possible to combine a series of advantageous technical and economic characteristics.

It extends to the use of these facing elements for the production of partitions and linings, as well as to their manufacturing process and to their technique of implementation or use. The partitions used in the building must simultaneously satisfy a certain number of specific functions: the separative function, which is not only geometrical but which also aims to ensure the disappearance or the limitation of certain physical phenomena (light, temperature, noise, ...), the aesthetic function, the support function for technical equipment (continuity of networks and subsequent hooking), the mechanical or structural function (even for non-load-bearing partitions which must withstand various stresses in service and whose connections to the load-bearing elements of the building must be provided), the anti-intrusion or anti-intrusion function in the case of a separation between two dwellings in collective housing. Similar considerations apply to lining (covering) walls with this type of product.

Of course, the usual technical imperatives and economic requirements must also be taken into account to provide a quality product at an affordable price which is easy to implement.

To meet these various requirements, and in particular sound insulation, the most common system consists in building a solid wall (simple concrete wall type). The main drawback of this design is that it is heavy (order of magnitude 600 kg / m ² ). To overcome this drawback, a new system of light partitions ("double walls") has been proposed according to the state of the art. It allows, based on the "mass - spring - mass" system, to obtain superior acoustic performance with mass values ten times lower and reduced dimensions (passage from 260 to 220 mm total thickness, for example) . This system generally consists of a metal frame formed of crosspieces and uprights, to which are fixed facings made of plasterboard and cardboard or another material; the cavity being filled with an insulator. Systems of this type have the following main weaknesses:

- fragile transport and installation of large plasterboard, need to use relatively large assemblies when you want to obtain high insulation characteristics (double plasterboard, design and separation of facings, .. .). 2. DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART

Document US 3,866,376 proposes a composite wall element constituted by a hollow plaster assembly, the exterior faces of which are bonded with metallic exterior sheets.

Document US 4,736,566 describes a modular panel system, consisting of a core in the form of a "corrugated" plaster panel, disposed between covering sheets, such as vinyl sheets. Document GB 2 148 972A describes an assembly acting as a fire barrier made up of plaster sheets and blocks reinforced with glass fibers and covered with stainless steel or galvanized steel plates.

In these three documents, the external faces are faces made of metal or of vinyl material and the plaster forming the core of the panel is either glued or mechanically held by fastening elements. The production of such elements is difficult and the metallic or vinyl exterior finish is generally not suitable for dwellings, whether for interior or exterior walls. GOALS TARGETED BY THE INVENTION.

The invention aims to avoid the drawbacks of the state of the art, and in particular to propose prefabricated facings in the workshop made of steel and plaster, by forming an assembly which reduces the risk of damage during transport and of the installation on the site, and which can be easily and quickly installed. An additional aim of the invention is to be able to reduce the quantity of plaster used, compared with the solution of the prior art, in particular with conventional plasterboards.

We particularly aim to combine acoustic and thermal insulation, fire resistance, rigidity, the ease of transport, a reduction in weight and price, to other functionalities, in particular the ease of assembly and support of technical equipment. CHARACTERISTIC ELEMENTS OF THE PRESENT INVENTION. According to the invention, a facing element is proposed, characterized in that it consists of a galvanized steel sheet provided in the workshop on at least one face, with a mass of plaster applied in the form of tempered plaster. The galvanized steel sheet can be profiled by forming stiffening ribs, in order to obtain a self-supporting panel.

In addition, it is possible to secure, for example by gluing on the face of the sheet opposite to that receiving the plaster, an insulation lining, in particular thermal insulation which can also be advantageously installed in the workshop but which can also be mounted on the construction site.

Depending on the targeted performance, the facing element is made of a galvanized steel sheet which can be profiled, with a thickness of between approximately 0.4 and 3.0 mm on at least one face of which tempered plaster or a mix based on tempered plaster is applied in a thickness preferably between 5 and 50 mm.

It is observed that the application of tempered plaster on the galvanized steel sheet makes it possible to achieve good adhesion of the plaster, which opens the door to a large number of production operating techniques. In the case of galvanized steel, we can speak of a real zinc-plaster chemical bond. The adhesion can be improved by a suitable surface treatment or a mechanical bond including in particular an operation of compression of the tempered plaster on the sheet, a method known per se for improving the adhesion of the tempered plaster on a support such as cardboard. The mass of the plaster can in particular be cast projected onto the sheet placed on a horizontal support for example.

We can also cast the plaster on paper or cardboard and then deposit the galvanized sheet on this plaster, the sheet passing through a conformator, that is to say a sheet unwinder by applying a certain compression force on the plaster .

According to an additional operating variant, first deposit as described above a layer of tempered plaster on paper or cardboard or on another support, then deposit the galvanized sheet by applying it to the plaster which is still wet ( passage to the shaper for example) and then it is covered by any suitable technique on the other face with a layer of tempered plaster, this last layer of plaster preferably being then covered with a finish such as paper or cardboard.

This solution is particularly advantageous because it avoids certain drawbacks linked to the problem of drying the plaster (the sheet being of course waterproof) and to the problems of crumbling of the plaster covering the sheet during cutting operations on site or when drilling holes. .

A sheet which has been profiled is preferably used either during its production or immediately before its implementation according to the invention.

The term mixed plaster applies to a mixture of water and plaster as well as to a mixture of water and plaster with additives in minor quantities, that is to say generally not exceeding 50% in weight.

According to an alternative embodiment, a mixture based on plaster containing additives, of low density and with high thermal insulation capacity, of the perlite or vermiculite type, is used. According to another variant, a mixture is used with plaster base containing a proportion of Portland cement or steel cement.

These variants which can be combined with one another aim to ensure one or more of the following properties: reduction of the mass of the component to facilitate handling; optimizing the thermal insulation capacity; - increasing the mechanical resistance of the plaster-based mixture; increasing the density so as to obtain better acoustic insulation.

The facing element thus produced can be easily transported, with a minimum of protective packaging, for example a shrinkable protective film, because the sheet greatly reduces the risk of rupture of the plaster mass.

The use of a sheet which is galvanized and which may have been subjected to one or other surface finishing treatment to increase its resistance to oxidation (white rust) during storage is also a contributing factor. protection against rust of this sheet over time and during the plaster drying operation.

The term "galvanized" must be understood in the broad sense as also applying to a coating with alloys based on zinc and aluminum. It may be, for example, more or less highly alloyed zinc or aluzinc deposit or products of the GALFAN type (registered trademark).

The physico-chemical bond between steel and plaster is ensured by the process of casting or projection in the workshop on galvanized steel or by the application of galvanized sheet on plaster previously deposited on a support such as paper or cardboard. , of preferably in a horizontal position, thus avoiding the use of elements of the trellis type necessary for attachment during vertical projection which, according to the state of the art, is sometimes recommended for use on the site.

It may be advisable to add a mechanical connection to it to increase the performance of the element in service. This is carried out according to well known procedures such as increasing the roughness of the sheet, bossing or puncturing thereof, screwing, incorporation of metallic elements into the plaster mass, etc. or any other element for anchoring the plaster mass to the sheet metal.

One can also provide for the addition to the plaster of glue, before or after mixing, to improve the bonding after drying and / or the application of bonding coating on the surface of the galvanized sheet.

The plaster side finish can also take different forms. It can have a raw appearance of untreated plaster, but it is also possible to provide finishes of the cardboard, sheet or metal foil type, possibly prepainted, or any other form of finish ensuring the role of temporary protection or of finishing surface facilitating use in service (allowing a directly applicable paint without "primer", for example).

The plaster used will of course depend on the intended application (decorative plaster, water-repellent, quick-hardening plaster, lightened plaster containing perlite or with a fiberglass type finish, etc.).

The facing elements according to the invention can be applied for the production of light partitions, generally non-load-bearing, for various uses such as dividing partitions between housings or distribution partitions in the same housing. They can also be used to make linings (interior walls of exterior walls, counter-partitions, ceilings, components involved in the construction of floors). The aforementioned facing elements when they are provided with a plaster mass on only one face, the other face being provided or not with a layer of insulating element, are used in practice generally as half-partitions , in the sense that two elements of this type are mounted "back to back", that is to say each with the mass of plaster placed outwards.

Depending on the circumstances, only one of the two facing elements may be provided on the free face with an insulation lining. This lining can also be provided on the two elements or the insulation lining can be added in the form of rigid panels disposed between these elements without being completely joined to it. Bridging elements between the half-walls also serving to maintain half-walls, may for example be provided.

The respective thicknesses of the facing elements, their spatial separation and the nature of the plaster used will depend on the requirements to be fulfilled in terms of rigidity, fire resistance, weight and thermal and sound insulation.

Various conventional techniques can be envisaged for the assembly on the site of the facing elements.

Generally, finishing operations such as laying a screed on the floor and capping or plastering are carried out after the installation of the partitions.

The use of these facing elements allows an additional reduction in the total thickness of the partitions for the same level of acoustic performance as well as other technical and economic advantages. important, among which we can cite: improvement of the rigidity of the panels compared to conventional plasterboard for transport, during installation and in service, - maintenance of fire resistance characteristics, functionalities (hanging, subsequent capping,. ..) and insulation by incorporating "traditional" materials (plaster, foam or mineral wool type insulators, beads, cellular glass), reduction in assembly cost: easy assembly of elements manufactured in the workshop, reduction of vertical grid in the form of galvanized C profiles, - the partition, due to the continuity of a facing comprising a continuous metal part, has an anti-intrusion function, nonexistent for conventional partitions made using plasterboard. If it is aimed in particular at exerting an anti-intrusion function, it is desirable that the steel, according to a preferred variant of the invention, be of high strength and high yield strength in order to resist mechanical attack and / or may contain elements delaying cutting by flame cutting (to resist thermal attack) such as at least 2% chromium, at least 0.5% silicon or even vanadium, nickel or tungsten.

In this regard, it should be mentioned that the use of steels with high chromium content (of the order of 15%) can prove to be advantageous both for making oxycutting impossible and providing a damping capacity. intrinsic noise to the sheet by internal friction effect in the material. DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION. The invention will be described in more detail with reference to preferred embodiments, given by way of illustration without any limiting character. Identical reference marks are used in the different figures for identical elements or with a similar function. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.

Figure 1 shows a sectional view of an embodiment of a facing element;

FIG. 2 represents an enlarged view of the connection of two adjoining panels; Figure 3 shows a schematic perspective view of the principle of mounting a partition according to 1 • invention;

FIG. 4 represents a schematic view of another embodiment of a facing element according to the invention making a plaster and non-profiled sheet system; Figure 5 corresponds to Figure 4 for a plaster and profiled sheet system and Figure 6 corresponds to Figure 5 but applied to a plaster, profiled sheet and plaster system. DETAILED DESCRIPTION The facing element according to the invention (figures

1 to 3) bearing the general reference 1 consists of a profiled galvanized sheet 3, generally of standardized size and of a length such that it can be mounted vertically between a floor and a ceiling. This sheet is stiffened by a series of profiling in the form of "ribs" or chutes 5, for example with a width of 30 mm, spaced center to center by their neighbor of 100 mm.

The sheet seen in section therefore affects the shape of a practically rectangular wave profile. The shape of the lateral ends of this sheet will be described below with reference to Figures 2 and 3. On this sheet, a layer of mass plaster 7 was poured in order to form the facing element.

Due to the presence of the galvanizing layer on the sheet and the profiling of the sheet, there is good adhesion of plaster 7 to sheet 3.

As can be seen in the figures, the profiled sheet ends on the right with a little more than a half-groove 11 and on the left with a practically complete groove 13. On the right, the plaster 7 almost completely fills the groove 11 and on the left, less than half of the almost complete groove 13.

This makes it possible to assemble two facing elements laterally by covering the part 11 with the part 13, the plaster lining of each element coming practically in lateral contact (see FIGS. 2 and 3).

FIG. 3 specifically illustrates how facing elements can be mounted in place on the site to obtain a partition. In this embodiment, the insulation was not previously mounted on the facing elements.

The view represents the lower part of the elements for the clarity of the drawing.

On the ground, a mounting rail 21 has been provided here on which an insulator 23 is disposed. The partition consists of a series of facing elements IA, IB, etc. intended to be placed side by side in the configuration of Figure 2, the plaster 7 being turned towards the front of the drawing and the opposite face formed by the galvanized sheet 3 being turned towards the insulator.

In opposition to the facing elements IA and IB, the complementary facing elements 1C and ID are mounted as indicated, preferably in an offset manner

(that is to say avoiding that the "joint" between the adjacent lateral elements IA and IB is opposite the "joint" between the opposite lateral elements 1C and ID) in order to produce the complete partition by arranging the facing elements on either side of the insulating interlayer.

In Figure 4, a production operating variant is indicated. According to the latter, a sheet of cardboard 31 coming from an unwinder 33 passes between pinch rollers 34 and is deposited on a suitable support such as a table (not shown).

A plaster hopper 35 is used to deposit a layer of tempered plaster 7 on the cardboard 31 as this cardboard scrolls under the hopper 35. The cardboard 31 and plaster 7 assembly progresses and passes under a dispenser of galvanized sheet 37 which intervention of pinch rollers 39 and of an applicator roller 41, apply the sheet 3 to the tempered plaster 7.

In the embodiment of Figure .5, the operations are essentially similar to the difference that between the unwinder 37 and the pinch rollers 39, a metal shaping device 43 is provided. In this case, the applicator roller 41 "prints" the deformations of the sheet (for example corrugations) in the mass of tempered plaster 7.

In the case of FIG. 6, compared with FIG. 5, a second tempered plaster hopper 45 is provided, which applies a second layer of tempered plaster 47, a paper unwinder 57, pinch rollers 59 and an applicator roller 61 which applies a sheet of paper 63 to the tempered plaster 47. This forms a facing element composed of a galvanized sheet 3, in this case profiled, provided on both sides with a layer of plaster 7 and 47 and which is covered on one side with a sheet of cardboard 31 and on the other side with paper 63.

Many modifications are of course possible within the framework of the invention, both at the level of the choice of materials, in particular finishing materials, at the level of production techniques.

Various fixing techniques can be envisaged. It is for example possible to proceed by screwing the facing elements onto the rail 21.

It will be understood that numerous techniques for mounting the facing elements can be used, in particular all the techniques known and used for steel-based panels such as interlocking by couples which improve the stiffening between two panels, and that the invention is in no way limited to the embodiment shown.

The fixing to the floor and to the ceiling can for example be different from that indicated. Provision may be made to clip the lateral edges of the facing elements together. Each of the facing elements arranged "back to back" or only one of them may be provided with a layer of insulation in the workshop.

Spacers or simply an adequate positioning allow a spacing between the insulation and the rear face (sheet metal) of the facing element to ensure good sound insulation of the joints.

Claims

CLAIMS. 1. facing element (1), characterized in that it consists of a galvanized steel sheet (3) provided in the workshop on at least one face, with a mass of plaster (7) applied in the form of tempered plaster. 2. facing element according to claim 1, characterized in that the galvanized steel sheet (3) is profiled by forming stiffening ribs (5). 3. facing element according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that it consists of a galvanized steel sheet of thickness between about 0.4 and 3.0 mm on at least one face of which plaster tempered is applied in a thickness preferably between 5 and 50 mm. 4. facing element according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that it comprises, on one face of the galvanized steel sheet, a mass of tempered plaster and on the face opposite to that receiving the plaster , an insulation lining installed in the workshop by gluing. 5. facing element according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that it comprises on both sides of the galvanized steel sheet (3), a mass of tempered plaster (7.47). 6. A method for producing facing elements in the workshop according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that a mass of plaster mixed with water is poured or projected onto a galvanized steel sheet, 7. A method of making facing elements in the workshop according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that tempered plaster is poured onto paper or cardboard and then the sheet is deposited on this plaster, by applying a compressive force on plaster. 8. Method according to claim 7 characterized in that one covers the still free face of the sheet with a layer of tempered plaster, this last layer of plaster preferably then being covered with a finish such as paper or cardboard. 9. Use of facing elements according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that a partition consists of facing elements by mounting back to back two facing elements, that is to say say with the plaster mass (7) arranged towards the outside, with or without interposition of an insulation lining glued on one or on the two facing elements or also with interposition of an insulation lining added in the form of panels arranged between the facing elements without being joined thereto. 10. Use of facing elements according to any one of claims 1 to 5, for the lining of walls.