Let us start with raw materials of vinyl floorings.
The primary components include polyvinyl chloride (or vinyl) resins, plasticizers (high molecular-weight solvents), pigments and trace stabilizers, and a carrier sheet or backing. The backing may be felt or highly filled paper made from wood pulp and calcium carbonate. High-gloss surface vinyl sheets or vinyl tiles have an additional polyurethane coating applied at the end of the process. The glue applied to the back of some vinyl tiles (to make a pressure-sensitive adhesive) is made from organic resins.
Making the vinyl sheet flooring, as the example, the basic procesing can be concluded as six steps:
1 Vinyl resins and plasticizers are stirred together in a vat to make a plastisol. To this plastisol, AZO compound (which consists of two nitrogen atoms that are united at both ends to separate carbon atoms) is added. When the resins, plasticizers, and AZO compound is heated, the AZO compound decomposes forming nitrogen gas bubbles. From this mixture, a vinyl foam is produced. This vinyl foam has the consistency of pancake batter and can be spread, in a slurry, onto the installation medium or backing.
2 The slurry is laid down on the felt or wood pulp backing via a reverse roll coater—it is poured on and smoothed out. The coated sheet then goes through an oven where the vinyl foam is gelled. The oven is heated just enough for the vinyl resin to absorb the plasticizer and set.Vinyl resins and plasticizers are stirred together in a vat to make a plastisol, which is then heated to form a batter.
Vinyl resins and plasticizers are stirred together in a vat to make a plastisol, which is then heated to form a batter.
3 At this point, the gel is run through a printing press and is impressed with metal intaglio plates (with pattern carved beneath the surface of the metal). This impresses the pattern into the gel sheet, creating the decorative pattern.
4 A second mixing of plasticizer and vinyl are applied on the printed gel. The gel (with backing) is run through an oven at an even higher temperature. In the oven, the vinyl resin absorbs the plasticizer and melts, creating a clear vinyl. This is known as the wear layer, which takes the brunt of foot traffic. Printed patterns and inlaid patterns are thus protected under this wear layer rendering the pattern durable.
5 If the pattern requires a matte finish, the sheet vinyl is essentially ready to be rolled. However, patterns designed with a high gloss finish receive a layer of polyurethane coating via rollers. The thickness of this coating is controlled with an air knife to insure a consistent thickness. The polyurethane coating is cured photochemically with ultraviolet radiation lamps and is ready to be rolled.
6 The matte or high-gloss vinyl sheet flooring is then cut to rolls that are 12 ft (3.66 m) wide x 1,500 ft (457.2 m) long that can be subdivided based on the needs of retailers.
