Abstrict A material for use as cat litter comprising a composition of paper
machine sludge combined in the presence of water with sodium bicarbonate
and a hydraulic cement, dried and crushed to form coarse particles
or extruded and chopped up to form pellets. Desirably, the composition
includes an anti-static material and coloring.
Claims What is claimed is:
1. The method of manufacturing litter comprising mixing with paper
machine sludge comprised predominantly of cellulose fibers, sodium
bicarbonate and portland cement, drying the mixture and pulverizing
the dried mixture.
2. A cat litter comprising a mixture of paper machine sludge, a
commercial sodium bicarbonate, and portland cement, combined in
the presence of water, to form a slurry, dried in sheet form, and
crushed to form granules, or extruded, dried and chopped up to form
pellets.
3. A cat litter according to claim 2 wherein the portland cement
contains beta 2CaO,SiO.sub.2 3CaO,CaSO.sub.4 and chemically unbound
CaSO.sub.4 obtaining by firing at a temperature between about 1200.degree.
and 1600.degree. for about 1 to 5 hours, a mixture of a source of,
respectively, CaO,SiO.sub.2 Al.sub.2 O.sub.3 and SO.sub.3 in proportions
of about 1 to 3 moles of CaSO.sub.4 to about (0.5 to 2)+2n moles
of CaCO.sub.3 per mole of Al.sub.2 O.sub.3 nSiO.sub.2 and grinding
the resultant clinker where "n" is about 1.5 to about
2.5.
4. A cat litter compounded of paper machine sludge and sodium bicarbonate
in the ratio of approximately 8 pounds dry weight of paper machine
sludge and 4 ounces of sodium bicarbonate, and 9 pounds of portland
cement.
5. A cat litter comprising a composition of paper machine sludge
and sodium bicarbonate in the proportions of approximately 17 pounds
dry weight of paper machine sludge and 2 ounces of sodium bicarbonate,
and approximately 6 pounds of hydraulic cement.
6. A cat litter comprising a composition of paper machine sludge
and sodium bicarbonate in the proportion of approximately 7 pounds
of dry weight sludge and 2 pounds of sodium bicarbonate, and approximately
30 pounds of portland cement.
7. A cat litter comprising a composition of paper machine sludge
and sodium bicarbonate in the proportion of approximately 3 pounds
dry weight of paper machine sludge and 8.8 ounces of sodium bicarbonate,
and approximately 3 pounds of portland cement.
Description It is the primary purpose of this invention to provide an improved
cat litter in the form of particles and/or pellets which will absorb
approximately 3 times as much moisture as cat litter now available,
will control odor for an appreciably longer period of time, will
minimize formation of dust, will not cake in the litter box or on
the cat's fur, is heavy enough so that it will not be scattered
from the litter box, will not easily crush underfoot, is not abrasive
and, hence, will not scratch the floor or abrade rugs and is non-toxic
and biodegradable.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
As herein illustrated, the cat litter material of this invention
is in the form of pellets or particles and is compounded of paper
machine sludge, sodium bicarbonate and, optionally, portland cement
combined in the presence of water to form a slurry, extruded, dried
and chopped up into pellets or dried in sheet form and crushed to
form coarse particles. Optionally, an anti-static and coloring or
other decal material may be added.
The paper machine sludge is a by-product of paper making and comprises
approximately 80% very short length wood fibers with some short
length cotton fibers and 20% other solids. The wood and cotton fibers
are present in the form of substantially pure cellulose, free of
any substantial amounts of resin and/or resinous materials. The
other solids comprise titanium oxide, precipitated silica and paper
makers clay and exist in the proportions of approximately 1/3 titanium
oxide, 1/3 silica and 1/3 paper makers clay. A preferred sludge
is disclosed in my U.S. Pat. No. 4497688 which is incorporated
herein by reference.
The sodium bicarbonate is commercially available in powdered form
and when mixed with the sludge, reacts with the latter to degrade
the cellulose fibers and, hence, increases the capacity of the mixture
when dried to adsorb or absorb water.
The preferred portland cement is of the kind described in U.S.
Pat. No. 3860433 also incorporated herein by reference. This
is available from the U.S. Gypsum Company under the trademark "VHE
Cement." The cement is very high, early strength, extremely
fast setting hydraulic cement having very high compressive strength
and contains beta 2CaO,SiO.sub.2 3CaO,CaSO.sub.4 and chemically
unbound CaSO.sub.4 obtained by firing at a temperature between about
1200.degree. and 1600.degree. for about 1 to 5 hours, a mixture
of a source, respectively, of CaO,SiO.sub.2 Al.sub.2 O.sub.3 and
SO.sub.3 in proportions of about 1 to 3 moles of CaSO.sub.4 to about
0.5 to 2+2 n moles of CaCO.sub.3 per mole of Al.sub.2 O.sub.3 nSiO.sub.2
and grinding the resultant clinker wherein "n" is about
1.5 to about 2.5.
According to the method of manufacture, the product is compounded
by mixing sludge, the powdered sodium bicarbonate and, optionally,
the aforesaid portland cement in suitable proportions in water to
form a slurry, spreading the slurry out, drying it in sheet form
and then breaking it into course particles. Optionally, the slurry
may be extruded in the form of strands dried and chopped into pellets.
The particles are in the order of 1/32 to 1/16 of an inch and the
pellets in the order of 1/4 to 1/2 an inch.
As related above, the sodium bicarbonate reacts with the sludge,
causing shrinkage thereof and when the sludge is dried and particulated,
it absorbs water rapidly in relatively large amounts. Without the
addition of the sodium bicarbonate, the dried sludge has very little
adsorptive or absorptive capacity.
A number of different proportions of the individual ingredients
can be compounded, taking into consideration efficiency as cat litter,
packaging by weight and cost of materials. Examples of several preferred
mixtures follow in the order of their preference. The ingredients
can be combined in a conventional beater type mixer and dried by
exposure to air or at a low temperature in an oven or extruded in
the form of ropes and chopped up .
EXAMPLE 1
40 pounds of paper machine sludge wet (approxiamately 8 pounds
dry weight)
9 pounds of hydraulic cement
4 ounces sodium bicarbonate
EXAMPLE 2
84 pounds of paper machine sludge wet (approximately 17 pounds
dry weight)
6 pounds of hydraulic cement
2 pounds of sodium bicarbonate
EXAMPLE 3
84 pounds of paper machine sludge wet (approximately 17 pounds
dry weight)
30 pounds of hydraulic cement
2 pounds of sodium bicarbonate
EXAMPLE 4
14 pounds of paper machine sludge (approximately 3 pounds dry weight)
3 pounds of hydraulic cement
8.8 ounces of sodium bicarbonate
In each of the Examples, the components are mixed in the presence
of water to form a uniform slurry, air-dried or dried in an oven
at approximately 170.degree. F. and crushed to form particles of
1/32 to 1/16 inch or extruded, dried and chopped up to provide pellets
of 1/4 to 1/2 inch. The particulate material is appropriate for
small cats and the pellets for larger, more active cats. Optionally,
an appropriate or distinctive color may be added to the composition
during mixing and, after drying, the particles may be spray-coated
with an anti-static material in the form of dimethyl chloride.
The portland cement may be omitted from each of the aforesaid examples.
However, its inclusion is advantageous in that it does add weight
to the mixture so that it does not scatter readily in use, inhibits
crushing and the formation of dust and enhances the absorption of
water. Although in all of the aforesaid Examples the paper machine
sludge used is of the kind and composition disclosed in U.S. Pat.
No. 4497688 and the portland cement is of the kind described in
U.S. Pat. No. 3860433 it is within the scope of the invention
to use paper machine sludge and portland cement other than that
disclosed in the aforesaid patents.
The material produced according to the aforesaid Examples has been
found, upon extensive testing, to be absorptive of water in an amount
approximately 3 times greater than commercially available cat litter,
to suppress and control odor for a substantially longer period of
time than other litters, to be substantially less dust-forming than
conventional litters, to be non-caking and non-adherent to cat fur,
to be non-abrasive and, hence, will not scratch floors or tiles,
to be non-staining, non-toxic, biodegradable and absorptive not
only of water, but cleaning oils and the like. In fact, it has been
found that the material will help to keep the floor where the litter
box is located free of stains. In contrast to clay-based litters,
the material as herein described can be flushed down the toilet
without danger of clogging.
It should be understood that the present disclosure is for the
purpose of illustration only and includes all modifications or improvements
which fall within the scope of the appended claims. |