Technical Field

The present invention relates to a building mould.

Background Art

Generally, in the construction field, one or more building moulds are frequently employed in order to ensure that the quality of the building materials used by the building companies meet the quality and safety standards required by law.

In fact, every time a casting of building material, generally concrete, is made on a construction site, the director of works is obliged by law to take a predefined quantity of concrete from this casting, which is made according to the UNI EN 12390 standard inside one or more building moulds, where the concrete rests for a certain curing period.

At the end of the curing period, the cured concrete is subjected to one or more tests, such as e.g. compression or crushing tests, adapted to verify that the cast concrete complies with the quality standards imposed by law, and the mechanical and structural requirements of the project of the work.

Generally, the moulds of known type comprise a first container body which is adapted to accommodate inside a second container body, which is adapted to accommodate in turn the building material, so as to recreate the ideal conditions for the correct curing of concrete inside the mould.

The building moulds of known type do, however, have some drawbacks.

In particular, the second container body is known to be made of steel; the high thermal conductivity of steel, in fact, promotes the dispersion of the heat which develops during the reaction of hydration of the concrete, thus promoting the correct curing thereof.

However, the weight of the steel makes the use of the building mould uncomfortable and complex.

Therefore, in order to overcome this drawback, the use is known of building moulds, the second container body of which is made of a polymeric material, in order to make the building mould lighter, more practical and easier to use. However, even this solution has some drawbacks. In fact, the polymeric materials used to make the second container body serve as thermal insulators which prevents the dispersion of the heat that develops during the hydration reaction of concrete, compromising the curing thereof.

In addition, these devices hardly allow adjusting the concrete curing temperature inside the second container in a simple and precise manner.

These drawbacks compromise the concrete curing process, negatively affecting the degree of reliability of the tests carried out on concrete samples. Consequently, these tests must be repeated several times on a large number of samples to ensure an adequate degree of reliability, thus resulting in increased costs and time for concrete testing operations.

Description of the Invention

The main aim of the present invention is to devise an upgraded building mould which allows for the dispersion of the heat which develops inside the second container body during concrete curing.

A further object of the present invention is to devise an upgraded building mould which is practical and handy to use.

An additional object of the present invention is to devise an upgraded building mould which allows for easy and precise regulation of the concrete temperature inside the second container.

Another object of the present invention is to devise an upgraded building mould which allows the mentioned drawbacks of the prior art to be overcome within a simple, rational, easy and effective to use as well as affordable solution.

The aforementioned objects are achieved by the present upgraded building mould having the characteristics of claim 1.

The aforementioned objects are achieved by the present method of using the upgraded building mould having the characteristics of claim 9.

Brief Description of the Drawings

Other characteristics and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the description of a preferred, but not exclusive, embodiment of an upgraded building mould, illustrated by way of an indicative, yet non limiting example in the accompanying tables of drawings wherein: Figure 1 is an exploded axonometric view of the building mould according to the invention;

Figure 2 is an axonometric view of the building mould according to the invention.

Fmbodiments of the Invention

With particular reference to these figures, reference numeral 1 globally indicates an upgraded building mould.

The upgraded building mould 1 comprises: at least a first container body 2, 3 made of a thermally insulating material; at least a second container body 5, 6 of building material 8, arranged, in use, inside the first container body 2, 3.

Advantageously, the first container body 2, 3 comprises at least one first container element 2 defining a first containment chamber 4 of the second container body 5, 6, and at least one first closure element 3 coupleable to the first container element 2 in a removable manner, so as to seal the first containment chamber 4.

Furthermore, the second container body 5, 6 comprises at least one second container element 5 defining a second containment chamber 7 of the building material 8 and arranged in use inside the first container body 2, 3.

Preferably, the second container body 5, 6 comprises at least one second closure element 6 coupleable to the second container element 5 in a removable manner, so as to seal the second containment chamber 7.

In particular, the second container body 5, 6 is made at least partly of thermally conductive polymeric material and is adapted to promote the dispersion of the heat developed by the building material 8 during its curing outside the second container body 5, 6.

Preferably, the second container body 5, 6 is entirely made of a thermally conductive polymeric material.

In this way, the mould 1 is handy and easy to use, and allows the heat developed by the building material 8 to be dispersed outside the second container body 5, 6. Advantageously, the polymeric material is selected from the list comprising thermoplastic polymers, thermosetting polymers and elastomers.

Conveniently, the polymeric material comprises at least one additive having a thermal conductivity greater than or equal to 10 W-m ^_1 -K ^_1 .

In particular, the polymeric material comprises one or more of the additives selected from the list comprising carbon black, graphene nanoplatelet, CNT (Carbon Nano Tube), CNF (Carbon Nano Fiber), copper powders, iron powders, aluminum powders and metal alloy powders.

Advantageously, the mould 1 comprises monitoring means 13 for monitoring the weight of the building material 8 arranged inside the second container body 5, 6 and configured to measure the weight of the building material 8.

Preferably, the monitoring means 13 comprise at least one load cell arranged, in use, below the second container body 5, 6.

In particular, the monitoring means 13 are configured to detect the change in weight of the building material 8 during its curing.

Conveniently, the mould 1 comprises coupling means, not shown in the figures, arranged, in use, between the first container body 2, 3 and the second container body 5, 6 and adapted to couple the second container body 5, 6 inside the first container body 2, 3 in a removable manner.

Preferably, the coupling means comprise at least a first and at least a second coupling element which can be coupled to each other in a removable manner and associated with the first container body 2, 3 and with the second container body 5, 6, respectively, allowing for coupling and uncoupling thereof.

The coupling means are preferably of known type, e.g. as coupling means by slotting in or the like.

Conveniently, the first and the second container bodies 2, 3, 5, 6, arranged one inside the other, define at least one gap 9 between them.

In this way, at least part of the heat developed by the building material 8 during the curing thereof is diffused through the second body 5, 6 and given up to the air contained in the gap 9.

Appropriately, the first container body 2, 3 is larger than the second container body 5, 6.

Furthermore, the first and the second container bodies 2, 3, 5, 6 are preferably of substantially equal shape.

In particular, the first and the second container bodies 5, 6, have substantially a cubic or cuboidal shape.

Conveniently, the gap 9 laterally surrounds the second container body 5, 6.

In particular, the gap 9 laterally surrounds the side walls of the second container element 5, as shown in Figure 2.

Advantageously, the mould 1 comprises at least one temperature control element 10 arranged inside the gap 9 and adapted to at least partly absorb the heat of the building material 8 dispersed inside the mould 1 or to administer heat to the building material 8.

In this manner, the temperature control element 10 absorbs the heat which develops inside the second container body 5, 6 or develops heat inside the second container body 5, 6.

Advantageously, the temperature control element 10 is insertable inside the gap

9 in a removable manner.

In addition, the temperature control element 10, in use, is arranged in contact with the second container body 5, 6, so as to facilitate heat transmission between the building material 8 and the temperature control element 10, through the same second container body.

Further embodiments of the mould 1 cannot however be ruled out wherein the temperature control element 10 is of a different type, such as e.g. an electrically powered air conditioning unit and configured to adjust the temperature inside the mould 1.

Preferably, the mould 1 comprises a plurality of temperature control elements

10 arranged, in use, inside the gap 9.

Advantageously, the temperature control element 10 defines a containment chamber 11 of a phase change material 12.

Preferably, the phase change material is of the type of a liquid.

According to a further aspect, the present invention relates to a method of using the mould 1, comprising at least the phases of: arrangement of at least one building material 8 to be cured inside the second container body 5, 6; cooling/heating of the temperature control element 10 to a reference temperature; arrangement of the temperature control element 10 inside the gap 9.

In this way, the mould 1 allows the temperature inside the second container body 5, 6 to be controlled precisely, easily and quickly.

Furthermore, the method comprises at least the phases of: replacement of the building material 8 arranged inside the second container body 5, 6 with another building material 8 to be cured; replacement of the temperature control element 10 with another one, previously cooled/heated.

Thus, during the curing of a building material 8, an additional temperature control element 10 is cooled/heated.

This expedient allows the temperature control element 10 to be replaced immediately upon completion of curing of the building material 8 in order to begin the curing process of a new building material 8 immediately.

It has in practice been ascertained that the described invention achieves the intended objects.

In particular, the fact is emphasized that the second container body made of a thermally conductive polymeric material allows dispersing the heat developed during concrete curing, thus promoting the correct curing of the latter.

In addition, the second container body made of a thermally conductive polymeric material makes the upgraded building mould lightweight, practical and easy to handle.

Again, the temperature control elements allow for convenient, easy and precise adjustment of the concrete temperature inside the second container.