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Latex |
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Latex |
Latex
is a resin obtained by cutting the bark of a tree. This resin quickly
solidifies and becomes rubbery and elastic ( caoutchouc ).
Caoutchouc was first discovered by native tribes in South America, who extracted it from the Hevea Brasiliensis tree like the one in the adjacent photo. They used the resin for recreative value and this included moulding it into the first ever caoutchouc ball.
A big step forward was made in 1747, when Charles Marie de la Condamine made a milestone report to the Paris Academy of Science on the origins and properties of latex and on its objects.
In 1839, in the United States of America, Charles Goodyear discovered vulcanisation, whereby rubber and sulphur are combined at high temperatures to yield a product with mechanical and other physical properties far superior to those of raw caoutchouc.
This was the beginning of the rubber industry in Europe and the US and it intensified research into raw materials. It was also when the first rubber plantations were laid down.
Latex rapidly became one of the World's basic commodities. The modern synthetic rubber industry started in the forties and overtook the manufacturing of natural rubber in 1962. Whether natural or synthetic, latex consists of a stable colloid of the caoutchouc polymer in an aqueous solution.
Thanks to its molecular structure, latex can withstand extreme stretching (up to 170%) without reaching breaking strain or suffering any alteration to its original shape and properties.
Latex can be turned into foam by adding air and then vulcanising.
After a multi-stage production process, including foaming, gelling, vulcanisation, washing and drying, the latex foam has acquired unique characteristics of elasticity, resistance to fatigue and deformation.
These are the essential characteristics that make latex preferable to all the other materials used in the furniture industry.
From the first block of latex produced in 1934, to the perfectly homogeneous, immaculately coloured micro-cellular latex foam of today; latex foam is indeed a unique product, different from other materials by both its nature and origin.
Denser, more homogeneous and increasingly efficacious, the latex foam produced by wholly automated manufacturing processes answers the needs of an ever more complex market and provides all the guarantees of a top quality material at truly competitive prices.
Latex foam has an aerated appearance. It gives protection against bacteria and can breathe thanks to a structure characterised by an undulating surface and billions of open cells. This makes it a hostile environment for bacteria and mould.
Further, it has been awarded OEKO TEX and EUROLATEX Eco~Standard certification that the foam presents no risk to human health or the environment, either during manufacturing or in subsequent use.
Thanks to its qualities of flexibility and suppleness, latex foam can be adapted to any shape and will accompany any movement.
In the field of mattress design, it guarantees perfect anatomical support by adapting to all body shapes and supporting each part of the body with millimetrical precision. The contact surface is optimal, giving the user the possibility of total muscular relaxation.
The latex is subjected to meticulous controls throughout the entire manufacturing process, to guarantee a product that meets the most stringent quality standards.
A ZWICK machine, checks flexibility with a force measuring device, that compresses a standard sample from 0 to 65%. A computer connected to this machine records the materials compression and decompression data.
The software is programmed to DIN 53 576 procedure C and indicates the force necessary to compress a 40 x 40 cm sample to 40%.
The hysteresis curve and sag factor (SF) obtained from this test confirms the permanence of the flexibility characteristics during the production stage.
Permanent deformation is measured by applying to a sample of foam a quantity of energy enough to deform its structure.
A 20 x 20 cm sample is compressed to 50% of its original thickness for 22 hours in a ventilated oven at 70 o C.
The indicator signals the risk of local stress decay in the block.
Self-extinguishing latex foam is available in one density: C3 (120 g/l, +10%) to NFT 56 107. Medium.
Further information can be obtained by contacting our sales office.
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