Terrazzo was invented by construction workers in Venice, Italy at the beginning of the 20th century. Their superb handwork exposed the marble fragments on the concrete surface. The style is unique and popular. It was introduced to China in the late 1950s and used in schools, airports, hospitals, etc. Large building. Due to the limitations of the production process at that time, terrazzo itself also has the disadvantages of troublesome care, easy penetration, easy wear, and easy weathering. After the 1990s, new materials began to appear. The performance and price of granite and artificial stone are more advantageous than traditional terrazzo. It was gradually forgotten.
In recent years, with the rise of the retro trend and the development of craftsmanship, terrazzo has reappeared in front of people. However, the terrazzo nowadays is not the rough face of the year but has evolved into a fashionista and a symbol of trendy style. Successful counterattack.
Terrazzo began to appear in various characteristic buildings, fashionable spaces, luxury shops, and even furniture and decorations. And not only the terrazzo industry itself but also the artificial stone, ceramics, wallpaper, and other industries have begun to imitate the pattern and style of terrazzo, vying to help it.
What is terrazzo stone?
Although the terrazzo looks like a whole piece of dotted texture, there are dots and irregular pebble patterns in the color, which has an indefinite random beauty, showing a sense of “similarities and small differences”, and after artificial design, the products are not only very rich but also With many changes, it has become the favorite of fashion and deserves it.
Traditional terrazzo is a product made by mixing crushed stone, glass, quartz stone, and other aggregates into cement binders to make concrete products, and then the surface is ground and polished. There are generally two types of on-site pouring floors and factory prefabricated plates. Each has its own characteristics:
Cast-in-place type
On-site pouring (terrazzo floor) has a long history. It is constructed by skilled workers and has high technical requirements for construction personnel. One area is formed at one time (if the area is too large, it will be divided into multiple areas), and the same area can be seamless and unobvious Chromatic aberration, the whole is very atmospheric and beautiful.
advantage
Seamless splicing, magnificent and beautiful, stunning mosaic effect
A large area is formed at one time, no obvious color difference in a single area
shortcoming
Manual operation, the fineness is difficult to compare with precision equipment
It has not undergone high-frequency vibration and high-pressure suppression, and its physical properties are limited
Self-leveling molding, manual polishing, the surface flatness is wavy
The construction conditions are demanding, cross-working is prohibited
Regional protection is required after construction, which affects the overall construction period
Wall can’t be applied
problem
The bonding strength is not enough, and the aggregate is prone to lose and fall off
The high water absorption rate, easy to be penetrated by stains
Insufficient density and strength, easy to crack
Water damage is as difficult to repair as before
Factory prefabricated. The factory prefabricated terrazzo is processed by modern equipment in the factory. It usually goes through the processes of cloth, vibration, high pressure, maintenance, and cutting. Similar to tiles and marble, they are suitable for applications in various environments.
advantage
Produced by precision equipment, the quality is stable, the performance is uniform, the density is high, the strength is high, and the water absorption rate must be controlled at a lower level. Production line, batch duplication, higher efficiency, convenient transportation and storage, convenient construction, high-efficiency cross-operation, and small impact, which is conducive to ensuring the overall construction schedule can be applied to walls, stairs, and even countertops. The application is flexible, and the later maintenance and replacement are more convenient.
shortcoming
The size is small, and the paving has obvious seams. Many batches of products are prone to color differences. The quality of the product is greatly affected by the equipment and process.
problem
The joints are prone to black seam paving construction requirements and specifications, otherwise, it is prone to hollowing and cracking
Factory prefabricated terrazzo is also divided into square material pressing and plate pressing, both of which have their own characteristics:
Square material suppression
The square material is pressed with a large-capacity mold. The raw materials are mixed and pressed into a cube, which is similar to natural stone blocks. Later, it is cut into plates according to the needs. It has a high degree of freedom in thickness. In addition, due to the original body, The block is large enough, so you can choose larger aggregates to customize products with large patterns.
However, due to a large number of raw materials for single pressing of the square material, it is easy to have insufficient mixing and mixing of the raw materials, resulting in inconsistent patterns and uneven performance. Also, the pressure on the surface and center of the square material is different due to the pressure on the center of the square material. The density of the surface layer and the center part of the material is inconsistent, which makes it difficult to guarantee the uniform quality of the finished product. In addition, it is difficult to achieve larger specifications (usually 2400x1200mm) for the finished products, and the physical properties are also slightly inferior.
Plate pressing
The plate pressing type adopts a single-piece plate mold, which is formed at one time. Generally, there are two kinds of standard plate molds and large plate molds. Since the single-piece pressing has fewer raw materials and is restricted by the mold, it cannot use too large aggregates. Therefore, the raw materials are mixed Stirring is easier to achieve uniformity, and the pressure required for single-piece compression is smaller, and the force is more uniform, so the physical properties are more excellent and stable, and the processing efficiency is higher.
However, due to mold limitations, it is difficult for the sheet type to achieve the pattern of super-large particles, and the thickness is a fixed thickness (usually 12~40mm).
Its production characteristics are:
1. Accuracy: The raw materials are transported through sealed pipelines, and the formula ratio is precisely calculated by the automatic weighing system so that the error ratio can be controlled within 10 grams.
2. Uniformity: The raw materials are automatically and intelligently stirred through a large pot, and then passed through 5 automatic cloth systems so that the raw materials are more evenly distributed;
3. Super-large: Using super-large molds, the finished slab can reach the size of 1620x3250mm (the large slab can be directly applied as a whole piece depending on the situation).
4. Vacuum: The single-piece plate adopts synchronous high pressure, vibration, and vacuum technology to make the product denser and uniform, and higher strength.
5. Constant temperature: The raw materials and ingredients are all carried out in the constant temperature and humidity workshop during the pressing, and are stored in a closed 32℃ constant temperature curing room after the pressing is completed. The production process is not affected by environmental changes, and the product is stable and reliable;
6. Efficient: The finished slab passes through the automatic cutting line, which is not only accurate and efficient;
7. Diversity: The products have good customization properties, and special products such as travertine and wood stone can be developed, as well as products with diversified functions such as anion, luminous, and antistatic;
8. Environmental protection: purely physical suppression, airtight transportation, no waste gas or dust; water circulation system is adopted, no water resources are wasted, and the environmental protection of the production process is guaranteed. And the product can be recycled and reused, greatly reducing waste and pollution.
Inorganic artificial stone series products are not only environmentally friendly in the production process, but also green and environmentally friendly. They are also fire-resistant (and do not produce harmful fumes at high temperatures), freeze-resistant, UV-resistant, and have high stability and weather resistance in cold and hot environments. It has good performance and is also suitable for exterior wall decoration.