DRY RED OXIDE MIX CEMENT COMPOSITION FOR FLOORING PURPOSES
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a dry red oxide mix cement composition for
flooring purposes. The dry red oxide mix cement composition comprising the red
oxide powder of particle size finer than 300 meshes in an amount of about 10 to
about 20 wt %; which is blended with cement, in an amount of about 40 to about 60
wt %; Ultra Violet resistant dye, in an amount of about 1 wt %; high Alumina cement,
in an amount of about 6 wt %; Methyl Hydroxyethyl Cellulose, in an amount of about
0.2 to about 1 wt %; Titanium dioxide, in an amount of about 2.5 wt %; redispersible
polymer powder, in an amount of about 0.3 to about 2 wt %; Calcite, in an amount of
about 25 to about 40 wt % and anhydrite Calcium sulphate, in an amount of about 2
to about 6 wt %. The dry red oxide mix cement composition is mixed with water to
prepare a flow able liquid to forms a very smooth coating that possesses excellent
compressive strength.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Over the years, with the introduction of mosaic, marble and vitrified tiles
among other things, red oxide flooring was neglected and considered old-fashioned.
But the red oxide flooring is considered to be eco-friendly in nature.
The deep crimson hue of the red oxide flooring is something unique to Kerala.
Many people from the northern India and abroad exclaim at the richness and velvety
gloss of a well-made red oxide floor.
Cement floors enhanced with colours were the first step of modern flooring in
Kerala. But, the technique of red oxide flooring had arrived here much before the
advent of reinforced cement concrete roofing. Commonly found in the palaces and
the houses of nobility of the early days, the red and black oxide floors had become
associated with tradition in Kerala.

The best example of traditional red and black flooring is found in the 400-
year-old Padmanabhapuram Palace in Thukela. Though once the seat of the
Travancore Royal House, this palace is at present in Kanyakumari district of Tamil
Nadu.
However, with the arrival of the multitude of flooring materials, red oxide fell
out of popularity in the Seventies. It became more or less a poor man's flooring.
Mosaic was the in-thing of those days, later to be replaced by ceramic tiles and
marbles.
But, these days, the oxide floors are seemingly making a comeback. The old
technique for the coloured floor used egg white, a lot like the fresco method.
However, the quality of the oxide flooring, whatever the colour, depends a lot on the
craftsmanship. Only an expert craftsman can lay a perfect floor without cracks and
that does not develop patches with time. The process is laborious and requires keen
attention.
The US patent 5873936 discloses a cement composition comprising fine
aggregate, preferably sand, in an amount of about 10 to about 25 wt %; blast
furnace slag cement, in an amount of about 20 to about 35 wt %; gypsum, in an
amount of about 20 to about 35 wt %; Portland cement, in an amount of about 4 to
about 30 wt %; and cement plasticizer in an amount of about 0.3 to about 3 wt %.
The dry cement composition may be formulated with aggregate and water to prepare
a flow able liquid, self-levelling and self-smoothing coating material that may be
applied to a substrate such as a floor substrate. The applied coating requires no
manual finishing or smoothing, yet hardens to form a level, very smooth coating that
possesses excellent compressive strength.
The EP patent 0103119 discloses process for the production of components,
which are speedily strong enough to handle and which have an improved final and
wet strength, using a binder mixture of calcium sulphate, lime-supplying substances
and puzzolanic substances, characterized in that the binder mixture comprises 50 to
90% by weight of calcium sulphate, 3 to 25% by weight of lime-supplying substances

and a puzzolanic component containing 5 to 35% by weight of lime-binding
aluminosilicatic, aluminates-rich substances and that the mixing ratio of the lime-
supplying substances and the lime-binding, aluminosilicatic, aluminates-rich
puzzolanic substances is adjusted in such a way that following a hardening period of
7 days under the conditions of prevented complete drying the length change is 0.5%,
measured on hardened mortar prisms and subsequently there is a convergent
pattern of the length change time curve, so that ettringite formation is limited to the
solution phase.
The WO document 2000000448 describes an activated aluminosilicate
binder containing aluminosilicates, calcium sulphate and an activator containing
alkali metal salts, wherein the aluminosilicates are selected from the group
consisting of blast furnace slag, clay, marl and industrial by-products such as fly ash
with the proviso that the AI203 content is greater than 5 % by weight, wherein blast
furnace slag is present in an amount of less than 35 % by weight and wherein
cement kiln dust in an amount of from 1 to 20 % by weight is added to the mixture as
an activator.
The EP patent 2493834 discloses composite concrete mixture, comprising
cement, sand-stone mixture, water, plasticizer, nano-size pozzolans, shrinkage
reducing additive, and steel and/or synthetic fibres, allows the construction of thin,
completely joint less without limitation of area, large composite concrete slabs, with
no observable shrinkage cracks or curling.
The EP patent 0493858 discloses a mixture suitable for special building
mortars, particularly for floors, bricklaying and/or pointing work, which mixture
comprises at least a sand and a cement fraction, wherein the sand fraction is
composed of a quantity (35 per cent) of river sand and a quantity (65 per cent) of
crushed sand obtained by mechanical size reduction from natural stone such as
limestone, granite, marble or the like, so making it possible to increase the
bending/tensile strength without detracting from the workability.

The US patent 5525148 discloses methods and compositions relating to
calcium phosphate cements, which self-harden substantially to hydroxyapatite at
ambient temperature when in contact with an aqueous medium. More specifically the
cements comprise a combination of one or more sparingly soluble calcium
phosphates other than tetracalcium phosphate with an aqueous solution adjusted
with a base to maintain a pH of about 12.5 or above and having sufficient dissolved
phosphate salt to yield a solution mixture with phosphate concentration equal to or
greater than about 0.2 mol/L.
The EP patent 1281693 discloses mortar contains binder additives and
additives made from sealed stone and lightweight additives in an amount of 20-120
kg/t in the grain band of 0.5-2.5 mm. Preferred Features: The lightweight
additives are selected from pumice, perlite, vermiculite or expanded clay. The sealed
stone is quartz sand or limestone. The binder is cement or lime. The mortar
preferably contains 350-450 kg Portland cement, 30-50 kg Rhine trass, 500-600
sand, 20-120 lightweight additives having a grain band of 0.5-2.50 mm, and 30-50
additives.
The Patent document GB 716805 discloses a compositions suitable for floors
comprise an aqueous dispersion of a thermoplastic synthetic resin admixed with a
major proportion of coal ash or peat ash and optionally another inorganic or organic
filler, e.g. wood chips, and pigments, e.g. red iron oxide. The resin may be polyvinyl
acetate, or a copolymer of vinyl acetate with another copolymerizable monomer
such as vinyl chloride.
The Patent document CN102876151 discloses a floor coating. The floor
coating consists of the flowing components: 80 to 100 parts of perchloro-ethylene
resin, 2 to 3 parts of paraffin, 10 to 12 parts of ethyl acetate, 30 to 40 parts of
dimethylbenzene, 2 to 4 parts of iron oxide red and 5 to 7 parts of silica. The floor
coating is high in water resistance, chemical corrosion resistance, atmosphere
resistance stability, cold resistance, wear resistance, antibacterial property and
noninflammability and cannot be crisped and cracked easily.

In the construction industry, normally marbles or tiles are used for flooring
purpose. But the cost of these products is very high. Red oxide powder provides a
low cost solution for flooring purpose. Red oxide powder is available in pigment
form. One pact red oxide powder is mixed with 4 to 5 parts of white cement or grey
cement. Water is then added to this mixture to form a consistent paste. This paste is
applied on the floor with the help of a trowel. After about 48 hours of drying, the
finished surface is then submerged in standing water for about seven days. The
water helps in the curing of the cement which is present in this mixture. This product
is mostly used in the rural belt with low income group people. Most of the times
water is not available in these areas and hence proper curing of the material after
the application is not possible. This leads to cracking of the floors. Another problem
with this red oxide is that most of times the mixing of red oxide powder with cement
is not consistent and hence the colour of the final product is not very good.
To overcome these problems the inventor has come up with a product which
he proposes to sell in the market in finished form. Hence the applicator or the mason
will not be required to mix the cement in the red oxide powder. Other than this the
new formulation will have a number of other additives, the details of which will be
given in due course.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
One aspect of the invention is a cement composition comprising dry red oxide
mix cement composition comprising the red oxide powder of particle size finer than
300 mesh in an amount of about 10 to about 20 wt %; which is blended with cement,
in an amount of about 40 to about 60 wt %; Ultra Violet resistant dye, in an amount
of about 1 wt %; high Alumina cement, in an amount of about 6 wt %;Methyl
Hydroxyethyl Cellulose, in an amount of about 0.2 to about 1 wt %; Titanium dioxide,
in an amount of about 2.5 wt %; redispersible polymer powder, in an amount of bout
0.3 to about 2 wt %; Calcite, in an amount of about 25 to about 40 wt % and
anhydrite Calcium sulphate, in an amount of about 2 to about 6 wt %.

Another aspect of the invention is a coating formulation comprising a flow
able homogeneous mixture of the dry red oxide mix cement composition to form a
flow able liquid so that it forms a very smooth coating that possesses excellent
compressive strength.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The dry red oxide mix cement composition of this invention is a powder
comprising the red oxide powder of particle size finer than 300 meshes which is
blended with cement, Ultra Violet resistant dye, high Alumina cement, Methyl
Hydroxyethyl Cellulose, Titanium dioxide, redispersible polymer powder, Calcite, and
anhydrite Calcium sulphate. The dry red oxide mix cement composition, when
blended with water, readily becomes fluidized, i.e., as a liquid mixture, to become a
flow able coating material as to be levelled manually with the help of trowel or 'kanni'
as it is called in the local language. The dry red oxide mix cement composition of the
present invention possesses excellent compressive strength.
The components of the dry red oxide mix cement composition of this
invention are described below:
RED OXIDE POWDER
The proposed formulation contains red oxide powder in pigment form. The
red oxide powder can be mineral based or synthetic material based on the specific
requirements mainly of colour. The red oxide powder should be red in colour and the
particle size of the powder should be finer than 300 meshes. The powder should
have above 80% iron content. This powder acts as a colouring agent. This is to be
added in the proportion 10% to 20%.
CEMENT
The other basic component in this formulation is cement. The cement to be
used in this formulation can be either grey cement or white cement. Preferably OPC
cement of grade 53 should be used. Care should be taken that the cement is free

from damp and there is no granule formation. The cement acts as a binder. Cement
is added in the proportion 40% to 60%.
ULTRA VIOLET RESISTANT DYE
Up to 1% by volume of Ultra Violet resistant dye can be used to enhance
the colour of the finished product. The dyes which can be used thus is either Rubine
Toner or Congo Red. This also acts as a colouring agent.
HIGH ALUMINA CEMENT
High Alumina Cement is added to this formulation to give the product
additional hardness in the initial days when the ordinary Portland cement does not
attain its full hardness. Due to its chemical properties Ordinary Portland Cement
takes about 28 days to attain the full hardness. During this time the floor may be
susceptible to scratches or other such damages. But the floor on which the Red
Oxide Powder is applied cannot be left for such a long duration of time. Hence High
Alumina Cement is added which gives additional hardness to the material during this
stage. It can be added up to 6% of the final volume of the final product.
METHYL HYDROXYETHYL CELLULOSE
Methyl Hydroxyethyl Cellulose is added to the formulation which helps in
the retention of water in the mixture. Methyl Hydroxyethyl Cellulose also facilitates
ease of application. Methyl Hydroxyethyl Cellulose of viscosity above 45000 is used
in this formulation which helps in retention of water in the mixture when it is applied
on the floors. This water is then slowly released into the mixture. The water thus
released is then absorbed by the cement and it helps in the setting of cement.
Hence due to the presence of Methyl Hydroxyethyl Cellulose in the mixture, the
cement present in the mixture does not require any water from the external source.
So no curing of water is needed in the new formulation. This chemical is added in
the ratio 0.2% to 1%.

TITANIUM Dl OXIDE
Titanium Di Oxide can be added in this mixture which gives better
coverage and better colour to the finished product. Ti02 also enhances the longevity
of the product. It is added in the final mixture up to 2.5% by weight.
REDISPERSIBLE POLYMER POWDER
Redispersible Polymer Powder (RDP) is added to the product to enhance
the workability of the product. Redispersible Polymer Powder also acts as a binder.
The final product is applied on the floors with the help of a trowel. Redispersible
Polymer Powder when added to the mixture gives it a silky smooth finish. This
mixture can then be applied on the floors with much lesser effort. In the absence of
Redispersible Polymer Powder more effort has to be given to get proper finishing.
When more effort or pressure is applied, the sand particles which are present in the
substrate, tend to rise up to the surface. To avoid this, Redispersible Polymer
Powder is added to the mixture. This can be added in the proportion 0.3% to 2%.
CALCITE
Calcite is added to the mixture which acts as a filler. Chemically the
calcite is inert in nature. The other purpose of calcite is that it prevents the mixture
from cracking after it is applied on the floors. The calcite which is added should be
of minimum fineness of 500 meshes. The proportion of calcite would be 25% to
40%.
ANHYDRITE CALCIUM SULFATE
When this product is applied on vast areas, then the flooring tends to
develop cracks on the surface. This cracking is because of repeated contraction and
expansion of the concrete block on hot and cold weather. To avoid this cracking,
Anhydrite Calcium Sulphate is used. For proper results 2 to 6% of this material
should be used.
PRODUCTION PROCESS OF RED OXIDE MIX CEMENT COMPOSITION

The production process of the product involves uniform mixing of all the
ingredients in dry form. This is achieved by mixing all the products in a ball mill. This
mixing is done in three stages. In the first stage, full amount of red oxide powder, full
amount of dye, full amount or Titanium Dioxide and full amount of calcium sulphate
and full amount of calcite is to be loaded in the ball mill. River pebbles are already
present in the ball mill and the pebbles do the job of mixing and grinding of the
material when the ball mill is rotated. The process of mixing happens due to the
agitation of pebbles inside the ball mill when the ball mill is rotating and the grinding
happens when the pebbles fall on each other. When the pebbles fall on each other
then the material which is on the pebble gets finely grounded. The machine is
rotated for 3 hours after which it is stopped and then the full volume of cement is
added to the ball mill. After that the machine is run again for 2 hours. Again after 2
hours the machine is opened and Redispersible Polymer Powder and Methyl
Hydroxyethyl Cellulose is loaded in the ball mill. After addition of these 2 chemicals
the machine is again closed and rotated for ten minutes. It is to be noted here that
after addition of Redispersible Polymer Powder and Methyl Hydroxyethyl Cellulose
the machine cannot be rotated for more than 10 minutes. Both these chemicals and
especially Redispersible Polymer Powder is a very delicate material and it is highly
unstable in high temperature. Hence at this stage before the addition of RDP and
MHEC, one needs to verify that the temperature of the semi finished goods is not
more than 50 degree Centigrade. If the temperature is more than that then the
machine needs to be stopped for some time for the material to cool off. If the
machine is run for more than 10 minutes then the temperature of the ball mill will rise
and this will cause the disintegration of Redispersible Polymer Powder.
Once the material is ready then a small sample is taken from the ball mill
and the physical properties of the material are checked. If everything is found ok
then the material is discharged from the ball mill and is packed in air tight containers.
APPLICATION PROCESSOF RED OXIDE MIX CEMENT COMPOSITION
As a whole the application process of this product is the same as that of
normal red oxide powder. However some differences are there due to difference in
the chemical properties of the product.

1. This product is available in ready form and hence no additional cement
needs to be added to the product. Just water needs to be added.
2. The requirement of water may vary depending upon the room temperature
and also the moisture content in the air. Other than this some applicators may prefer
working with thick paste while other may like to work with thin paste. Hence the
exact amount of water to be added to the product is hot stated. However sufficient
water needs to be added to the product to make it into paste.
3. Care should be taken that too much water is not added to the powder
because in that case the mixture may bleed causing the excess water to drain off. In
case the excess water drains off than the pigment which gets mixed with the water
also gets drained and this may result that colour of the finished product may become
pale.
4. This paste is then applied on the floor surface with the help of a trowel or
'kanni' as it is called in the local language.
5. The final finishing of the product depends very much on the workmanship
on the applicator. For proper finishing the applicator requires to polish the surface
repeatedly after the mixture has been applied. Polishing can be done by rubbing the
trowel repeatedly over the surface where the oxide has been applied. Polishing can
be done after a time lag of one to 2 hours after the application of the mixture.
Another and a better way of polishing the surface is to rub the surface with Water
Paper No 120 or 100 at least after 24 hours.
6. The final thickness of the product would be 1mm to 3 mm
SURFACE/ FLOOR PREPARATION
1. The surface on which the oxide is applied should be free of all type of dirt,
grease, or any other foreign or loose particles.
2. Normal oxide can only be applied on new plaster which is still moist. But
this oxide can be applied on old surfaces also. Only moistening of the surface is
required before this product is applied.
3. White marks or discolouring may occur if water falls on the surface within
24 hours of application. This should be avoided.
PRECAUTIONS IN APPLICATIONOF RED OXIDE MIX CEMENT COMPOSITION

1. Care should be taken that no further cement is added to the product.
2. Not too much of water is to be added to the product.
3. The surface on which the oxide is applied should be free of all type of dirt,
grease, or any other foreign or loose particles.
4. The surface becomes ready after 24 hours. But the product needs seven
days to attain the desired hardness. Hence normal walking can be done on the
surface after one day. But heavy objects can be moved around only after seven
days.
5. Proper polishing has to be done on the surface to attain the desired finish.
ADVANTAGES/ BENEFITSOF RED OXIDE MIX CEMENT COMPOSITION
1. No further mixing of cement is required.
2. On many occasions the final colour of the oxide is not upto the mark,
because the mixing of normal oxide and cement is not normal. Such incidents can
be totally avoided.
3. Because the mixing is done in ball mills the mixing is of very high quality
and as a result the final colour is very attractive.
4. As there is no mixing involved then the time required is much lesser.
5. As this product is self-curing hence it does not require to be treated with
water for the settling of cement.
6. Due to proper mixing the strength of this material will be higher compared
to normal oxide.
7. The application of this product is much easier compared to normal oxide,
and less effort will be required by the painter to apply this product.
8. Because no curing is required, the surface on which it is applied is ready
to be used after just one day whereas it is 7-10 days in the case of normal oxide.
9. The lasting of this oxide will be more than that of normal oxides.
VARIATION
The formulation given herein is an improvement over the basic raw
material and its formula is completely different then the red oxide powders used
earlier. Earlier varieties of oxide did not contain any active chemical but only
pigments. This new formulation contains active chemicals and additives. The

formulation given herein will serve as a base formula. It is possible to do many
variations on this base formula to achieve the desired results. Example:
1. Hydrophobic chemicals (like sitron) readily available in the market can be
added to the product to make the surface water proof.
2. There are many chemicals available in the markets which make the
product flexible. Many paints which advertise that they are elastic in nature contain
such chemicals. If such chemicals are added to the product then the product will
become elastic. Latex based chemicals can be normally used here.
3. The above formulation is for red colour. But by use of non-fading organic
pigments, we can develop Oxide powders for any colour.
4. If we add some marble chips or any such product to this powder then we
can achieve a very good mosaic finish.
5. This product can be used between tiles as a tile grout or tile jointing
compound.
6. Just as different colours can be made out of this formulation, in the same
way different kinds of texture can be achieved by using different kinds of fillers. For
example, for pavements, we can add quartz or sand to the mixture to make it anti-
skid and achieve roughness.
7. Extra hardness can also be achieved in this product by adding extra
binders. This will make the product suitable for industrial use and for usage in places
with high footfalls.
While the making and using of various embodiments of the present
invention are discussed in detail below, it should be appreciated that the present
invention provides many applicable inventive concepts which may be embodied in a
wide variety of specific contexts. The specific embodiments discussed herein are
merely illustrative of specific ways to make and use the invention and do not delimit
the scope of the invention.

I CLAIM:
1. A dry red oxide mix cement composition for flooring purposes comprising of the
red oxide powder which is blended with:
(a) cement, in an amount of about 10 to about 20 wt %;
(b) ultraviolet resistant dye, in an amount of about 1 wt %;
(c) high Alumina cement, in an amount of about 6 wt %;

(d) Methyl HydroxyethylCellulose, in an amount of about 0.2 to about 1 wt %;
(e) Titanium dioxide , in an amount of about 2.5 wt %;
(f) redispersible polymer powder, in an amount of about 0.3 to about 2 wt %;
(g) Calcite, in an amount of about 25 to about 40 wt % and
(h) anhydrite Calcium sulphate, in an amount of about 2 to about 6 wt %.
2. The dry red oxide mix cement composition for flooring purposes as claimed in
claim 1, wherein the particle size of the red oxide powder is finer than 300 meshes.
3. The dry red oxide mix cement composition for flooring purposes as claimed in
claim 1, wherein the said red oxide powder has more than 80% iron content.
4. The dry red oxide mix cement composition for flooring purposes as claimed in
claim 1, wherein the said cement is grey cement or white cement.
5. The dry red oxide mix cement composition for flooring purposes as claimed in
claim 1, wherein the said cement is OPC cement of grade 53.
6. The dry red oxide mix cement composition for flooring purposes as claimed in
claim 1, wherein the said ultra violet resistant dye is Rubine Toner or Congo Red.
7. The dry red oxide mix cement composition for flooring purposes as claimed in
claim 1, wherein the said high Alumina cement gives additional hardness.

8. The dry red oxide mix cement composition for flooring purposes as claimed in
claim 1, wherein the said Methyl Hydroxyethyl Cellulose has viscosity above 45000.
9. The dry red oxide mix cement composition for flooring purposes as claimed in
claim 1, wherein the said redispersible polymer powder acts as binder.
10. The dry red oxide mix cement composition for flooring purposes as claimed in
claim 1, wherein the said Calcite has minimum fineness of 500 meshes.
11.The dry red oxide mix cement composition for flooring purposes as claimed in
claim 1, become a flow able coating material when mixed with water having
excellent compressive strength.

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to a dry red oxide mix cement composition for flooring
purposes. The dry red oxide mix cement composition comprising the red oxide
powder of particle size finer than 300 mesh in an amount of about 10 to about 20 wt
%; which is blended with cement, in an amount of about 40 to about 60 wt %; Ultra
Violet resistant dye, in an amount of about 1 wt %; high Alumina cement, in an
amount of about 6 wt %;Methyl Hydroxyethyl Cellulose , in an amount of about 0.2 to
about 1 wt %; Titanium dioxide , in an amount of about 2.5 wt %; redispersible
polymer powder, in an amount of about 0.3 to about 2 wt %; Calcite, in an amount of
about 25 to about 40 wt % and anhydrite Calcium sulphate, in an amount of about 2
to about 6 wt %. The dry red oxide mix cement composition is mixed with water to
prepare a flow able liquid to forms a very smooth coating that possesses excellent
compressive strength.