High pressure decorative laminate and method for manufacturing the same

Abstract

A method and a process for the production of high pressure laminate is disclosed using conventional manufacturing equipment without the use of melamine-formaldehyde resin pre-impregnated decorative print, solid, or overlay papers or combinations thereof. The method and process of making the disclosed laminate product utilize the assembly of a plurality of pre-impregnated Kraft papers independently saturated with melamine-formaldehyde resin, phenol-formaldehyde resin, and/or a bilayer coated construction of Kraft paper simultaneously containing both resins on opposing surfaces. The resulting pre-impregnated Kraft based components are assembled into the core layer and combined with the desired decorative layer assembly composed of untreated decorative print, solid, and/or overlay papers, or combinations thereof, prior to consolidation into a finished laminate using standard heat and pressure commonly known to those skilled in the art.