Bleaching and dyeing; fluid treatment and chemical modification – Chemical modification of textiles or fibers or products thereof – Cellulose fibers
Reexamination Certificate
2002-08-29
2004-09-21
Mruk, Brian P. (Department: 1751)
Bleaching and dyeing; fluid treatment and chemical modification
Chemical modification of textiles or fibers or products thereof
Cellulose fibers
C008S181000, C008S188000, C510S276000, C510S292000, C510S327000, C510S330000, C510S475000, C510S499000, C510S504000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06793684
ABSTRACT:
This invention relates to a fabric care composition, to a method of treating a fabric using the composition and to the use of anionic polymers contained in the composition to improve certain properties of fabrics.
The laundry process generally has several benefits for fabric, the most common being to remove dirt and stains from the fabric during the wash cycle and to soften the fabric during the rinse cycle. However, there are numerous disadvantages associated with repeated use of conventional laundry treatment compositions and/or the actual laundry process; one of these being a fairly harsh treatment of fabric in the laundry process.
Fabrics can be damaged in several ways as a result of repeated laundering and/or wear. Fabric pilling and loss of fabric surface appearance eg fuzzing, shrinkage (or expansion), loss of colour from the fabric or running of colour on the fabric (usually termed dye transfer) are some of the common problems associated with repeated laundering. These problems may occur merely from repeated hand washing as well as the more vigorous machine washing process. Furthermore, problems relating to damage of fabric over time through normal use, such as loss of shape and increased likelihood of wrinkling are also significant.
The treatment of woollen textiles with curable anionic polymers by exhaustion onto the fabric is described in GB-A-2005322. The treatment is said to confer shrink resistence on wool and other keratinous materials. The process taught for the treatment involves a short liquor processing apparatus capable of agitating the goods and, although washing machines are described as being suitable for this purpose, there is no mention of domestic laundering processes. Indeed, the processes disclosed are industrial, being carried out in milling machines, for example.
Industrial treatments of a range of fabrics by padding an anionic polymer onto the fabric are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,191,802. The polymer is directly padded on to the fabric in the process described. The process is applied industrially to fabrics containing cotton with claimed advantages of reduced shrinkage and creasing. The treatment is described as having no effect on handle of the fabric. Similar industrial treatments of wool are described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,520,143, U.S. Pat. No. 4,631,226, U.S. Pat. No. 5,595,572, WO 94/19526 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,032,565.
The industrial treatment of fabrics with thermo-reactive urethanes is taught in U.S. Pat. No. 4,039,517. The polymers require a high temperature curing step at greater than 100° C. and such high temperature curing is common for industrial processes.
The treatment of fabrics with blocked polyisocyanates is described in EP-A-0537578.
The present invention aims to alleviate some of the disadvantages associated with the laundry process. In particular, the invention seeks to attain advantages in fabric treatment as part of a conventional laundry process.
The advantages include increased dimensional stability of the fabric.
The present invention also seeks to improve the surface colour definition and/or the handle of the fabric in both industrial textile treatment processes and in small and large scale laundering processes.
According to the present invention, there is provided a fabric care composition, adapted for use in a laundering process, comprising an anionic polymer which is capable of self cross-linking and/or reacting with cellulosic fibres and further comprising a fabric conditioning agent which acts as a textile compatible exhaustion agent for the anionic polymer, and which comprises one or more cationic groups.
Surprisingly, the anionic polymers can impart benefits to fabrics containing cellulosic fibres (such as cotton) in a laundering process. The benefits include increased dimensional stability and/or improved surface colour definition and/or softer handle. The dimensional stability of a fabric is generally a measure of its resistance to shrinkage. However, the term “dimensional stability”, and related terms, used herein covers not only shrinkage of fabrics but also shape retention, bagginess reduction and additionally, although less preferred, crease/wrinkle resistance in fabrics.
Preferably, the anionic polymer is selected from carbamoyl sulphonate terminated poly(ether)urethane resins, bunte salt terminated polymers and mixtures thereof. Suitable polymers include those having the formula (I):
wherein:
Y is a divalent radical selected from —CH
2
—CH (OH)—CH
2
—S— and —CO—NH— (CH
2
)
p
—NH—CO—;
m is an integer from 0 to 4;
n is an integer from 5 to 20;
M is an alkali metal; and
p is an integer from 2 to 12.
Preferably, m is equal to 1.
Conveniently, Y is —CO—NH— (CH
2
)
p
—NH—CO— and, preferably, p is from 4 to 8, such as about 6.
It is also preferred that n is 10 to 15, such as about 13, for example.
M is advantageously sodium or potassium, more preferably sodium.
Polymers in which Y is —CO—NH—(CH
2
)
p
—NH—CO— are commercially available under the Trade Mark SYNTHAPPRET BAP (Bayer). Polymers in which Y is —CH
2
—CH (OH)—CH
2
—S— are available under the Trade Mark NOPCOLAN SHR3 (Henkel).
Conditioning/exhaustion agents which are suitable for use in the compositions of the invention include water soluble or water dispersible compounds comprising one or more quaternary ammonium cations.
Preferrred materials include HEQ (1,2-bis-[hardened tallowoyloxy]-3-trimethylammonium propane chloride), for example.
In the present invention, quaternary ammonium cations such as HEQ have the dual function of acting as both exhaustion agents and as fabric conditioning/softening compounds, as described hereinafter.
Optionally, other cationic species, which do not act as fabric softening compounds, such as other predominantly organic cations and simple metal cations (eg magnesium), for example, may also be used as additional exhaustion agents in the fabric care compositions of the invention. The compositions of the invention may contain one textile compatible exhaustion agent or a mixture of two or more textile compatible exhaustion agents.
Softening and/or conditioning compounds which are not exhaustion agents are optional further components of the compositions of the invention.
The softening and/or conditioning compounds may be water insoluble quaternary ammonium compounds. The compounds may be present in amounts of up to 8% by weight (based on the total amount of the composition) in which case the compositions are considered dilute, or at levels from 8% to about 50% by weight, in which case the compositions are considered concentrates.
Compositions suitable for delivery during the rinse cycle may also be delivered to the fabric in the tumble dryer if used in a suitable form. Thus, another product form is a composition (for example, a paste) suitable for coating onto, and delivery from, a substrate eg a flexible sheet or sponge or a suitable dispenser (such as a container having apertures therein, for example) during a tumble dryer cycle.
Suitable cationic fabric softening compounds are substantially water-insoluble quaternary ammonium materials comprising a single alkyl or alkenyl long chain having an average chain length greater than or equal to C
20
or, more preferably, compounds comprising a polar head group and two alkyl or alkenyl chains having an average chain length greater than or equal to C
14
. Preferably the fabric softening compounds have two long chain alkyl or alkenyl chains each having an average chain length greater than or equal to C
16
. Most preferably at least 50% of the long chain alkyl or alkenyl groups have a chain length of C
18
or above.
It is preferred if the long chain alkyl or alkenyl groups of the fabric softening compound are predominantly linear.
Quaternary ammonium compounds having two long-chain aliphatic groups, for example distearyldimethyl ammonium chloride and di (hardened tallow alkyl) dimethyl ammonium chloride, are widely used in commercially available rinse conditioner compositions. Other examples of these cationic compounds are to be found in “Surface-Active Agents and Detergents”
Jarvis Anthony Nicholas
Parker Andrew Philip
Sams Philip John
Bornstein Alan A.
Mruk Brian P.
Unilever Home & Personal Care USA , division of Conopco, Inc.
LandOfFree
Fabric care composition does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Fabric care composition, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Fabric care composition will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-3197535