Stock material or miscellaneous articles – Pile or nap type surface or component – With coating – impregnation – or bond
Reexamination Certificate
2002-07-29
2004-11-30
Green, Anthony J. (Department: 1755)
Stock material or miscellaneous articles
Pile or nap type surface or component
With coating, impregnation, or bond
C252S008620, C428S097000, C442S093000, C442S094000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06824854
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The following definitions are used by the American Association of Textile Chemists & Colorists (AATCC) in the AATCC Technical Manual, Vol. 77, pp. 409 and 413, 2002, American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists, Research Triangle Park, N.C.
“Detergent” is a cleaning agent containing one or more surfactants as the active ingredient(s). “Soil” is dirt, oil, or other substances not normally intended to be present on a substrate, such as a textile material. “Soiling” in textiles is a process by which a textile substrate becomes more or less uniformly covered with, or impregnated with, soil. “Soil resist agent” is a material applied to, or incorporated in, carpet face fiber that retards and/or limits the build-up of soil. “Surfactant” is a soluble or dispersible material that reduces the surface tension of a liquid, usually water.
The same source defines “Textile floor covering” as “an article having a use-surface composed of textile material and generally used for covering floors.” Hereinafter the term “carpet” is used to describe such textile floor covering.
The Kirk-Othmer Concise Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology, 3
rd
Edition, John Wiley & Sons, New York N.Y., 1985 in a discussion of “Surfactants and Detersive Systems” at p. 1142 states “The term detergent is often used interchangeably with surfactant.”
In the prior art, residual oils or detergents left on the fiber of a carpet after manufacture, after the application of soil resist agents, or after carpet cleaning by shampooing, have been extensively reported as causes of subsequent soiling. For instance, W. F. Taylor and H. J. Demas “The Why's of Carpet Soil”, Textile Ind., November 1968, pp. 83-87 comment at p. 83-84: “Severe soiling may occur if the fiber contains an oily film. This phenomena is responsible for most resoiling problems after a carpet has been shampooed where the detergent is not completely removed. Improper lubricants on the fiber can cause this effect, as will airborne greases which settle onto the carpet surface.” The authors equate oils and detergents as causes. The authors continue to list factors “thought to affect soiling of nylon carpets” and state (p. 87) “The effect of residual oily materials causing increased soiling of textile materials is well documented in the literature. Severe soiling may occur if the fiber contains an oily film.” Elsewhere, W. Postman, in “Spin Finishes Explained”, Textile Research Journal, Vol. 50 #7, 444-453 (July 1980), notes at p. 445, that “ . . . since poor scourability can cause dyeing problems and potential soiling spots, lubricants must come off the yarn under mild scouring conditions . . . .”
Technical information for the carpet manufacturing trade is replete with warnings about the worsened soiling associated with, and attributed to, excessive amounts of oils or detergents. Current World Wide Web sites include:
1. http://www.carpetbuyershandbook.com/common_cleaning_challenges.htm
Carpet Buyers Handbook web site (accessed Jul. 25, 2002):
“Often resoiling can be attributed to detergent residues left behind during cleaning. Detergents, by design, attract soil. By leaving detergent in carpet after cleaning, detergents rapidly attract soil.”
2. http://www.hoovercompany.com/ftp/cguide.pdf
Hoover Consumer Guide to Carpet Cleaning web site (accessed Jul. 25, 2002):
“Some shampoos contain oil which can contribute to resoiling; . . . ”
3. http://www.carpet-rug.com/drill_down
—
2.cfm?page=14&sub=3
“Rinse all detergent from the carpet to prevent accelerated resoiling.”
4. http://cms.3m.com/cms/US/en/2-78/iFeRkFQ/view.jhtml
3M web site (accessed Jul. 25, 2002):
“Shampooing may not only leave behind a soapy residue that often masks the carpet's protective finish, but it can attract and hold dirt.”
5. hftp://antron.dupont.com/content/how_to/ant02
—
06.shtml
DuPont Antron* web site, from Section C, Deep Cleaning (accessed Jul. 25, 2002):
“You also need to be aware that some methods use detergents that cause resoil. This happens when detergents remain on the fiber surface after cleaning. These detergents will continue to attract soil causing the carpet to look dirty.”
The manufacturers of dispersed soil resist formulations have consequently striven to use only enough dispersing agent in their formulations to provide a stable dispersion in the formulation as shipped. The results of this restriction are shown in Table 1 as the ratio of fluorochemical to dispersant in typical commercial carpet soil resist formulations. The calculated weight ratio of fluorochemical:dispersing agent ranges from 14:1 to 30:1 in Table 1.
TABLE 1
Conventional Surfactant Ratios in Commercial Soil Resists.
Prior Art
Fluoro-
Fluorochemical:
Composition
chemical
Dispersant
(Reference)
Ingredient
Dispersant
Ratio
Soil Resist 1
(a)
28%
2%
14:1
Soil Resist 2
(b)
22.6%
1.4%
16:1
Soil Resist 3
(c)
9.1%
0.3%
30:1
Soil Resist FCT-3
(d)
201.6 g
11 g
18.3:1
Soil Resist FCT-7
(d)
50 g
2.5 g
20:1
Soil Resist FCT-8
(d)
50 g
2.5 g
20:1
(a) Soil Resist 1 is an anionically dispersed fluorinated polyurethane soil resist prepared according to Example 1 in U.S. Pat. No. 5,414,111.
(b) Soil Resist 2 is an anionically dispersed fluorinated polyurethane soil resist prepared according to Example 1 in U.S. Pat. No. 5,411,766.
(c) Soil Resist 3 is an anionically-dispersed blend of fluorinated soil resist, prepared according to Example 2 in U.S. Pat. No. 3,923,715, except that an equivalent amount of hexamethylene diisocyanate was used instead of 1-methyl-2,4-diisocyanatobenzene in the synthesis of the perfluoroalkyl citrate urethane. The citrate urethane was mixed with the poly(methylmethacrylate) latex as described in Example 2 therein.
(d) Soil Resists FCT-3, FCT-7, and FCT 8 are described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,714,082.
Typically, soil resist formulations are shipped in a concentrated form, and diluted with water at the site of application. Commercially, dispersing agent levels in such formulations are kept close to the minimum needed to assure dispersion stability during shipment, dilution, and use.
It is desirable to have improved soil resist agents for treatment of fibrous substrates such as carpets during manufacture, and for use in or after cleaning agents used on soiled carpets. Such an improved soil resist agent would provide better resistance to soiling.
The present invention comprises carpet treated with a specific soil resist agent formulated in dispersions containing substantially more surfactants than are necessary to assure a stable dispersion. Despite teachings that residual oils or surfactants lead to quicker soiling of carpet, it has been found that increasing the level of surfactant present in the soil resist agent improves its performance.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention comprises a carpet treated with a soil resist agent comprising a dispersion in water or water and solvent of a) a polyfluoro organic compound having at least one of a urea, urethane, or ester linkage, and b) at least one anionic non-fluorinated surfactant, wherein the ratio of polyfluoro organic compound to surfactant is from about 0.075:1.0 to about 5:1.
REFERENCES:
patent: 3923715 (1975-12-01), Dettre et al.
patent: 4029585 (1977-06-01), Dettre et al.
patent: 4043923 (1977-08-01), Loudas
patent: 4140709 (1979-02-01), Szur
patent: 4325857 (1982-04-01), Champaneria et al.
patent: 5171877 (1992-12-01), Knaup et al.
patent: 5223340 (1993-06-01), Moss et al.
patent: 5410073 (1995-04-01), Kirchner
patent: 5411766 (1995-05-01), Kirchner
patent: 5414111 (1995-05-01), Kirchner
patent: 5509939 (1996-04-01), Kirchner
patent: 5534167 (1996-07-01), Billman
patent: 5565564 (1996-10-01), Kirchner
patent: 5580645 (1996-12-01), Kirchner
patent: 5672651 (1997-09-01), Smith
patent: 5712240 (1998-01-01), Tyerech et al.
patent: 5714082 (1998-02-01), Boardman et al.
patent: 5728669 (1998-03-01), Tyerech
patent: 5770656 (1998-06-01), Pechhold
patent: 5827919 (1998-10-01), May
patent: 5861365 (1999-01-01), Colurciello, Jr. et al.
patent: 5948480 (1999-09-0
Materniak Joyce Monson
Murphy Peter Michael
E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company
Green Anthony J.
LandOfFree
Carpets treated for soil resistance does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Carpets treated for soil resistance, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Carpets treated for soil resistance will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-3357837