Detergent compositions

Details Detergent compositions Detergent compositions

2001-12-11

2004-02-10

Boyer, Charles (Department: 1751)

Cleaning compositions for solid surfaces, auxiliary compositions

Cleaning compositions or processes of preparing

Liquid composition

C510S276000, C510S327000, C510S330000, C510S351000, C510S356000, C510S357000, C510S384000, C510S391000, C510S421000, C510S426000, C510S427000, C510S445000, C510S504000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06689735

ABSTRACT:

TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to laundry detergent compositions containing a combination of anionic, specified nonionic and cationic surfactants giving improved oily soil detergency.
BACKGROUND
Heavy duty laundry detergent compositions have for many years contained anionic sulphonate or sulphate surfactant, for example, linear alkylbenzene sulphonate (LAS), together with ethoxylated nonionic surfactants. Examples abound in the published literature.
The preferred ethoxylated alcohol nonionic surfactants giving an optimum balance of properties have generally been those having an alkyl chain length of C
12
-C
15
and an average degree of ethoxylation of 1 to 10, preferably 3 to 7, more preferably about 5.
Longer-chain alcohols having a higher degree of ethoxylation, for example, tallow alcohol (C
18
) 11EO, have also been used.
These relatively hydrophobic materials of low HLB value are generally liquids at ambient temperature and exhibit excellent oily soil removal. Longer-chain alcohols having higher degrees of ethoxylation, for example, tallow (C
18
) alcohol 25EO and 50EO, are solids at ambient temperature and are used as slowly dissolving coating materials, for example, for enzyme or antifoam granules.
Laundry detergent compositions containing cationic (quaternary ammonium) surfactants in combination with anionic and nonionic surfactants are widely disclosed in the patent literature.
It has now surprisingly been found that the combination of anionic and cationic surfactants together with ethoxylated alcohols combining a shorter alkyl chain length and a higher degree of ethoxylation can give enhanced oily soil removal.
PRIOR ART
WO 94 16052A (Unilever) discloses high bulk density laundry powders based on LAS and conventional nonionic surfactants, and containing small amounts of very highly ethoxylated alcohols, eg tallow alcohol 80EO, as a dissolution aid.
WO 93 02176A (Henkel) discloses the use of highly ethoxylated aliphatic alcohols as “structure breakers” in high bulk density powders containing conventional nonionic surfactants.
EP 293 139A (Procter & Gamble) discloses twin-compartment sachets containing detergent powders. Some powders contain very small amounts of tallow alcohol 25EO.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,294,711 (Procter & Gamble) discloses a textile softening heavy duty detergent composition containing 1 wt % of tallow alcohol 80EO.
WO 92 18594A (Procter & Gamble) discloses builder granules of layered silicate coated with tallow alcohol 50EO.
EP 142 910A and EP 495 345A (Procter & Gamble) disclose antifoam granules containing highly ethoxylated alcohols.
WO 93 19148A (Procter & Gamble) discloses liquid hard surface cleaning compositions containing highly ethoxylated nonionic surfactants optionally plus anionic surfactant.
WO 97 43364, WO 97 43365A, WO 97 43371A, WO 97 43387A, WO 97 43389A, WO 97 43390A, WO 97 43391A and WO 97 43393A, (Procter & Gamble) disclose laundry detergent compositions containing so-called “AQA” alkoxylated quaternary ammonium surfactants in combination with other surfactants.
DEFINITION OF THE INVENTION
The present invention provides a built laundry detergent composition comprising
(i) from 5 to 40 wt %, preferably from 7 to 30 wt %, of surfactant consisting essentially of:
(i)(a) an anionic sulphonate or sulphate surfactant,
(i)(b) an ethoxylated alcohol nonionic surfactant of the general formula I
R—(—O—CH
2
—CH
2
)
n
—OH  (I)
 wherein R is a hydrocarbyl chain having from 8 to 16 carbon atoms, and the average degree of ethoxylation n is from 20 to 50,
(i)(c) a quaternary ammonium cationic surfactant,
(ii) from 10 to 80 wt % of detergency builder,
(iii) optionally other detergent ingredients to 100 wt %.
The invention also provides a process for laundering textile fabrics by machine or hand, which includes the step of immersing the fabrics in a wash liquor comprising water in which a laundry detergent composition as defined in the previous paragraph is dissolved or dispersed.
The invention further provides the use of a surfactant (i) consisting essentially of
(i)(a) an anionic sulphonate or sulphate surfactant,
(i)(b) an ethoxylated alcohol nonionic surfactant of the general formula I
R—(—O—CH
2
—CH
2
)
n
—OH  (I)
 wherein R is a hydrocarbyl chain having from 8 to 16 carbon atoms, and the average degree of ethoxylation n is from 20 to 50,
(i)(c) a quaternary ammonium cationic surfactant, in a laundry detergent composition in an amount of from 5 to 40 wt %, to improve the oily soil detergency of the composition.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The detergent compositions of the invention contain a combination of an anionic sulphonate or sulphate surfactant, a defined nonionic surfactant, and a cationic surfactant. The total amount of the three surfactants is from 5 to 40 wt %, preferably from 7 to 30 wt %.
Detergent compositions according to the invention show improved oily soil detergency across a range of fabrics and water hardnesses.
The Anionic Surfactant (i)(a)
The anionic surfactant is a sulphonate or sulphate anionic surfactant.
Anionic surfactants are well-known to those skilled in the art. Many suitable detergent-active compounds are available and are fully described in the literature, for example, in “Surface-Active Agents and Detergents”, Volumes I and II, by Schwartz, Perry and Berch.
Examples include alkylbenzene sulphonates, primary and secondary alkylsulphates, particularly C
8
-C
15
primary alkyl sulphates; alkyl ether sulphates; olefin sulphonates; alkyl xylene sulphonates; dialkyl sulphosuccinates; and fatty acid ester sulphonates. Sodium salts are generally preferred.
Preferably the anionic surfactant is linear alkylbenzene sulphonate or primary alcohol sulphate. More preferably the anionic surfactant is linear alkylbenzene sulphonate.
The Ethoxylated Nonionic Surfactant (i)(b)
The nonionic surfactant is an ethoxylated aliphatic alcohol of the formula
R—(—O—CH
2
—CH
2
)
n
—OH
wherein R is a hydrocarbyl chain having from 8 to 16 carbon atoms, and the average degree of ethoxylation n is from 20 to 50.
The hydrocarbyl chain, which is preferably saturated, preferably contains from 10 to 16 carbon atoms, more preferably from 12 to 15 carbon atoms. In commercial materials containing a spread of chain lengths, these figures represent an average.
The alcohol may be derived from natural or synthetic feedstock. Preferred alcohol feedstocks are coconut, predominantly C
12
-C
14,
and oxo C
12
-C
15
alcohols. Longer chain materials such as tallow or hardened tallow (C
18
) are not preferred.
The average degree of ethoxylation ranges from 20 to 50, preferably from 25 to 40.
Preferred materials have an average alkyl chain length of C
12
-C
16
and an average degree of ethoxylation of 25 to 40.
An example of a suitable commercially available material is Lutensol (Trade Mark) AO30, ex BASF, which is a C
13
-C
15
alcohol having an average degree of ethoxylation of 30.
The Cationic Surfactant (i)(c)
Preferred water-soluble cationic surfactants are quaternary ammonium salts of the general formula II
R
1
R
2
R
3
R
4
N
+
X
−
  (II)
wherein R
1
is a relatively long (C
8
-C
18
) hydrocarbon chain, typically an alkyl, hydroxyalkyl or ethoxylated alkyl group, optionally interrupted with a heteroatom or an ester or amide group; each of R
2
, R
3
and R
4
(which may be the same or different) is a short-chain (C
1
-C
3
) alkyl or substituted alkyl group; and X is a solubilising anion, for example a chloride, bromide or methosulphate ion.
According to a first preferred embodiment of the invention, the cationic surfactant is a quaternary ammonium compound of the formula II in which R
1
is a C
8
-C
18
alkyl group, more preferably a C
8
-C
10
or C
12
-C
4
alkyl group, R
2
is a methyl group, and R
3
and R
4
, which may be the same or different, are methyl or hydroxyethyl groups. Such compounds have the formula III:
In an especially preferred compound, R
1
is a C
12
-C
14
alkyl group, R
2
and R
3
are methyl groups, R
4
is a 2-hydroxyethyl group, and X
−
is a chlorid

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