Cleaning compositions for solid surfaces – auxiliary compositions – Cleaning compositions or processes of preparing – With scrubbing or scouring component
Reexamination Certificate
1998-05-01
2001-02-27
Krynski, William (Department: 1774)
Cleaning compositions for solid surfaces, auxiliary compositions
Cleaning compositions or processes of preparing
With scrubbing or scouring component
C510S417000, C510S418000, C510S470000, C510S505000, C510S475000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06194371
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to a viscosity, phase and particle size stable aqueous alkaline emulsion cleaning concentrate or composition characterized by a reduced water concentration (a high concentration of active materials such as alkalinity and surfactants) and to methods of their use and preparation. In industrial or institutional applications, the materials are phase stable, are easily pumpable (have useful viscosity) from automatic or programmable dispensers to a use locus where they are easily mixed with water in a use locus to form an aqueous cleaner. The emulsions are easily made and are effective in soil removal in laundry, ware washing, clean-in-place and dairy applications. The compositions provide improved or enhanced soil removal properties because of high alkaline and surfactant contact.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Cleaning compositions have been formulated in solid block, particulate and liquid form. Solid forms provide high concentrations of actives, but must be dissolved in water to form a cleaning liquid. Substantial attention in recent years has been directed to liquid detergent concentrates and in particular, liquid detergents in emulsion form. Such detergent concentrates typically are not as highly active as solids and are often greater than 50% water. Detergent emulsion concentrates have been employed as all purpose cleaners, warewashing detergents and in formulations for cleaning hard surfaces by diluting the concentrate with water. Many such concentrates are exemplified by those described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,560,839, 3,234,183 and 3,350,319. These formulations comprise substantial proportions of a phosphate sequestrant and other components in an aqueous base. In U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,017,409 and 4,244,840 liquid detergents having reduced phosphate content have been disclosed. Some detergents have been made which are phosphate free such as those described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,935,130, 4,786,433 and 4,846,993. Attention has been given to emulsion and microemulsion compositions for use in a variety of applications including softening, hard surface cleaning, etc. Among such disclosures are European Patent Specification Nos. 137615, 137616, and 160762 and U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,561,488 and 4,786,433. Additional formulas of emulsion and microemulsion compositions having varying formulations include U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,723,330, 4,472,291 and 4,540,448. The typical emulsion liquid is less than 60% actives, less than 10% surfactant less than 30-40% alkalinity. Additional formulations of liquid detergent compositions in emulsion form which include hydrocarbons, magnesium salts, terpenes and other ingredients for enhancing cleaning properties include British Patent Specification Nos. 1603047, 2033421, 2144763, European Specification No. 80749 and U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,017,409, 4,414,128 and 4,540,505. Many of these emulsions are not sufficiently phase stable for storage and use in a variety of applications, have reduced actives concentration (comprise greater than 50% water) or display reduced properties compared to other useful forms of detergent or are difficult to manufacture, pump or store.
Miller et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,230,592; Morris et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,525,256; and Trabitzsch, Canadian Pat. No. 2,004,895 teach aqueous detergents with relatively low active concentrations. These references all teach relatively low caustic content and relatively low sequestrant and surfactant contents. These materials appear to be fairly simple solutions, without a substantial dispersed portion, of the material in an aqueous medium. The materials can be pumped and used as is.
Substantial attention has been directed to concentrate materials having substantially increased active content that can be manufactured as stable liquids. A need has existed to push the active concentrate of detergent components in the emulsion to 60 to 65% in order to provide the efficacy and performance of solids. These liquids must have a stable viscosity and a handleable viscosity such that the liquid can be reliably pumped from a source of the material to a use locus such as a laundry machine. We have found that, if the materials of the prior art are simply increased in concentration without the introduction of new technology, the resulting materials do not form simple solutions, do not form phase stable emulsions, or often produce materials that have high viscosities and are difficult to pump and use.
While the prior art discloses a variety of liquid emulsion detergent compositions that can be used in a variety of forms, the prior art does not provide a stable aqueous emulsion with a high active cleaning composition that is easy to manufacture, has acceptable cleaning properties in laundry, warewashing and other uses, is pumpable in conventional liquid detergent dispensers and are compatible with typical industrial or institutional cleaning equipment. We have filled a substantial need in improving emulsion stability using emulsion particle size, emulsion viscosity and cleaning properties by improving emulsion formulations and methods of manufacture. A substantially improved emulsion detergent composition, methods of its use and methods of preparation have been discovered and are disclosed below.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
We have found an improved aqueous highly active detergent emulsion composition. The emulsion composition comprises an emulsion in an aqueous base comprising a source of alkalinity, a nonionic surfactant, a water conditioning or sequestering agent, and an alkyl polyglucoside surfactant. The resulting stable emulsions are characterized by a low water content, high actives concentration (greater than 60 wt % based on the concentrate composition), and a particle size of the emulsified phase dispersed in the aqueous phase, having a particle size less than about 10 microns, preferably about 0.01 to 5 microns. Phase stable means that the emulsion, when centrifuged at 1100-2500 rpm in a 50 ml graduated tube in a International Equipment Centrifuge model CL for 5 minutes, does not phase separate. The stable emulsions are also characterized by a surprisingly low viscosity that ranges from about 500 to 5000 centipoise (cP) and from about 200 to 2000 cP measured at 23° C. with a RTV Brookfield viscometer using a #3 spindle at 20 and 50 rpm, respectively. This improved emulsion detergent can be used for a variety of applications but preferably is used in laundry applications. We have achieved cleaner formulations that comprise 30 wt % or greater of both the alkaline source and the surfactant load. We have found that the balance of hydrophobe and hydrophilic function of an alkyl polyglycoside achieves a interfacial tension that stabilizes the emulsion at the aqueous droplet interface.
In laundry applications, soiled articles are contacted with an aqueous liquid cleaning liquor comprising a major proportion of water and about 250 to 5000 ppm of the emulsion detergent. The clothes are contacted with the washing liquor at an elevated temperature of from about 25° C. to about 80° C. for a period of time to remove soil. The soil and used liquor are then rinsed from the clothing in a rinse cycle. The improved liquid emulsion detergents are made by a process that comprises the steps of combining the nonionic surfactant or surfactant blend with a source of alkalinity to provide an alkaline surfactant blend; combining the alkaline surfactant blend with the water conditioning or sequestering agent the alkyl polyglucoside to form a blended detergent and exposing the blended detergent to other ingredients with mixing equipment for a sufficient period of time to create and emulsion characterized by the particle size of the disperse phase and a viscosity that is set forth above. The resulting detergent material can be pumped into containers. When used in laundry applications, the stable laundry detergent can be easily pumped and metered into conventional cleaning equipment. In other applications, a suitable surfactant can be selected for warewashing, or hard surface cleaning.
For the purpose of this pat
Donovan Daniel J.
Olson Lynne A.
Ecolab Inc.
Garrett Dawn L.
Krynski William
Merchant & Gould P.C.
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