Cleaning compositions for solid surfaces – auxiliary compositions – Cleaning compositions or processes of preparing – Specific organic component
Reexamination Certificate
2000-11-01
2004-08-24
Mruk, Brian P. (Department: 1751)
Cleaning compositions for solid surfaces, auxiliary compositions
Cleaning compositions or processes of preparing
Specific organic component
C510S229000, C510S361000, C510S434000, C510S476000, C510S488000, C510S533000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06780832
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
A. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a water-soluble polymer and its uses such as detergent compositions, wherein the water-soluble polymer has specific functions, and wherein the detergent composition comprises the water-soluble polymer.
B. Background Art
A surfactant, particularly principally, an anionic surfactant, is used as a main component of detergents. When hardness components such as calcium ion and magnesium ion are present in water, the detergency of this anionic surfactant tends to greatly be deteriorated because the anionic surfactant forms salts with the above hardness components to become insoluble. Therefore, a polymer having high calcium ion scavengeability is added as a builder so that the above hardness components can be scavenged to enhance the detergency of the resultant detergent composition. In addition, when washing is carried out, a function to disperse mud dirt, namely, inorganic particles (clay), is remarkably exhibited as a recontamination inhibiting function upon white cloth, and such a function is very characteristic of water-soluble poly(carboxylic acid)-based polymers.
Polymers having many carboxyl groups, such as acrylic acid-based polymers and maleic acid/acrylic acid-based copolymers, which are among the above water-soluble polymers, have hitherto been known to have calcium-ion-scavenging and clay-dispersing functions. Various production processes for the acrylic acid-based polymers are disclosed in JP-A-270605/1987, JP-A-239114/1993 and so on, and those for the maleic acid/acrylic acid-based copolymers are disclosed in JP-A-247143/1993, JP-B-002167/1991, JP-B-014046/1991, Japanese Patent No. 2574144 and so on, wherein these documents teach contrivance for enhancing the above functions. In addition, in very various documents such as JP-A-035989/1999 besides the above-exemplified documents, it is disclosed that the above poly(carboxylic acid)-based polymers are preferable for detergent compositions by making the best use of characteristics of the poly(carboxylic acid)-based polymers having the above functions.
The maleic acid/acrylic acid-based copolymer has a very high calcium-ion-scavenging function, but its clay-dispersing function is hardly exhibited particularly under conditions where the hardness of water is high, although this clay-dispersing function is satisfactory under low-hardness conditions. On the other hand, the acrylic acid-based polymer has a clay-dispersing function even in high-hardness water, but its calcium-ion-scavenging function is very inferior. The general reason therefor is that, as the molecular weight of the polymer becomes higher, its calcium-ion-scavenging function becomes better, but its clay-dispersing function becomes worse, particularly, tends to become much worse in high-hardness water, and further that, as the molecular weight of the polymer becomes lower, its clay-dispersing function becomes better, but its calcium-ion-scavenging function tends to become worse. Therefore, there are problems of being caught in a dilemma such that if one ability is desired to become better, the other ability becomes worse.
Accordingly, for enhancing the detergency, particularly in high-hardness water, of the detergent composition, it is very important to simultaneously demand both performances of the function for scavenging the hardness components such as calcium ion and the function for dispersing the inorganic particles, and various contrivances have hitherto been made.
For example, as is exemplified by the above documents, attempts are made to improve such as molecular weight or production process of a certain polymer having a carboxyl group. However, as a result, the limit is the contrivance such that a polymer is designed to suppress one characteristic to a certain level and to make the best use of the other characteristic, or designed to well balance both performances, in other words, to set both performances to certain levels. Accordingly, it has not necessarily been possible to make the best use of both characteristics on high levels, therefore it has not necessarily been possible to say that the resultant detergent composition provides sufficient effects.
In addition, entirely separately from the above, a detergent composition comprising a combination of at least two specific polymers is disclosed in JP-A-100592/1999. However, this document has no disclosure about functions and effects of each of these polymers, which are to be combined with each other, with regard to both the above performances. Therefore, also as to the polymer mixture (i.e. polymer composition) obtained by combining the polymers with each other, it is impossible to say that the functions and effects with regard to both the above performances are enhanced, and the contrivance of simultaneously setting both performances onto high levels is not made. Accordingly, the detergency particularly in high-hardness water is not satisfactory as the detergent composition.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
A. Object of the Invention
An object of the present invention is to provide: a specific water-soluble polymer exhibiting a high calcium-ion-scavenging function and further exhibiting a high clay-dispersing function even in high-hardness water; a detergent composition comprising the water-soluble polymer; and uses, other than the detergent composition, by making the best use of the characteristics of the water-soluble polymer.
B. Disclosure of the Invention
To solve the above problems, the present inventors diligently studied by considering that, in order for a detergent composition to have a very high detergency particularly in high-hardness water, it was particularly important to find a polymer having a high calcium-ion-scavenging function and further having a clay-dispersing function on a high level in high-hardness water. As a result, the inventors completed the present invention by finding that, if this polymer had physical properties such as a calcium ion scavengeability of not less than 0.40 and further a clay dispersibility of not less than 0.50 in high-hardness water, then it was, for example, very useful as a polymer for detergent compositions.
In addition, the inventors verified that such physical properties might be obtainable by only one kind of poly(carboxylic acid)-based polymer, that is, by one kind of poly(carboxylic acid)-based polymer alone, but was also obtainable, for example, by combining two kinds of polymers having specific functions different between these polymers, and that the polymer mixture obtained by combining the above two kinds of polymers had a high calcium-ion-scavenging function and further had a high clay-dispersing function even in high-hardness water, and further that a detergent composition comprising the above polymer alone and/or its mixture having the above specific physical properties had a very high detergency even in high-hardness water.
To solve the above problems, the present invention provides the following:
(1) A water-soluble polymer, which has a calcium ion scavengeability of not less than 0.40 and further has a clay dispersibility of not less than 0.50 in high-hardness water.
(2) A water-soluble polymer according to (1) above, which comprises a water-soluble poly(carboxylic acid)-based polymer having a structural unit derived from a monoethylenically unsaturated monocarboxylic acid (or salt) monomer and/or a structural unit derived from a monoethylenically unsaturated dicarboxylic acid (or salt) monomer.
(3) A water-soluble polymer according to (1) or (2) above, which comprises a polymer mixture including polymers A and B as essential components wherein the polymer A has a calcium ion scavengeability of not less than 0.45 and wherein the polymer B has a clay dispersibility of not less than 0.65 in high-hardness water, wherein the polymer mixture has physical properties such that the calcium ion scavengeability is not less than 0.40 and that the clay dispersibility is not less than 0.60 in high-hardness water.
(4) A water-soluble polymer according to (3) above, wherein the m
Hemmi Akiko
Maeda Yoshihiro
Yamaguchi Shigeru
Mruk Brian P.
Nippon Shokubai Co. , Ltd.
Roylance Abrams Berdo & Goodman L.L.P.
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