AU2016100300A4 - Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning Composition - Google Patents

Abstract

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention encompasses a carpet and upholstery cleaning composition comprising at least one salt of an alkylnaphthalene sulfonic acid, at least one anionic surfactant, at least one polymeric embrittling agent and at least one builder that is intended for use without the expensive extraction equipment necessary for traditional hot water extraction methods. The invention exhibits improved emulsification and suspension of oily soils without leaving soil attracting residues. lWam 7 A mm-mm 3 X::.: X x.. x M Ml a a

Description

1 CARPET AND UPHOLSTERY CLEANING COMPOSITION FIELD OF THE INVENTION The invention relates to a cleaning composition intended for use on carpets or upholstery. The inventive composition is particularly efficacious against oily soils, which can be removed from the carpet or upholstery without the need for water extraction. The formulation also minimises the propensity of the carpet or upholstery to undergo resoiling. BACKGROUND Conventional carpet and upholstery cleaning solutions contain high loadings of non-ionic surfactants intended to solubilise and disperse contaminates and soil from the surface. Any residual surfactant which is not fully removed from the fibres during subsequent rinsing remains present on the fibre surface. The oily nature of these residues causes the fibres to become more sensitive to resoiling than fibres which had not been subjected to the cleaning process. These residues also often lead to undesirable changes in the texture, feel or softness of the carpet or upholstery surface. Numerous compositions have been described in the art which attempt to mitigate these issues through the use of surfactants with lowered propensity for resoiling and the inclusion of polymers intended to reduce the tackiness of the dried cleaning solution residue. These compositions, however, often exhibit poor cleaning performance particularly in relation to the removal of oily soils from carpet and upholstery fibres. Increasing the alkalinity of a composition is a common method to increase the ability of the composition to solubilise and remove oily soils. However, some common carpet fibres such as those prepared from wool or woollen blends are sensitive to high levels of alkalinity and the use of these compositions is known to cause fibre damage and unacceptable colour changes to these substrates. Therefore, there still remains a need for alternative cleaning compositions useful in removing a variety of soils, particularly oily type stains from carpet and other textiles, without causing undesirable damage to the substrate, changes to the texture or feel of the substrate and increasing sensitivity of the fibres to resoil. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention encompasses a carpet and upholstery cleaning composition comprising at least one salt of an alkylnaphthalene sulfonic acid, at least one anionic surfactant, at least one polymeric embrittling agent and at least one builder that is intended for use without the expensive extraction equipment necessary for traditional hot water extraction methods. The invention exhibits improved emulsification and suspension of oily soils without leaving soil attracting residues. The present invention further encompasses a method of cleaning carpets and upholstery using the inventive composition, wherein the composition is applied to the carpet or upholstery and rubbed and/or brushed, and wherein the composition is then optionally removed from the carpet or upholstery following drying by brushing or using a vacuum cleaner. DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES Figure 1 shows the cleaning efficacy over two cleaning cycles of examples 1 to 3 2 Figure 2 is a Scanning Electron Micrograph showing adhesive failure of Example 1 to a polyamide carpet fibre Figure 3 is a soiled rug cleaned using a letter stencil to allow just selected areas of the rug to be cleaned DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION In a preferred embodiment the invention provides for a carpet and upholstery cleaning composition comprising: e At least one alkylnapthalene sulfonic acid salt * At least one anionic surfactant * At least one foam booster e At least one polymeric embrittling agent e At least one builder It is generally known in the art that carpet and upholstery cleaning solutions prepared using traditional non-ionic or cationic surfactants can lead to increased rates of resoiling of these surfaces due to the oily and sticky residues of these surfactants attracting soil. The use of anionic surfactants, such as sodium lauryl sulfate, or betaines to reduce this rate of resoiling is also well known in the art. However, these anionic surfactants will often form waxy or tacky solids upon drying and still increase the propensity for the carpet to attract soil. It has been found however that, when these surfactants are used in combination with an alkyl naphthalene sulfonate surfactant and a polymeric embrittling agent, a friable residue is formed upon drying. Without wishing to be bound by theory, it is thought that the complexation/co-micellization of the SLES and betaine with the alkylnapthalene sulfonate in the presence of the embrittling agent leads to the formation of the more favourable friable residue. It is also well known in the art that solubilised soil and impurities will tend to remain in a solution as the solute crystallises out upon drying. In carpet and upholstery cleaning, this can also lead to the sticky impurity residues remaining on carpet fibres thus leading to greater rates of resoiling. However, the inventive formulations are capable of easily dispersing oily soils from carpet and upholstery surfaces and holding the soil in solution as the residue dries. Again, without wishing to be bound by theory, it is though that the impurities are incorporated into the solid matrix upon drying of the composition leaving them unable to contribute to carpet resoiling. In a preferred embodiment, a non-oily solid is formed upon drying. In a particularly preferred embodiment the inventive solution containing dispersed soil dries to produce a brittle solid, which may be easily fractured from surfaces. Due to the easily fractured nature of the dried solid, it undergoes adhesive failure from carpet fibres, thus allowing for the easy removal of the residue by routine cleaning or vacuuming. In a more preferred embodiment the pH of the composition is approximately neutral (ie between 6.0 and 8.5) to allow for the composition to be used for the cleaning of all carpet or upholstery fibres including those which are sensitive to high levels of alkalinity, for example those comprised of wool or woollen blends.

3 Other embodiments may be contemplated that have higher pH values, for example in the range of 9 to 11 if their use is only intended for use on non-alkalinity sensitive fibres such as polyamide or polyolefin. In a highly preferred embodiment, the compositions include the use of a non-ionic surfactant to further increase the cleaning performance on hydrophobic carpet fibres. The non-ionic surfactants which may be used herein include alkylphenol ethoxylates, alkyl pyrrolidones, oxirane and methyl oxirane block copolymers, alkyl polyglucosides and ethoxylated and/or propoxylated fatty alcohols or mixtures thereof. Alkylnapthalene sulfonic acid salt The inventive formulations will contain at least one alkyl naphthalene sulphonic acid salt. Preferred salts will be those of monovalent cations such as alkali metal salts, ammonium salts, tetraalkylammonium salts or protonated forms of tertiary amines such as trimethylamine, triethylamine, triethanolamine, etc. The alkylnaphthalene sulfonic acid will typically comprise a 1- naphthalene sulfonic acid, substituted with an alkyl group on the 4 position, although other substitution patterns are also contemplated. Preferably the alkyl substituent will be on the same ring as the sulfonic acid substituent, although embodiments in which the alkyl group and sulfonic acid groups are on differing rings are also contemplated. The alkyl group can be any group with the general formula (CnH 2 n± 1 )- where n=1 to 16. The alkyl group may also be linear or branched. Preferred embodiments will have an alkyl group with n between 1 and 6. Highly preferred examples are the 1,4-alkylnaphthalene sulfonic acid sodium salts sold by Akzo Nobel under the trade name Petro. A most preferred example is sold under the trade name Petro BAF. Anionic Surfactant The anionic surfactants used within the inventive formulation may be selected from at least one of the group comprising alkyldiphenyloxide disulfonate, sodium lauryl sulfate, sodium lauryl ether sulphate, linear alkylbenzene sulfonic acid, sodium sarcosinate, or combinations thereof. Ideally the anionic surfactant, or combinations of anionic surfactant should be selected to produce high levels of foam. In a highly preferred embodiment, the anionic surfactant will comprise sodium lauryl ether sulfate Foam Booster The anionic surfactants may also be used in combination with zwitterionic surfactants and/or non ionic surfactants in order to augment foam production and stabilisation as required. Exemplified foam boosters may be selected from the non-limiting group comprising cocoamidopropyl betaine, sodium lauroamphoacetate, disodium lauroamphodiacetate, sodium cocoamphoacetate, disodium cocoamphodiacetate, a lauryldimethylamine oxide, a cocodimethylamine oxide, or combinations thereof. The foam booster may also be comprised of a non-ionic surfactant such as an alcohol ethoxylate, a nonylphenyl ethoxylate, octylphenyl ethoxylate, an alkyl glyconate, a cocodiethanolamide or combinations thereof.

4 A preferred foam booster is cocoamidopropyl betaine. Polymeric embrittling agent The polymeric embrittling agent comprises a water soluble acrylic based copolymer which, on drying, will result in a non-tacky brittle solid. Preferred examples are the aqueous solutions of acrylic acid/methacrylic acid copolymers sold under the trade name Syntran 4020, Syntran 4180 and Syntran 4125, all available from Interpolymer Corporation. Another preferred example is Flexisperse 305 (Innovative Chemical technologies Inc). Other embrittling agents will include styrene maleic anhydride copolymers such as described in US Patent No. 3,835,071. Builders Preferred builders, whose function to sequester polyvalent metal ions such as calcium, magnesium, iron etc, will include materials such as sodium citrate, sodium gluconate, sodium lactate sodium EDTA (ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid), sodium tetraborate, sodium phosphate, sodium carbonate, sodium tripolyphosphate, tetrapotassium pyrophosphate. Also preferred are the salts of polymeric sequestering agents such as poly(acrylic acid) or poly (methacrylic acid). It is recognised that certain combinations of the builders may also serve other functions, such as pH regulation. In a highly preferred embodiment, the builder will be comprised of tetrapotassium pyrophosphate. In a most preferred embodiment, the builder will be comprised of a combination of tetrapotassium pyrophosphate and citric acid. Example 1 The inventive cleaning solution prepared according to a highly preferred example is shown in table 1. The pH of the solution was adjusted to 7.5 using citric acid. Table 1 Ingredient % w/w Function Sodium Citrate 1.4 Builder Tetrapotassium Pyrophosphate 1.6 Builder Petro BAF 2.1 Sodium alkyl naphthalene sulfonate Sodium Laureth Sulfate (28% Liquid) 2.6 Anionic surfactant Cocoamidopropyl betaine (30% liquid) 1.7 Foam booster Hydrapol RP 40 1.0 Foam booster Syntran 4125 30.7 Polymeric embrittling agent Citric Acid To pH 7.5 Builder Water Balance In order to assess the cleaning and resoiling characteristics of the inventive formulation, a working solution comprising 40ml of the formulation in table 1 was diluted to 1 litre with tap water, and tested according to the method described under Cleaning Efficacy. Example 2 A commercially available encapsulating carpet shampoo, All Round, manufactured by Research Products, was obtained. A working solution comprising 40ml of the All Round formulation was diluted to 1 litre with tap water, and tested according to the method described under Cleaning Efficacy 5 Example 3 A commercially available encapsulating carpet shampoo, Zenith, manufactured by Sonitron Australasia Pty Ltd was obtained. A working solution comprising 40ml of the All Round formulation was diluted to 1 litre with tap water, and tested according to the method described under Cleaning Efficacy. Example 4 Cleaning Efficacy Cleaning efficacy and resoiling resistance were assessed using an X-rite portable spectrophotometer to measure changes in colour values. To conduct the testing a standard laboratory soil, prepared as per AATCC Test Method 123-2000, is used to soil carpet samples through the use of a ball mill. The carpet samples are vacuumed and cleaned using the cleaning solutions from examples 1-3. The cleaning is performed by generating a foam of the cleaning solution, applying this foam to the carpet sample and working this foam into the carpet pile. The cleaning solutions are allowed to dry and the X-rite spectrophotometer is used to determine the colour values of the sample relative to the carpet samples prior to soiling. The process is then repeated to determine the ability of the cleaning solutions to resist subsequent resoiling. Table 2 Cleaning Efficacy (%) Example 1 Example 2 Example 3 First Cleaning Cycle 87 80 78.0 Second Cleaning Cycle 82 68 70.0 As can be seen in Table 2, and in Figure 1, the formulation of Example 1 exhibits a substantially higher cleaning efficacy than examples 2 & 3 on the first and second cleaning cycles. This clearly indicates both the improved cleaning performance of the invention and the reduced propensity for residues from the invention to attract further soiling onto carpet fibres. Scanning Electron Microscopy Scanning electron microscopy imaging using a Zeiss Sigma VP FESEM was performed on solution dyed polyamide carpet samples that that been cleaned using Example 1. Individual carpet fibres were cut from the samples and gold sputter coated prior to imaging. The adhesive failure of the cleaning composition residue can be clearly seen in Error! Reference source not found.. Example 5 Ross-Miles foam test The foaming characteristics of Example 1 was demonstrated using a Ross-Miles foam test (ASTM D1173-53). The test was conducted by adding 50mL of Example 1 to a 100mL stoppered measuring cylinder which was then shaken vigorously. Example 1 was observed to produce sufficient foam to completely fill the stoppered measuring cylinder. This foam was also observed to be stable for a period of greater than 5 minutes. Example 6 The cleaning efficacy of the formulation of Example 1 was visually demonstrated as follows 6 A wool based rug was taken, and soiled by wetting the rug with water, and then rubbing in garden potting compost, until the rug was judged visually to be homogeneously soiled. The rug was then allowed to dry. A stencil was then laid on top of the soiled rug, and the exposed rug cleaned by spraying the exposed areas of the rub with a 40ml/litre solution of the formulation from Example 1. The solution was then rubbed into the carpet with a carpet brush. The carpet was then allowed to dry, the stencil removed and then the carpet vacuumed. After vacuuming, the contrast between the cleaned areas and the areas masked by the stencil were visually evident, as can be seen in figure 3.

Claims (5)

1. A carpet and upholstery cleaning composition comprising: a. At least one salt of an alkylnaphthalene sulfonic acid b. At least one anionic surfactant c. At least one foam booster d. At least one polymeric embrittling agent e. At least one builder Wherein said formulation dries to a brittle, non-oily solid.

2. A cleaning composition according to claim 1 wherein the pH of said cleaning composition is in the range 6.0 and 8.5

3. A cleaning composition according to claim 1 wherein the pH of said cleaning composition is in the range 9.0 and 11.0

4. A cleaning composition according to any of the preceding claims wherein said composition, when diluted to its working concentration will produce a stable foam on agitation.

5. A process of cleaning carpet and/or upholstery using a cleaning composition comprising: a. Diluting the composition with water to give a working solution b. Applying the working solution to the soiled carpet c. Allowing the solution to dry under ambient conditions d. Optionally removing the cleaning composition residues and soil by brushing or vacuum cleaning