Classifications

• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C11—ANIMAL OR VEGETABLE OILS, FATS, FATTY SUBSTANCES OR WAXES; FATTY ACIDS THEREFROM; DETERGENTS; CANDLES
  • C11D—DETERGENT COMPOSITIONS; USE OF SINGLE SUBSTANCES AS DETERGENTS; SOAP OR SOAP-MAKING; RESIN SOAPS; RECOVERY OF GLYCEROL
  • C11D3/00—Other compounding ingredients of detergent compositions covered in group C11D1/00
  • C11D3/16—Organic compounds
  • C11D3/37—Polymers
  • C11D3/3746—Macromolecular compounds obtained by reactions only involving carbon-to-carbon unsaturated bonds
  • C11D3/3769—(Co)polymerised monomers containing nitrogen, e.g. carbonamides, nitriles or amines
  • C11D3/3773—(Co)polymerised monomers containing nitrogen, e.g. carbonamides, nitriles or amines in liquid compositions
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C11—ANIMAL OR VEGETABLE OILS, FATS, FATTY SUBSTANCES OR WAXES; FATTY ACIDS THEREFROM; DETERGENTS; CANDLES
  • C11D—DETERGENT COMPOSITIONS; USE OF SINGLE SUBSTANCES AS DETERGENTS; SOAP OR SOAP-MAKING; RESIN SOAPS; RECOVERY OF GLYCEROL
  • C11D1/00—Detergent compositions based essentially on surface-active compounds; Use of these compounds as a detergent
  • C11D1/38—Cationic compounds
  • C11D1/645—Mixtures of compounds all of which are cationic
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C11—ANIMAL OR VEGETABLE OILS, FATS, FATTY SUBSTANCES OR WAXES; FATTY ACIDS THEREFROM; DETERGENTS; CANDLES
  • C11D—DETERGENT COMPOSITIONS; USE OF SINGLE SUBSTANCES AS DETERGENTS; SOAP OR SOAP-MAKING; RESIN SOAPS; RECOVERY OF GLYCEROL
  • C11D3/00—Other compounding ingredients of detergent compositions covered in group C11D1/00
  • C11D3/0005—Other compounding ingredients characterised by their effect
  • C11D3/001—Softening compositions
  • C11D3/0015—Softening compositions liquid
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C11—ANIMAL OR VEGETABLE OILS, FATS, FATTY SUBSTANCES OR WAXES; FATTY ACIDS THEREFROM; DETERGENTS; CANDLES
  • C11D—DETERGENT COMPOSITIONS; USE OF SINGLE SUBSTANCES AS DETERGENTS; SOAP OR SOAP-MAKING; RESIN SOAPS; RECOVERY OF GLYCEROL
  • C11D1/00—Detergent compositions based essentially on surface-active compounds; Use of these compounds as a detergent
  • C11D1/38—Cationic compounds
  • C11D1/52—Carboxylic amides, alkylolamides or imides or their condensation products with alkylene oxides
  • C11D1/528—Carboxylic amides (R1-CO-NR2R3), where at least one of the chains R1, R2 or R3 is interrupted by a functional group, e.g. a -NH-, -NR-, -CO-, or -CON- group
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C11—ANIMAL OR VEGETABLE OILS, FATS, FATTY SUBSTANCES OR WAXES; FATTY ACIDS THEREFROM; DETERGENTS; CANDLES
  • C11D—DETERGENT COMPOSITIONS; USE OF SINGLE SUBSTANCES AS DETERGENTS; SOAP OR SOAP-MAKING; RESIN SOAPS; RECOVERY OF GLYCEROL
  • C11D1/00—Detergent compositions based essentially on surface-active compounds; Use of these compounds as a detergent
  • C11D1/38—Cationic compounds
  • C11D1/62—Quaternary ammonium compounds

Definitions

• This invention relates to liquid fabric softening compositions. More particularly, the invention relates to liquid fabric softening compositions containing diacid ester derivatives of trialkanol-amine esterquat compounds.
• the compositions are primarily intended as rinse cycle fabric softening compositions suitable as ready-for-use products or as concentrates which can be used in undiluted form as ready-for-use products at reduced dosage or alternatively as products which are diluted before use with water for use at the same dosage levels as the conventional ready-for-use products.
• compositions containing quaternary ammonium salts or imidazolinium compounds having at least one long chain hydrocarbyl group are commonly used to provide fabric softening benefits when used in a laundry rinse operation. Numerous patents have been issued for these types of compounds and compositions.
• RNH((CH 2 ) n NR) m R wherein an average of from 20% to 80% of the R groups are C ⁇ 2 to C22 acyl, at least 20% of the R groups are -CH2CH2OH or -CH2CHOHCH3 or mixtures of these groups, and any other R group is hydrogen, n is 2 or 3 and m is an integer of from 2 to 5, are provided as mobile pastes in the presence of lower alkanol solvents. This is stated to be in contrast to partially neutralized unquatemized diamidoamines which, while providing highly effective fabric softening properties, are too viscous even when diluted in the lower alkanol solvents for convenient handling.
• U.S. Patent 5,154,838 (corresponding to EP 0459211A2) to Yomamura, et al. (assigned to Kao Corp.) discloses an aqueous liquid softener composition based on an amidoamine compound which is the condensation reaction product of a di- or tri-amine of formula (I):
• R represents a straight or branched chain, saturated or unsaturated hydrocarbon group having 8 to 24 carbon atoms
• R ⁇ represents a straight or branched, saturated or unsaturated hydrocarbon group having 7 to 23 carbon atoms
• m represents 2 or 3
• n is 1 or 2.
• polyamines e.g., diethylentriamine, aminoethyl ethanolamine
• R groups represent an aliphatic ester residue of from 12 to 30 carbon atoms of formula C n H 2n OCOR 4 , and the remaining R groups represent lower aliphatic, aryl or hydroxyalkyl groups
• X" is an anion and "a” represents the ionic valence of the anion
• R is a Cj2 to C30 alkyl or alkenyl group
• R ⁇ represents Rl,R ⁇ CONH(CH2) m or CH2CH2OH
• R3 represents hydrogen, methyl, or (CH2CH2O) p H
• m is a number of 1 to 5
• p is a number of 1 to 5, at a weight ratio of ester quat to amidoamine of from 10:1 to 1:10.
• This patent discloses total amounts of esterquat and amidoamine ranging from 3% to 60% by weight, however, compositions containing at most 8% by weight of active softeners are disclosed.
• each R is independently hydrogen or lower alkyl; each Rl is hydrogen or an alkylcarbonyl group containing 15-23 carbon atoms, provided that at least one of R is an alkylcarbonyl group; each R is an alkyl group containing 1-4 carbon atoms which is unsubstituted or substituted with 1, 2, or 3 hydroxy groups; each R2 is an alkyl group containing 1-4 carbon atoms which may be unsubstituted or substituted with 1, 2, or 3 hydroxy groups, or is a group of the formula:
• R!3 is an alkyl group containing 8-22 carbon atoms
• R 2 is an alkyl group containing 1-4 carbon atoms which is unsubstituted or substituted with 1, 2, or 3 hydroxy groups
• R is hydrogen or lower alkyl
• RIO is hydrogen or alkylcarbonyl group containing 14-22 carbon atoms
• the amidoamine compound has the formula: H H P+
• R 6 ! is CHX-CHY-O
• X and Y are independently hydrogen or lower alkyl (but not both alkyl);
• R is an alkylcarbonyl group containing 4-22 carbon atoms or H
• R9 is an alkyl group containing 14-22 carbon atoms; Z ⁇ is a water-soluble monobasic or polybasic anion; d and d ⁇ are independently 0-6; q is 0 or 1; fj is 1, 2 or 3; p is 1-3; and p+q>2.
• the mixture of the soft-rinsing agent (a) and (b) constitutes from 10 to 25% by weight of the composition at ratios of (a):(b) of from 1:9 to 9: 1.
• the alkyl groups in R ⁇ and R ⁇ are preferably completely saturated.
• Viscosity control agents including electrolyte salts, e.g., calcium chloride, may be included.
• U.S. Patent 4,724,089 to K ⁇ nig, et al. discloses aqueous dispersions of certain amines, including reaction products of higher fatty acids with a polyamine (e.g.,
• a dispersing aid e.g., HC1
• quaternary ammonium salt e.g., diamido (alkoxylated) quaternary ammonium salts.
• electrolyte e.g., CaCl2
• EP 0295,386 to Ruback, et al. discloses a free-flowing softening washing rinse concentrate containing (a) from 18 to 50 weight percent of a mixture of at least two quaternary ammonium salts: (A) 10-90 wt% of triethanol-amine ester quaternary ammonium compound, and (B) 90 to 10 wt% of another quaternary compound including quaternized amidoamine (or equivalent esteramine or thioamine) and (b) water and optional conventional additives.
• R ⁇ and R2, independently, represent C12 to C20 alkyl or alkenyl; R3 represents
• compositions are provided as ready-to-use products or as concentrates to be used at reduced levels or which may be diluted with water prior to use at the same or similar levels as the ready-to-use products.
• the total amount of amidoamine softener (A) and stabilizing dispersant (B) is disclosed to fall in the range of from about 2 to 8% by weight.
• the total amount of (A) and (B) is generally in the range of from about 12 to 60% and may be diluted at ratios of water: concentrate as high as about 4:1 to even 8:1 or 9:1, and still provide acceptable softening performance, equivalent or better than that achieved using conventional quaternary cationic surfactant softeners, such as dimethyl distearyl ammonium chloride (DMDSAC).
• DMDSAC dimethyl distearyl ammonium chloride
• (B') an inorganic or organic acid salt of bis(non-hydrogenated tallow amidoethyl) hydroxyethyl amine, with the total amount of (A 1 ) and (B') being from about 2% to about 50% by weight of the composition, and the ratio by weight of (A 1 ) to (B') being in the range of from about 10:1 to about 1.5: 1, and an aqueous solvent.
• compositions disclosed in the aforesaid U.S. Patent 5,476,598 to Schramm et al. provide highly effective stable and pourable liquid fabric softener compositions; nevertheless, in practice it is found that with concentrations of the amidoamine fabric softening compound (e.g. Varisoft 510) in excess of 11 weight percent in the presence of certain emulsifiers, such as hydrogenated tallow, the product viscosity becomes excessively high, even in the presence of electrolytes (e.g. CaCl2) or solvents (e.g. propanol).
• electrolytes e.g. CaCl2
• solvents e.g. propanol
• the prior art has focused attention on ways to increase the concentration in the liquid fabric softening composition of the amidoamine softener compound Varisoft 510 in view of its very good environmental attributes and favorable acute toxicity data as well as its strong softening performance.
• the viscosity increases substantially until gelation occurs.
• a stable, pourable, water dispersible aqueous liquid fabric softener composition includes:
• R3 CD wherein R ⁇ and R2, independently, represent C12 to C20 alkyl or alkenyl; R3 represents (CH2CH2O)pH, CH3 or H; T represents O or NH; n and m are each, independently, a number of 1 to 5; and p is a number of from 1 to 10;
• compositions containing up to 25 wt% of active ingredients (A) and (B) are exemplified, with amounts of (A) and (B) up to 60% being disclosed.
• a stable, pourable and water dispersible fabric softener composition comprising an aqueous dispersion of from about 2.5% to about 35%, by weight, of a combination of softening components (A) and (B) wherein: (A) is (i) an inorganic or organic acid salt of an amidoamine compound of formula (I):
• R 3 wherein Ri and R 2 represent Cn to C 2 9 aliphatic hydrocarbon groups, R 3 represents (CH 2 CHO)pH, CH 3 or H wherein p is a number from 1 to 10 and
• Rs Rs is CH 3 , CH 2 CH 3 or H, and n and m are each, independently, a number from 1 to 5; or (ii) an amidoquatemary ammonium compound of formula (II):
• Ri represents (CH 2 CHO) admirH or CH 3 ;
• Ri, R 2 , Rs, n and m are as defined above,
• I and X is an inorganic or an organic anion of valence a
• (B) is a biodegradable diacid polymeric fatty ester quaternary ammonium compound of formula (III):
• R5 represents a Ci to C ⁇ 8 aliphatic hydrocarbon group, and each Re independently represents a C ⁇ to C 2 ⁇ aliphatic hydrocarbon group,
• R 7 represents a C ⁇ to C 4 alkyl group
• n, m and p are each, independently, a number from 1 to 4
• q is a number from 1 to 3
• X is an inorganic or organic anion of valence a; and (C) an aqueous solvent including an anti-gelling effective amount of electrolyte.
• the present invention also provides a method of imparting softness to fabrics by contacting the fabrics with a softening effective amount of the invention fabric softener composition; generally and preferably, in the rinse cycle of an automatic laundry washing machine.
• the compositions may be diluted with water prior to adding the composition to the washing machine (e.g., the rinse cycle dispenser), or may be added, at reduced amount, without dilution, i.e., ready to use.
• the level of unsaturation of the hydrocarbon groups containing two or more carbon atoms in Component (A), i.e. A(i) or A(ii), and Component (B) should be maintained above at least 15% in order to insure that the liquid fabric softening composition remains a pourable liquid, particularly, at high concentrations of active ingredients.
• At least 15% of the hydrocarbon groups in (A) and (B) combined should contain at least one unsaturated carbon to carbon bond.
• the percentage of unsaturated groups in the softening components will vary from about 20 to about 60, especially from about 20 to about 40.
• the weight ratio of Component (A) to Component (B) will generally be from about 5:1 to about 1:5 in the most useful embodiments in accordance with the invention.
• the present invention was developed as part of an extensive research program to evaluate available fabric softening compounds which do not pose the risk of, or at least reduce the risk of, causing environmental damage associated with conventional cationic quat fabric softeners, such as dimethyl distearyl ammonium chloride (DMDSAC) yet which offer equivalent or superior softening performance to DMDSAC and which are amenable for use in concentrated products.
• DMDSAC dimethyl distearyl ammonium chloride
• the latter requirement is important in view of the trend in the industry to sell concentrated products which require less packaging and lower shipping costs on a per unit or per usage basis and, therefore, can be characterized as environmentally and user friendly.
• amidoquatemary ammonium compounds of formula (II) above are suitable equivalents and are commercially available, for example, under the Accosoft trademark from Stepan Company.
• the good softening performance is due to the excellent inherent dispersibility of the finely divided amidoamine softener when the compound is protonated as its acid complex.
• Such excellent inherent dispersibility is believed to result from the presence of the diamido amine hydrophilic group, which may be further enhanced by a moderate level of ethoxylation (e.g., when R3 represents (CH2CH2 ⁇ )pH).
• R3 represents (CH2CH2 ⁇ )pH
• the presence of the two long chain hydrocarbon groups (C -C20 alkyl or alkenyl) contribute to effective fabric softening.
• the concentratability of the fatty tertiary amido amine fabric softeners of formula (I) was found to be limited to no more than about 11% by weight before gelation occurs or otherwise unacceptably high viscosity results. It is presumed that this phenomenon is the result of the crystallinity of fatty tertiary amine, that is, the formation of a liquid crystalline phase.
• the viscosity increase in concentrated samples and over time is believed to be associated with the formation of multilayered vesicle structures which trap increasing amounts of water and thereby cause the composition to exhibit an increase in viscosity.
• the phase volume of the composition increases with increasing softener concentration and time while the continuous (aqueous) phase gradually decreases with time.
• Varisoft 512 soft tallow tertiary amine
• Varisoft 510 hydrophilic (hard) tallow tertiary amine
• the softening performance of the tertiary amine compound containing higher aliphatic amide or ester groups containing unsaturation (carbon to carbon double bonds), e.g., soft tallow amide, etc. is generally significantly poorer than the corresponding compounds which are fully saturated, e.g., hydrogenated tallow amide.
• compositions in accordance with the invention allow the compositions to be formulated as concentrates for subsequent dilution (if desired) at ratios as high as 8:1 or higher, while still remaining pourable in the concentrated form.
• concentrated formulas may, of course, be used without dilution but in smaller quantities to achieve superior softening performance.
• compositions of this invention are stable, pourable, and rapidly water dispersible aqueous dispersions which contain, (A) a fabric softening effective amount of an inorganic or organic acid salt of fatty amido (or ester) tertiary amine of formula (I), or amidoquatemary ammonium compound of formula (II), and (B) a synergistic fabric softening diacid polymeric fatty ester quaternary ammonium compound of formula (III), wherein the total amount of (A) and (B), combined is from about 2.5% to about 35% by weight.
• the aqueous dispersion which is formed within these amounts of fabric softening active ingredients is of low viscosity, namely, remains pourable at ambient temperature, particularly less than 1500 cPs at 20°C.
• the fabric softening active compound (A) is an inorganic or organic acid salt of an amido tertiary amine of formula (I):
• R 3 or, an amidoquatemary ammonium compound of formula (II):
• R] and R2 are each, independently, long chain aliphatic hydrocarbons, e.g., alkyl or alkenyl groups having from 11 to 29 carbon atoms, preferably from 11 to 21 carbon atoms and most preferably from 13 to 17 carbon atoms.
• Linear hydrocarbon groups such as, for example, dodecyl, dodecenyl, octadecyl, octadecenyl, behenyl, eicosyl, etc., are preferred for Rj-CO- and R2-CO- .
• R ⁇ and R2 will be derived from natural oils containing fatty acids or fatty acid mixtures, such as coconut oil, palm oil, tallow, rape oil, and fish oil. Chemically synthesized fatty acids are also usable. Generally and preferably R and R2 are derived from the same fatty acid or fatty acid mixture. Generally, it has been discovered that when R ⁇ and R2 are derived from natural oils containing fatty acids or fatty acid mixtures, such as coconut oil, palm oil, tallow, rape oil, and fish oil. Chemically synthesized fatty acids are also usable. Generally and preferably R and R2 are derived from the same fatty acid or fatty acid mixture. Generally, it has been discovered that when R ⁇ and
• R2 are derived from or contain up to about 80%, but preferably not more than 65% by weight of unsaturated (i.e., alkenyl) groups, the relatively poor softening performance of unsaturated moieties of the compound of formula (I) is overcome by the combination with the polymeric ester quat compound (B) of formula (III) and an effective amount of a viscosity reducing electrolyte.
• unsaturated i.e., alkenyl
• R3 in formula (I) represents (CH2CHO) p H, CH3, or H, or mixtures thereof and R8 is
• R, in Formula (II) represents (CH CHO) p H or CH3 with R8 being as I
• R3 and R4 represent the preferred (CH2CH2 ⁇ ) p H group
• p is a positive number representing the average degree of ethoxylation, and is preferably from 1 to 10, especially 1.4 to 6, and more preferably from about 1.5 to 4, and most preferably, from 1.5 to 3.0.
• n and m are integers of from 1 to 5, preferably 1 to 3, especially 2.
• the compounds of formulas (I) and (II) in which R3 and R4 represent the preferred (CH2CH2 ⁇ ) p H group are broadly referred to herein as ethoxylated amidoamines and ethoxylated amidoquats, respectively, and the term "hydroxyethyl" is also used to describe the (CH2CH2 ⁇ ) p H group.
• the compound of formula (I) which is commercially available under the tradenames Varisoft 512 (a 90% concentration with a 10% organic solvent), or Varisoft 511 (approximately a 100% active ingredient concentration), available from Witco Chemical Company, which is bis(tallow-amidoethyl)-hydroxyethyl amine of formula
• Varisoft 512 or 511 there may be substituted the corresponding hydrogenated tallow amidoamine derivative, available from Witco under the tradename Varisoft 510.
• amidoamine available from Witco Chemical is the amidoamine marketed under the tradename Rewopal V3340. It is a partly unsaturated amidoamine containing 75% hydrogenated tallow and 25%) of soft tallow alkyl chains.
• the polyamine used for the synthesis is diethylenetriamine.
• the amidoamine is further alkoxylated with 2.7 molecules of ethyleneoxide.
• the raw material contains about 85% of actives which are solubilized in isopropanol (7.5%) and 1,2-propyleneglycol (7.5%).
• the structural formula is shown below: o o
• Ri-CO- and R 2 -CO- are partly saturated alkyl chains having the following distribution C 14 ( ⁇ 4%); C 16 (25-35%); C 18 (55-70%); C 20 ( ⁇ 1%).
• the amine function of the amidoamine compound is at least partially neutralized by a proton contributed by a dissociable acid, which may be inorganic, e.g., HC1, H2SO4, HNO3, etc - or organic, e.g. acetic acid, propionic acid, lactic acid, citric acid, glycolic acid, toluene sulfonic acid, maleic acid, fumaric acid, and the like. Mixtures of these acids may also be used, as may any other acid capable of neutralizing the amine function.
• a dissociable acid which may be inorganic, e.g., HC1, H2SO4, HNO3, etc - or organic, e.g. acetic acid, propionic acid, lactic acid, citric acid, glycolic acid, toluene sulfonic acid, maleic acid, fumaric acid, and the like. Mixtures of these acids may also be used, as may any other acid capable of neutralizing the amine function.
• the acid neutralized compound is believed to form a reversible complex, that is, the bond between the amine function and proton will disappear under alkaline pH conditions. This is in contrast to quaternization, e.g., with a methyl group, wherein the quatemizing group is covalently bonded to the positively charged amine nitrogen and is essentially pH independent.
• the amount of acid used will depend on the "strength" of the acid; strong acids such as
• HC1, and H SO4 completely dissociate in water, and, therefore, provide a high amount of free protons (H " ), while weaker acids, such as citric acid, glycolic acid, lactic acid, and other organic acids, do not dissociate completely and, therefore, require a higher concentration to achieve the same neutralizing effect.
• weaker acids such as citric acid, glycolic acid, lactic acid, and other organic acids
• the amount of acid required to achieve complete protonation of the amine will be achieved when the pH of the composition is rendered strongly acidic, namely between about 1.5 and 4.
• HC1 and glycolic acid are preferred, and HC1 is especially preferred.
• the amount of acid used for neutralization should be sufficient to provide at least an 0.5:1 molar ratio, and up to about a 1 :1 molar ratio of the acid to the total amount of fabric softener fatty amide tertiary amine.
• the organic carboxylic acids it is preferred to use a molar excess of the neutralizing acid.
• the use of glycolic in molar excess is especially preferred.
• molar ratios of acid (as HC1) to ethoxylated amine of formula (I) of from 0.5:1 to about 0.95:1, such as 0.6:1 and 0.7:1, can be advantageously used.
• mineral acids such as HC1
• molar ratios above 1:1 should generally be avoided since, otherwise, a destabilization (phase separation) may occur.
• Amidoquatemary ammonium compounds are commercially available from Stepan Company under the trademark Accosoft.
• Accosoft 440-75 a preferred amidoquat compound, is a fully saturated amidoquat based on hard tallow alkyl chains. It is alkoxylated with 2.5 moles of ethylene oxide.
• Other suitable amidoquat compounds based on tallow are available in the Accosoft series, and an Accosoft 750 based on Soya is also useful herein.
• the second essential fabric softener compound according to this invention is the biodegradable diacid fatty ester quaternized ammonium compound (B) of the following formula (HI):
• R 5 represents a Ci to C ⁇ 8 aliphatic hydrocarbon group, and each Re independently represents an aliphatic hydrocarbon group having from 11 to 29 carbon atoms, preferably from 11 to 21 carbon atoms, and most preferably 13 to 17 carbon atoms.
• R 5 is generally a saturated, partly saturated or hydroxy substituted hydrocarbon group.
• Typical diacyl-R 5 or CO-R 5 -CO diacids are malonic acid, malic acid, succinic acid, maleic acid, glutaric acid, adipic acid, 1,12-dodecanoic acid, 1,14-tetradecandioic acid, 1,16-hexadecandioic acid, 1,18- octadecandioic acid, and the like.
• Re is advantageously derived from hard or soft tallow, coco, stearyl, oleyl, and the like.
• R 7 is a Ci to C 4 alkyl group, preferably CH 3 .
• X represents a counter ion of valence a such as CI ⁇ , Br ⁇ , I ⁇ , CH 3 OSO 3 ⁇ , CH 3 CH 2 OSOf, (CH 3 O) 2 PO 2 _ and the like.
• the polymeric esterquat diacid derivatives of formula (III) are commercially available from Kao under names such as Tetranyl PH-5 and Tetranyl PH-2. These compounds are obtained through the esterification of triethanolamine with a mixture of fatty acyl groups, preferably from tallow, and dicarboxylic acids, preferably such as adipic acid.
• Esters are further quaternized with Me 2 SO or methyl chloride but a higher alkyl group such as ethyl or propyl may be substituted for the methyl group.
• dicarboxylic acid into the esterification mixture results in the formation of dimeric and/or trimeric esterquats of formula
• polymeric esterquat diacid derivatives of formula III polymeric esteramines may be substituted therefor under appropriate circumstances to provide a useful fabric softening composition albeit less preferred.
• the polymeric esteramine would have a formula as described in formula (III) except that R 7 would be H instead of the defined alkyl group.
• the compounds (A) of formula (I) or (II) and compounds (B ) of formula (III) are used in admixture, preferably at ratios of about 5:1 to about 1:5, more preferably from 2:1 to
• the total amounts of components (A) and (B) is from about 2.5 to about 35 wt. percent, preferably from about 3 to about 30 wt%.
• compositions of this invention are provided as aqueous dispersions in which the fabric softener compounds of formulas (I), (II) and (III) are present in finely divided form stably dispersed in the aqueous phase.
• particle sizes of the dispersed particles of less than about 25 microns ( ⁇ m), preferably less than 20 ⁇ m, especially preferably no more than 10 ⁇ m, on average are acceptable for both softening and stability insofar as the particle sizes can be maintained during actual use, typically in the rinse cycle of an automatic laundry washing machine.
• the lower limit is not particularly critical but from a practical manufacturing standpoint will not generally be below about 0.01 ⁇ m, preferably at least about 0.05 ⁇ m.
• a preferred particle size range of the dispersed softener ingredients is from about 0.1 to about 8 ⁇ m.
• the aqueous phase of the dispersion is primarily water, usually deionized or distilled water. Small amounts (e.g. up to about 5% by weight) of co-solvent may be present for adjustment of viscosity.
• co-solvent lower mono- and poly-hydroxy alcohols and aqueous will be used, generally in amounts up to about 8% by weight of the composition.
• the preferred alcohols and aqueous are those having from 2 to 4 carbon atoms, such as, for example, ethanol, propanol, isopropanol, and propylene glycol or ethylene glycol. Isopropyl alcohol (2-propanol) is especially preferred.
• co-solvents are not required and are generally avoided.
• compositions of this invention include an electrolyte to reduce dispersion viscosity.
• any of the alkaline metals or alkaline earth metal salts of the mineral acids can be used as electrolyte.
• NaCl, CaCl 2 , MgCl 2 and MgSO4 and similar salts of alkaline and alkaline earth metals are preferred, and CaCl2 is especially preferred.
• the amount of the electrolyte will be selected to assure that the composition does not form a gel.
• amounts of electrolyte salt of from about 0.05 to 2.0 wt%, preferably 0.1 to 1.5 wt%, especially preferably 0.25 to 1.4 wt%, will effectively prevent gelation from occurring.
• the role of the electrolyte to inhibit gelation can be explained based on the assumption that the invention dispersions of the cationic softening compounds have a vesicular structure.
• the spacing of the multilayered vesicles in the liquid crystalline phases varies with the electrolyte concentration since it depends on the repulsion between the head groups in adjacent layers.
• the amount of the enclosed water tends to be reduced at high salt concentrations, causing a lowering of the disperse phase volume and the viscosity.
• if one exceeds a critical concentration of the electrolyte this may lead to a destabilization of the emulsions by flocculation or coalescence.
• the phenomenon of flocculation or coalescence can be explained by considering the electrostatic stabilization of colloidal dispersions. Attractive as well as repulsive forces act on the individual particles of a dispersion. The repulsive forces increase exponentially as the particles approach each other, such as when the concentration of dispersion increases, and they become very strong when the electrical double layers (the counterions in the dispersion medium give rise to the electrical double layers that surround the colloidal particles) that envelope each particle overlap.
• the thickness of the electrical double layers is very sensitive to the ionic strength of the dispersion medium. Increasing the ionic strength significantly diminishes the thickness of the double layer. The repulsive forces then become of insufficient magnitude and are no longer able to overcome the attractive van der Waals forces which may lead to dispersion flocculation or coagulation.
• compositions of the invention also contain a fatty alcohol ethoxylate nonionic surfactant to emulsify the perfume present in the composition.
• a fatty alcohol ethoxylate nonionic surfactant to emulsify the perfume present in the composition.
• the presence of an emulsifier is required in accordance with the invention to insure the physical stability of the composition which would otherwise be destabilized by the presence of perfume or fragrance in the composition.
• the fatty alcohol ethoxylates useful in the invention correspond to ethylene oxide condensation products of higher fatty alcohols, with the higher fatty alcohol being of from about 9 to 15 carbon atoms and the number of ethylene oxide groups per mole being from about 5 to 30.
• the alkyl chain length ranges from about 13 to 15 carbon atoms and the number of ethylene groups ranges from about 15 to 20 per mole.
• Synperonic A20 manufactured by ICI Chemicals, such nonionic surfactant being an ethoxylated C ⁇ 3 -C ⁇ s fatty alcohol with 20 moles of ethylene oxide per mole of alcohol.
• the HLB of the nonionic fatty alcohol ethoxylates are from about 12 to 20, with an HLB range of from about 14 to 16 being preferred. They are used in the composition in sufficient amount to provide emulsification, typically from about 0.1 to 5%, by weight of the composition.
• perfume is used in its ordinary sense to refer to and include any non- water soluble fragrant substance or mixture of substances including natural (i.e., obtained by extraction of flower, herb, blossom or plant), artificial (i.e., mixture of natural oils or oil constituents) and synthetically produced odoriferous substances.
• natural i.e., obtained by extraction of flower, herb, blossom or plant
• artificial i.e., mixture of natural oils or oil constituents
• synthetically produced odoriferous substances i.e., mixture of natural oils or oil constituents
• perfumes are complex mixtures of blends of various organic compounds such as alcohols, aldehydes, ethers, aromatic compounds and varying amounts of essential oils (e.g., terpenes), the essential oils themselves being volatile odoriferous compounds and also serving to dissolve the other components of the perfume.
• the particular composition of the perfume is of no importance with regard to the performance of the liquid fabric softener composition so long as it meets the criteria of water immiscibility and having a pleasing odor.
• compositions of the invention may contain a rheology modifier to help reduce or eliminate variations in the aqueous dispersion viscosity over time. It should be understood, however, that so long as the viscosity does not increase to an unacceptably high level over the expected life of the product (including transportation from the manufacturing plant to the market place, shelf-life in the market place, and duration of consumption by the end user) a second rheology modifier is not necessary.
• the viscosity after, for instance, 8 to 10 weeks should preferably not exceed about 1500 cPs (at 25°C), especially preferably the viscosity should not exceed about 1500 cPs (at 25°C) over the expected lifetime of the product. In many cases, initial viscosities of up to about 1,200 cPs can be achieved and maintained.
• the compositions may contain a polyethylene glycol polymer or polyethylene glycol alkyl ether polymer.
• the polyethylene glycol polymers useful herein have a molecular weight of at least 200 up to a molecular weight of about 8,000.
• Useful polymers include the polyethylene glycol and polyethylene glycol methyl ether polymers marketed by Aldrich Chemical Company.
• Useful amounts of polymer in the composition range from about 0.1 % to about 5%, by weight. A range of from about 0.5 to about 1.5%, by weight, is preferred.
• citric acid Another additive which has been found to be useful as a rheology modifier is citric acid, generally in amounts of from about 0.05 to 1.0 wt%, preferably from about 0.1 to 0.6 weight percent.
• Non-ionic surfactants may also be included in minor amounts (e.g. up to about 5% by weight, preferably up to about 2% by weight) as viscosity modifiers and/or emulsifying agents.
• optional rheology modifiers and thickeners for use herein are well known in the art and may be chosen from, for example, polymeric rheology modifiers and inorganic rheology modifiers. Examples of the former type include polyquaternium compounds, such as
• Polyquaternium-24 (a hydrophobically modified polymeric quaternary ammonium salt hydroxyethyl-cellulose, available from Amercho, Inc.); cationic polymers such as copolymers of acrylamide and quaternary ammonium acrylate; the Carbopols, and the like. Generally, only minor amounts, up to about 1.0%, preferably up to about 0.8%, such as, for example, 0.01 to
• a useful optional ingredient often added to fabric softening compositions is a cosoftener.
• cosoftener ingredients from the compositions of the present invention are fatty alcohols, glycerol monostearate (GMS) and glycerol monooleate (GMO).
• Typical components of this type include, but are not limited to colorants, e.g., dyes or pigments, bluing agents, preservatives, germicides, and perfumes.
• the subject liquid fabric softener compositions may be prepared by adding the active ingredients, usually as a melt, to the heated aqueous phase to which the acid component has been pre-mixed, under mixing. Low-shear mixing is generally sufficient to adequately and uniformly disperse the active ingredients in and throughout the aqueous phase. Further particles size reduction can be obtained by subjecting the composition to further treatment such as in a colloid mill or by high pressure homogenization, however, as previously noted, no significant improvement in softening performance has been associated with such particle size reduction.
• final product viscosity (for a freshly prepared sample) should not exceed about 1500 centipoise, preferably not more than 1000 centipoise, but should not be too low, for example not less than about 50 centipoise.
• the preferred viscosity for the invention concentrated product is in the range of 120 to 1000 cPs. As used herein, unless otherwise specified, viscosity is measured at 25°C (22-26°C) using a Brookfield RVTD Digital Viscometer with Spindle #2 at 50 rpm.
• the concentrated compositions may be diluted by a factor of generally 4:1 or more, preferably up to about 8:1 or even 10: 1.
• Concentrated products with up to about 35 weight percent of softeners may be prepared and will remain pourable and stable against phase separation or suspended particle agglomeration for extended periods of time.
• the concentrated products of this invention provide equivalent softness at the same use level (e.g., about 110 ml for standard washing machine) as a (hypothetical) softener product containing up to about 50 weight percent or more of ditallow dimethyl ammonium chloride (DTDMAC).
• DTDMAC ditallow dimethyl ammonium chloride
• a composition with about 28% of softeners can be diluted to about 5% actives to provide equivalent or superior softening performance to a product containing about 7% of DTDMAC.
• the composition will normally contain sufficient softener to be effective when added to the rinse water in an amount of about one-eighth to three-quarters of a cup (1 to 6 ounces) providing about 50 ppm to about 250 ppm of softener in the rinse water.
• compositions of the present invention are able to provide additional benefits beyond fabric softening to fabrics and laundry which are conditioned with such compositions. Principally, it is noted that these compositions provide improved color protection by dye transfer inhibition to treated fabrics, as well as improved care benefits by minimizing fabric abrasion. This has the effect of enhancing fabric appearance and extending fabric longevity.
• This example evaluates the softening performance of an amidoamine/polymeric- esterquat softener composition of the invention versus a conventional ditallow dimethyl quaternary ammonium softening composition.
• Softening compositions 1-8 as shown in Table 1 below were prepared containing varying amounts of active softening ingredients (A) and (B), the total actives ranging from 3.5%), by weight (composition 1) to about 28%, by weight (composition 8). The following procedure was used to prepare these compositions.
• Rewopal V3340 and Tetranyl PH5 in the amounts shown in Table 1) were each melted, mixed together with stirring and maintained at 70°C. Perfume was added to the molten mixture just prior to emulsification with the aqueous phase.
• HC1 in the amounts shown in Table 1 was added to heated (70°C) deionized water.
• the mixture of molten softening active compounds was added to the acidified water phase with stirring using a 4-pitched-blade impeller. During addition of the molten mixture the stirring speed was increased from 300 to 700 rpm as the emulsion thickened. Calcium chloride (0.4%, as 20% aqueous solution) was added to break or prevent gelation. The hot mixture was stirred for an additional 10 minutes at 350 rpm and the emulsion was allowed to cool to 30°C at which time colorant and preservative were added. Milliken Liquitint Royal Blue was used as colorant and lactic/lactate solutions was used as preservative.
• compositions were measured for initial viscosity, viscosity after storage at room temperature (RT) for 2 weeks and after 6 weeks and its softening performance.
• the viscosity was measured with a Brookfield Viscosimeter Model DVII operating at RT.
• Softening performance was evaluated versus a conventional softening composition equivalent to a 5% dispersion of ditallow dimethyl ammonium chloride (DTDMAC).
• the softening efficacy of a 5%> DTDMAC dispersion is referred to as 5 EQ and at double dosage level (corresponding to a 10% level of DTDMAC), the softness is referred to as 10 EQ.
• the softness increases linearly with dosage. Above these levels the softness no longer increases linearly with concentration and levels off. This means for a dispersion of DTDMAC at 15%, and at 12% dosage levels one cannot make a distinction in softening performance.
• the softness of concentrated products is assessed after a dilution with water sufficient to reduce the level of softening active to within the level at which a corresponding DTDMAC dispersion would be within the linear portion of the EQ scale, typically, from about 1% up to about 8%, by weight.
• the softening performance of the diluted composition is then measured by comparison to the benchmark softness provided by DTDMAC reference disperions.
• the final softening performance is then calculated multiplying the performance of the diluted product by the dilution factor. Table 1
• Lactic/lactate solution (80%) 0.063 0.063 0.063 0.16 0.25 0.25 0.25 0.25 0.31
• Rewopal V3340 is a commercial amidoamine compound marketed by Witco characterized by alkyl chains which are 75% hydrogenated tallow and 25% soft tallow.
• the thickener was BP-7050 polymer from BP Chemicals Ltd. United Kingdom.
• composition 3 containing 4.2% total actives provided a degree of softness equivalent to the reference 5% DTDMAC composition. Accordingly, on a weight basis, the composition of the invention is judged to be a superior softener relative to the conventional DTDMAC softening system.
• compositions 5-7 varying the ratio of amidoamine to polymeric esterquat from 1.2 to 2.2 for the same level of total actives, had no measurable effect on the resulting softening performance.
• Example 2 The stability and viscosity upon aging of several different compositions of the invention were measured at room temperature over a period of six weeks, and the results noted in Table 2 below.
• Compositions 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 are the identical compositions described in Table 1.
• Lactic/lactate solution (80%) 0.063 0.063 0.16 0.20 0.25 0.25 0.25

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