Classifications

• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B24—GRINDING; POLISHING
  • B24D—TOOLS FOR GRINDING, BUFFING OR SHARPENING
  • B24D11/00—Constructional features of flexible abrasive materials; Special features in the manufacture of such materials
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A47—FURNITURE; DOMESTIC ARTICLES OR APPLIANCES; COFFEE MILLS; SPICE MILLS; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
  • A47L—DOMESTIC WASHING OR CLEANING; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
  • A47L13/00—Implements for cleaning floors, carpets, furniture, walls, or wall coverings
  • A47L13/10—Scrubbing; Scouring; Cleaning; Polishing
  • A47L13/16—Cloths; Pads; Sponges

Definitions

• the present invention relates to wiping articles that are suitable for consumer use in cleaning surfaces in various environments, including domestic, industrial, hospital and food industry environments.
• the invention relates, in particular, to wiping articles that have a scouring surface (also called a scrubbing surface), on at least one side.
• Wiping articles are already widely used by consumers in the environments mentioned above for cleaning, for example, kitchen and bathroom surfaces, including floors. Many different wiping articles are currently available for domestic use, ranging from paper towels to conventional textile dish cloths and floor cloths, some being intended to be used dry (for example, to mop-up spilt liquid) and others being intended to be used in a damp or wet condition. It is also known to provide wiping articles that have a scouring action suitable for removing hardened soil and stains from a surface to be cleaned.
• wiping articles that have a scouring action are described in US-A-4 142 334 and 5 213 588, and in EP-A-0 211 664. Each of those documents describes wiping articles that, on one surface, carry an ordered pattern of abrasive areas formed by a printing process using a dispersion of abrasive particles in a liquid adhesive or binding agent that is subsequently allowed or caused to solidify.
• Wiping articles that have a mild scouring action without the use of abrasive particles are also known: for example, a mild scouring action can be achieved by spraying one side of a wiping substrate with molten polymer fibres that are subsequently allowed to harden.
• a mild scouring action can be achieved by spraying one side of a wiping substrate with molten polymer fibres that are subsequently allowed to harden.
• the provision of spaced abrasive areas on a wiping substrate is preferred since it enables the flexibility of the substrate to be retained to a large extent and provides
• the present invention provides a method of making a wiping article for cleaning surfaces, the method comprising the steps of
• the present invention also provides a wiping article for cleaning surfaces, comprising a liquid-absorbent web material and, disposed on a liquid-absorbent surface thereof, abrasive areas comprising at least cured particulate binder material, the said abrasive areas being spaced apart by liquid-absorbent areas of the web material.
• Fig. 1 is a plan view of a wiping article in accordance with the invention.
• Fig. 2 is a diagrammatic cross-section of the article on the line I-I in Fig. 1;
• Fig. 3 is a schematic illustration of a method of making the wiping article of Figs. 1 and 2;
• Figs. 4 and 5 are plan views of the scouring surface of other wiping articles in accordance with the invention.
• the present invention is directed to wiping articles that, at least on one surface, carry abrasive areas that provide the article with a scouring action, the remainder of the surface being available to provide the normal wiping action of the article.
• the present invention comprises a liquid-absorbent web material and, disposed on a liquid-absorbent surface thereof, abrasive areas comprising at least cured particulate binder material, the said abrasive areas being spaced apart by liquid-absorbent areas of the web material.
• pillate curable binder material means a material that is solid at room temperature, has been processed to a particulate form, and which may be softened and cured either by heating and subsequent cooling (if thermoplastic) or by sufficient exposure to heat or other form of energy (if thermosetting or cross-linkable).
• the invention is concerned with providing a method of making such wiping articles that has less environmental impact than methods that are currently employed.
• the use of a particulate binder material in a method in accordance with the invention enables the abrasive areas to be produced on the surface of the web material without producing volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and may also result in the energy requirements of the method being lower than those of methods that employ liquid binder materials.
• VOCs volatile organic compounds
• the invention is concerned with providing wiping articles of that type with an attractive visual appearance in addition to an effective scouring action.
• a particulate binder material enables the binder material to be deposited on the web material under the action of an electrostatic force: that, in turn, makes it possible to produce well-defined abrasive areas on the web material in a wide variety of patterns and thus provide consumers with an attractive choice of products.
• the wiping article 1 shown in Figs. 1 and 2 comprises a liquid-absorbent web material 3 and, adhered to the upper surface 4 of the web material (as seen in the drawings), abrasive areas 5 arranged in an ordered pattern.
• the abrasive areas 5 comprise abrasive particles together with a cured particulate binder material that adheres the abrasive particles to each other and to the surface of the web material 3. Between the abrasive areas 5, the liquid- absorbent surface 4 of the web material 3 is exposed.
• the abrasive areas 5 are shown in Fig. 1 as being in the form of bars: that is not essential, however, and other shapes can be used as will be described below. It is also not essential that the abrasive areas 5 should be arranged in an ordered pattern.
• a method of making the wiping article 1 is illustrated diagrammatically in Fig. 3.
• a continuous length of the web material 3 is fed from a roll 7 through a powder coating booth 9.
• the web material 3 is conveyed through the powder coating booth 9 on a flat surface provided by a grounded, electrically-conductive, conveyor 11 and, within the booth 9, the upper surface 4 of the web material is closely contacted by a stencil or mask 13, into which the pattern for the abrasive areas 5 has been cut in known manner.
• the stencil is a continuous band that is moved through the powder coating booth 9 at the same speed as the web material 3.
• Dry particulate material (comprising at least abrasive particles 14 and a curable particulate binder material 15) is supplied from a hopper 16 to an electrostatic spray gun 17 located in the upper part of the coating booth 9.
• Electrostatic spray guns are known from the powder coating art, where they are used in electrostatic powder coating systems to apply electrically-charged powder coating material to an electrically-grounded workpiece.
• a typical known electrostatic powder coating system consists of a powder hopper, a high voltage power supply (generating, for example, up to 100 kV), an electrostatic spray gun and a powder recovery system.
• the powder is fluidized in the hopper and then fed to the spray gun, which directs it towards the workpiece to be coated.
• An electrode at the front of the spray gun is connected to the power supply and causes an electrostatic charge to be imparted to the powder coating material as it is being propelled toward the grounded workpiece. The charge causes the powder particles to be drawn towards, and to attach themselves to, the grounded workpiece. Powder that is not deposited on the workpiece can be recovered and re-used.
• the electrostatic spray gun 17 is operated to direct the dry particulate material 14, 15 downwards onto the stencil 13 and (through the cut-out parts of the stencil) the upper surface 4 of the web material 3 under the combined effects of electrostatic attraction, gravity, and the flow of atomizing air from the spray gun 17.
• the stencil 13 is then moved away from the web 3 leaving spaced areas 5 of the particulate material 14, 15 on the surface of the web, in the pattern defined by the stencil.
• the particulate material 14, 15 that remains on the stencil 13 is collected in any suitable way, as is any particulate material that falls to the bottom of the booth 9, and can be reused.
• the web material 3 is then exposed to conditions that will cause the particulate binder material 15 to soften and then to cure, to bind the abrasive particles 14 in each of the spaced areas 5 to each other and to the surface 4 of the web material 3.
• the particulate binder material 15 is a thermosetting or a thermoplastic material and the web material 3 is, therefore, passed through an oven 19 in which it is heated to soften the particulate binder material: a thermosetting binder material can then also be cured in the oven 19, and a thermoplastic binder material will be cured by cooling after the web material 3 has left the oven.
• the web material 3, having the spaced abrasive areas 5 on its surface 4 is then converted into individual wiping articles 1 of an appropriate size as shown in Fig. 1 (following storage, if required, on a roll 21).
• the abrasive areas 5 need not be of the form shown in Fig. 1.
• Other suitable forms include dots as illustrated in Fig. 4, and pictorial shapes, for example as illustrated in Fig. 5.
• any shape that can be defined by a suitable stencil 13 can be produced.
• the arrangement of the abrasive areas 5 can be non-ordered or confined just to one part of the surface of the wiping article (for example, a graphic or pictorial shape in a corner or in the center of the wiping article).
• the abrasive areas 5 should preferably not cover more than about 50% of the surface of the wipe material 3. If the abrasive areas cover a greater amount of the surface of the wipe material, the liquid-absorbency of the wiping article may be substantially reduced, as may the scouring performance since there will be an increasing tendency for the wiping article to slip on the surface that is being cleaned. Generally, it has been found that the best results are obtained when the abrasive areas 5 cover about 15 - 40 % of the surface of the wipe material 3.
• the size of the individual abrasive areas 5 can vary depending on the way in which they are arranged on the surface of the wiping material but, if they are too large, the wiping article may slip on the surface to be cleaned and be less effective.
• the arrangement of the abrasive areas 5 on the surface of the wiping material 3 should preferably not be directional, to ensure that the user does not need to orient the wiping article 1 correctly before use.
• the conveyor 11 may be in the form of a grid, in which case the particulate material from the spray gun 17 will collect on the surface of the web material 3 preferentially along the grid lines of the conveyor.
• the grid lines will, however, not be well-defined and some particulate material will also be deposited on the web material in the spaces between the lines.
• the dry particulate material 14, 15 supplied from the hopper 16 to the electrostatic spray gun may include additives that are customary in the powder coating art, such as pigments, fillers, flow aids etc. Some of those additives, for example pigments and fillers, may be incorporated in the binder material particles.
• Suitable particulate binder materials include thermosetting and thermoplastic powders that are activated by heat, as well as powders that are activated other ways.
• Thermosetting resins from which the particulate binder material can be selected include formaldehyde- containing resins, such as phenol formaldehyde, novolac phenolics and especially those with added crosslinking agent (e.g., hexamethylenetetramine), phenoplasts, and aminoplasts; unsaturated polyester resins; vinyl ester resins; alkyd resins, allyl resins; furan resins; epoxies; polyurethanes; and polyimides.
• formaldehyde- containing resins such as phenol formaldehyde, novolac phenolics and especially those with added crosslinking agent (e.g., hexamethylenetetramine), phenoplasts, and aminoplasts
• unsaturated polyester resins vinyl ester resins
• alkyd resins al
• Binder materials that are cured other than by heating or cooling can also be used, for example, materials that are cured by ultraviolet light.
• the particulate binder material is an epoxy, or a polyurethane, or a co- polyamide particulate resin.
• the examples used the following materials, equipment, and test methods.
• Materials 50 %PET-50% rayon web material a disposable spun-lace wipe material having a basis weight of 50 g/m 2 from Green Bay Nonwoven of Green Bay, Wisconsin, U.S.A.
• PE/viscose/wood pulp web material a disposable spun lace wipe material available under the trade name "TenoLace” from Tenotex of Terno d'lsola, Italy.
• Semi-disposable microfibre web material a material of the type used for wipes available under the trade name "Scotch-BriteTM Dusting Cloth” from 3M Company of St.
• Re-usable microfibre web material a material of the type used for wipes available under the trade name "Cif" from Lever Faberge, Switzerland.
• Epoxy resin powder "Beckrypox AF" low temperature cure blue thermoset powder (mean particle size 35 microns) from DuPont of Montbrison, France.
• High density polyethylene resin powder "NB 6454F” thermoplastic powder (particle size 0 - 90 microns) from DuPont Polymer powders of Bulle, Switzerland.
• Copolyamide resin powder "Vestamelt 350 PI" thermoplastic powder (particle size 0-
• Polyurethane resin powder "UNEX 4073" thermoplastic powder (particle size 0-80 microns) from Minnesota Coatings of Nazareth, Belgium
• Low density polyethylene resin powder "HA 1591" thermoplastic powder (particle size 0 - 75 microns) from DuPont Polymer powders of Bulle, Switzerland.
• Powder flow aid "Aerosil 200" from Degussa of Marl, Germany.
• Polyamide particles particle size 0 - 250 microns (average 105 microns) from Rhodia of
• Powder coating equipment "Versaspray II" electrostatic spray gun from Nordson of Westlake, Ohio, USA, installed in a powder coating booth (also available from Nordson) and directed downwards towards a 30cm wide horizontal metallic mesh conveyor belt, which was electrically-grounded. An electrically-conductive plate was provided to be placed on top of a length of the conveyor, as it entered the booth. The gun was fitted with a 2.5 mm flat spray nozzle.
• the powder coating booth was provided with a fluidizing hopper to contain powder (the hopper being fitted with a venturi pump to supply the powder to the gun); a recovery dram to collect waste powder at the bottom of the booth and an air control unit for regulating the supply of fluidizing air to the hopper, and of flow and atomizing air to the pump and gun.
• the hopper, pump and recovery drum are all available from Nordson.
• the powder booth incorporated features that enabled the safe handling of fine powders (including air extraction through cartridge and HEP A filters, and a fire detection system).
• Stencil A vinyl stencil with cut-outs corresponding to the pattern of Fig. 1. The length of the stencil corresponded to the length of the electrically-conductive plate provided for the conveyor of the coating booth (see above).
• Through-air oven a gas oven (4 meters long) from Cavitec of Munchwilen, Switzerland.
• Cut test This test provided a measure of the cut (material removed from a work piece) by a wiping article under wet conditions.
• a 10.16 cm diameter circular specimen was cut from the wiping material to be tested and secured by a pressure-sensitive adhesive to a back-up pad that had been pre-conditioned by soaking in water. The wiping material was also pre-wetted. The back-up pad was secured to the driven plate of a Schiefer Abrasion Tester (available from Frazier Precision Company. Gaithersburg, Md.), which had been plumbed for wet testing.
• Circular wax work pieces 10.16 cm diameter by 1.27 cm thick were cut from "Protowax" (available from Kinet Collins Co. of Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.A.).
• the PET-rayon wipe material was conveyed continuously through the powder coating booth.
• the stencil was placed on the length of web material immediately up-stream of the coating booth and the plate underneath.
• a mixture of 75% epoxy resin powder and 25% polyamide particles was directed at the stencil by the "Versaspray II" spray gun located 30cm above the mesh conveyor.
• the powder mixture was supplied to the spray gun from the hopper in which it was fluidized until gentle bubbling using air at a pressure of 0.5 bar.
• the air pressure settings of the spray gun were 2-3 bar for the flow (or primary air) and 1-1.5 bar for the atomizing (or secondary) air and the maximum voltage (100 kV) was applied.
• the powder was deposited on the stencil at a weight of about 50 g/m 2 .
• the stencil-covered part of the web was then moved out of the coating booth, and the stencil and plate were removed leaving a pattern of powder deposits on that part of the web material, which was then moved into the gas oven and heated at 170°C for 2 min to fuse and cure the epoxy resin in the deposits and form a pattern of abrasive areas on the surface of the web material.
• a low speed setting was used for the recirculating air in the gas oven, to avoid dislodging the resin powder.
• the stencil was cleaned using an air blower to remove the powder mixture that had been deposited on it in the coating booth: the reclaimed powder mixture was returned to the hopper of the coating booth, and the stencil and plate were reused on another length of the web material.
• Example 1 was repeated using powder mixtures in which the ratio of epoxy resin powder to polyamide particles was, respectively, 50/50; 95/5 and 100/0 (i.e., in Example 4, no polyamide particles were present in the powder mixture).
• Example 1 was repeated except that the amount of powder deposited on the stencil in the
• Example 1 was repeated except that the PET-rayon wipe material was replaced by, respectively, the PE/viscose/wood pulp material, the semi-disposable microfibre material; and the re-usable microfibre material.
• the cut test showed that all of the samples exhibited an adequate scouring performance for consumer use as a scouring wipe in domestic, industrial, hospital and food industry environments.
• Samples from Example 4 indicated that an adequate scouring performance could be obtained through the use of a comparatively resin powder (possibly already formulated to include a filler material) without the use of additional abrasive particles. Samples from Example 8 were found to be washable for at least 5 cycles at a temperature of 95°C.

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• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Cleaning Implements For Floors, Carpets, Furniture, Walls, And The Like (AREA)
• Treatments For Attaching Organic Compounds To Fibrous Goods (AREA)
• Polishing Bodies And Polishing Tools (AREA)
• Chemical Or Physical Treatment Of Fibers (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

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• 2003
  • 2003-05-22 GB GBGB0311803.1A patent/GB0311803D0/en not_active Ceased
• 2004
  • 2004-04-08 EP EP04785599A patent/EP1628804A1/en not_active Withdrawn
  • 2004-04-08 JP JP2006532385A patent/JP2007511372A/ja not_active Withdrawn
  • 2004-04-08 BR BRPI0410449-8A patent/BRPI0410449A/pt not_active IP Right Cessation
  • 2004-04-08 CA CA002526575A patent/CA2526575A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2004-04-08 KR KR1020057022011A patent/KR20060013669A/ko not_active Withdrawn
  • 2004-04-08 CN CNA2004800140779A patent/CN1795079A/zh active Pending
  • 2004-04-08 MX MXPA05012364A patent/MXPA05012364A/es unknown
  • 2004-04-08 WO PCT/US2004/010844 patent/WO2004106002A1/en not_active Ceased
  • 2004-04-08 AU AU2004242576A patent/AU2004242576A1/en not_active Abandoned

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