FI89080C - Process for washing linen and containers for carrying out process one - Google Patents

Description

1 89080

The present invention relates to a process for machine washing of linen, in which a container containing a predetermined amount of a detergent mixture, preferably a liquid mixture, is placed in the drum of a washing machine, and the ingredients of the detergent mixture which do not match satisfactorily are packaged. separately. Another object of the invention 10 is a container for carrying out such a process.

It should be borne in mind, first of all, that the applicant company already owns or holds a number of patent applications in the laundry sector, which may be cited as reference material to illustrate the state of the art.

15 Application FR 84/06 151 filed on 18 April 1984 "Process for machine washing linen with liquid detergent and apparatus for applying the process" relates in particular to a device which is generally refillable and which is first filled with liquid detergent and then placed in the drum of the machine together with the linen to be washed. The detergent contained in the device gradually spreads to the washing medium and to the linen placed in the machine. In one embodiment, the device comprises a filling opening and holes for gradually allowing liquid to enter the linen during the washing operation.

Patent application FR 84/13 210, filed August 24, 1984, "Apparatus for machine washing with a liquid detergent and a process in which said apparatus is used" relates to an apparatus of the above-mentioned type, more specifically characterized in that it has a spherical shape. A certain number of openings allow the liquid to spread.

In addition, it is known that the use of liquid detergents leads to individual difficulties, due to the dangers that some of their ingredients are not compatible.

2,89080

Therefore, although it is possible to package the ingredients of a powdered detergent in the same container, it is practically not possible to form liquid detergents in advance when their mixtures contain, at the same time as 5 other active ingredients, ingredients which can release active oxygen or chlorine, for example peroxide ingredients such as perborates. or other inorganic or organic peroxide salts. However, it is known that the presence of active oxygen or chlorine is quite desirable if the best possible washing efficiency is to be achieved. In the case of liquid detergents, attempts are therefore made to obtain mixtures containing the same basic combinations as granular or powder detergents, but this is hampered by practical impossibility, since it is known that when conventional active components and perchlorinated or peroxide components are combined in a liquid detergent, these components quickly take effect. Therefore, it has been found that after a storage period of about two weeks, the active oxygen of these peroxide mixtures 20 is virtually completely released and is not available for washing.

As a reference to the state of the art, mention may be made of EP patent application published under number 0 132 726, which explains the use of a package containing one substance in the form of a bag 25 and a second, smaller bag containing another substance incompatible with the first substance. The material of which the outer bag is made is water-permeable, as is the material of the inner bag, but the materials are chosen so as to allow the substances they contain to spread at different temperatures, allowing the package to be adapted to practical needs, such as washing. The teaching of this prior document therefore includes placing separate bags in the same package, which may contain liquid substances, and selecting the bags so as to release the substances they contain at different temperatures. Such packaging containers are disposable and comprise several compartments, the basic idea being the result of an application in which the substances are kept in each separate bag, which are necessarily separated from each other in time. In addition, it is essential that the bags be soluble in water or have special properties to allow water to pass through them at a particular temperature. Therefore, the outer bag is made of an open-cell polyurethane foam film, while the inner bag is made of polyvinyl alcohol.

The present invention relates to a general type of machine washing machine for linen, in which a container containing a predetermined amount of preferably 15 liquid detergent mixtures is placed in the drum of the washing machine, designed to allow this mixture to gradually spread during the washing operation. The invention provides an improvement to this method by using a packaging container comprising several compartments and which releases the contents of each compartment 20 simultaneously during use, regardless of the temperature of the medium. In such a process, the materials from which the walls of the compartments are made are not critical and, contrary to the teaching of the aforementioned EP patent application 0 132 726, these walls are impermeable to water, whereby the contents of each compartment are emptied through pre-made openings.

- The process according to the invention is therefore characterized in that, in order to gradually apply each component of the detergent composition, each component is covered in separate compartments of a container having a water-impermeable wall structure, each compartment having at least one opening so that the detergent composition components can spread simultaneously washing operation. ···. during.

The process of the invention thus provides a solution to the technical problem caused, in particular, by the use of liquid detergents, in particular for releasing active oxygen or chlorine during a washing operation. Therefore, 5 substances which are completely compatible or incompatible with each other and which have to be subjected to a washing operation at the same time can be used in the process of the invention.

The container to be placed in the drum of a washing machine according to the invention is characterized by what is stated in the claims below.

In the process of the invention, it is highly recommended to use a disposable type container in which a predetermined amount of a substance or mixture of substances is placed in each compartment. In the case of, for example, 15 two-compartment tanks which are to operate in accordance with the general teachings of FR patent application 84/06 161 filed on 18 April 1984 and FR patent application 84/13 210 of 24 August 1984, the inner compartment contains an ingredient intended to release active ingredients. 20 chlorine and oxygen, while the second compartment contains the rest of the detergent mixture. Once the lid covering the tank has been removed, the tank is placed in the drum of the machine together with the linen to be washed. The detergent and the active ingredient contained therein are gradually spread in the washing medium as well as in the linen placed in the machine, and this is done simultaneously due to the gradual outflow of the detergent and this ingredient. This gives the best results when washing the linen.

The disposable container, which can be used in the best possible way in the washing process according to the invention, forms the subject of the FR patent application "Manufacture and application of a disposable container specifically for washing linen" filed by the applicant company on the same day. In this description, it is sufficient to recall that this disposable container is designed to package substances which, when put together, are not satisfactorily compatible, and therefore comprises several compartments correspondingly reserved for the use of such substances. Said container comprises a generally ball-shaped outer shell with a flat bottom and a circular opening diametrically opposite the bottom; at least one wall-delimited inner compartment extending completely inside the outer shell, which also has a circular opening smaller in diameter than the shell opening, concentric with said opening, so that the walls of the shell and the compartment are connected at the level of their respective openings and holes and form an annular area comprising a predetermined number of holes and a removable lid covering and closing the inner opening and the holes in the annular region, so that the container has a total of at least one inner compartment in which the first substance or mixture of compatible substances can be placed and at least one other compartment extends between the outer shell and the inner compartment and in which a second substance or mixture of substances 20 which is relatively incompatible with the first may be placed, so that the contents of the two compartments are isolated from each other with the lid in place; the substance in the second compartment 25 can flow freely through the opening here and the substance in the second compartment 25 can flow freely through the holes in the annular region, so that all the substances held in the container are then available simultaneously.

As used in this specification, the term "generally spherical shape" used to define the outer shell of a container should not be construed to describe a sphere or a sham sphere. The expression includes other ovoid-type rotating surfaces whose curvatures are such that the container does not damage the linens during the machine wash operation during which the container is placed on the drum. 35 The inner container may be partially bounded by any wall of the shape of 6,89080, which is generally a spherical or ovoid-type rotating surface, bearing in mind, however, the method used in its manufacture, which will be described hereinafter.

Other complementary and advantageous features of the container will be explained and described in detail in the above-mentioned co-pending FR application, which is incorporated herein by reference.

The co-pending application also describes a process 10 for manufacturing a container as defined above by a general plastic blow molding and injection molding technique, characterized in that it comprises the following steps.

An outer shell with round openings and a flat base is made, said shell is filled with the desired amount of the first substance, an inner with a plastic sheath is inserted through said opening until the annular ring-shaped top substantially bears against the edges of the shell opening, a sheath is used to prepare the inner compartment. holes are pierced in the annular area of the top, the inner compartment is filled with the desired amount of the second substance and the top of the tank is covered with a lid.

As explained in detail in the co-pending application, the process described above may comprise a number of alternative forms in which some of the steps differ or the sequential order of said steps differs from the process described above.

This description discloses an alternative form which corresponds to a particularly advantageous way of practical application and which, according to the process, comprises the following steps.

An outer shell with round openings and flat bottoms is made, an inner with a plastic film with a pre-made 35 holes in the annular top is inserted through said opening until said upper portion substantially bears against the edges of the shell opening, the film is used to make the inner part of the container, the inner part and the inner compartment are each filled with the desired amount of the first and second substances and the upper part of the container 5 is covered with a lid.

In this alternative form, the filling steps of the inner part of the shell and the inner part can be in any order.

In all embodiments of the process, the si-10 compartment can be formed in several ways.

Other complementary and advantageous features of the container will be explained and described in detail in the above-mentioned co-pending application, which is incorporated herein by reference.

15 A container of the type mentioned above, or a container manufactured by the process just described, makes it possible to pack together substances which are not sufficiently compatible with each other to be stored under conditions which meet practical needs. As an example, a sensitive component of a liquid detergent, especially a component capable of releasing active chlorine or oxygen, for example a peroxide-derived additive, may be placed in the inner compartment and the rest of the detergent mixture, which is preferably liquid, placed outside the outer shell.

The above description is essentially related to the construction of a two-compartment container, but needless to say, the same manufacturing technique can be used to fabricate successive inner compartments. Only a suitable number of inserts with plastic sheaths need to be used to make each compartment. A feature common to all these compartments is that they have holes arranged in such a way that, when the lid covering the entire container is removed, the contents 35 of each of these compartments can flow freely.

3,89080

Given the disposability of the container according to the invention, the container cannot generally be reused, and in particular at the end of the machine wash cycle, after the products (detergent mixture and additive) have completely removed from each compartment, the entire container deforms, but its parts remain cohesive. stuck to each other, and this makes it possible, on the one hand, not to damage the linen and, on the other hand, to avoid the formation of pieces that could clog the piping. Therefore, when the linen washing is completed, the container is usually removed from the drum of the machine in a compressed form.

As already mentioned, the process according to the invention therefore preferably uses a disposable, multi-compartment container which is the subject of the above-mentioned 15 co-patent application. However, it is also possible to use tanks of a different design in the process, comprising compartments separated by walls which are impermeable to the aqueous medium and liquid-like products commonly used in washing technology. In fact, the process according to the invention is based on controlled diffusion through holes with which the compartments are correspondingly provided.

The invention is further illustrated, without limiting it in any way, by the following description, which is given as an example of the use of a multi-compartment disposable container with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Figure 1 shows a front view and a partial section of a container which can be used in the process of the invention. Figure 2 is an axial section of the container of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a top plan view of the container of Figure 1.

Fig. 4 is a section of the container of Fig. 1 along the plane of line IV-IV with the protective lid removed.

Figure 5 shows an axial section of the protective cover.

Fig. 6 is a top plan view of the interior of the container of Fig. 1.

Figures 7-12 illustrate the manufacture of a disposable container for use in the process of the invention.

For ease of explanation, the container is shown in Figures 5 to 6, first, without reference to the substances contained therein. The manufacture of a complete container is shown in Figures 7-12, of which Figure 12 specifically shows a disposable container with two compartments with the protective lid removed.

As shown in Figures 1 to 6, the container 1 comprises a generally spherical outer shell 1 with a flat bottom 3, diametrically opposite a circular opening 2. This circular opening 2 is flanked by an annular surface 2a substantially parallel to the base 3. plane. This rim may have a thickness of, for example, 0.5 mm and may be made of polyethylene, polypropylene, polycarbonate or a mixture of such polymers with or without additives. In order for the wall 1 to become sufficiently rigid, there are corrugations 1a in its outer circumference, which can be seen in the left half of Fig. 1 and in Fig. 3.

The container also comprises an inner compartment, generally indicated by reference numeral 4, which is located entirely inside the outer shell 1. This compartment is shown in the narrow half of Figure 1i-25 and in Figures 2-4 and 6. It has wall-forming bellows 12 (Figure 6). A cylindrical wall 5 shown in the figures is placed in the upper part of the inner compartment 4, which extends first vertically and then horizontally to support (flange 5a) against the gaseous edge 2a of the opening 2 of the outer shell 1. The inner compartment 4 is thus open near the upper end through an opening 11 of circular cross-section. Similarly, the openings 7 (there are six of these openings in the example shown) are evenly spaced around the central opening 11.

The container is closed by a protective lid shown in Figures 35 1-3 and 5. This lid has a cylindrical protrusion 10, 10 89080 which fits into the opening 11 of the inner compartment 4. This protrusion 10 joins a wall 8 which fits an annular flange 5a to close the holes 7 therein. cover to a small tab 9 from which it can be handled.

The materials from which the inner compartment 4 is made are selected from the same polymers from which the outer shell 1 is made, but their stiffness properties should preferably be different compared to the outer shell.

When the container is empty, it has an average weight of 10 to 8-15 g.

Referring to Figures 7-12, the manufacture of a disposable container for use in the invention will now be explained.

In order to avoid an increase in the number of reference numerals, not all steps of the process are shown in the drawings. For example, Fig. 7 shows a body 1 of an outer shell made by blowing or injection molding, the upper opening 2 of which is surrounded by an annular rim 2a and the bottom 3 of which is flat. The same Fig. 7 shows a liquid product 15 poured into the shell 1 after it has been made. For example, product 15 is a liquid detergent composition that does not contain additives such as peroxide compounds. The volume of the shell 1 and the amount of liquid product 15 are calculated relative to each other, keeping in mind that the container is designed to receive a single dose 25 for the next linen washing operation. Therefore, the amount of liquid 15 must be sufficient to ensure this function when the shell 1 is dimensioned so as to allow the other steps to take place in succession.

Fig. 8 shows the beginning of the installation of the plastic inner support 30 inside the plastic sheath 13. The cross-section of the sheath 13 is smaller than the diameter of the opening 2 in order to allow installation, and a vacuum may or may not be introduced inside the sheath 13 through the upper opening 11. The sheath 13 preferably comprises a bellows structure 12. The sheath 13 is connected at its upper end to a cylindrical part 5 to which a wall 5a is attached, which forms a flange with an opening 11 in the middle.

Fig. 9 shows the course of the installation of the sheath 13 in the shell 1. It can be seen that the flange 5a is dimensioned so as to cover practically completely the opening 2 when the arrangement shown in Fig. 10 is reached, where it can be seen that the flange 5a rests on the shell 1. to the annular rim 2a. When this situation is reached, the vacuum that may be connected inside the sheath 13 is removed. This interruption of suction can occur when the flange 10a actually rests on the annular edge 2a, but as shown in Figures 9 and 10, the suction can be interrupted as soon as the cylindrical part 5 has passed the opening 2 in the outer shell 1 so that the blowing step can start inside the sheath 13 as soon as the situation shown in Fig. 10 is reached.

This leads to the situation shown in Fig. 1, in which the sheath 13 has formed as an inner compartment 4 in its final form. This same figure 11 shows the next step, which consists of filling the inner compartment 4 with a liquid 20 16 which is fed through the opening 11. In the event that a liquid machine laundry detergent is used, this product 16 may be a peroxide type additive.

In the operation shown in Fig. 12, holes 7 in the flange 5 at the top of the inner compartment 4 are pierced. For example, six holes 7 are pierced to provide the inner compartment shown in Fig. 6.

Finally, the top of the container is covered with a lid of the type shown in Figure 5.

Thus, the final product is a disposable container with two compartments, an inner compartment 4 with a peroxide-type additive and an outer compartment 4 held in the outer shell 1 and containing a liquid detergent.

Before washing the linen in the machine, the lid is removed so that the container is available in the form shown in Fig. 12 89080 12. The tank is placed as is in the drum of the linen washing machine. The liquid detergent 15 spreads through the holes 7, while the contents of the inner compartment 4 pass through the opening 11. The technical problem presented is thus solved by a washing process using two products packaged separately at the same time in order to avoid harmful interactions if the products in question are not sufficiently compatible, as is the case with peroxide additives and liquid detergents.

The foregoing explanation is given by way of illustration only. It will be appreciated that containers with more than two compartments may be used in the process of this invention. It is then sufficient to install the other compartments in the interior of the interior compartment 4 using the same method as shown in Figs. 7-12.

Similarly, spherical containers are shown in the drawings in general, as this shape is best suited for use in drum washing drums. However, it is entirely possible for the container to have a different shape, for example an ovoid, which is a form of rotation, taking into account the blowing process. In any case, the walls delimiting the various compartments, the aqueous substance and the substances normally used for washing, cleaning or rinsing are impermeable. In fact, the idea of the container used in the process according to the invention is based on the direct spread from the openings in each compartment.

It is also significant that the fabrication of the container shown in Figures 7-12 can be modified according to the teachings of the aforementioned rin-30 adhesive patent application. For example, the tank can be filled immediately after the inner compartment has been manufactured. In addition, holes 7 can be made in advance in the upper flange 5a of the plastic film 13.

The invention also relates to a container for use in a washing process comprising a plurality of compartments, 13 89080 having openings, each of which is intended to be filled with a detergent or a mixture of materials which is not sufficiently compatible with the substances in the other compartments.

In view of the use of the washing process according to the invention, the individual compartments of the container can advantageously be filled with selected ingredients of the detergent compounds, or a combination of such ingredients. This avoids the adverse effects due to insufficient compatibility of the ingredients and, in addition, provides a number of beneficial effects in the washing and treatment of textile fibers.

The process of the invention makes it possible to package and use the ingredients or combinations of ingredients of detergent compositions separately and without limitation. In practice, it is often desired to limit the tank compartments to two. In such cases, these compartments may contain, for example, combinations of different ingredients, such as granules and granules, granules and liquid, and liquid and liquid.

In a preferred embodiment, the process of the invention provides a container for use, wherein one of the compartments contains a liquid detergent composition and the other a bleaching compound.

All types of liquid detergent compositions can be used, including highly concentrated compositions without a phosphate-derived additive and liquid detergent compositions containing conventional amounts of surfactants and conventional phosphate and / or inorganic additives. The liquid detergent compositions in question often contain 5-60% of synthetic organic surfactant and 0-40%, preferably 5-35%, of detergent additive. Non-limiting examples of surfactants and detergent additives are given in European Patent Application 35 EP-A-0 075 988. In addition to the surfactant and the additive component 14 39030, such liquid mixtures may contain numerous excipients which are used in conventional amounts due to their known special properties. Examples of additives of this type include enzymes, in particular proteases, amylases, lipases and / or cellulases; enzyme stabilizers such as short chain carboxylic acids such as formic acid; heavy metal sequestrants such as aminopolyphosphonates such as ethylenediaminetetramethylphosphonate or diethylenetriamine pentamethylphosphonate or aminocarboxylates such as ethylenediamine nitetracarboxylate in amounts of 0.3-1.2%; aminosilanes up to 1% by weight, such as those described in EP-A-0 075 988; solvents; foam regulators; bactericides; bleach; fragrances; brighteners and the like. Similar liquid detergent compositions are well known and are very widely used in commercial applications.

The second compartment can be filled with bleach detergent. Examples of such bleaches contain 20 oxygen or chlorine. Well known oxygen-containing bleaches include perborates, percarbonates, parsilates and perphosphates. The bleaching component may also be represented by a mixture of a pre-bleaching agent such as tetraacetylethylenediamine (T-AED) and an oxygen-containing bleaching agent such as perborate titrate hydrate or monohydrate. The bleach component containing oxygen, called available oxygen, may represent 0.1 to 3% by weight of the detergent composition. The pre-bleach (activator) is generally used in a molar ratio of oxygen-containing bleach of 15: 1-2: 1 to the activator. Chlorine-containing bleaches, including hypochlorite-containing bleaches or chlorine-containing solid bleaches, may be used in amounts such that they contain 0.05-2% of active chlorine in the detergent composition. The process of the invention is further illustrated without limiting the 89080 in any way in the following description of a specific embodiment and showing the advantages obtained in washing linen.

The shell of the dispensing container ul-5 of the type shown in Figs. 1-3 is filled with 180 grams of a liquid detergent for ordinary washing, the composition of which is shown below.

Ingredient Weight percent

Dodesenyl succinic acid 15 10 Dodesyl (straight chain) benzenesulphonic acid 13 C12-14 fatty alcohols with 7 ethylene units per mole of alcohol 8

Alkyl (coconut) sulfonic acid 3

Ethanol 8 15 Proteolytic enzymes (Maxatase1) (1.5 AU / g) 0.65

Amylases (Maxamyl1) (300,000 K.n.u / g) 0.17

Diethylenetriaminepentamethylenephosphonic acid 0.7

Citric acid 0.8 Oleic acid 4.0 20 Formic acid 1.0

Calcium chloride 150 (ppm)

Sodium hydroxide to adjust the pH to 7.6 (measured at 20 ° C) Minor ingredients such as optical brighteners, silicone foam regulator, bleach, perfume, opacifier.

Up to a hundred water

Registered trade mark 30

The inner compartment is filled with 32 grams of perborate tetrahydrate and 4 grams of peroxide bleach activator balls. These spheres contain 88% by weight of TAED (tetraacetylethylenediamide) and 12% by weight of 35% by weight of a granulating agent, which is precisely the condensation product of animal fat alcohol 89080 mol with 25 moles of ethylene oxide.

A two-compartment tank containing a detergent mixture and a peroxidized combination is placed in the drum of an automatic linen washing machine together with washable tex-5 bricks. The washing cycle consists mainly of a washing step and subsequent rinses.

It was found that the washing and whiteness of the textiles were clearly better than if a refillable dispensing tank containing the same amount of liquid detergent but no bleach compound in the inner compartment was used. It is interesting to note that a better washing result can be observed in a variety of stains as well as in various specialty products.

Very generally, the second compartment 15 can be used to dispense some detergent ingredient that for some reason cannot be combined with other detergent ingredients.

Examples of detergent ingredients that can be placed in the second compartment include, in particular, bactericides, antioxidants, polycarboxylates such as polyacrylates, peroxide bleaches such as diperoxydodecanedioic acid and magnesium monoperoxyphthalate, grades such as sodium hypochlorite, oxide reductases, cellulase glasses and lipases, suitable textile softeners such as bentonites, smestites, hectorites, thalidiamines, fatty acids, detergent additives such as sodium tripolyphosphate and sodium silicates, and stain coagulating polymers.

Claims (8)

17,89080 Claims p A process for machine washing of linen, in which a container (1) 5 containing a predetermined amount of a detergent mixture, preferably a liquid mixture, is placed in the drum of a washing machine, and the ingredients (15, 16) of the detergent mixture which do not fit satisfactorily are packaged separately, which method characterized in that for the gradual application of each component (15, 16) of the detergent mixture, each component is packed in separate compartments (1, 4) of a container (1) having a water-impermeable wall structure, each compartment having at least one opening (7, 11) so that the ingredients of the detergent mixture can be applied simultaneously and separately during the pe-15 operation. Process according to Claim 1, characterized in that a container with two compartments (1, 4) is used. Process according to Claim 2, characterized in that one of the compartments contains bleaching components intended to release active oxygen or chlorine during the washing operation, while the other compartment contains the rest of the detergent mixture. Process according to one of Claims 1 to 3, characterized in that a container is used in which a corresponding substance or mixture of substances is introduced into each compartment to which it comprises during use. Process according to one of Claims 1 to 3, characterized in that a disposable container is used, each compartment of which contains a predetermined amount of substances or mixtures of substances intended to assist in the washing operation. A container (1) to be placed in the drum of a washing machine for carrying out the process according to any one of claims 1 to 5, which container contains a predetermined amount of a washing mixture 89080, preferably a liquid mixture, characterized in that the container (1) has a water-impermeable wall structure and comprises a plurality of compartments (1, 4), each of which is intended to receive a substance or mixture of substances (15, 16) to assist in the washing operation, the compatibility of which with the substances in the other compartments is unsatisfactory, and that each compartment is provided with at least one opening (7). , 11) to allow simultaneous and separate spreading of each substance during the washing operation 10. Container according to Claim 6, characterized in that the holes (7, 11) in the compartments are closed by a single removable lid (parts 8 to 10). Container according to Claim 6 or 7, characterized in that its general shape is spherical or ovoid. is 89080