JP4856590B2 - Cat sand - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to cat sand, and more particularly to cat sand that can effectively suppress malodor of cat urine.

  Since clay exhibiting water swellability such as bentonite can treat urine as a solid, it is widely used as toilet sand for pets. Such toilet sand has a problem that the deodorizing effect against bad or bad urine odor is not sufficient. For this reason, it is conceivable to carry a fragrance on the toilet sand, but when a fragrance is carried on a water-swellable clay such as bentonite, the fragrance is gradually released, showing a sustained release of the fragrance, It is effective in that it emits fragrance over a long period of time, but it does not emit much fragrance during actual use (during urine) where odors are emitted most, and its deodorizing effect is not sufficient.

For this reason, Patent Document 1 proposes pet litter (pet excrement treatment agent) that uses highly adsorbent zeolite particles instead of water-swellable clay and has a fragrance supported on the zeolite particles. Has been.
JP 2000-236766

  That is, the toilet sand of Patent Document 1 adsorbs malodorous components such as ammonia by zeolite particles, and at the same time has a high deodorizing function due to the fragrance emitted by the fragrance, but on the other hand, it is like water-swelling clay. There is a problem that it does not have a solidifying function and the disposability becomes unsatisfactory. Moreover, although the deodorizing effect with respect to feces and urine of dogs and the like can be achieved, the deodorizing effect with respect to cat urine is not yet sufficient.

  In addition, the present inventors previously proposed a perfume-carrying pet toilet sand in which a perfume is carried on a granular material containing a water-swellable clay mineral component such as bentonite and an opal component (Japanese Patent Application No. 2004-362605). ). This toilet sand has a solidifying function due to water swelling performance, and at the same time, continuously shows a deodorant property against bad odors or odors against ammonia etc., and exhibits a high deodorant property especially during excrement. is there.

  However, the fragrance-carrying pet toilet sand as described above can effectively suppress malodor derived from manure for pets such as dogs, as with the toilet sand of Patent Document 1, but against cats. Does not have a sufficient odor prevention effect. That is, among various pets, urine of cats, particularly male cats, has a significant odor, and there is a demand for toilet sand that sufficiently suppresses such urine odors of cats. .

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide cat litter, that is, cat litter that can effectively suppress the malodor of cat urine.

  According to the present invention, a water-swellable clay component and a non-swelling pH of 4 or less measured at a concentration of 5% by weight using 1% saline in an amount that does not inhibit the water-swellability of the clay component. A cat sand characterized by containing a water-soluble solid component, particularly a non-swelling clay component, is provided.

In the cat sand of the present invention,
(1) The non-swellable clay component is acid clay or acid-treated clay,
(2) The non-swellable clay component is mixed in an amount of 1 to 40 parts by weight per 100 parts by weight of the water-swellable clay component.
(3) Containing a clay component having a pH measured at a concentration of 5% by weight using 1% saline together with the non-swellable clay component,
(4) The clay component having a pH of 10 or more is a water-swellable clay component or a part of the water-swellable clay component,
Is preferred.
The “acid-treated clay” referred to in the present invention is an “acid clay or bentonite treated with an inorganic acid aqueous solution such as sulfuric acid” (so-called activated clay) or “acidic clay with an organic acid or an acid-inorganic salt”. And the like are added and homogeneously mixed and processed.

  In addition to the water-swellable clay component, the cat sand of the present invention is a non-swellable clay component having a pH of 4 or less (hereinafter simply referred to as non-swellable acidic clay) measured at a concentration of 5% by weight using 1% saline. It is an important characteristic that the water-swellable clay component is contained in an amount that does not inhibit the water-swellability of the water-swellable clay component. That is, since this cat sand contains a water-swellable clay component, it has a solidifying function due to water swelling, and thus has the property that it can be solidified by manure and easily discarded. By containing the non-swelling acidic clay component as described above, it is possible to effectively suppress the generation of malodor in cat urine, and in particular, it is possible to suppress even the occurrence of severe malodor, such as urine in male cats. It has an excellent effect that is not recognized at all in the known cat sand.

  In the present invention, the effect of effectively preventing the generation of cat odor by blending the non-swelling acidic clay component as described above has been found as a phenomenon by many experiments. The exact reason for preventing the generation of a bad odor has not been elucidated, but the present inventors presume as follows.

That is, as a cause of bad odor in cat urine, urea (NH ₂ · CO · NH ₂ ) in urine is hydrolyzed by urease (hydrolyzing enzyme) to generate ammonia, and this ammonia causes bad odor. This has been known for some time. Such a bad odor due to ammonia is not limited to cats, but also to other pets. However, the enzyme activity of urease that generates ammonia is deactivated in an acidic region having a pH of 5 or less, particularly 4 or less, and an alkaline region having a pH of 10 or more. Therefore, in the cat sand of the present invention, urease is deactivated by the blending of the non-swellable acidic clay component, and the generation of ammonia is suppressed. As a result, the generation of malodor is suppressed. This is one of the reasons.

Further, as a cause of malodor of cat urine, for example, a kind of pheromone-like substance (hereinafter, also simply referred to as pheromone) that is particularly abundant in male cat urine is known. This pheromone candidate substance is a derivative of phenyrin, for example:
HS · C (CH ₃ ) ₂ · CH ₂ · CH ₂ · OH
HS · C (CH ₃ ) ₂ · CH ₂ · CH ₂ · O · CO · H
CH ₃ · S · C (CH ₃ ) ₂ · CH ₂ · CH ₂ · OH
CH ₃ · S · S · C (CH ₃ ) ₂ · CH ₂ · CH ₂ · OH
Are contained in the urine of male cats, and this is the cause of the remarkable odor of male cat urine. The generation factors of the ferrinin derivative (pheromone) as described above are considered as follows.

式中、Ｘは、カルボキシル基（ＣＯＯＨ）である、
で表されるフェニリン前駆体は、肝臓由来のγ−ＧＴＰ（γ−グルタミルトランスフェラーゼ）により分解され、下記式：
HOOC・CH_２・NH・CO・CH(NH_２)・CH_２・S・C(CH_３)・CH_２・CH_２・OH
で表されるフェニリン前駆体分解物が生成する。
尿中には、腎臓由来のコーキシンと呼ばれるタンパク質（カルボキシエステラーゼ類似の酵素）が含まれており、上記のフェリニン前駆体分解物は、このコーキシンの作用により更に分解され、グリシンと共に、下記式：
HOOC・CH(NH_２)・CH_２・S・C(CH_３)・CH_２・CH_２・OH
で表されるフェニリン（フェロモン前駆体）が生成する。このフェニリンが尿中に含まれる各種分解酵素や土壌などに含まれる微生物が保有する酵素などによって分解し、前述した数種のフェニリン誘導体（フェロモン候補物質）が生成し、これが著しい悪臭の元となるわけである。前記化学式で表した４種のフェロモン候補物質の中でも、下記式：
HS・C(CH_３)・CH_２・CH_２・OH
で表される３−メルカプト−３−メチル−１−ブタノールが、質量ともに代表的悪臭物質と考えられている。 That is, the following formula generated in the cat's body:

In the formula, X is a carboxyl group (COOH).
Is degraded by liver-derived γ-GTP (γ-glutamyltransferase), and the following formula:
HOOC ・ CH ₂・ NH ・ CO ・ CH (NH ₂ ) ・ CH ₂・ S ・ C (CH ₃ ) ・ CH ₂・ CH ₂・ OH
The degradation product of a phenyline precursor represented by
The urine contains a protein (carboxyesterase-like enzyme) called kidney-derived cauxin, and the above ferrinin precursor degradation product is further decomposed by the action of this cauxin, and together with glycine, the following formula:
HOOC ・ CH (NH ₂ ) ・ CH ₂・ S ・ C (CH ₃ ) ・ CH ₂・ CH ₂・ OH
A phenyrin (pheromone precursor) represented by This phenyrin is decomposed by various degrading enzymes contained in urine and enzymes possessed by microorganisms contained in the soil, etc., and the above-mentioned several types of phenyrin derivatives (pheromone candidate substances) are produced, which causes a significant odor. That is why. Among the four pheromone candidate substances represented by the chemical formula, the following formula:
HS ・ C (CH ₃ ) ・ CH ₂・ CH ₂・ OH
In terms of mass, 3-mercapto-3-methyl-1-butanol is considered to be a typical malodorous substance.

  However, in the present invention, the addition of the aforementioned non-swellable acidic clay component not only suppresses the activity of various degrading enzymes and microorganism-containing enzymes contained in urine, thereby suppressing the production of pheromones from phenyloline. Since the activity of cauxin is also inactivated, it is considered that the generation of phenyrin, which is a pheromone generation source, is also effectively suppressed. That is, in the present invention, the generation of pheromone which is a source of significant odor is cut off from the origin due to the inactivation of cauxin and various enzymes, and this is the biggest reason why the generation of significant odor is prevented. Conceivable.

  In the present invention, a non-swelling acidic clay component as described above is blended, and at the same time, a component having a pH of 10 or more measured at 1% by weight using 1% saline (hereinafter simply referred to as an alkali component). It is preferable to contain this, and, thereby, the odor generation preventing effect is further improved. That is, as such an alkali component, a water-swellable clay component whose pH is adjusted to the above alkali side is usually used. By using such an alkali component, pheromones such as the above-mentioned cauxin are generated. This is because the enzymes that cause ammonia generation such as inactivation of enzymes and urease are also deactivated, and generation of malodorous components is effectively prevented. The above-mentioned examples show the effects of deodorizing and deodorizing pheromone and ammonia by inhibiting the activity of enzymes such as cauxin and urease. It can be typically evaluated by the “anti-enzyme deodorizing ability” shown as a performance test method.

Furthermore, the above-mentioned four kinds of compounds, which are said to be pheromone candidate substances having a specific odor generated from cat urine, are all sulfur-containing compounds and vaporize into weakly acidic gaseous substances. The effect of being strongly adsorbed and deodorized by the water-swellable clay component adjusted to the alkali side is also extremely large. This effect can be representatively evaluated by the “pseudo pheromone deodorizing ability” shown as a deodorizing performance test method in Examples described later. The pseudo pheromone substance used in this test method has the following formula:
HS ・ CH ₂・ CH ₂・ OH
It is 2-mercaptoethanol represented by these. The above-mentioned 3-mercapto-3-methyl-1-butanol, which is considered to be a typical malodorous substance in terms of mass, has the same basic structure [HS · (CH ₂ ) _n · OH)] and similar characteristics. It is suitable for use as a pseudo pheromone having a strange odor and chemical properties. Another advantage of this test method is that it can be easily procured as a reagent, like ethanethiol that has been used in this type of deodorizing performance test as a representative of sulfur-based malodorous substances.

  The cat sand of the present invention is toilet sand used for cats, and as described above, contains a non-swellable acidic clay component in addition to a water-swellable clay component.

<Water-swelling clay component>
The clay mineral mainly composed of the water-swellable clay component is derived from, for example, dioctahedral smectite, and has a three-layer structure in which an AlO ₆ octahedral layer is sandwiched between two SiO ₄ tetrahedral layers. The unit has a stacked structure in which the basic layer units are stacked in the c-axis direction. A part of Al in the above AlO ₆ octahedron layer is isomorphously substituted with Mg or Fe ^(II) , and a part of Si in the SiO ₄ tetrahedral layer is isomorphously substituted with Al and laminated in the c-axis direction. Metal cations (for example, Na ions) exist between layers of the basic layer units so as to compensate for the lack of charge due to isomorphous substitution. Such a dioctahedral smectite is considered to be produced by denatured volcanic ash, lava, etc. under the influence of seawater, and there are montmorillonite, beidellite, nontronite and the like in terms of clay mineral classification. Naturally produced so-called acid clay and bentonite are clays containing these smectites as a main component.

  Such a dioctahedral smectite has a property of swelling and solidifying when water is taken in between the layers of the basic layer unit. However, in the present invention, in particular, the layer contains a lot of Na ions and has a water swelling function. Large bentonite is preferred.

The water-swellable clay component has different water-swellability and solidification property depending on the amount of alkali metal ions such as Na ⁺ and K ⁺ and the amount of alkaline earth metal ions such as Ca ²⁺ contained between layers. It is preferable to exhibit suitable water swellability and solidification from the viewpoint of disposal treatment of cat sand after use. For example, the pH when measured at a concentration of 5% by weight using 1% saline is 10 or more. Preferably it is. In the present specification, when the clay component is simply referred to as pH, it means a value measured under these conditions.

  Moreover, this water-swellable clay component is a main component of the cat sand of the present invention in order to ensure water-swellability and solidification for disposal, and is a component contained in a large amount in the cat sand. For this reason, when the pH of this water-swellable clay component is on the alkali side more than necessary, the pH of the water-swellable clay component used as the main component is generally 12 because there is a risk of adverse effects on the living body. It is preferable that:

The pH of the water-swellable clay component as described above can be easily adjusted by known means such as alkali treatment or acid treatment. That is, for those having a pH lower than necessary (for example, acid clay), this is treated with an alkali carbonate such as sodium carbonate or an alkali hydroxide to introduce sodium ions between layers. The pH can be improved. For extremely high pH bentonite and the like, the pH can be lowered by replacing sodium ions between layers with hydrogen ions (H ⁺ ) by treatment with an acid such as sulfuric acid.

<Non-swelling acidic clay component>
In the present invention, the non-swelling acidic clay component used together with the above-described water-swellable clay component is an acidic component having a pH of 4 or less measured under the above-described conditions. By using such a component, various enzymes It is possible to effectively suppress the generation of malodorous components such as pheromone and ammonia. In addition, when the pH of the non-swellable acidic clay component is more acidic than necessary, there is a risk of causing adverse effects such as stimulation on the living body. It is preferable to stop in the region, and generally it should be in the range of 2 or more.

  As such a non-swelling acidic clay component, various clay mineral components can be used as long as the pH is in the above range, but in general, the natural clay naturally exhibits strong acidity. Those having a pH within the above range, for example, acid clay are used. In other words, acidic clay contains less alkali metal ions and alkaline earth metal ions between layers than bentonite, but has a higher hydrogen ion content, and pH is located on the acidic side than bentonite. It is a clay that shows little water swellability. Moreover, even if it is bentonite or acidic clay with pH on the alkali side from the above range, acid clay or activated clay whose pH is adjusted within the above range by acid treatment is also non-swelling in the present invention. It can be used as an acidic acidic clay component. Such acid treatment is known, and by introducing a large amount of hydrogen ions between layers by treatment with an aqueous solution of an inorganic acid such as sulfuric acid, while maintaining the basic structure to some extent, the pH of acid clay, bentonite, etc. Can be shifted to the acidic side.

  Furthermore, in order to further enhance the acidity naturally possessed like this acidic clay, various organic acids such as fumaric acid, malic acid, succinic acid, tartaric acid, citric acid, gluconic acid, ascorbic acid, or aluminum sulfate, for example A non-swellable acidic clay component of the present invention is also effectively used as a result of homogeneously mixing an acidic inorganic salt or the like. As a method for preparing a non-swellable acidic clay component by homogenous mixing of acidic substances into such clay, it can be widely applied to clay in general, for example, kaolin, wax stone clay, and leptose. The mixing treatment with acid clay is most advantageous in that the acid property can be enhanced by the amount used and the high adsorption performance for odor can be obtained.

  Furthermore, the effect of imparting a deodorizing function to cat sand by deactivating the activity of various enzymes by blending such a non-swelling acidic clay component is that the non-swelling acidic clay component is converted into a non-swelling acidic solid component. It can also be obtained by spreading. In this case, for example, silica (white carbon), allophane (Kanuma earth), natural zeolite, synthetic zeolite, large sawdust, pulp, etc. alone or in combination with each other or with the above-mentioned non-swelling clay, various organic acids or A mixture obtained by uniformly mixing an acidic inorganic salt or the like can be granulated and blended. Thus, in addition to the non-swelling acidic clay component, a cat having a deodorizing function due to the activity deactivating action on various enzymes by adding various solid components having a pH of 4 or less to the water-swelling clay component. It is possible to obtain sand. High deodorizing function by adsorbing various odors other than this deodorizing function, maintaining excellent solidifying function by water-swelling clay component, low irritation and safety for cats and human skin, etc., easy molding of the solid component Taking these into account, the non-swellable acidic solid component is preferably a non-swellable acidic clay component, and acid clay or acid-treated clay is particularly preferable.

  In the present invention, the non-swellable acidic clay component is blended in such an amount that does not impair the water-swellable and solidifying properties of the water-swellable clay component described above. The amount is preferably 1 to 40 parts by weight, particularly 3 to 35 parts by weight. That is, if the amount of the non-swelling acidic clay component is larger than the above range, the water swellability and solidification property of this cat sand is impaired, and the function as toilet sand is unsatisfactory from the viewpoint of disposal and the like. There is a risk that. On the other hand, when the amount is less than the above range, it is difficult to effectively deactivate the activities of various enzymes, and the ability to prevent malodor generation, that is, the deodorization function may be reduced.

  The non-swelling clay component as described above is usually preferably present in the form of independent particles. This is because if the water-swellable clay component such as bentonite is blended on the particle surface by spreading or the like, the water-swelling property or solidification property of the water-swelling clay mineral component may be greatly reduced.

<Other ingredients>
In the present invention, together with the non-swellable acidic clay component, a high pH clay component having a pH measured at a concentration of 5% by weight using 1% saline is 10 or more, preferably 12 or less as an auxiliary agent. You can also. That is, by adding such a high pH clay component, the effect of preventing malodor of cat urine can be further improved. This is because various enzymes that generate pheromone and ammonia can be inactivated even in a high pH alkaline region.

  Such a high pH clay component should be used in a form that does not neutralize with the non-swelling acidic clay component described above. For example, among water-swelling clay components such as bentonite, the pH is adjusted to the above range. Or particles prepared by spreading an alkali component on the surface of particles such as bentonite or acid clay and adjusting the pH to the above-mentioned range. In general, among water-swellable clay components such as bentonite, particles having a pH adjusted to the above range are suitable.

  In the present invention, such a high pH clay component is usually preferably used in an amount of 5 to 100 parts by weight, particularly 10 to 50 parts by weight, per 100 parts by weight of the water-swellable clay component.

  In the present invention, various compounding agents conventionally added to cat sand, for example, perfume, as long as the enzyme deactivation effect of the non-swelling acidic clay component and auxiliary high pH clay component described above is not impaired. , Copper compounds, silver compounds, polyphenols, and hydroxybenzoic acids can also be blended. These compounding agents are generally used by spreading on the particle surface of the water-swellable clay component described above.

  The fragrance is used to have a deodorizing effect on the urine of the cat, for example, rose oil, lavender oil, jasmine oil, buttery oil, carnation oil, lemon oil, orange oil, lemongrass oil , Bergamot oil, Bechuba oil, Clove oil, Zedan oil, Sandalwood oil, Eucalyptus oil, Cassia oil, Ganoderma oil, Ylang ylang oil, Citronella oil, Geranium oil, etc. 1 or 2 or more of synthetic fragrances such as vanillin, vanillin, methyl salicylate, cinnamylaldehyde, β-phenylethyl alcohol, geraniol, oxycitronellal, phenylacetaldehyde, piperonal.

  The perfume can be easily carried out by spraying the perfume onto the granular material by spraying or the like, whereby the perfume penetrates and is held between the layers of the water-swellable clay component described above or in small pores. The sustained release property of the fragrance is ensured, and the stable deodorizing property can be secured over a long period of time.

  In addition, copper compounds, silver compounds, polyphenols, hydroxybenzoic acids, etc. are used for imparting antibacterial properties. Copper compounds include copper sulfate, copper nitrate, basic copper sulfate, basic sulfuric acid. Examples thereof include inorganic salts such as copper calcium salt (Bordeaux liquid), copper chloride and copper carbonate, and organic acid salts such as copper dicarboxylate. In particular, a water-soluble salt is preferable in that it can be easily attached to the surface of water-swellable clay mineral particles, and copper sulfate is most preferable in that it can be easily obtained at low cost. . The silver compound can be used in various forms such as a salt such as silver nitrate, a halide such as silver chloride, and other hydroxides, oxides, complexes, etc., but can be easily attached. In view of this, it is preferable that it is water-soluble, and silver nitrate is most preferable because it is easily available. Furthermore, examples of polyphenols include tea catechins, and examples of hydroxybenzoic acids include salicylic acid and trihydroxybenzoic acid.

  The cat sand of the present invention containing the various components described above is typified by the bentonite described above, and the water-swellable clay component of the soil is pulverized if necessary, classified to a predetermined particle size, or by extrusion or the like. In the same manner as described above, a non-swelling acidic clay component such as acid clay (or acid-treated product) or the like is formed into a granular shape having a predetermined size. It is manufactured by making a granular material and mixing it with a granular material of a water-swellable clay component in a dry manner. In this case, the above-mentioned auxiliary agent is also mixed as a granular material similar to the above, and the copper compound used as a fragrance or an antibacterial agent is sprayed on the surface of the granular material such as a water-swelling clay component. Exhibited.

  The water-swellable clay component particles generally have a minor axis of 0.5 to 8 mm and an aspect ratio in the range of 1 to 20 to absorb moisture, solidify or solidify, and handle the solidified product. The shape of the granular material is not particularly limited, and may be any of a spherical shape, a cubic shape, a cylindrical shape, a prismatic shape, a granular shape, a tablet shape, and an indefinite shape. Further, it is preferable that the particle size range of the particles of the non-swellable acidic clay component and the auxiliary particles is substantially the same or slightly smaller than the particles of the water-swellable clay component.

  The cat sand of the present invention described above can be used alone or, for example, natural zeolite or synthetic zeolite granular product, river sand, silica gel, newspaper, paper sludge molded product, large sawdust, Kanuma soil (Allophane). It can also be used in combination with 1 to 10 mm granular pulp or granulated paper.

The invention is illustrated by the following experimental example.
(1) pH measurement method Take 5 g of sample (in terms of anhydride) in a 100 ml beaker, add 95 g of 1% saline, and stir with a magnetic stirrer for 10 minutes. Incubate for 30 minutes and measure the pH of the resulting supernatant.

(2) Deodorizing and deodorizing performance test method <Anti-enzyme deodorizing ability>
100 g of a sample is placed in a 1800 ml glass bottle and sealed with a lid with a rubber inlet. Then, 10 ml of a 1.5% urea solution as a urine component solution and 4 ml of a 0.05% urease solution (derived from nata beans, prepared on the day of use) as an enzyme component solution are quickly mixed with a syringe. After putting this in a 25 ° C incubator for 1 hour, take it out, open the lid and conduct a sensory test in which five panelists smell the odor. evaluated.
1 ... all 5 panelists showed discomfort due to the strong pungent odor of ammonia.
2 ... 3 out of 5 panelists showed discomfort due to ammonia odor.
3 ... 5 out of 5 panelists felt less ammonia smell,
Other people hardly felt.
4 ... Isn't all five panelists feel the smell of ammonia?
There was no discomfort even if it felt slightly.
5 ... all five panelists did not feel ammonia smell.

(3) Deodorizing performance test method <pseudo pheromone deodorizing ability>
100 g of a sample is placed in a 1800 ml glass bottle and sealed with a lid with a rubber inlet. Then, 1 ml of 2-mercaptoethanol 0.0627 ^{w / v} % ethanol solution is injected with a syringe. After leaving at room temperature for 30 minutes, the lid was opened and a sensory test was conducted in which five panelists sniff the odor, and the pseudo-pheromone deodorizing ability was evaluated in five levels according to the following criteria.
1 ... All five panelists felt a strong 2-mercaptoethanol odor.
2. Of the 5 panelists, 3 or more people felt a weak 2-mercaptoethanol odor but others did not.
Of 3 panelists, 5 or less people felt a weak 2-mercaptoethanol odor but others did not.
4 ... Is all 5 panelists feeling almost no 2-mercaptoethanol odor?
There was no discomfort even if it felt slightly.
5: All 5 panelists did not feel 2-mercaptoethanol odor.

(4) Solidification performance test method <Solidification length>
Fill a container with 1 kg of sample so that the depth is 15 cm or more. 7 ml of 1% saline solution is poured from a height of 1 cm from the upper surface of the packed bed for 10 seconds. After 30 minutes, the solidified portion was taken out, and the length in the vertical direction with respect to the pouring direction was measured to obtain the solidified length.
<Solidification strength>
The solidification strength of the sample after the solidification length measurement was evaluated according to the following criteria.
A: Even if pressure is applied with a hand or finger, it does not collapse easily, and it hardly breaks even when it naturally falls from a height of 0.5 to 1 m.
○: Even if pressure is applied by hand or finger, it does not collapse easily, and even if it falls spontaneously from a height of 0.5 to 1 m, it will be partially destroyed but will not fall apart.
Δ: Crushes easily when pressure is applied by hand or finger, and breaks down even when it falls naturally from a height of 0.5 m or less.
X: Little or no solidified state.

  In addition, for the following experiment, a water-swellable clay component and a non-swellable clay component were prepared by the following method.

Production of [water-swellable clay component (I)];
90 g of sodium carbonate was added to 4.25 kg of acid white clay A (water content 31.5%) from Odo, Shibata City, Niigata Prefecture, and kneaded three times using a single-screw extrusion granulator having a pore diameter of 10 mm. This was further granulated using a twin screw type extrusion granulator having a pore diameter of 3 mm, dried at 170 ° C. for 3 hours, passed through a crusher / sieving machine, and pelleted granular material having a minor axis of 3 mm and a major axis of 4 to 7 mm (pH = 9.5) was obtained.

Production of [water-swellable clay component (II)];
130 g of sodium carbonate was added to 4.25 kg of acidic white clay A (water content 31.5%) produced in Odo, Shibata, Niigata Prefecture, and kneaded three times using a single screw type extrusion granulator having a pore diameter of 10 mm. This was further granulated using a twin screw type extrusion granulator having a pore diameter of 3 mm, dried at 170 ° C. for 3 hours, passed through a crusher / sieving machine, and pelleted granular material having a minor axis of 3 mm and a major axis of 4 to 7 mm (pH = 10.8).

Production of [high pH clay component (HA)];
90 g of sodium hydroxide was added to 4.25 kg of acid white clay A (water content 31.5%) produced in Odo, Shibata City, Niigata Prefecture, and kneaded three times using a single screw extrusion granulator having a pore diameter of 10 mm. This was further granulated using a twin screw type extrusion granulator having a pore diameter of 3 mm, dried at 170 ° C. for 3 hours, passed through a crusher / sieving machine, and pelleted granular material having a minor axis of 3 mm and a major axis of 4 to 7 mm (pH = 11.4).

Production of [non-swelling clay component (a) = acid clay];
3.1 kg of acid white clay B (moisture content 35%) from Odo, Shibata City, Niigata Prefecture was granulated using a twin screw extrusion granulator having a pore diameter of 3 mm. It was dried at 150 ° C. for 5 hours, and a granular material (pH = 2.7) having a minor axis of 3 mm and a major axis of 4 to 7 mm was obtained through a crusher and a sieve.

Production of [non-swelling clay component (b) = acid-treated white clay];
40 g of fumaric acid (first grade reagent) was added to 3.1 kg of acid white clay B (moisture content 35%) from Odo, Shibata City, Niigata Prefecture, and granulated using a twin screw extrusion granulator with a pore diameter of 3 mm. It was dried at 130 ° C. for 5 hours, and passed through a pulverizer / sieving machine to obtain a pellet type granular material (pH = 2.4) having a minor axis of 3 mm and a major axis of 4 to 7 mm.

Production of [non-swelling clay component (c) = acid-treated white clay];
Citric acid (first grade reagent) (40 g) was added to 3.1 kg of acid white clay B (moisture content: 35%) from Odo City, Shibata City, Niigata Prefecture, and granulated using a twin screw extrusion granulator with a pore diameter of 3 mm. It was dried at 130 ° C. for 5 hours, and a pellet-shaped granular material (pH = 2.3) having a minor axis of 3 mm and a major axis of 4 to 7 mm was obtained through a crusher and a sieve.

Production of [non-swelling clay component (d) = acid-treated white clay];
100 g of aluminum sulfate (first grade reagent) was added to 3.1 kg of acid clay B from Odo, Shibata City, Niigata Prefecture (water content 35%), and granulated using a twin screw extrusion granulator having a pore diameter of 3 mm. It was dried at 130 ° C. for 5 hours, and passed through a pulverizer / sieving machine to obtain a pellet type granular material (pH = 3.1) having a minor axis of 3 mm and a major axis of 4 to 7 mm.

Production of [non-swelling clay component (e) = acid-treated white clay];
2.84 kg of acid white clay C (water content 29.5%) from Odo, Shibata City, Niigata Prefecture, was granulated using a twin screw extrusion granulator with a pore diameter of 3 mm. It was dried at 150 ° C. for 5 hours, and a granular material (pH = 5.7) having a minor axis of 3 mm and a major axis of 4 to 7 mm was obtained through a crusher and a sieve.

Production of [non-swelling clay component (f) = acid-treated white clay];
2 g of citric acid was added to 2.84 kg of acid white clay C (water content 29.5%) from Odo, Shibata City, Niigata Prefecture, and granulated using a twin screw extrusion granulator with a pore diameter of 3 mm. It was dried at 150 ° C. for 5 hours, and a granulated powder (pH = 4.5) having a minor axis of 3 mm and a major axis of 4 to 7 mm was obtained through a crusher and a sieve.

[Examples 1-3]
90:10 (Example 1), 80:20 (Example 2), and 70:30 (implementation) of the granular material of the water-swellable clay component (I) and the non-swellable clay component (a), respectively. Example 3) was mixed to obtain the cat sand of the present invention.

[Examples 4 to 6]
90:10 (Example 4), 80:20 (Example 5), and 70:30 (implementation), respectively, the granular material of the water-swellable clay component (II) and the non-swellable clay component (a). Example 6) was mixed to obtain cat sand of the present invention.

[Examples 7 to 9]
The granular material of the water-swellable clay component (I), the granular material of the high pH clay component (HA) and the granular material of the non-swellable clay component (a) are respectively divided into 60:30:10 (Example 7), 53 : 27: 20 (Example 8) and 47:23:30 (Example 9) were mixed to obtain the cat sand of the present invention.

[Examples 10 to 12]
The granular material of the water-swellable clay component (I) and the granular material of the non-swellable clay component (b) are 95: 5 (Example 10), 90:10 (Example 11), and 80:20 (implemented), respectively. Example 12) was mixed to obtain cat sand of the present invention.

[Examples 13 to 15]
The granular material of the water-swellable clay component (II) and the granular material of the non-swellable clay component (c) are 95: 5 (Example 13), 90:10 (Example 14), and 80:20 (implemented), respectively. Example 15) was mixed to obtain the cat sand of the present invention.

[Examples 16 to 18]
Granules of the water-swellable clay component (I), granules of the high pH clay component (HA), and granules of the non-swellable clay component (d), respectively 63: 32: 5 (Example 16), 60 : 30:10 (Example 17), 53:27:20 (Example 18) were mixed to obtain cat sand of the present invention.

The pH of each clay component of the granular materials obtained in Examples 1 to 18 and their mixing ratio, deodorization performance (anti-enzyme deodorization performance), deodorization performance (pseudo pheromone deodorization performance) and solidification performance (solidification length, solidification) The strength is shown in Table 1.
Thus, the cat sand of this invention obtained by Examples 1-18 showed the performance which was excellent in all in deodorizing deodorizing performance, deodorizing performance, and solidification performance.
Furthermore, the cat sand of the present invention produced by the method of Example 18 was replaced with the cat sand used so far for one month in a room where a two-year-old male cat in estrus was raised as a pet. As a result of the trial, the unpleasant urine odor peculiar to conventional male cats emanating from the cat litter fades, and it is hardly bothered compared to the use of conventional commercially available bentonite cat sand (corresponding to Comparative Example 1 described later). It was.

[Comparative Example 1]
A conventionally known cat sand consisting only of the granular material of the water-swellable clay component (I) used in Examples 1 to 3 was obtained.

[Comparative Example 2]
The granular material of the water-swellable clay component (I) and the granular material of the non-swellable clay component (e) were mixed at a ratio of 20:80 to obtain a cat sand for comparison.

[Comparative Example 3]
Granules of the water-swellable clay component (I) and non-swellable clay component (f) were mixed at a ratio of 20:80 to obtain a cat sand for comparison.

  The pH of each clay component of the granular materials obtained in Comparative Examples 1 to 3 and their mixing ratio, deodorization performance (anti-enzyme deodorization performance), deodorization performance (pseudo pheromone deodorization performance) and solidification performance (solidification length, solidification) The strength is also shown in Table 1.

[Reference Example 1]
A performance test similar to that described above was carried out using a commercially available paper cat sand (paper sand, paper sand) formed by using pulp and recycled paper as raw materials, and the results are also shown in Table 1.

Claims (7)

  A water-swellable clay component and a non-swellable solid component having a pH of 4 or less measured at a concentration of 5% by weight using 1% saline are blended in such an amount that does not inhibit the water-swellability of the clay component. Cat sand characterized by   The cat sand according to claim 1, wherein the non-swellable solid component is a non-swellable clay component.   The cat sand according to claim 2, wherein the non-swellable solid component is acid clay.   The cat sand according to claim 2, wherein the non-swellable solid component is acid-treated clay.   The cat sand according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the non-swellable solid component is mixed in an amount of 1 to 40 parts by weight per 100 parts by weight of the water-swellable clay component.   The cat sand according to any one of claims 1 to 5, comprising a clay component having a pH measured at a concentration of 5% by weight using 1% saline together with the non-swellable solid component.   The cat sand according to claim 6, wherein the clay component having a pH of 10 or more is a water-swellable clay component or a part of the water-swellable clay component.