JPH04100974A - Soft-finishing agent - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To obtain a soft-finishing liquid agent effective in imparting various fibers with excellent softness and elasticity by using a specific compound, a fatty acid and an inorganic or organic acid as essential components, and compounding the components at specific molar ratios. CONSTITUTION:The objective soft-finishing liquid agent is produced by compounding (A) a compound of formula (R<1> is 15-21C saturated or unsaturated hydrocarbon group), (B) a 16-22C saturated or unsaturated fatty acid and (C) an inorganic acid or a <=6C organic acid (especially preferably hydrochloric acid) at molar ratios of A/B=1/0.8 to 0.8/1, A/C=1/(0.2-1.2) and A/(B+ C): 1/(1.2-2). The sum of each component in the agent is 4-40wt.%, preferably 10-30wt.%.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Industrial Application Field] The present invention relates to a fabric softener, and more specifically, a liquid fabric softener that can impart excellent flexibility and elasticity (fluffiness) to various fibers. It is related to.

[Problems to be solved by conventional techniques and inventions] Currently,
Most products on the market as household fabric softeners are 1
It is a composition whose main component is a quaternary ammonium salt having 1 to 2 long-chain alkyl groups in the molecule. The reason for this is that a small amount of quaternary ammonium salt has a good softening effect on various fibers.

The above-mentioned quaternary ammonium salts have a remarkable softening effect on cotton, but it is difficult to say that the effect is sufficient on synthetic fibers such as acrylic, polyester, and polyamide. When treated at high concentrations, the elasticity of clothing may decrease and the texture may be impaired.

In addition, when storing for a long time, especially at low temperatures, the viscosity may thicken,
It may form a gel or separate.

For this reason, various polyoxyalkylene-based nonionic activators, electrolytes, and solvents are required in addition to the softening component, and although many products are stabilized by blending these, they are still not sufficiently effective.

Furthermore, liquid softeners using various amines as softening bases have been known. For example, JP-A-52-59796
JP-A-58-60070 discloses a composition that imparts flexibility to fibers containing a long-chain alkylamine such as methyldi(hardened tallow alkyl)amine, and JP-A-58-60070 discloses a composition that imparts flexibility to fibers containing a long-chain alkylamine such as methyldi(hardened tallow alkyl)amine. A textile material finishing agent containing a quaternary ammonium salt and a fatty acid ester that gives smoothness and a comfortable touch is disclosed in JP-A No. 61167083.
JP-A No. 61-275474 discloses a softening agent with good dispersibility containing a quaternary ammonium compound, a condensation reaction product of a higher fatty acid and a hydroxy-lower alkyl polyamine, and an alkylamine polyglycol ether; A stable aqueous dispersion containing a (higher alkyl)cyclic amine and a Brønsted acid for treating textiles was disclosed in JP-A-64
85368 discloses a softening composition containing a di-long chain alkylamine anionic surfactant ion pair complex, a non-silicone wax and a liquid carrier, and JP-A-2-6662 discloses a hydroxy lower alkyl alkylene diamine. A fabric conditioning composition containing an amine and an amphoteric fabric conditioning agent, such as a condensate of and a higher fatty acid,
JP-A-2-14076 describes a fabric conditioning composition that imparts flexibility and antistatic properties and contains a di-long-chain alkylamine-polyfunctional carboxylic acid complex.

Further, JP-A-52-5394 describes a fabric conditioning composition containing a mono- or di-long chain alkyl alkylene diamine static electricity suppressant and a quaternary ammonium softener.

However, the effects of softeners containing these amines are still insufficient.

[Means to solve the problem]

As a result of intensive research to solve the above drawbacks, the present inventors found that
This led to the present invention.

That is, the present invention essentially contains the following components (a) to (c), and the molar ratio of each component is (a)/(b)=
110.8~0.8/1, (a)/(c) = 1
10.2~1/1.2, (a)/[(b)+(c)
) = 1 /1.2 to 1 /2.0, and (
A softening agent containing a total of 4 to 40% by weight of components a) to (c).

Component (a): General formula (I) below: C,H,OR [wherein R1 represents a saturated or unsaturated hydrocarbon group having 15 to 21 carbon atoms. ] A compound represented by

Component (b): saturated or unsaturated fatty acid having 16 to 22 carbon atoms.

Component (c): an inorganic acid or an organic acid having 6 or less carbon atoms.

The compound represented by the general formula (I) as the component (a) used in the present invention can be easily obtained by reducing and dehydrating hydroxyethylethylenediamine and long-chain fatty acids.

Examples of the saturated or unsaturated fatty acid having 16 to 22 carbon atoms as component (b) of the present invention include stearic acid, oleic acid, and hydrogenated palm oil fatty acid.

In addition, as the component (c) of the present invention, inorganic acids such as hydrochloric acid, nitric acid, phosphoric acid, acetic acid, lactic acid, glycolic acid, citric acid,
An organic acid having 6 or less carbon atoms such as maleic acid is used,
Hydrochloric acid is the cheapest and has the highest performance.

In the present invention, the molar ratio of components (a) to (c) is (a
)/(b)=110.8~0.8/1, (a)/(
c) = 110.2~1/1.2, (a)/ [(
b)+(c)) = 1/1.2 to 1/2.0.

Component (b) acts on the nitrogen atom in component (a), and (a
), but if the molar ratio of component (a)/component (b) is larger than 110.8, the hydrophilicity becomes strong and the flexibility of the synthetic fiber decreases, and it becomes less than 0.8/1. If it is small, the positive charge density will be low and the adsorption property will be reduced, resulting in a decrease in the flexibility of the cotton fiber. In addition, component (c) is (
By neutralizing part or all of the remaining nitrogen atoms in component (a) that do not interact with component (b), adsorption to fibers and dispersion stability are increased. (a) Component/(c
) If the molar ratio of the components is greater than 110.2, adsorption to cotton fibers will be insufficient, and if it is less than 1/1.2, stability will be poor. Also (a) / [(b) + (c
)) outside the above range, the stability during storage will be poor.

When commercializing a fabric softener that requires components (a) to (c), the total amount of components (a) to (c) is preferably 4 to 40% by weight, considering the viscosity and handling properties of the product. is 6 to 30% by weight, particularly preferably 10 to 30% by weight.

The softening agent of the present invention further includes dimethylpolysiloxane,
By incorporating a silicone compound such as dimethylpolysiloxane partially modified with an amino group or a polyoxyalkylene group, particularly preferably a dimethylpolysiloxane partially modified with a polyoxyalkylene group, water absorption performance can be maintained without deterioration. The feel of softened clothing can be improved. These silicone compounds are component (a) ~
It is preferable that the amount of component (c) is 0.3 to 5% by weight based on the total amount of component.

It has been found that the softening agent of the present invention has almost the same softening effect as dihardened tallow alkyldimethylammonium chloride, which has been widely used in the past, but surprisingly provides elastic softness. .

When the composition of the present invention is used as an aqueous liquid softener, 0.05 to 0.4% by weight of an inorganic electrolyte such as sodium chloride, calcium chloride, or magnesium chloride is added to adjust the viscosity.
It is desirable to add

The fabric softener of the present invention has high stability during long-term storage, but in order to stabilize it under even more severe storage conditions, polyoxyethylene (5 to 50 mol) alkyl or alkenyl (c
I□~24) A nonionic surfactant such as ether, a solvent such as propylene glycol or ethylene glycol, or urea can be blended. In addition, known esters, nonionic or cationic compounds, long chain alcohols, etc. may be used in combination as flexible bases.

In addition, pigments or dyes can be added for the appearance of the product, fluorescent whitening side can be added for the whiteness of the finished product, and fragrance can be added to improve the appearance during use and after the finished product.

〔Effect of the invention〕

The fabric softener of the present invention can impart sufficient flexibility, antistatic properties, and excellent elasticity to various fibers.

〔Example〕

Next, the present invention will be explained in detail with reference to Examples, but the present invention is not limited to these Examples.

Components (a) to (c) used in Examples and Comparative Examples are shown below.

Table 1 (a) Component composition table 2 (b) Component table 3 (c) Component Examples 1 to 10 The compositions having the formulations shown in Table 4 were evaluated for flexibility and elasticity by the following methods.

<Evaluation of flexibility and elasticity> (I) Processing method 2 kg of commercially available cotton towels and 1 kg of acrylic chassis were repeatedly treated with commercially available detergent Attack (manufactured by Kao Corporation, registered trademark) 5 times in 3.5° DH hard water. Laundry (301 washing machine)
After removing the fiber treatment agent attached to each fiber, 1.5 g of the blended composition in Table 4 was added as an active ingredient,
The mixture was stirred at 25° C. for 1 minute.

In each case, 1% by weight of polyoxyethylene-modified dimethylpolysiloxane was blended based on the total amount of components (a) to (c).

(2) Evaluation method After drying the cloth treated with the above method indoors, 25℃, 65%
It was left in a thermostatic room at RH for 24 hours.

These fabrics were evaluated for flexibility and elasticity.

The softness and elasticity were evaluated using a pair of fabrics treated with 10 cc of a fabric softener containing 15% by weight of dihydrogenated beef tallow alkyldimethylammonium chloride as a control. The evaluation is expressed as follows.

+2; Softer or more elastic than the control +1; Slightly softer or more elastic than the control 0; Same as the control 1; Control is slightly softer or slightly less elastic than the control 2; Control is soft or elastic than the control As shown in Table 4, the use of the compound of the present invention provides an effect that satisfies both flexibility and elasticity.

Surface Softness and Elasticity Examples 11 to 13, Comparative Examples 4 and 5 To evaluate the elasticity of the compositions shown in Table 5, the stacking height of cotton towels was measured.

<Evaluation of elasticity> Cotton towels treated in the same manner as in Examples 1 to 10 were folded into 8 and stacked in 3 layers, and after applying pressure at 5 g/d for 5 minutes, the pressure was removed and the height of the towel was adjusted. was measured.

The higher the height of the towel, the better the elasticity.

Table 5 Evaluation of elasticity (towel stacking height) Note) l) The numbers in parentheses in the blending ratio are (bl component is (al component/ratio of (b) component (molar ratio)) (c) component is (The ratio (molar ratio) of the grape component/(c) component is shown.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1 Contains the following components (a) to (c) as essential, and the molar ratio of each component is (a)/(b) = 1/0.8 to 0.8/1. ,(a)/(
c)=1/0.2~1/1.2, (a)/[(b)+(
c)] = 1/1.2 to 1/2.0, and (a)
A softening agent containing 4 to 40% by weight of component (c) in total. (a) Component: The following general formula (I) ▲ Numerical formulas, chemical formulas, tables, etc. are available ▼ (I) [In the formula, R^1 represents a saturated or unsaturated hydrocarbon group having 15 to 21 carbon atoms. ] A compound represented by Component (b): saturated or unsaturated fatty acid having 16 to 22 carbon atoms. Component (c): an inorganic acid or an organic acid having 6 or less carbon atoms.