KR20080083052A - Wiping articles - Google Patents

Abstract

An article for the wet/damp wiping of surfaces comprises a moisture-absorbing wipe that provides at least one surface of the article, the wipe comprising bamboo fibres. The wipe may be formed from a textile material and contains at least 10%, preferably at least 30%, by weight of bamboo fibres.

Description

Wiping article {WIPING ARTICLES}

The present invention relates to articles for use in wiping surfaces. In particular, the present invention relates to a wiping article intended to be used in a manner that is likely to be wet or wet for an extended period of time. The present invention more specifically but not exclusively relates to a type of wiping article intended for use in wiping hard surfaces in a home environment, such as kitchen and bathroom furniture and appliances.

Wiping articles of the type known as “wipe” are widely used by consumers in a variety of environments, including home, industrial, hospital and food industry environments, for wiping surfaces such as work surfaces and floors. As used herein, the term " wipe " is intended to be effective on its own (i.e., along with other materials, for example) with respect to wiping of the surface by both surfaces of the web material providing a wiping action. Refers to a piece of web material having properties that can be handled and used to wipe a surface without forming or laminating to other materials. Many different types of wipes are currently available ranging from paper towels to fiber cloths and floor cloths.

The type of web material used for the wipe depends on the cleaning / wiping function that the wipe is required to perform, and its intended life. Some wipes are intended to be used dry (for example, paper towels used to wipe off spilled liquids), while others are intended to be used in low or wet conditions. A wipe is, depending on its durability, "disposable" (meaning that the wipe is intended to be discarded immediately after use), or "semi-disposable" (meaning that the wipe can be washed and reused for a limited number of times). Or can be classified as "reusable" (meaning that the wipe is intended to be washed and reused in unlimited number of times, depending on the given use). A desirable property of certain wipe materials intended to be used wet is a low " wipeability " measurement (an indication of how long it takes for the wet surface to dry after being wiped with the wet material). Another desirable property of certain wipe materials is a short “dry” time (ie the ability to dry relatively quickly after being used in a wet / wet state).

Examples of web materials currently used for wipes include spun-bond nonwoven materials for wipes in the “disposable” category; Spun-lace nonwoven materials for wipes in the "disposable" and "disposable" categories; And knitted, woven and heat bonded nonwoven materials for wipes in the "reusable" category.

A problem often reported by consumers is that wipes within the "disposable" and "reusable" categories, intended to be used in a home environment in a wet or wet state, may exhibit an unsanitary appearance in the form of unpleasant odors and unpleasant and sticky feeling. But the wipe itself is otherwise still in good condition.

The consumer may leave the wipe dry as much as possible in the middle of use (opportunities for this are often very limited because the article is usually still in use) or chemicals such as bleach to ensure that the wipe has as hygienic as possible during its lifetime. By rinsing the wipes within, I try to solve these problems myself. However, more and more consumers have environmental concerns about the use of such chemicals and prefer to avoid the use of chemicals where possible. The consumer also found that there was less time available to restore the state of the wipe, and despite cost considerations, it was envisaged to throw away the wipe before its end of life because the wipe exhibited an unpleasant smell and / or feeling. something to do.

In order to treat surfaces that are primarily wiped and / or to inhibit the transmission of bacterial infections by the cleaning article, manufacturers impregnate the cleaning article with biocide (eg, quaternary ammonium salts) or other chemicals. It is known. Wipes processed in this manner have had limited success in addressing the aforementioned consumer demands that wipes should have a hygienic appearance (in terms of smell and feel) throughout their useful life, and in some cases, success The lack of was due to environmental concerns associated with biocidal / chemical treatment, in other cases, the treatment simply did not produce the desired effect.

Cleaning articles impregnated with biocides are described, for example, in EP-A-0 869 216, WO 94/12034, EP-A-358 572 and US-A-3 018 192.

It is also known to include biocides in cleaning articles that are packaged in wet conditions. The impregnated disposable wipes may be packaged in a “wet” state, for example, for use for immediate use, and treated with a biocide to inhibit the growth of mold in the package. The presence of such biocides can also be a concern for consumers for environmental reasons.

The present invention is generally directed to improving the performance of wipes, in particular moisture absorbent wipes intended for wet / damp wiping of surfaces. More specifically, the present invention is likely to exhibit an unsanitary appearance in the form of an unpleasant odor or feeling when left wet or wet (when in use or in packaging before use) without requiring special treatment (s). Little relates to the provision of moisture absorbent wipes intended for wet / wet wiping of surfaces. The wipe may itself be used as an article for wet / wet wiping of the surface, or may be bonded to other materials to provide a wiping surface of such article.

The present invention provides an article for wet / wet wiping of a surface, the article comprising a water absorbing wipe that provides at least one surface of the article, the wipe comprising bamboo fibers.

The inclusion of bamboo fibers in the material from which the moisture absorbing wipes are formed has been found to increase the length of time that the hygienic appearance remains when the wipes are left wet or wet. It has also been found that the inclusion of bamboo fibers can provide certain wipes with resistance to bacterial contamination and some bacteriostatic activity, especially for Salmonella typhimurium. It is also known that the inclusion of bamboo fibers can improve the "wiping" of certain wipes and the "drying time" of certain wipes.

The use of bamboo fibers in textile products is already known and it is already recognized that in the case of textile products intended for use in apparel, towels and medical dressings, the inclusion of bamboo fibers can improve water absorption and antibacterial properties. (See, eg, WO 2005/068697 and JP-A-2001 / 115347).

In CN-A-1446515, the use of bamboo fibers in the traditional type of cleaning cloth, in terms of reducing the transmission by such cloth of potentially deadly bacterial infections such as MRSA and E. Coli, Has also been proposed. The fabric comprises a plurality of pieces of material layered together to provide the desired properties of the fabric, and none of the layers of material is effective on its own by wiping the surface by both surfaces of the material providing the wiping action. not.

It has not been previously recognized that bamboo fibers may be used to prevent the appearance of unpleasant odors and offensive and sticky feeling in wipes intended for wet / wet cleaning of surfaces. More specifically, it has not been previously recognized that if a wipe that is frequently or almost always wet / wet includes bamboo fibers, it will be less likely to exhibit an unpleasant odor and / or feeling.

In the article according to the invention, the moisture absorbing wipes may be formed from a textile material which may be of any construction known to be suitable for wipes including nonwoven, woven and knitted constructions. For the manufacture of suitable woven or knitted materials, bamboo fibers are first spun (or otherwise formed) in continuous yarns, while for the production of suitable nonwoven web materials, staples or cut bands or radish Fibers will typically be used. Bamboo fibers may be present in the web material in combination with fibers of other materials (including microfibers).

Nonwoven materials used for moisture absorbing wipes include, for example, spunlace materials; Carded, cross-lapped and needle-tacked material; And any construction known to be suitable for the wipe, including heat bonded materials.

The nonwoven material may be latex coated and may comprise microfibers. The nonwoven material may be, in particular, if the web material is of a spun-bond configuration or is reinforced by needle tagging or stitching with bamboo fibers, for example. , Can contain 100% bamboo fiber. Otherwise, the nonwoven material comprising 100% bamboo fibers can be reinforced by providing a coating, for example a latex coating, on both sides of the material. Alternatively, heat bonded materials may be used in which heat bonded fibers are included with the bamboo fibers.

The nonwoven material may alternatively comprise a mixture of bamboo and other fibers or microfibers. In such a case, the fiber content of the material preferably comprises at least 10% by weight bamboo fibers. Other fibers / fine fibers are any known to be suitable for use in wipes, including, for example, other natural fibers or fibers / fine fibers of viscose, polyester, polyamide, polypropylene, polyvinyl alcohol or mixtures thereof. It may be of the type of. Polyester fibers can be included, for example, to reduce cost and increase the wear resistance of the nonwoven material if desired. Nonwoven materials comprising a mixture of fibers may also be reinforced by needle tagging or stitching, by providing coatings on both sides of the material, for example latex coatings, and / or by the inclusion of thermally bonded fibers.

The nonwoven material may have a basis weight within a range known to be suitable for wipes, typically in the range of a dry weight of 15 to 300 gm / m 2 (but the material may have a higher basis weight if appropriate). .

In some forms, the article according to the invention may be packaged in an already hygroscopic form so that it does not have to be hygroscopic / wet before use.

An example of a wiping article according to the invention is a wipe comprising a latex coated nonwoven material, wherein the nonwoven material is carded, cross wrapped and needle tacked, formed from a mixture of 75 wt% bamboo fibers and 25 wt% polyester fibers Material. The latex coating constitutes about 20% of the total weight of the wipe. In one form, the wipe has a basis weight of about 210 gm / m 2 and is intended to clean a large surface, such as a floor (when it can be attached to a cleaning tool such as a rag). In another form that is more suitable for cleaning smaller surfaces, the wipe has a basis weight of about 170 gm / m 2.

Another example of a wiping article according to the invention is a heat bonded wipe in a carded, cross wrapped and needle tacked configuration, formed from a mixture of 80 wt% bamboo fibers and 20 wt% heat bonded fibers. Thermal bond fibers are polypropylene fibers. As above, in one form, the wipe is about 210 gm / m 2 And in other forms, the wipe has a basis weight of about 170 gm / m 2.

Another example of a wipe according to the invention is also a heat bonded wipe in a carded, cross wrapped and needle tagged configuration, formed from a mixture of 75 wt% bamboo fibers, 15% polyester fibers and 10 wt% heat bonded fibers. Thermal bond fibers are polypropylene fibers. The wipe has a basis weight of about 210 gm / m 2.

Other wiping articles according to the present invention are described in more detail in the following non-limiting examples. All parts and percentages quoted are by weight unless otherwise indicated.

The examples used the following materials, equipment and test methods.

material

Bamboo Fiber: Cut extruded fiber having a denier of 1.56 dtex and a length of 38 mm, available from China Bambro Textile Co., Beijing, China.

Polyester fiber: Denier and length similar to bamboo fiber.

Viscose fiber: denier and length similar to bamboo fiber.

Heat Bonded Fiber: Polyester fiber available under the trade name "MELTY" from Unitika Ltd., Osaka, Japan.

equipment

Fiber Opening and Blending Equipment: Conventional equipment (for example available from MASIAS MAQUINARIA TEXTIL S.A., Girona, Spain).

Web manufacturing equipment: Conventional cross-wrapping machines (e.g., available from Macia's Macquinaria Textil S.A., Girona, Spain) with feeder weight control (e.g. For example, available from AUTOMATEX NONWOVEN SRL in Pistoia, Italy, and from conventional needle tacker (e.g., FEHRER GmbH, Linz, Austria). Available).

Oven: Conventional oven (for example available from FLEISSNER GmbH, Egelsbach, Germany).

Test Methods

"Usually Home Use" Test: Allow wipes to be subjected to a period of 10 days for the type of use normally encountered in home kitchens (ie, use wipes repeatedly each day in a wet / wet condition to clean home kitchen surfaces). After each use, rinse in clean tap water and leave until needed next time. Observe the state of the wipe on a daily basis.

Drying Test: Dry wipes are weighed, immersed in clean tap water, passed between rollers of a mangle, and weighed again. The wipe is then hung in a drying oven set at a temperature of 23 ° C. and weighed every 30 minutes.

Determination of Bacterial Contamination: One piece of dry wipe was placed in a sterile bag added with a suspension of Salmonella typhimurium. The bags were repeatedly compressed to distribute the suspension throughout the wipe sample, then the bags were sealed and incubated at 20 ± 2 ° C. Samples of the suspension were withdrawn from the bag at predetermined intervals and tested for bacterial contamination. Measurements were repeated using another piece of dry wipe free of bacterial contamination.

Wiping Test: The dry wipe is immersed in clean tap water and then passed between the rollers of the pleating machine. The amount of water measured is placed on the test surface and wiped with a wet wipe. The surface is then left to dry and the time required for the surface to reach a dry state is recorded.

Example 1

A fiber mixture comprising 75% bamboo fibers, 15% polyester fibers and 10% heat bonded fibers was used to form heat bonded, carded and cross wrapped nonwoven web materials. The fiber bundle was opened and the fibers were mixed in the required relative amounts before feeding the carded, cross wrapped and needle tacked nonwoven webs to the web making apparatus forming in a conventional manner. The web was passed through an oven operating at a temperature sufficient to soften the thermal bond fibers and bond them to other fibers in the web, thereby increasing the stability of the web. The web manufacturing apparatus was operated to produce a nonwoven web having a basis weight of about 150 gm / m 2. Then, a wipe sample having a size of approximately 30 cm x 30 cm was cut from the nonwoven web.

Example 2

Example 1 was repeated except that a nonwoven material was formed using a fiber mixture comprising 37.5% bamboo fibers, 37.5% viscose fibers, 15% polyester fibers and 10% heat bonded fibers.

Example 3

Example 1 was repeated except that a nonwoven material was formed using a fiber mixture comprising 75% viscose fiber, 15% polyester fiber and 10% heat bonded fiber.

Example 4

Example 1 was repeated using a conventional heat bonded nonwoven wipe comprising 60% cellulose fiber and 40% synthetic fiber, commercially available from Spain under the trade name “Ballerina” from Unilever.

Example 5

A fiber mixture comprising 75% bamboo fibers and 25% polyester fibers was used to form the latex coated web material. The fiber bundle was opened and the fibers were mixed in the required relative amounts before feeding the carded, cross wrapped and needle tacked nonwoven webs to the web making apparatus forming in a conventional manner. The web was then coated with latex on both sides and passed through an oven operating at a temperature sufficient to cure the latex coating. The final web had a basis weight of about 210 gm / m 2, where the latex coating made up about 20% of the total weight. Then, a wipe sample having a size of approximately 30 cm x 30 cm was cut from the nonwoven web.

Example 6

Example 5 was repeated except that bamboo fibers were replaced with viscose fibers.

result

The wipe samples of Examples 1 and 3 were subjected to the "normal home use" test, and the samples of Examples 1 to 4 were subjected to the dry test described above. Measurement of bacterial contamination was performed as described above for the samples of Examples 1 and 3, and the samples of Examples 5 and 6 were subjected to the wiping test.

During the "usually home use" test, the sample of Example 3 (without bamboo fiber) was observed to exhibit an unpleasant odor and an unpleasant and sticky feeling after only a few days, whereas the sample of Example 1 It remained ineffective for the entire period. The absorption properties of all the samples looked similar, as were the wiping properties (ie, the measurement of how long it took for the wiped surface to dry).

The results of the drying test are summarized in FIG. 1 attached, which is a chart showing the average amount of water held by four categories of wipe samples as a function of time in a drying oven. The amount of water retained by each category of sample is represented by the average weight of the sample at a particular time, expressed as a percentage of the dry weight of the sample. The chart shows that while the samples of Example 1 were substantially dried after a period of 90 minutes in the drying oven, the samples of Examples 3 and 4 (which did not contain bamboo fibers) took nearly 1 hour to reach a similar state. Shows more demands. The sample of Example 2 was dried faster than the samples of Examples 3 and 4, especially at the beginning of the test, but was dried more slowly than the sample of Example 1.

Measurement of bacterial contamination showed that the sample of Example 1 had bacteriostatic properties in that bacterial growth stopped after 3 days when contaminated with Salmonella typhimurium. Such a property was not observed in the sample of Example 3. The measurements also showed that the uncontaminated sample of Example 1 was slightly resistant to natural bacterial contamination in that the contamination of the sample remained relatively low over a 7 day period. On the other hand, the natural contamination of the sample of Example 3 increased significantly over the same period.

The wiping test was performed using a mirror as the test surface, and the surface was dried after about 60 seconds when wiped with the sample of Example 5 compared to about 110 seconds when wiped in a similar manner with the sample of Example 6. Showed. When a terrazzo floor was used as the test surface, and for that area, the test was carried out using a relatively small amount of water distributed more evenly over the surface, the test was carried out in a similar manner with the surface of the sample of Example 6 It was shown that it was dried after about 10 minutes when wiped with the sample of Example 5 compared to about 14 minutes when wiped.

conclusion

Testing has shown that the inclusion of bamboo fibers in a thermally bonded nonwoven wipe intended to be used in wet / wet conditions makes the wipes pleasant and hygienic for use for substantially longer than equivalent conventional wipes that do not contain bamboo fibers. It shows what is kept. The wipe can also dry faster after use, making the wipe more attractive to the user and also helping to reduce the appearance of bad odors and any sticky feeling. The tests also show that the inclusion of bamboo fiber has a beneficial effect on the contamination of wipes by Salmonella typhimurium. Similar effects are expected to be observed in other wipes, including bamboo fibers, including those of knitted or woven constructions.

The tests also show that the inclusion of bamboo fibers in the latex coated nonwoven wipes has a beneficial effect on its "wiping".

The wipe according to the invention as described above constitutes itself an article for wet / wet wiping of the surface. In such a case, both surfaces of the wipe provide a wiping action. Typically, both surfaces of the wipe will provide the same wiping action, but this is not always the case, either through modification of the web manufacturing process, or subsequent treatment of the final web, so that the two sides of the wipe are for example their absorbent properties. Or in terms of their wear properties.

Alternatively, the wipe according to the invention as described above may be bonded to other materials to provide an article for wet / wet wiping of the surface. The second material may simply provide support for the wipe, but more generally it will be another material suitable for use to clean the surface (eg, a material that provides a different wiping action). The two materials can be laminated together, for example by a suitable adhesive. The second material can be formed, for example, from fibrous material, sponge material or sponge-cloth material. Alternatively, the second material may be a nonwoven wearable material.

Claims (14)

An article for wet / wet wiping of a surface, the article comprising a moisture absorbing wipe that provides at least one surface of the article, the wipe comprising bamboo fibers. The article of claim 1 wherein the wipe comprises at least 10 wt%, preferably at least 30 wt% bamboo fibers. The article of claim 1, wherein the wipe is formed from a fibrous material. The article of claim 3, wherein the fiber material is a nonwoven material. The nonwoven material of claim 4, wherein the nonwoven material comprises a spunlace material; Carded, cross wrapped and needle tacked materials; And an article heat-bonded. The article of claim 4, wherein the nonwoven material is a latex coated material. The article of claim 3, wherein the fibrous material is a knitted or woven material. The article of claim 3, wherein the fibrous material has a basis weight in the range of 15 to 300 gm / m 2. The fiber material of claim 3, wherein the fiber material further comprises fiber selected from other natural fibers or fibers / fine fibers of viscose, polyester, polyamide, polypropylene, PVA, or mixtures thereof. Supplies. The article of claim 1, wherein the wipe is bonded to another material. The article of claim 10, wherein the other material is a fiber material, a sponge material, or a sponge-cloth material. The article of claim 1 which is packaged in a pre-humidified state. Use of the article according to any one of the preceding claims in wet / wet wiping of surfaces. A method of wiping a surface with an article comprising the step of cleaning the surface using the article according to claim 1 in a wet or wet state.

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