SE461737B - LIQUID PREPARED DETAILS DETERGENT COMPOSITION CONTAINING A MODIFIED NONJONIC SURFACTANT - Google Patents

Description

461 7157 10 15 20 25 35 of the temperature at which the surfactant forms a gel with water.

The resulting acidic compound will react with the alkaline portion of the detergent composition in the wash bath and act as an effective anionic surfactant. Embodiments of the composition are set forth in the dependent claims.

The invention is further illustrated by the following examples.

Example 1 400 g of a nonionic surfactant consisting of a C13-C15 alkanol alkoxylated to introduce 6 ethylene oxide and 3 propylene oxide units per alkanol unit are mixed with 32 g of succinic anhydride and heated for 7 hours at 10 ° C. The mixture is then cooled and filtered to remove unreacted succinic acid material. Infrared analysis indicates that about half of the nonionic surfactant has been converted to its acidic half-ester. viscosities and gel temperatures of the product compared to the unmodified nonionic surfactant are given below: Product Unmodified nonionic surfactant viscosity at 20 ° C 138 cP 60 cP Gel temperature for a 40/60 mixture with water (ie the mixture contains 60 % water) 7 ° c 20 ° c viscosity of the 40/60 mixture with water at 25 ° C and 60 cP 189 cP at 20 ° C 100 cP 445 cP 1 l 2 lx) Uï 0 5 O 461 757 It follows that although the product (which as previously indicated is a mixture of approximately equal parts of unmodified surfactant and its acidic half ester) has a higher viscosity than the unmodified surfactant, its viscosity on dilution with water is considerably lower as well as its gelling temperature.

Example 2 S22 g of the nonionic surfactant known as Dobanol 25-7 (the product of the ethoxylation of a C12 - C15 alkanol, which product has about 7 ethylene oxide units per alkanol molecule) is mixed with 100 g of succinic anhydride and 0.1 g of pyridine (which acts as an esterification catalyst in this case) and is heated at 60 ° C for 2 hours, cooled and filtered to remove unreacted succinic acid material. Infrared analysis indicates that essentially all of the free hydroxyl groups in the surfactant have reacted.

Other esterification catalysts such as an alkali metal alkoxide (eg sodium methoxide) may be used in place of or in combination with the pyridine.

Example 3 - Example 2 is repeated using 1000 g of Dobanol 91-5 (the product of ethoxylation of a C9-C11 alkanol, which product has about 5 ethylene oxide units per alkanol molecule) and 265 g of succinic anhydride.

Example 4 A liquid non-aqueous fortified laundry detergent is composed of the following ingredients, in the indicated proportions. 351% nonionic surfactant comprising a mixture of equal parts of: (a) a relatively water-soluble nonionic surfactant which forms a gel when mixed with water at 25 ° C, specifically a C13 - C15 alkanol alkoxylated to introduce 10 ethylene oxide and 5 propylene oxide units per alkanol unit and (b) a less water-soluble nonionic surfactant, specifically a C13 - C15 alkanol alkoxylated to introduce 4 ethylene oxide and 7 propylene oxide units per alkanol unit. 12% of the product of Example 3. 31.2% sodium tripolyphosphate. 9% sodium perborate monohydrate. 4.5% tetraacetylethylenediamine; this is an activator for the sodium perborate. 4% copolymer of approximately equal number of moles of methacrylic acid and maleic anhydride, completely neutralized to form its sodium salt (Sokalan CP5); this counteracts crust formation (for example from the formation of dicalcium phosphate). 1% sodium salt of diethylenetriamine pentamethylene phosphonic acid (DTPMP), 1% proteolytic enzyme slurry (in nonionic surfactant) (Esperase) 1% mixture of sodium carboxymethylcellulose and hydroxymethylcellulose (an anti-precipitate) (Relatín DM4096). 0.5% perfume 0.5% optical brightener (of stilbene 4 type) 0.3% partial ester of phosphoric acid and a C16 - C18 alkanol (Bmpiphos 5632, which contains about 1/3 monoester and 2/3 diester) . 461 737 The ingredients are mixed together, the phosphoric acid ester and then the sodium tripolyphosphate preferably being added last, and passed through a colloid mill to reduce the particle size of the solids to below 100 μm (eg to about 40 μm). The mixture is then subjected to grinding to reduce the sizes of the suspended solids to below 10 microns (eg in the range of about 2 to 10 microns with less than about 10% of the solids having particle sizes above about 10 microns). ).

The ingredients and conditions are selected so that the total unbound water content of the composition amounts to less than 2%, preferably less than 1%, such as approx.

0.5% or less.

The mixture has a high viscosity but is easily dosed with cold water in the automatic washing machine. Its specific gravity is approx. 1.25. It provides excellent washing when used in a dosage of approx. 100 g per wash (compared to 170 g per wash for standard fortified detergent powders) in conventional European home washing machines (which use about 20 liters of water per wash).

As is well known, the nonionic synthetic organic detergents are characterized by the presence of an organic hydrophobic group and an organic hydrophilic group and are typically prepared by the condensation of an organic aliphatic or alkyl aromatic hydrophobic compound with ethylene oxide (hydrophilic to nature). ). Virtually any hydrophobic compound having a carboxy, hydroxy, amido or amino group with a free hydrogen bonded to the nitrogen can be condensed with ethylene oxide or with its polyhydration product, polyethylene glycol, to form a nonionic detergent. The length of the hydrophilic or polyoxyethylene chain can be easily adjusted to achieve the desired balance between hydrophobic and hydrophilic groups. Typical suitable nonionic surfactants are described in U.S. Pat. 4,3l6,812 and 3,630,929, as well as those described and enumerated in the discussion of nonionic surfactants in Kirk-Othmer "Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology", 3rd Edition, Volume 22 (1983), pages 360- 379.

The compositions preferably contain fine particles of a detergent builder dispersed in the nonionic surfactant. Suitable builders include inorganic and organic builder salts such as phosphates, carbonates, silicates, phosphonates, polyhydroxysulfonates, polycarboxylates and the like. Typical suitable amplifiers are those described in U.S. Pat. 4,316,812, 4,264,466 and 3,630,929.

Since the compositions of the present invention, as indicated in Example 4, can be used in relatively low dosages, it is desirable to supplement an optional phosphate builder (such as sodium tripolyphosphate) with an auxiliary builder such as a high calcium binding capacity polymeric carboxylic acid in an amount in the range of e.g. 1 - 10% of the composition, to prevent incrustations which may otherwise be caused by the formation of an insoluble calcium phosphate. Such auxiliary amplifiers are well known in the art.

The composition preferably comprises a peroxygen bleach. This may be a peroxygen compound, such as an alkali metal perborate, percarbonate or perfosphate; a particularly suitable material is sodium perborate monohydrate.

The peroxygen compound is preferably used in admixture with an activator of the compound. Suitable activators are described in U.S. Patent 4,264,466 or in column 1 of U.S. Patent 4,430,244. Polyacylated compounds are preferably activators: among these, compounds such as tetraacetylethylenediamine ("TAED") and pentaacetylglycose are particularly preferred.

The activator usually interacts with the peroxygen compound to form a peroxyacid bleach in the wash water. Preferably, a sequestering agent with a high complexing ability is included to prevent any undesired reaction between such a peroxyacid and hydrogen peroxide in the washing solution in the presence of metal ions. Such a sequestering agent is an organic compound which can form a complex with Cu 2+ ions, such that the stability constant (pK) of the complex formation is equal to or greater than 6 at 25 ° C in water with an ionic strength of 0.1 mol / liters, pK is conventionally defined by the formula: pK = -log K, where K represents the equilibrium constant. Thus, for example, the pK values for complex formation with copper ion with NTA and EDTA under said conditions are 12.7 and 18.8, respectively.

Suitable sequestrants include the sodium salts of nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA); ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA); diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid (DETBA); diethylenetriaminepentamethylenephosphonic acid (DTPMP); and ethylenediaminetetramethylenephosphonic acid (EDITEMPA). Other ingredients that may be incorporated into the composition are enzymes (eg proteases, amylases or lipases or mixtures thereof), optical brighteners. anti-precipitants, dyes (eg pigments or dyes), etc.

The composition may also contain an inorganic insoluble thickener or dispersant with a very high surface area such as atomized silica with extremely fine particle size (eg 5 - 100 nm in diameter such as that sold under the name Aerosil) or the other high volume inorganic carrier materials described in U.S. Patent 3,630,929 in proportions of 0.1 - 10%, e.g. l - 5%.

However, it is preferred that the compositions which form peroxyacids in the wash bath (eg compositions containing peroxygen compound and activator therefor) be substantially free of such compounds and of other silicates: it has been found that silica and silicates, for example, promote the undesired decomposition of the peroxyacid.

According to a preferred form of the invention, the mixture of the liquid nonionic surfactant and the solid ingredients is subjected to grinding in an attrition type mill in which the particle sizes of the solid ingredients are reduced to below about 10 pm e.g. to an average particle size of 2 - 10) now or t.o.m. lower (eg ljnn). Compositions whose dispersed particles have such a small size have improved stability against separation or sedimentation during storage.

It has been found that the acidic polyether compound can reduce the yield stress of such dispersions, contributing to their dischargeability, without a corresponding reduction in their stability to sedimentation. The mixture may contain antisedimentation ingredients such as a partial ester of phosphoric acid and a higher alkanol, present in minor amounts such as less than 1%, e.g. below 0.5%, during grinding. Other phosphate ester surfactants may be used instead, such as those described and listed in Kirk-Othmer's "Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology", 3rd Edition, Volume 22 (1983), pages 359-361.

During the grinding operation, it is preferred that the proportion of solid ingredients be high enough (eg, at least about 40% such as about 50%) that the solid particles be in contact with each other and not substantially protected from each other by the nonionic surfactant liquid. . Grinders that use grinding balls (ball grinders) or similar moving grinding bodies have given very good results. Thus, one can use a batch working laboratory attritor with 8 mm diameter steatite molecules. For larger scale work, a continuously operating mill in which there are 1 mm or 1.5 mm diameter grinding balls operating in a very small gap between a stator and a rotor operating at a relatively high speed (e.g. a CoBall mill ) is used; when such a grinder is used, it is desirable to feed the mixture of nonionic surfactant and solid particles first through a grinder which does not provide such a fine grind (e.g. a colloid grinder) to reduce the particle size to smaller than l00Jnu (eg to approx. 40) nn) before the step of grinding to an average particle size below approx. 10 / now in the continuous ball mill.

In the compositions according to the invention, typical proportions of the ingredients are as follows: Suspended detergent enhancer within the internal range approx. 10 - 60% such as approx. 20 - 50%, e.g. ca. 25 - 40%; Liquid phase comprising nonionic surfactant and dissolved carboxylic acid gel inhibiting compound in the range of about 30 - 70%, such as approx. 40 - 60%; this phase may also include a diluent such as a glycol, e.g. polyethylene glycol (eg "PEG 400") or hexylene glycol.

Carboxylic acid gel inhibiting compound in an amount which adds -COOH (molecular weight 45) in the range of about 0.5 - 10 parts (eg about 1 - 6 parts such as about 2 - 5 parts) per 100 parts mixture of this acid compound and nonionic surfactants. (Example 4 includes about 3 parts of COOH per 100 parts of said mixture). Typically, the amount of the carboxylic acid compound is in the range of about 0.01 - 1 part per part nonionic surfactant, such as approx. 0.05 - 0.6 parts, e.g. ca. 0.2 - 0.5 parts; Peroxygen compound (such as sodium perborate monohydrate) in the range of approx. 2 - 15%, such as approx. 4 - 10%; Activator in the range approx. 1 - 8%, such as approx. 3 - 6%.

A sequestering agent with high complexing ability in the range of approx. 0.25 - 3%, such as approx. 0.5 - 2%.

In the present text, all proportions are by weight unless otherwise indicated. In the examples, atmospheric pressure is used unless otherwise stated.

It is to be understood, of course, that the above detailed description has been given for illustrative purposes only and that variations may be made therein without departing from the invention.

Claims (8)

10 15 20 25 30 461 737 11 P a t e n t k r a v Liquid reinforced laundry detergent composition comprising a suspension of builder salt in a liquid nonionic surfactant, characterized in that the composition contains a polyether carboxylic acid which is a partial ester of succinic acid and a nonionic surfactant for reducing the temperature at which the surfactant forms a gel with water. 2. A composition according to claim 1, characterized in that the polyether carboxylic acid is soluble in the nonionic surfactant and that the composition is anhydrous. 3. A composition according to claim 1, characterized in that the proportion of the polyether-carboxylic acid is such that about 0.5 - 10 parts of -COOH per 100 parts of the mixture of the polyether-carboxylic acid and the nonionic surfactant are obtained. Composition according to one of Claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the builder salt is an alkali metal polyphosphate. Composition according to any one of Claims 1 to 4, characterized in that it also contains suspended peracid bleach. Composition according to Claim 5, characterized in that the bleaching agent comprises sodium perborate monohydrate and an activator therefor. 7. A composition according to claim 6, characterized in that said activator comprises tetraacetylethylenediamine. 461 757 12 Composition according to any one of claims 1 - 7, characterized in that the particle size of the suspended builder salt is less than about 10 Pm.