US3885577A

US3885577A - Heat-assisted permanent waving system

Info

Publication number: US3885577A
Application number: US432597A
Authority: US
Inventors: Norman L Edelberg; John R Forsberg
Original assignee: Helene Curtis Industries Inc
Current assignee: Helene Curtis Industries Inc
Priority date: 1974-01-11
Filing date: 1974-01-11
Publication date: 1975-05-27
Anticipated expiration: 1992-05-27
Also published as: JPS50116650A; CA1081125A; BE824304A; CH610741A5

Abstract

A heat-assisted ammonium thioglycolate permanent waving system is provided in which heat-containing clamps applied to the hair to assist the action of the ammonium thioglycolate bring the hair up to hair waving temperature and maintain it at such temperature for no more than 6 minutes and in which the ammonium thioglycolate solution is weaker than is used in non-heatassisted permanent waving for the same type of hair and stronger than has been used in prior heat-assisted permanent waving for the same type of hair.

Description

Edelberg et a1.

HEAT-ASSISTED PERMANENT WAVING SYSTEM Inventors: Norman L. Edelberg, Des Plaines;

John R. Forsberg, Arlington Heights, both of I11.

Assignee: Helene Curtis Industries, Inc.,

Chicago, 111.

Filed: Jan. 11, 1974 Appl. No.: 432,597

US. Cl 132/7; 424/71 Int. Cl A45d 7/00 Field of Search 132/7, 31, 33; 424/71;

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 8/1946 Rood et a1. 132/31 1451 May 27, 1975 2,621,280 12/1952 Judd ..219/24 3,583,408 6/1971 Wall 132/7 3,736,944 6/1973 Ghilardietal ..132/7 Primary Examiner-G. E. McNeill Attorney, Agent, or FirmDressler, Goldsmith, Clement & Gordon, Ltd.

[57] ABSTRACT A heat-assisted ammonium thioglycolate permanent waving system is provided in which heat-containing clamps applied to the hair to assist the action of the ammonium thioglycolate bring the hair up to hair waving temperature and maintain it at such temperature for no more than 6 minutes and in which the ammonium thioglycolate solution is weaker than is used in non-heat-assisted permanent waving for the same type of hair and stronger than has been used in prior heatassisted permanent waving for the same type of hair.

5 Claims, N0 Drawings HEAT-ASSISTED PERMANENT WAVING SYSTEM This invention relates to a system for the permanent waving of hair in which an ammonium thioglycolate solution of controlled strength is utilized in conjunction with the application of heat at a controlled temperature and for a controlled period of time.

The permanent waving of hair is commonly carried out by applying to the hair. while it is wound around rolls, an aqueous solution of ammonium thioglycolate to soften the hair strands, followed by removal of excess thioglycolate solution and then by application of an oxidizing solution to the hair to neutralize the ammonium thioglycolate solution and to restore firmness to the hair strands. Substantially all permanent wavingfor home use and much of the permanent waving in beauty shops is of the cold wave type in which no external heat is used. Such permanent waving takes a substantial time to effect despite the fact that relatively strong ammonium thioglycolate solutions are used.

To reduce the time necessary to effect a permanent wave external heat may be applied to the hair while it is wound around the rolls, preferably by the application to each roll of a preheated clamp of sufficient heat capacity to maintain the hair within a desired temperature range for a sufficient time to permit the ammonium thioglycolate to effect its desired action. With such heat-assisted permanent waving, ammonium thioglycolate solutions of lesser strength are used than are used in non-heat-assisted permanent waving for hair of the same type.

Because of the rapidity of the action of the ammonium thioglycolate solution when heat-assisted, it is necessary to control the time of its action to avoid overprocessing and consequent damage to the hair. The operators in such heat-assisted permanent waving are instructed to limit processing time but sometimes fail to do so.

In accordance with the present invention the heat content of the clamps and the strength of the ammonium thioglycolate are correlated so that the clamps cool within the appropriate processing time to a temperature at which the ammonium thioglycolate solution loses substantially all of its processing activity. Specifically, the construction and material of the clamps and the temperature to which they are preheated are selected to permit the clamps to heat the wetted hair on the rolls to a temperature about 120F. and to maintain a temperature above 120F. for no more than 6 minutes and the strength of the ammonium thioglycolate solution is at a level lower than that of ammonium thioglycolate solutions used in non-heat-assisted permanent hair waving systems and higher than that of ammonium thioglycolate solutions used in prior heat-assisted permanent waving systems.

As is well known, ammonium thioglycolate solutions act on the keratinaceous protein of the hair to effect the splitting of disulfide bonds in the protein and the creation of sulfhydryl groups capable of bonding to each other upon oxidation to re-create disulfide groups. Distortion of the hair strands by winding the hair around the rolls changes the spatial relationship of sulfhydryl groups so that upon oxidation any particular sulfhydryl group is highly likely to be joined to a sulfhydryl group other than the one from which it was originally split, resulting in the formation of a different molecular structure in the hair strand and thereby permanently altering its configuration.

The strength of an ammonium thioglycolate solution, or the extent to which it can effect the desired splitting of disulfide bonds within a given time at a given temperature is dependent on both its ammonium thioglycolate content and its alkalinity, stronger solutions having higher ammonium thioglycolate contents, higher pH levels, or both.

As is well known in the permanent waving art, human hair varies substantially in the ease or difficulty of effecting permanent waving and in its susceptibility to damage by overprocessing, depending on the basic na ture of the hair and on its processing history. For this reason, it has been customary, both in cold waving and in heat-assisted waving to select for a particular hair waving operation one of several ammonium thioglycolate solutions, depending on the nature of the hair to be treated. The system of the instant invention also provides several ammonium thioglycolate solutions of different strengths and requires selection from among these several solutions of a single solution suitable for a particular head of hair.

It is to be noted, however, that although the several solutions used in accordance with the present invention differ substantially from each other in processing strength, each of them is weaker than the comparable solutions used on the same type of hair in cold waving, and each of them is stronger than the comparable solutions used on the same type of hair in prior heatassisted waving systems in which emphasis was placed on having clamps of maximum specific heat and heat content so that the desired elevated temperature could be maintained as long as possible.

In the instant invention, the clamps are designed to hold a substantial amount of heat but not so great an amount of heat as to retain a high temperature in the clamps beyond the required processing time. The clamps are limited in mass by the avoidance of metal inserts of metal particles, or heavy materials of construction which have been used in prior clamps to maximize heat content. The clamps used in accordance with this invention are designed to heat wet hair on a roll to a temperature above F. and to maintain it for a period not longer than 6 minutes. At temperatures below about 120F. the solutions used are substantially inactivated with respect to the particular hair for which they are utilized and the danger of overprocessing is obviated. The clamps used in this invention and the apparatus for heating them are described in the copending and coassigned United States application of John R. Forsberg (one of the coapplicants herein), Ser. No. 382,886, filed July 26, 1973, which application is incorporated herein by reference.

In a typical operation, a clamp used in accordance with this invention is removed from a rod heated to about 220F. and immediately placed on a curl. The heat retained in the clamp brings the curl up to processing temperature (about 120F.) in about one to one and one-quarter minutes. The clamp then continues to raise the temperature of the curl to a peak temperature of about F. and then begins to cool, dropping the curl temperature to a level below about 120F. within 6 minutes after application of the clamp to the curl.

EXAMPLE 1 A specific formulation for use in the heat-assisted waving of normal hair comprises:

Ammonium thioglycolate (60% aqueous) 15.1000 parts Water, deionized 77.3977 parts Ammonium Hydroxide 0.2800 parts Ammonium Bicarbonate 5.4000 parts Fatty acid modified protein 0.5000 parts Perfume 0.2000 parts Latex opacifier 1.0000 parts Dyes 0.1223 parts The ammonium thioglycolate acts to break disulfide linkages in the hair. The ammonium hydroxide acts as a swelling agent for hair. The ammonium bicarbonate is a buffer. The fatty acid modified protein acts as a carrier for the perfume and also as a penetrating agent for the wetting of the hair by the lotion.

The above formulation has a thioglycolate content of 9.710.] wt. percent (calculated as thioglycolate ion) and a pH of 76:01

EXAMPLE 2 A specific formulation for use in the heat-assisted waving of hair which is difficult to process comprises:

13.3000 parts Ammonium thioglycolate (60% aqueous) 78.2890 parts Water, deionized Ammonium hydroxide 1.2720 parts Ammonium bicarbonate 5.4000 parts Fatty acid modified protein 0.5000 parts Perfume 0.2000 parts Latex opacifier 1.0000 parts Dye 0.0395 parts The above formulation has a thioglycolate content of 8.5i0.l wt. percent (calculated as thioglycolate ion) and a pH of 8.4i0.1.

EXAMPLE 3 A specific formulation for use in the heat-assisted waving of tinted hair comprises:

Ammonium thioglycolate (60% aqueous) 4.05 parts Water, deionized 88.81 parts Ammonium Hydroxide 1.40 parts Fatty acid modified protein 0.50 parts Perfume 0.20 parts Enzyme hydrolyzed protein 4.00 parts Latex opacifier 1.00 parts Dye 0.04 parts The above formulation has a thioglycolate content of 2.5i0.1 wt. percent (calculated as thioglycolate ion) and a pH of 9.35-0.05.

EXAMPLE 4 A specific formulation for use in the heat-assisted waving of bleached hair comprises:

The above formulation has a thioglycolate content of 0.75 wt. percent 1005. It has a pH of 7.6i0.1, or should be adjusted to a pH in this range by the addition of small amounts of ammonium hydroxide, if necessary.

Each of the above formulations, as stated above,

drops off substantially in activity (with respect to the type of hair on which it is used) as the clamp loses heat and thus the danger of overtreating by prolonged exposure is minimized. However, it is nevertheless preferred to remove the clamps after six to eight minutes of exposure and thereafter immediately wash off excess thioglycolate solution and begin the oxidation process.

Oxidation of the heated hair to restore disulfide bonds is carried out in the same manner as oxidation after non-heat-assisted thioglycolate treatment. A typical oxidization formulation comprises:

Water, deionized 90.744 parts Fatty acid quaternary ammonium complex 3.008 parts Hydrogen Peroxide (35% aqueous) 6.230 parts Phosphoric acid to pH 3.5 app. 0.009 parts Silicone antifoam agent 0.010 parts The fatty acid quaternary ammonium complex is a conditioning agent which serves to improve the combability of the finished waves.

The formulation provides a hydrogen peroxide content of 7.3 to 7.5 volume percent and a pH of 3.5 i 0.1 at F.

It is to be understood that the foregoing examples are intended to be merely illustrative and that modifications and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

We claim:

1. In a heat-assisted method for the permanent waving of hair in which an aqueous solution containing ammonium thioglycolate is applied to hair wound around a roll to wet said hair, the wetted hair is maintained at an elevated temperature by a heated clamp holding said hair around said roll, excess ammonium thioglycolate solution is then removed and an oxidizing solution is thereafter applied to said hair to neutralize said ammonium thioglycolate solution, the improvement which comprises permitting said heated clamp to heat said wetted hair to a temperature above F. and to maintain a temperature about 120F. for no more than 6 minutes, and utilizing as said ammonium thioglycolate solution, a solution of greater strength than is used on similar hair in prior heat-assisted permanent waving and of lesser strength than is used in prior non-heat assisted permanent waving, said solution having an ammonium thioglycolate content in the range between 0.75 i 0.05 and 9.7 i 0.1 weight percent and having a pH in the range between 7.6 i 0.1 and 9.35 i 0.05.

2. The method of claim 1 in which said hair is normal hair and said solution has a thioglycolate content of 9.7 i 0.1 weight percent and a pH of 7.6 i 0.1.

3. The method of claim 1 in which said hair is tinted hair and said solution has a thioglycolate content of 2.5 i 0.1 weight percent and a pH of 9.35 0.05.

4. The method of claim 1 in which said hair is resistant to permanent waving and said solution has a thioglycolate content of 8.5 i 0.1 weight percent and a pH of 8.4 0.1.

5. The method of claim 1 in which said hair is bleached hair and said solution has a thioglycolate content of 0.75 i 0.05 weight percent and a pH of 7.6 i 0.1.

Claims

1. IN A HEAT-ASSISTED METHOD FOR THE PERMANENT WAVING OF HAIR IN WHICH AN AQUEOUS SOLUTION CONTANING AMMONIUM THIOGLYCOLATE IS APPLIED TO HAIR WOUND AROUND A ROLL TO WET SAID HAIR, THE WETTED HAIR IS MAINTAINED AT AN ELEVATED TEMPERATURE BY A HEATED CLAMP HOLDING SAID HAIR AROUND SAID ROLL, EXCESS AMMONIUM THIOGLYCOLATE SOLUTION IS THEN REMOVED AND AN OXIDIZING SOLUTION IS THEREAFTER APPLIED TO SAID HAIR TO NEUTRALIZE SAID AMMONIUM THIOGLYCOLATE SOLUTION, THE IMPROVEMENT WHICH COMPRISES PERMITTING SAID HEATED CLAMP TO HEAT SAID WETTED HAIR TO A TEMPERATURE ABOVE 120*F. AND TO MAINTAIN A TEMPERATURE ABOUT 120*F. FOR NO MORE THAN 6 MINUTES, SAID UTILIZING AS SAID AMMONIUM THIOGLYCOLATE SOLUTION, A SOLUTION OF GREATER SSTRENGTH THAN IS USED ON SIMILAR HAIR IN PRIOR HEATASSISTED PERMANENT WAVING AND OF LESSER STRENGTH THAN IS USED IN PRIOR NON-HEAT ASSISTED PERMENENT WAVING, SAID SOLUTION HAVING AN AMMONIUM THIOGLYCOLATE CONTENT IN THE RANGE BETWEEN 0.75$0.05 AND 9.7$0.1 WEIGHT PERCENT AND HAVING A PH IN THE RANGE BETWEEN 7.6 $ 0.1 ABD 9.35 $ 0.05.

2. The method of claim 1 in which said hair is normal hair and said solution has a thioglycolate content of 9.7 + or - 0.1 weight percent and a pH of 7.6 + or - 0.1.

3. The method of claim 1 in which said hair is tinted hair and said solution has a thioglycolate content of 2.5 + or - 0.1 weight percent and a pH of 9.35 + or - 0.05.

4. The method of claim 1 in which said hair is resistant to permanent waving and said solution has a thioglycolate content of 8.5 + or - 0.1 weight percent and a pH of 8.4 + or - 0.1.

5. The method of claim 1 in which said hair is bleached hair and said solution has a thioglycolate content of 0.75 + or - 0.05 weight percent and a pH of 7.6 + or - 0.1.