Classifications

• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C11—ANIMAL OR VEGETABLE OILS, FATS, FATTY SUBSTANCES OR WAXES; FATTY ACIDS THEREFROM; DETERGENTS; CANDLES
  • C11D—DETERGENT COMPOSITIONS; USE OF SINGLE SUBSTANCES AS DETERGENTS; SOAP OR SOAP-MAKING; RESIN SOAPS; RECOVERY OF GLYCEROL
  • C11D3/00—Other compounding ingredients of detergent compositions covered in group C11D1/00
  • C11D3/0005—Other compounding ingredients characterised by their effect
  • C11D3/0021—Dye-stain or dye-transfer inhibiting compositions
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C11—ANIMAL OR VEGETABLE OILS, FATS, FATTY SUBSTANCES OR WAXES; FATTY ACIDS THEREFROM; DETERGENTS; CANDLES
  • C11D—DETERGENT COMPOSITIONS; USE OF SINGLE SUBSTANCES AS DETERGENTS; SOAP OR SOAP-MAKING; RESIN SOAPS; RECOVERY OF GLYCEROL
  • C11D17/00—Detergent materials or soaps characterised by their shape or physical properties
  • C11D17/06—Powder; Flakes; Free-flowing mixtures; Sheets
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C11—ANIMAL OR VEGETABLE OILS, FATS, FATTY SUBSTANCES OR WAXES; FATTY ACIDS THEREFROM; DETERGENTS; CANDLES
  • C11D—DETERGENT COMPOSITIONS; USE OF SINGLE SUBSTANCES AS DETERGENTS; SOAP OR SOAP-MAKING; RESIN SOAPS; RECOVERY OF GLYCEROL
  • C11D3/00—Other compounding ingredients of detergent compositions covered in group C11D1/00
  • C11D3/16—Organic compounds
  • C11D3/20—Organic compounds containing oxygen
  • C11D3/22—Carbohydrates or derivatives thereof
  • C11D3/222—Natural or synthetic polysaccharides, e.g. cellulose, starch, gum, alginic acid or cyclodextrin
  • C11D3/227—Natural or synthetic polysaccharides, e.g. cellulose, starch, gum, alginic acid or cyclodextrin with nitrogen-containing groups
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C11—ANIMAL OR VEGETABLE OILS, FATS, FATTY SUBSTANCES OR WAXES; FATTY ACIDS THEREFROM; DETERGENTS; CANDLES
  • C11D—DETERGENT COMPOSITIONS; USE OF SINGLE SUBSTANCES AS DETERGENTS; SOAP OR SOAP-MAKING; RESIN SOAPS; RECOVERY OF GLYCEROL
  • C11D3/00—Other compounding ingredients of detergent compositions covered in group C11D1/00
  • C11D3/16—Organic compounds
  • C11D3/37—Polymers
  • C11D3/3703—Macromolecular compounds obtained otherwise than by reactions only involving carbon-to-carbon unsaturated bonds
  • C11D3/3719—Polyamides or polyimides
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C11—ANIMAL OR VEGETABLE OILS, FATS, FATTY SUBSTANCES OR WAXES; FATTY ACIDS THEREFROM; DETERGENTS; CANDLES
  • C11D—DETERGENT COMPOSITIONS; USE OF SINGLE SUBSTANCES AS DETERGENTS; SOAP OR SOAP-MAKING; RESIN SOAPS; RECOVERY OF GLYCEROL
  • C11D3/00—Other compounding ingredients of detergent compositions covered in group C11D1/00
  • C11D3/16—Organic compounds
  • C11D3/37—Polymers
  • C11D3/3746—Macromolecular compounds obtained by reactions only involving carbon-to-carbon unsaturated bonds
  • C11D3/3769—(Co)polymerised monomers containing nitrogen, e.g. carbonamides, nitriles or amines
  • C11D3/3776—Heterocyclic compounds, e.g. lactam

Definitions

• the present invention relates to a dye-capturing laundry aid, a process for producing the same, and the use thereof.
• laundry aids have been envisioned which are designed to capture dye molecules that have leached out of fabrics and into the wash liquor before they dye other fabrics.
• these are provided in the form of a woven or nonwoven fabric which is insoluble in the wash liquor and which is chemically treated such that it is able to scavenge the dyes from the wash liquor.
• laundry aids are coated and/or impregnated and/or bond with compositions comprising binders to obtain satisfactory performances in terms of wet tensile.
• Current solutions use synthetic non-biodegradable binders, which cannot obtain biobased certifications and compostability certifications.
• EP 3 747 979 and EP 3 980 518 concern a method for producing a dye-capturing nonwoven fabric, the method comprising the steps of providing a nonwoven substrate and applying a composition to the nonwoven substrate, the composition comprising a cationic polymer such as polyamido-amine epichlorohydrin and a dye-capturing agent.
• a cationic polymer such as polyamido-amine epichlorohydrin and a dye-capturing agent.
• US 6,833,336 concerns a laundry additive comprising a substrate, and a dye absorber comprising a non-cationic polymeric amine comprising vinyl imidazole adhered to said substrate.
• US 2016/0186097 A1 describes a dye-capturing laundry aid comprising a support in the form of a sheet comprising water-insoluble fibers, and a three-dimensional network entangled with at least some of the fibers contained in the support, the three-dimensional network comprising a first polymer that is cross-linked by a second polymer, wherein the first polymer is a polyamine comprising primary amine group, the first polymer being water soluble and cationic, and the second polymer is a water soluble polymer that is different from the first polymer and comprises repeating units comprising halohydrin and/or epoxide groups that are capable of forming covalent cross-links with the primary amine groups of the first polymer.
• biodegradable binders One problem that is generally observed when using biodegradable binders is that it is difficult to achieve the required strength properties which allow the laundry aid to remain intact in the washing machine.
• the present inventors have observed that certain biodegradable binders do not allow for a sufficient wet tensile strength and thus cause the laundry aids that contain them to break in the washing machine.
• Other biodegradable binders may be not compatible with other components that are generally used in such laundry aids, such as wet strength agents and dye-capturing agents.
• the present invention is aimed at solving the problems of the prior art by providing a dye-capturing laundry aid comprising: a support in the form of a sheet comprising water-insoluble fibers, and a binder composition comprising a binder, wherein the support is impregnated and/or bond and/or coated with the binder composition; wherein the binder in the binder composition is a polymer containing at least one amino group on its backbone and/or side chains; and wherein the dye-capturing laundry aid is biodegradable according to EN13432.
• the present invention relates to a process for producing a dye-capturing laundry aid, the process comprising the steps of: providing a support in the form of sheet comprising water-insoluble fibers; providing a binder composition comprising a binder, wherein the binder is a polymer containing at least one amino group on its backbone and/or side chains; applying the binder composition onto the support; wherein the dye-capturing laundry aid is biodegradable according to EN13432 and wherein the dry add-on weight of the binder composition is at least 1 wt% with respect to the total basis weight of the laundry aid.
• the present invention relates to the use of the dye-capturing laundry aid as described above to scavenge a dye or dyes from an aqueous medium.
• a binder composition comprising a binder which is a polymer containing at least one amino group on its backbone and/or side chains allows to retain the dye-capturing properties and at the same time to achieve a good mechanical strength, such that the laundry aid does not break in the washing machine when in use, even when the laundry aid is made with materials that allow for it to be biodegradable according to EN13432.
• average molecular weight denotes number average molecular weight, unless stated otherwise.
• the term "average” denotes mean average, unless stated otherwise.
• references to amounts “by weight” are intended to be synonymous with “by mass”. Further, as used herein, the term weight percent (wt%) refers to a percentage amount by weight.
• references to the "dry weight” denote amounts expressed as dry content excluding the solvent mass.
• polymer denotes a compound comprising at least ten repeating units such as, for example, a homopolymer, a copolymer, a graft copolymer, a branch copolymer or a block copolymer.
• die-capturing denotes the ability of binding, absorbing, adsorbing, scavenging or otherwise capturing a dye from a fluid, such as a washing liquor, and retaining the same such that it is not easily released again into the fluid from which it has been captured.
• the present invention relates to a dye-capturing laundry aid (hereinafter also referred to as "laundry aid”) comprising: a support in the form of a sheet comprising water-insoluble fibers, and a binder composition comprising a binder, wherein the support is impregnated and/or bond and/or coated with the binder composition; wherein the binder in the binder composition is a polymer containing at least one amino group on its backbone and/or side chains; and wherein the dye-capturing laundry aid is biodegradable according to EN13432.
• laundry aid a dye-capturing laundry aid
• the laundry aid of the present invention comprises a support which is in the form of a sheet and comprises water-insoluble fibers.
• the support may be a woven, knitted or non-woven material.
• the support is a nonwoven material.
• nonwoven refers to a fabric-like sheet having a structure of individual fibers. These are entangled and interlaid with each other, but not in an identifiable manner as in a woven or knitted fabric.
• Nonwovens may be formed from many processes such as, for example, spin laying, carding, air laying (also known as dry laying) and water laying processes. These result in spin-laid, carded, air-laid (also known as dry-laid) and wet-laid nonwovens, respectively.
• the support is preferably a wet-laid nonwoven.
• a wet-laid nonwoven may be produced by suspending fibers in water, pumping the dispersion in order to continuously deposit the fibers on a forming wire before water is drawn off.
• the nonwoven can have a single-layer structure or a two-layer or multilayer structure.
• fiber refers to a material form characterized by an extremely high ratio of length to diameter.
• fiber and filament can be used interchangeably for the purposes of the present invention unless otherwise specifically indicated.
• natural cellulosic fibers include cellulose wood pulp.
• Man-made cellulosic fibers also referred to herein as “regenerated cellulose fibers”
• lyocell and viscose also referred to herein as "Rayon”
• the water-insoluble fibers contained in the support of the laundry aid of the present invention comprise cellulose wood pulp in an amount of 20 wt% or more, 30 wt% or more, 40 wt% or more, or 50 wt% of more, and 95 wt% or less, 90 wt% or less, 85 wt% or less, or 80 wt% or less based on the total weight of the support.
• the support can consist of fibers or may comprise fibers and other components.
• wet strength agents can be added in order to improve the structural integrity of the fiber-containing support. Examples of wet strength agents are the same that are listed below as wet strength agents for the binder composition of the present invention.
• wet strength additives When present in the support, wet strength additives may be present in an amount of 0.05 wt% or more, 0.1 wt% or more, or 0.2 wt% or more and 2 wt% or less, 1 wt% or less or 0.5 wt% or less based on the total weight of the support.
• the support is coated and/or impregnated and/or bond with a binder composition.
• the term "coated with the binder composition” denotes that at least one surface of the support or a part thereof is covered by a layer formed by the binder composition.
• the term "impregnated with the binder composition” means that at least one component of the binder composition penetrates the cavities within the support along at least a portion of the thickness of the support.
• a tridimensional matrix structure may form around the fibers of the support.
• the binder composition may also additionally cover a surface thereof.
• bond with the binder composition indicates that at least one component of the binder composition is bound with at least one component of the support, for example by chemical bond or by forming a network that is interlaced with the fibers of the support. Without wishing to be bound by any theory, it is believed that when the support is bonded with the binder composition, covalent bonds may form between the fibers and at least one component of the binder composition such as the binder and/or the dye capturing additive.
• the support is coated and impregnated with the binder composition.
• the amount in dry weight of binder composition in the dye-capturing laundry aid of the present invention is preferably 1 wt% or more, more preferably 5 wt% or more, more preferably 8 wt% or more, more preferably 10 wt% or more, and preferably 30 wt% or less, more preferably 25 wt% or less, more preferably 22 wt% or less, more preferably 20 wt% or less with respect to the total basis weight of the laundry aid.
• the binder composition used in the laundry aid of the present invention comprises a binder, which is a polymer containing at least one amino group on its backbone and/or side chains.
• the binder is a polymer containing at least one amino group on its backbone and/or side chains which is positively charged when dispersed and/or dissolved in an aqueous composition having a pH of 7 or less, preferably 6 or less. That is, preferably the binder is a polymer containing at least one amino group on its backbone and/or side chains which is cationic when dispersed and/or dissolved in an aqueous composition having a pH of 7 or less, preferably 6 or less.
• the amino group may be a primary amine, a secondary amine, a tertiary amine or a quaternary amine.
• the polymer used in the laundry aid of the present invention may comprise more than one type of amino group, i.e. it may comprise primary amines and/or secondary amines and/or tertiary amines and/or quaternary amines.
• the polymer containing at least one amino group on its backbone and/or side chains is biobased, that is, it is obtainable from a natural source.
• natural sources are plant, fungal and animal sources.
• animal sources include crustaceans, including crab, prawns and shrimp shells.
• the polymer containing at least one amino group on its backbone and/or side chains is a polysaccharide.
• polysaccharide denotes polymers composed of more than 10 monosaccharide units bound together.
• Suitable polysaccharides are chitosan, chitosan derivatives, chitin, chitin derivatives, starch derivatives, dextran derivatives and cyclodextrin derivatives.
• derivative denotes a compound that is obtained by chemical modification of an originator compound.
• the binder in the binder composition used in the present invention is chitosan or a chitosan derivative. More specifically, the binder in the binder composition may be chitosan having a deacetylation degree of from 50 to 100 mol%, preferably 60 to 100 mol%, further preferably 75 to 100 mol%.
• the amount in dry weight of binder in the laundry aid of the present invention is preferably 0.01 wt% or more, more preferably 0.02 wt% or more, more preferably 0.05 wt% or more, more preferably 0.1 wt% or more with respect to the total basis weight of the laundry aid.
• the amount in dry weight of binder in the laundry aid of the present invention is preferably 10 wt% or less, more preferably 5 wt% or less, more preferably 3 wt% or less with respect to the total basis weight of the laundry aid.
• the binder composition in the dye-capturing laundry aid of the present invention preferably comprises a wet strength agent.
• wet strength agent denotes additives that increase the mechanical strength of the laundry aid when it is wetted.
• Wet strength agents in the context of the present invention are preferably able to form covalent bonds with dye capturing agents such as those listed below as dye capturing agents for the laundry aid of the present invention, thus making them insoluble in water and preventing their release when in use in a washing cycle.
• wet strength agents that may be comprised in the binder composition are a butadiene-styrene emulsion, carboxylated styrene-butadiene emulsion, acrylonitrile-butadiene emulsion, polyacrylamide resin, polyamide-epichlorohydrin resin, acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene emulsion, and styrene acrylonitrile and mixtures thereof.
• the binder composition comprises a wet strength agent which is a polyamide-epichlorohydrin resin.
• the amount in dry weight of wet strength agent in the dye-capturing laundry aid of the present invention is preferably 0.2 wt% or more, more preferably 0.5 wt% pr more, more preferably 1 wt% or more, more preferably 1.5 wt% or more, and is preferably 5 wt% or less, more preferably 4 wt% or less, more preferably 3 wt% or less, more preferably 2.5 wt% or less with respect to the total basis weight of the laundry aid.
• the binder composition in the dye-capturing laundry aid of the present invention preferably comprises a dye-capturing agent.
• the term "dye-capturing agent” denotes additives that are able to scavenge a dye or dyes from an aqueous medium.
• the binder composition comprises a dye-capturing agent which is selected from a vinylpyrrolidone/vinylimidazole copolymer, polyvinylpyrrolidone, polyvinyl pyridine-N-oxide, and mixtures thereof.
• the binder composition comprises a dye-capturing agent which is a vinylpyrrolidone/vinylimidazole copolymer.
• the amount in dry weight of dye-capturing agent in the dye-capturing laundry aid of the present invention is preferably 0.02 wt% or more, more preferably 0.05 wt% pr more, more preferably 0.1 wt% or more, more preferably 0.2 wt% or more, and is preferably 5 wt% or less, more preferably 4 wt% or less, more preferably 3 wt% or less, more preferably 2.5 wt% or less with respect to the total basis weight of the laundry aid.
• the binder composition in the dye-capturing laundry aid of the present invention may comprise further components, including acids and plasticizers.
• the binder composition in the dye-capturing laundry aid of the present invention may comprise organic and/or inorganic acids such as acetic acid, citric acid, citric acid monohydrate, glycolic acid, hydrochloric acid, lactic acid, malic acid, malonic acid, maleic acid, tartaric acid, succinic acid and mixtures thereof.
• organic and/or inorganic acids such as acetic acid, citric acid, citric acid monohydrate, glycolic acid, hydrochloric acid, lactic acid, malic acid, malonic acid, maleic acid, tartaric acid, succinic acid and mixtures thereof.
• the total amount in dry weight of these acids in the laundry aid is preferably 0.001 wt% or more, more preferably 0.002 wt% or more, more preferably 0.005 wt% or more, more preferably 0.01 wt% or more, more preferably 0.1 wt% or more, and preferably 2 wt% or less, more preferably 1 wt% or less, more preferably 0.5 wt% or less with respect to the total basis weight of the laundry aid.
• the pH of the binder composition of the dye-capturing laundry aid of the present invention is 7 or less, more preferably 6.5 or less, even more preferably 6 or less.
• plasticizers examples include sorbitol, glycerol, mannitol, maltitol, xylitol, glucose, fructose, hydrogenated hydrolysed starch, sucrose, cyclodextrin, dextrin and mixtures thereof.
• the total amount in dry weight of plasticizers in the dye-capturing laundry aid is preferably 0.1 wt% or more, more preferably 0.3 wt% or more, more preferably 0.5 wt% or more, and preferably 12 wt% or less, more preferably 10 wt% or less, more preferably 8 wt% or less with respect to the total basis weight of the laundry aid.
• the binder composition may further comprise additional components such as defoamers, foaming agents, wetting agents, catalysts, surfactants, emulsifiers, preservatives, crosslinkers, fillers, and rheology modifiers.
• additional components such as defoamers, foaming agents, wetting agents, catalysts, surfactants, emulsifiers, preservatives, crosslinkers, fillers, and rheology modifiers.
• the dye-capturing laundry aid is biodegradable according to EN13432.
• biodegradable is generally defined in line with EN13432.
• biodegradable when applied to a material or a product means that the material or the entire product will biodegrade.
• biodegrade it is meant that the chemical structure or the material breaks down under the action of microorganisms. More specifically, a material or a product is considered “biodegradable” if at least 90 wt% of the material is converted into CO 2 under the action of microorganisms in less than 6 months as measured by the laboratory test method EN 14046, thereby meeting the requirement for biodegradability according to EN 13432.
• compostable is generally defined in line with EN13432.
• a material is “compostable” when it comprises a maximum of 10 wt% and preferably of 5 wt% of non-biodegradable components, thereby meeting EN13432.
• the term “compostable” when applied to a material or a product means that the material, or the entire product, will both biodegrade and disintegrate.
• disintegrate it is meant that the material, or the product made from it, will physically fall apart into fine visually indistinguishable fragments, at the end of a typical composting cycle.
• An “industrial compostable” material may be compostable as described above in an industrial setting: The material may disintegrate and biodegrade at temperatures between 55 °C to 60 °C in less than 6 months. In detail, disintegration in an industrial setup may take less than 3 months, while biodegradation may take less than 6 months. If a material is described as "home compostable,” it is compostable as described above under conditions present in a domestic composter setting: The material may disintegrate and biodegrade at temperatures below 55 °C, preferably at temperatures between 10 to 45 °C and most preferably between 25 to 30 °C in less than 12 months. In detail, disintegration may take less than 6 months, while biodegradation may take less than 12 months in a domestic composter setting.
• the dye-capturing laundry aid is industrially compostable according to EN13432. In a more preferred embodiment, the dye-capturing laundry aid is both industrially and home compostable according to EN13432.
• the laundry aid comprises 95 wt% or more, preferably 97 wt% or more of biodegradable components according to EN13432 with respect to the total basis weight of the laundry aid. That is, in a preferred embodiment the amount of non-biodegradable components in the laundry aid is less than 5 wt%, preferably less than 3 wt%.
• components such as the support and the binder in the binder composition of the laundry aid are biodegradable according to EN13432.
• the support and the binder in the binder composition are biodegradable according to EN13432.
• the support and the binder in the binder composition are industrially compostable according to EN13432.
• the support and the binder in the binder composition are both industrially and home compostable according to EN13432.
• a wet tensile in the machine direction of the laundry aid is at least 300 N/m and/or a wet tensile in the cross direction of the laundry aid is at least 150 N/m.
• the wet tensile in the machine direction (MD) of the laundry aid is 400 N/m or more, more preferably 500 N/m or more, and 1200 N/m or less, more preferably 1000 N/m or less.
• the wet tensile in the cross direction (CD) of the laundry aid is 180 N/m or more, more preferably 200 N/m or more, even more preferably 300 N/m or more, and 1200 N/m or less, preferably 1000 N/m or less.
• a dry tensile in the machine direction of the laundry aid is at least 500 N/m and/or a dry tensile in the cross direction of the laundry aid is at least 500 N/m.
• the dry tensile in the machine direction (MD) of the laundry aid is 600 N/m or more, preferably 800 N/m or more, more preferably 1000 N/m or more.
• the dry tensile in the cross direction (CD) of the laundry aid is 600 N/m or more, preferably 800 N/m or more, more preferably 1000 N/m or more.
• a wet/dry tensile ratio of the laundry aid is at least 16%, preferably at least 20%, more preferably at least 24%. Further, a wet/dry tensile ratio of the laundry aid is preferably 60% or less, more preferably 50% or less, even more preferably 40% or less. In this context, the wet/dry tensile ratio is the ratio in percentage between the arithmetic average of the wet tensile in MD and CD and the arithmetic average of the dry tensile in MD and CD.
• the laundry aid the present invention may have any basis weight and thickness suitable to provide properties desirable for a laundry aid.
• the term "basis weight” as used herein refers to the area density of the laundry aid including the support and the binder composition.
• the basis weight of woven, knitted and nonwoven materials is usually expressed in weight per unit area, for example in grams per square meter (g/m 2 ) .
• the terms "basis weight” and “grammage” can be used interchangeably for the purposes of the present invention unless otherwise specifically indicated.
• the basis weight as used herein was measured following the standard ISO 536.
• the laundry aid of the present invention may have a basis weight of at least 18 g/m 2 , preferably between 25 and 80 g/m 2 , more preferably between 30 and 70 g/m 2 and most preferably between 40 and 65 g/m 2 .
• the present invention also relates to a process for producing a dye-capturing laundry aid, the process comprising the steps of: providing a support in the form of a sheet comprising water-insoluble fibers; providing a binder composition comprising a binder, wherein the binder is a polymer containing at least one amino group on its backbone and/or side chains; applying the binder composition to the support; wherein the dye-capturing laundry aid is biodegradable according to EN13432; and wherein the dry add-on weight of the binder composition is at least 1 wt% with respect to the total basis weight of the laundry aid.
• the method of production of the support is not particularly limited and may be selected as appropriate depending on whether the support is, for example, a woven, knitted or non-woven material.
• the support may be a nonwoven and may be produced by the method described above for nonwoven materials.
• the support is in the form of a sheet and comprises water-insoluble fibers.
• the preferred characteristics of the support in the method of the present invention are as described above for the support in the laundry aid of the present invention.
• the binder composition to be applied to the support comprises a binder, which is a polymer containing at least one amino group on its backbone and/or side chains.
• the binder composition to be applied to the support further contains water.
• the preferred components of the binder composition of the method of the present invention are as described above for the binder composition in the laundry aid of the present invention.
• the amounts of each component in the binder composition to be applied to the support may be adjusted depending on the final desired amounts in dry weight of each components in the laundry aid.
• the amount in dry weight of binder in the binder composition to be applied to the support is preferably 0.1 wt% or more, more preferably 0.2 wt% or more, 0.5 wt% or more, 0.7 wt% or more, 1 wt% or more, 1.2 wt% or more, 1.5 wt% or more, or 1 wt% or more with respect to the total dry weight of binder composition to be applied to the support.
• the amount in dry weight of binder in the binder composition to be applied to the support is preferably 15 wt% or less, more preferably 10 wt% or less, more preferably 8 wt% or less, more preferably 5 wt% or less, more preferably 4 wt% or less with respect to the total dry weight of binder composition to be applied to the support.
• the wet strength agent may be included in the binder composition to be applied to the support in an amount in dry weight of preferably 1 wt% or more, more preferably 2 wt% or more, more preferably 5 wt% or more, more preferably 10 wt% or more, more preferably 12 wt% or more, and preferably 30 wt% or less, more preferably 25 wt% or less, more preferably 20 wt% or less with respect to the total dry weight of the binder composition to be applied to the support.
• the dye-capturing agent may be included in the binder composition to be applied to the support in an amount in dry weight of preferably 0.3 wt% or more, more preferably 0.5 wt% or more, more preferably 1 wt% or more, more preferably 3 wt% or more, more preferably 5 wt% or more, and preferably 20 wt% or less, more preferably 15 wt% or less, more preferably 10 wt% or less with respect to the total dry weight of the binder composition to be applied to the support.
• the binder composition to be applied to the support may further contain the other components listed above for the binder composition of the laundry aid, such as plasticizers and acids.
• the total amount in dry weight of acids in the binder composition to be applied to the support is preferably 0.01 wt% or more, 0.02 wt% or more, more preferably 0.05 wt% or more, and preferably 5 wt% or less, more preferably 4 wt% or less, more preferably 3 wt% or less based on the total dry weight of the binder composition to be applied to the support.
• the total amount in dry weight of plasticizers in the binder composition to be applied to the support is preferably 5 wt% or more, more preferably 7 wt% or more, more preferably 10 wt% or more, and preferably 45 wt% or less, more preferably 40 wt% or less, more preferably 35 wt% or less with respect to the total dry weight of the binder composition to be applied to the support.
• the method according to the present invention includes a step of applying the binder composition to the support.
• the application of the binder composition to the support include coating the support with the binder composition and/or impregnating the support with the binder composition and/or bonding the support with the binder composition.
• the step of applying the binder composition to the support includes impregnating and coating the support with the binder composition.
• the method by which the support is coated and/or impregnated and/or bond with the binder composition is not particularly limited and may be any method known in the art which is suitable for coating and/or impregnating and/or binding a fiber-containing support with a liquid composition.
• the binder composition is applied to the support by size-press or by spray. More preferably the binder composition is applied to the support by size-press.
• the binder composition When applied by size-press, the binder composition may be applied on the support at a speed suitable for industrial processes, for example at a speed of 40 m/min or more, preferably 50 m/min or more, and 400 m/min or less, preferably 300 m/min or less.
• the obtained laundry aid may be dried.
• the drying step can be conducted by exposing the laundry aid to elevated temperatures for a period of time, wherein shorter drying times are generally associated with higher temperatures.
• drying can be conducted in conditions applicable to industrial processes, such as by exposing the laundry aid to temperatures of 100-200°C for 10-120 seconds. Drying can also be promoted by exposing the laundry aid to a vacuum during drying, wherein drying in a vacuum generally requires lower drying temperatures than when drying at ambient pressure.
• dry add-on weight of the binder composition is 1 wt% or more with respect to the total basis weight of the laundry aid.
• the dry add-on weight of the binder composition is at 5 wt% or more, more preferably 8 wt% or more, even more preferably 10 wt% or more with respect to the total basis weight of the laundry aid.
• the dry add-on weight of the binder composition is 30 wt% or less, preferably 25 wt% or less, further preferably 22 wt% or less, even more preferably 20 wt% or less with respect to the total basis weight of the laundry aid.
• the dry add-on weight of the binder composition refers to the total dry weight of the binder composition excluding the solvent mass with respect to the total basis weight of the laundry aid.
• the present invention further relates to the use of the dye-capturing laundry aid as described above to scavenge a dye or dyes from an aqueous medium.
• the present invention also relates to a method of using a dye-capturing laundry aid according to the present invention to scavenge a dye or dyes from an aqueous medium.
• the laundry aid of the present invention is particularly well-suited to capturing direct dyes, which are sometimes termed substantive dyes.
• direct dyes which are sometimes termed substantive dyes.
• These types of dyes do not react with the material to be colored (unlike reactive dyes, for instance) and do not use a mordant, but instead rely upon intermolecular forces in order to adhere to the dyed material.
• direct dyes are frequently used when dying household fabrics such as cotton.
• the lack of a chemical bond can mean that direct dyes tend to dissociate from the dyed fabric, and so these types of dyes are frequently associated with unwanted color runs during laundering.
• dyes used in this context are anionic.
• the laundry aid can be used to capture dyes during the laundering of fabrics, textiles, clothing and so forth by simply placing the laundry aid in the washing apparatus along with the items to be laundered prior to commencing laundering.
• the laundry aid will then capture dyes liberated by the aqueous wash medium during the laundering cycle and therefore reduce the likelihood of unwanted ⁇ color runs'.
• Visual inspection of the laundry aid after use will tend to reveal whether dyes have been captured because the laundry aid will discolor. It is therefore helpful if the laundry aid has a pale color, preferably white, because this will enable facile visual detection of dye capture and therefore reassure the user that the laundry aid is functioning properly.
• Binder blend A The binder comprising at least one polymer containing at least one amino group on its backbone and/or side chains.
• the binder used for this example is composed of an aqueous formulation of modified biopolymers and natural plant compounds, such as for example the Lily grade binder from Organoclick. A particulary suitable grade is, for example, Lily 1450.
• Binder blend B is Resem Y-793, available from Chukyo Yushi, which is a water-based dispersion cationic stabilized polylactic acid (PLA).
• Binder blend C is Resem Y-796, available from Chukyo Yushi, which is a water-based dispersion cationic stabilized polybutylene succinate (PBSA).
• Polyvinyl pyrrolidone co-vinyl imidazole dye capturing agent used was Sokalan HP56 available from BASF.
• Polyvinyl pyrrolidone dye capturing agent used was Albigen A liq available from Archroma.
• the wet strength agent used was Kymene 725, available from Solenis.
• the sheets were impregnated by using a laboratory size-press (Mathis HVF 350 mm) at 3.1 m/min roll speed and 1.8b roll pressure with a binder composition according to Table 1.
• Table 1 the amounts of each component are expressed in dry weight percentage with respect to the total basis weight of the binder composition.
• the amounts of each component applied to the sheets in weight, as well as the characterization in terms of total weight, pH of the formulation, dry content, viscosity and total mix add-on, are reported in Table 2.
• the sheets were then dried on a contact hot dryer at 130°C for 5 minutes followed by 5 minutes of curing in oven at 135°C. The reported temperature corresponds to the temperature of the nonwoven sheet in the oven.
• the basis weight was measured according to ISO 536 and reported in grams per square meter (g/m 2 ) and is reported in Table 3.
• the air permeability was measured according to ISO Standard 9237 at 196 Pa and reported in liter per square meter and second (l/m 2 ⁇ s) in Table 3.
• the thickness at 100 kPa was measured according to ISO Standard 534:1988 and reported in micrometers ( ⁇ m) in Table 3.
• the tensile strength was measured according to TAPPI Standard T494 om-96 with the following modifications: 50 mm strips were used, the initial jaw distance was 127 mm, and the break force value was recorded as the maximum of the recorded force curve instead of 25 mm strip and reported in Newtons per meter (N/m).
• the dry tensile strength was measured both in Machine Direction (MD) and Cross Direction (CD). The arithmetic average of machine direction and cross direction was also determined. Results are reported in Table 4.
• the elongation was measured according to TAPPI Standard T494 and reported as a percentage (%). The elongation was measured both in MD and CD. Results are reported in Table 4.
• the wet tensile strength was measured according to TAPPI T494 om-96 as described above for the dry tensile. The further modification was that the measure was performed after an immersion of 10 minutes under 2 cm water at 23°C. The wet tensile strength was measured both in MD and CD. Results are reported in Table 4.
• the wet/dry tensile ratio was calculated as the percentage ratio between the arithmetic average of the wet tensile in MD and CD and the arithmetic average of the dry tensile in MD and CD and is reported in Table 4.
• the tear resistance was measured according to ISO 9073-4 standard and reported in cN. The tear resistance was measured both in MD and CD. Results are reported in Table 4.
• the water drop corresponds to the time of absorption of a water drop deposited on the surface of the nonwoven.
• the deposition of the drop was performed with a dropper and falls from a height of 70 mm +/- 5. This time of absorption is reported in seconds. Results are reported in Table 4.
• a 100 x 100 mm sample was cut and weighted and immersed under 20 mm of water with help of a metallic scrim 120 x 120 mm (1500 g/m 2 and mesh of 7 wires/cm) . After 60 seconds the sample was removed and let to drain freely and vertically by an upper corner for 60 seconds. After this time the sample was weighted and the amount of absorbed water was calculated and given in percentage of the initial product.
• a 250 x 125 mm (312,5 cm 2 ) sheet was placed in 750 ml of a vigorously agitated aqueous dye solution heated to 40 °C, wherein the dye solution comprised Direct Red Dye (Direct Fast Red F3B) at a concentration of 50 mg/L in deionized water. Results are reported in Table 6.
• Direct Red Dye Direct Fast Red F3B
• the absorbance of the diluted aliquot was measured at the maximum absorbency wavelength of Direct Fast Red F3B (526 nm) using a calibrated Perkin Elmer Lambda 20 spectrophotometer.
• the DPU is considered as the amount of dye removed from the solution and adsorbed by the sample sheet and is expressed in mg of dye per sample sheet (area of 312.5 cm 2 for all samples tested).
• the DPU values are reported as the average value obtained by the testing 3 replicates, and are expressed respectively by T1, T2, T3 for the measurements at 1, 2 and 3 minutes.
• liquid soap Persil brand sold from Unilever
• powder soap X.Tra brand sold from Henkel
• the sheet and fabrics were allowed to dry at room temperature in air.
• the measured L, a and b indexes for the dye-capturing laundry aids are reported in Table 7.
• the measured L, a and b indexes for the cotton acceptor sample are reported in Table 8.
• Example 1 Example 2
• Example 3 Example 4
• Example 5 Example 6
• Example 7 Comparative Example 1 Comparative Example 2 Comparative Example 3
• Reference product Basis weight g/m 2 55.1 55.3 55.2 55.3 54.7 54.2 54.3 54.5 53.1 57.7 63.2
• Air permeability L/m 2 / s 311 311 296 309 300 304 334 342 343 324 180 Biodegradability A A A A A A A A B A C C Table 4
• Example 2 Example 3
• Example 4 Example 5
• Example 6 Example 7 Comparative Example 1 Comparative Example 2 Comparative Example 3
• Reference product Dry tensile MD N/m 1892 1784 1754 2109 2139 2153 2032 3263 1885 3122 2873 Dry tensile CD N/m 1140 1117 1098 1241 1167 1315 1118 1970 1173 1991 1653 CD/MD ratio % 60.2 62.6 62.6
• the reference product reported in the tables above is "Decolor stop" commercially available from Henkel France S.A.S.
• the binder blends used in the laundry aids prepared according to the present invention were both industrial and home compostable, whereas the blend used for Comparative Example 1 was only industrial compostable.
• the blend used for Comparative Example 3 and the components of the Reference Product were neither industrial nor home compostable.
• the laundry aids prepared according to the present invention are based on a support that is also biodegradable and include a binder composition wherein the binder blend is biodegradable, the total amount of non-biodegradable components is low enough (below 5 wt%) that the final laundry aid can be considered biodegradable as well.
• the laundry aids prepared according to the present invention all showed acceptable values in terms of dry tensile, elongation and tear. In particular, they all showed optimal wet tensile in MD and CD and a high wet/dry ratio.
• a comparison between Example 1 and Comparative Examples 1 and 2, which were all prepared using different binders and no wet strength agents in the binder composition shows that the binder according to the present invention containing at least an amino group allows for higher wet tensile and wet/dry ratio than other biodegradable binders such as PLA and PBSA. This property is an indication of a good resistance of the laundry aid when in use in a washing machine.
• the binder used in the present invention allows for a higher dye pick-up as compared to other biodegradable binders, even in the absence of a dye-capturing agent (Example 1 vs. Comparative Examples 1 and 2).
• the laundry aids using the binder according to the present invention allow for comparable dye pick-up performances as that of laundry aids prepared with non-biodegradable components (such as those of Comparative Example 3 and the Reference Product).
• laundry aids prepared with the binder according to the present invention withstand the washing machine cycle without breaking even in the absence of a wet strength agent (Example 1), whereas the laundry aids prepared with other biodegradable binders break in the washing machine (Comparative Example 1 and 2).
• the laundry aids of Examples 4 to 7, which are prepared including also wet strength agent and a dye-capturing agent similarly to the laundry aids of Comparative Example 3 and the Reference Product, allow for similar results in terms of color intensity of the dye-capturing laundry aid and of the cotton acceptor.
• the L values of the laundry aids of Examples 4 to 7 are comparable to those of the Reference Product, indicating that they are able to scavenge a similar amount of dye from the washing liquor and thus are darkened during the process.
• the cotton acceptor i.e. the white cloth washed in the same washing cycle, of these examples maintains a high L value similar to that of the Reference Product, which indicates a similar whiteness of the cloth after the washing cycle.

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• 2023
  • 2023-08-24 EP EP23193271.6A patent/EP4512879A1/fr active Pending
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