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EP-3472290-B2 - CONCENTRATED ISOTROPIC LIQUID DETERGENTS CONTAINING POLYMERS

EP3472290B2EP 3472290 B2EP3472290 B2EP 3472290B2EP-3472290-B2

Inventors

  • KLEMMER, Anna
  • SCHMIEDEL, PETER
  • BASTIGKEIT, THORSTEN
  • PEGELOW, ULRICH
  • SCHÜMANN, Sabine
  • PLUSZYNSKI, Simon

Dates

Publication Date
20260513
Application Date
20170614

Claims (10)

  1. An isotropic liquid detergent having a total surfactant concentration of at least 30% by weight, based on the total weight of the detergent, preferably in the range of 30 to 70% by weight, more preferably 35 to 60% by weight, comprising, based on the total weight of the detergent, (A) at least 20% by weight of at least one anionic surfactant A, (B) at least 5% by weight of at least one non-ionic surfactant N having a Griffin HLB value ≤ 12; (C) at least 2% by weight of at least one non-ionic surfactant N1 having a Griffin HLB value >12, wherein the weight ratio of N1 to N is ≤1; and (D) at least 1% by weight of at least one polymeric compound P selected from soil-release polymers (SRP), dye transfer inhibitors (DTI) and anti-redeposition agents, in particular an SRP and optionally a DTI, wherein the surfactant N1 is selected from alkyl polyglycosides and N-alkylgluconamides.
  2. An isotropic liquid detergent according to claim 1, characterised in that the at least one anionic surfactant A (i) is present in the detergent in a concentration of 20 to 65% by weight, preferably 20 to 55% by weight, relative to the total weight of the detergent; and/or (ii) are selected from sulphate and sulphonate surfactants, preferably alkylbenzenesulphonates, alkyl sulphates, alkyl ether sulphates and mixtures thereof, or more preferably a combination of alkylbenzene sulphonates and alkyl ether sulphates, in particular a combination of alkylbenzene sulphonates in amounts of 10 to 25% by weight, preferably 12 to 20% by weight, more preferably 14 to 18% by weight, and alkyl ether sulphates in amounts of 2 to 10% by weight, in particular 3 to 8% by weight.
  3. An isotropic liquid detergent according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that the one or more surfactant(s) N (i) are present in the detergent in a concentration of 5 to 50, preferably 5 to 25 wt.%, based on the total weight of the detergent; and/or (ii) are selected from fatty alcohol alkoxylates, in particular those with up to 7EO.
  4. An isotropic liquid detergent according to any of the preceding claims, characterised in that the surfactant N1 is selected from alkyl polyglycosides and N-alkylgluconamides from the group consisting of n-decyl- or n-dodecyl-b-D-maltoside, n-octyl-, 2-ethylhexyl-, n-decyl- or n-dodecyl-β-D-glucoside, n-octyl-, 2-ethylhexyl-, n-decyl- or n-dodecyl-α-D-glucoside, C 8-16 , in particular C 8-10 or C 12 - 16 -alkyl-oligo(1,4)- glucosides, N-octyl-, N-decyl- and N-dodecyl-D-gluconamide, and N,N-dialkyl-D-gluconamides, in particular N-C 8 -C 18 -alkyl-N-methyl-D-gluconamides.
  5. An isotropic liquid detergent according to one of the preceding claims, characterised in that the concentration of surfactant N1 is 2-10 wt.% and/or the amount of surfactant N is 5 to 20 wt.%, based on the total weight of the detergent, preferably 2 to 8 wt.% N1 and 5 to 15 wt.% N.
  6. An isotropic liquid detergent according to any of the preceding claims, characterised in that the ratio of the total amount of N + N1 to the total amount of anionic surfactants A, at a total surfactant content of 30 wt.%, is 5:1 to 1:5, in particular 2:1 to 1:5, and at a total surfactant content of >30 to 35 wt.% is 5:2 to 1:6, in particular 4:3 to 1:6; at a total surfactant content of >35 to 40 wt.% 5:4 to 1:8, in particular 4:5 to 2:7, for a total surfactant content of >45 to 50 wt.% 1:1 to 1:9, in particular 2:3 to 1:4, for a total surfactant content of >50 to 55 wt.% 5:6 to 1:10, in particular 4:7 to 2:9, for a total surfactant content of >55 to 60 wt.% 5:7 to 1:11, in particular 1:2 to 1:5, for a total surfactant content of >60 to 65 wt.% is 5:8 to 1:12, in particular 4:9 to 2:11, and, for a total surfactant content of >65 to 70 wt.%, is 5:9 to 1:13, in particular 2:5 to 1:6.
  7. An isotropic liquid detergent according to one of the preceding claims, characterised in that the polymeric compound P is present in the detergent in a concentration of 1 to 20 wt.%, preferably 1 to 10 wt.%, based on the total weight of the detergent.
  8. A liquid detergent according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterised in that the detergent (1) contains at least one enzyme; and/or (2) and at least one further component selected from the group consisting of structuring agents, bleaching agents, electrolytes, perfumes, perfume carriers, fluorescent agents, dyes, hydrotropes, foam inhibitors, silicone oils, anti-greying agents, shrink-proofing agents, crease-resistant agents, antimicrobial agents, germicides, fungicides, antioxidants, preservatives, corrosion inhibitors, antistatic agents, bittering agents, ironing aids, water-repellent and impregnating agents, swelling and slip agents, softening components, pH adjusters and UV absorbers.
  9. Use of a liquid detergent according to any one of claims 1-8 for washing textiles.
  10. A method for cleaning textiles, characterised in that a liquid detergent according to any one of claims 1 to 8 is used in at least one process step.

Description

The present application relates to highly concentrated isotropic liquid detergents with surfactant contents of 30% by weight and above, which additionally contain organic, non-surfactant components and exhibit optimized product stability made possible by a specially adapted surfactant system. Also covered are processes for washing textiles using the described detergents and their application. Liquid detergents are well-established technology and have become increasingly popular with consumers in recent years due to their several advantages over solid detergents. These include simpler dosing, addition, and dissolution in the wash water. They are also perceived as safer and less aggressive on textiles and the environment. They have gained particular popularity for washing colored textiles since their market launch. There is a general market trend towards more concentrated liquid detergents, as these require fewer resources, primarily due to their lighter weight for transport and smaller bottle size. Consumers also prefer these highly concentrated detergents because they require less storage space in homes. Liquid detergents with a high surfactant concentration are made from, among other things... WO2013092049 , WO2013092052 , DE10153183 , DE102005015328 and DE2527793 known. Although such products offer advantages in terms of handling and consumer acceptance, conventional products suffer from disadvantages regarding their stability, particularly during extended storage. These disadvantages are further exacerbated by the trend toward more concentrated products. The challenge for highly concentrated liquid detergents lies in packing more of the necessary active ingredients (including surfactants, polymers, enzymes, complexing agents, perfume, and optical brighteners) into a smaller volume of liquid. To achieve good washing performance from a consumer perspective, modern liquid detergents increasingly incorporate polymeric components. These are often essentially nonionic or anionic polymers with varying functionalities. Important groups include soil-release polymers, dye transfer inhibitors (DTIs), anti-reposition agents, and polymeric dispersants. Ensuring a stable formulation of the polymers is a particular challenge, as the compatibility of the polymeric ingredients in a liquid formulation decreases with increasing surfactant concentration. This can lead to turbidity, sedimentation, or phase separation. These not only impair the aesthetic appearance of the formulation but also negatively affect its washing performance. Therefore, there is a need for improved highly concentrated liquid detergent formulations that exhibit improved properties with regard to the aforementioned problems, i.e., in particular, allow larger quantities of polymeric components to be formulated stably. It has now been surprisingly found that the aforementioned disadvantages of highly concentrated liquid detergents, i.e. detergents with surfactant contents of 30 wt.% or more, can be overcome by using a special surfactant combination that allows the stable incorporation of polymeric components that negatively affect the stability of the formulation in amounts of 1.0 wt.% or more. In a first aspect, the present invention therefore relates to an isotropic liquid detergent with a total surfactant concentration of at least 30 wt.% based on the total weight of the agent, preferably in the range of 30 to 70 wt.%, more preferably 35 to 60 wt.%, comprising, based on the total weight of the agent, (A) at least 20% by weight of at least one anionic surfactant A, (B) at least 5 wt% of at least one non-ionic surfactant N with an HLB value according to Griffin ≤12; (C) at least 2 wt% of at least one non-ionic surfactant N1 having an HLB value according to Griffin >12, wherein the weight ratio of N1 to N is ≤1; and (D) at least 1 wt% of at least one polymeric compound P selected from soil-releasing polymers (SRP), dye transfer inhibitors (DTI) and anti-reposition agents, in particular an SRP and optionally a DTI, wherein the surfactant N1 is selected from alkyl polyglycosides and N-alkyl gluconamides. In another aspect, the present invention relates to the use of a liquid detergent according to the invention for washing textiles. In another aspect, the present invention relates to a method for cleaning textiles, characterized in that a liquid detergent according to the invention is used in at least one process step. These and other aspects, features and advantages of the invention will be explained to the skilled person in the art from their studies The following detailed description and claims will show that any feature from one aspect of the invention can be used in any other aspect of the invention. Furthermore, it is understood that the examples contained herein are intended to describe and illustrate the invention, but do not limit it, and in particular, the invention is not limited to these examples. Unless otherwise stated, all percentages are w