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EP-4735567-A1 - BIODEGRADABLE CHELATING AGENTS AND METHODS FOR FABRIC CARE

EP4735567A1EP 4735567 A1EP4735567 A1EP 4735567A1EP-4735567-A1

Abstract

Biodegradable chelating agents may be incorporated into a variety of fabric care compositions and delivery formats. The fabric care compositions may include at least one component, according to Formula (7), as well as combinations and salts thereof in which: R 1 is hydroxyl, C 1 – C 6 carboxyl, a linear or branched C 1 – C 6 alkyl; a linear or branched C 2 – C 6 alkenyl; or a linear or branched C 2 – C 6 alkynyl group; a is from 0 to 5; R 2 is a fused C 1 – C 6 cycloalkyl, a fused C 1 – C 6 cycloalkoxy, or a fused C 1 – C 6 cycloalkenyl; b is from 0 to 4; R 3 is oxygen or hydroxyl; and c is from 0 to 4.

Inventors

  • FULLER, Linsey, Sarah
  • STERRY, Robert, William John
  • SOUTER, PHILIP, FRANK

Assignees

  • The Procter & Gamble Company

Dates

Publication Date
20260506
Application Date
20240614

Claims (15)

  1. 1. A liquid detergent composition comprising: at least one component, according to one or more of Formulas 7-12: wherein: Ri is hydroxyl, C1 C& carboxyl, a linear or branched C1 -- C6 alkyl; a linear or branched C2 - C6 alkenyl; or a linear or branched C2 - C6 alkynyl group; a is from 0 to 5; R2 is a fused C1 C6 cycloalkyl, a fused 11 C6 cycloalkoxy, or a fused C1 C6 cycloalkenyl; b is from 0 to 4; R3 is oxygen or hydroxyl; and c is from 0 to 4, and combinations and salts thereof;
  2. 2. The liquid detergent composition according to Claim 1, wherein the at least one component according to Formula 7 is tropolone.
  3. 3. The liquid detergent composition according to Claim 1, wherein the at least one component according to Formula 7 is hinokitiol.
  4. 4. The liquid detergent composition according to any preceding claim, wherein the at least one component has a pKa of less than 8.
  5. 5. The liquid detergent composition according to any preceding claim, wherein the at least one component has a calcium binding efficiency of less than 7.
  6. 6. The liquid detergent composition according to any preceding claim, wherein the at least one component has an iron binding efficiency greater than 10.
  7. 7. The liquid detergent composition according to any preceding claim, wherein the at least one component is present in an amount of from greater than 0 to 10% by weight of the liquid detergent composition.
  8. 8. The liquid detergent composition according to any preceding claim, further comprising a surfactant comprising an anionic surfactant, a nonionic surfactant, or a combination thereof.
  9. 9. The liquid detergent composition according to Claim 8, wherein the surfactant is an anionic surfactant comprising at least one of sodium lauryl sulfate, linear alkyl benzene sulfonic acid, branched 2-alkyl primary alkyl alcohol sulfate, alkyl sulphate, or a combination thereof.
  10. 10. A single unit dose detergent comprising the liquid detergent composition according to any preceding claim.
  11. 11. A method for treating a stain on a fabric, comprising: washing the fabric in a wash liquor comprising a liquid detergent composition comprising at least one component, according to any of Formulas 7-12: wherein: R1 is hydroxyl, C1 Co carboxyl, a linear or branched C1 Co alkyl; a linear or branched C2 Co alkenyl; or a linear or branched C2 C6 alkynyl group; a is from 0 to 5; R2 is a fused C1 Co cycloalkyl, a fused C1 Co cycloalkoxy, or a fused C1 Co cycloalkenyl; b is from 0 to 4; R3 is oxygen or hydroxyl; and c is from 0 to 4, and combinations and salts thereof;
  12. 12. The method according to Claim 11, wherein the at least one component according to Formula 7 is tropolone.
  13. 13. The method according to Claim 11, wherein the at least one component according to Formula 7 is hinokitiol.
  14. 14. The method according to Claims 11-13, wherein the at least one component has a pKa of less than 8.
  15. 15. The method according to Claims 11-14, wherein the at least one component has a calcium binding efficiency of less than 7.

Description

BIODEGRADABLE CHELATING AGENTS AND METHODS FOR FABRIC CARE FIELD The present disclosure relates generally to chelating agents and methods for using chelating agents and more specifically to biodegradable chelating agents and methods. BACKGROUND The discussion of shortcomings and needs existing in the field prior to the present disclosure is in no way an admission that such shortcomings and needs were recognized by those skilled in the art prior to the present disclosure. Phosphonate chelants may be employed in various fabric care compositions to improve stain removal. Phosphonate chelants may improve stain removal via heavy metal chelation; in this regard, useful phosphonate chelants tend to have a higher binding efficiency with iron (III) than with calcium. One such phosphonate chelant is l-Hydroxyethylidene-l,l-diphosphonic acid (HEDP), also known as etidronic acid or etidronate, as shown in Formula 1. Another phosphonate chelant is diethylene triamine pentamethylene phosphonic acid (DTPMP) as shown in Formula 2. Some phosphonate chelants are not readily biodegradable and may survive some wastewater treatments. Such phosphonate chelants may pose adverse effects to aquatic organisms. Therefore, a need exists to replace phosphonate chelants in various fabric care compositions with more biodegradable materials that preferably do not contain phosphorous. Existing biodegradable replacements for phosphonate chelants include amino acid derivative complexing agents, as well as stereoisomers, and mixtures thereof. For example, methylglycinediacetic acid and salts thereof (MGDA), such as shown in Formula 3, has been used to replace phosphonate chelants. Similarly, L-glutamic acid, N,N-diacetic acid and salts thereof (GLDA) and salts thereof as shown in Formula 4, has been used to replace phosphonate chelants. Unfortunately, neither MGDA nor GLDA match HEDP on stain removal performance. Therefore, a need still exists to replace phosphonate chelants in various fabric care compositions with more biodegradable materials that preferably do not contain phosphorous. SUMMARY Various embodiments solve the above-mentioned problems and provide biodegradable chelating agents that may be incorporated into a variety of fabric care compositions and delivery formats and which provide similar or improved results compared to traditional chelating agents. Various embodiments relate to liquid detergent compositions comprising at least one component, according to Formula 7, as well as combinations and salts thereof: wherein: R1 is hydroxyl, C1 C6 carboxyl, a linear or branched C1 C6 alkyl; a linear or branched C2 C6 alkenyl; or a linear or branched C2 - C6 alkynyl group; a is from 0 to 5; R2 is a fused C1 C6 cycloalkyl, a fused C1 - C6 cycloalkoxy, or a fused C1 C6 cycloalkenyl; b is from 0 to 4; R3 is oxygen or hydroxyl; and c is from 0 to 4. Various embodiments relate to single unit dose detergent comprising the liquid detergent compositions. Various embodiments relate to methods for treating a stain on a fabric that comprise washing the fabric in a wash liquor comprising the liquid detergent compositions. Various embodiments relate to the use of a liquid detergent compositions to treat a stain on a fabric. These and other features, aspects, and advantages of various embodiments will become better understood with reference to the following description, figures, and claims. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Many aspects of this disclosure may be better understood with reference to the following figure. FIG. 1 is a side cross-sectional view of a water-soluble pouch article including a composition contained therein. It should be understood that the various embodiments are not limited to the examples illustrated in the figures. DETAILED DESCRIPTION Introduction and Definitions This disclosure is written to describe the invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art, who will understand that this disclosure is not limited to the specific examples or embodiments described. The examples and embodiments are single instances of the invention which will make a much larger scope apparent to the person having ordinary skill in the art. Unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by the person having ordinary skill in the art. It is also to be understood that the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing examples and embodiments only, and is not intended to be limiting, since the scope of the present disclosure will be limited only by the appended claims. All the features disclosed in this specification (including any accompanying claims, abstract, and drawings) may be replaced by alternative features serving the same, equivalent, or similar purpose, unless expressly stated otherwise. Thus, unless expressly stated otherwise, each feature disclosed is one example only of a generic series of equivalent or similar features. The examples an