Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
1 3~65~7
- 1 - C 588 (R)
~QUEOUS, 50AP-BASED LIQUID DETERGENT COMPOSITION
The present invention relates to an aqueous liquid detergent
composition, in which the detergent-active material is or comprises
a soap.
Soap-based liquid detergent compositions are wel1-known in the art.
Because of the water-solubility limits of the commonly-known soaps,
such soap-based liquids contain either a relatively low concentra-
tion of soap, when soap is the sole detergent-active material in
these liquids, or they contain, next to the soap, another synthetic
; 10 deteryent-active material, by the presence whereof the concen-
tration of soap in the liquid can be made higher.
Soap-based liquid detergent compositions often suffer from physical
drawbacks, thus, for example, it is a problem to prepare a liquid
composition which is physically stable, has a satisfactory pourability
or viscosity, or which does not gel. Overcoming these problems often
creates another one, i.e. that in doing so the washing and launder-
ing efficac~v of the composition is impaired.
Hence it is an object of the present invention to provide an
aqueous, soap-based liquid detergent composition which is physically
stable, has satisfactory pourability or viscosity characteristics,
which does not gel and which has a satisfactory washing,
laundering, and c~anin~ performance.
; It is another object of the present invention to provide for
; ~ such an aqueous~ soap-based liquid detergent composition which
; has a satisfactory washing and laundering performance over a broad
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temperature range, i.e. at low, medium and high washing or laun-
dering temperatures.
These and other objects of the invention have been found to be met
by using in the soap component a sodium soap of linoleic acid. It
has been found that if the soap component contains a sodium
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- 2 - C 588 (R)
linoleate (a further definition of the soap component will follow
below), the liquid detergent composition has a satisfactory deter-
gency over a broad temperature range and can contain a relatively
high concentration of soap. The detergency efficacy is less
impaired by the water hardness than with soap systems not containiny
the linoleate.
; As stated above, it is an essential feature that in the soap com-~; ponent a sodium linoleate is used. The soap component may consistsolely of sodium linoleate, which may in practice, however, meet
with cost and availability problems. Therefore - and this is a
preferred embodiment of the invention - it has been found that if
the soap component, next to the sodium linoleate, also contains a
sodium soap of a C16-C24 mono-unsaturated fatty acid, the same
benefits are obtained to practically the same degree. Thus, it has
been found that if the soap component contains a mixture of sodium
linoleate and sodium oleate, in such a relative weight proportion
that at least 10% by weight of the sum of these two soaps consists
of sodium linoleate, quite satisfactory liquid products are obtained,
particularly as regards its deteraency over a broad temperature
range. Such mixtures can e.g. be obtained from the soapstock fatty
acids, obtained from refining and margarine industries. Instead
;, of, or in addition to sodium oleate, a sodium soap of palmitoleic,
petroselinic, vaccenic, gadoleic, eicosenoic, cetoleic, erucic and
selacholeic acid can also be used.
,
The soap component may consist solely of the mixture of sodium
linoleate and-sodium oleate, but it has been found that certain
amounts of certain saturated fatty acid sodium soaps can be
tolerated without significantly impairing the benefits of the
present invention. Thus it has been found that the soap component
may contain up to 20% by weight of a saturated C16-C2~ fatty acid
- ~ soap. However, this saturated fatty acid soap may not be a sodium
laurate or sodium myristate, since the presence thereof signifi-
cantly detracts from the benefits of the present invention. Small
amounts, i.e. up to 5, preferably 3%, can be tolerable, provided
there is sufFicient linoleate or lino7eate plus oleate present,
but it is highly preferred that no sodium laurate or
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- 3 - C 588 (R)
sodium myristate is present in the soap comconent. Typical examples
of sodium soaps of saturated C16 and high fatty acids are sodium
palmitate, sodium margarate, sodiurn stearate, sodium nonadecylate,
sodium arachidate, sodium heneicosinate, sodium behenate, sodium
tricosanate~ sodium lignocerate, and sodium soaps of trans-fatty
acids of hardened oils and fats.
Mixtures of the above-identified soaps, i.e. sodium linoleate plus
sodlum oleate plus up to 20~ of a soap of a saturated C16-C24 fatty
acid can be obtained from the separate fatty acids, bu~ may also be
obtained from suitable sources which contain these fatty acids in
the appropriate proportions. Such sources are grapeseed oil, chufa
oil, groundnut oil, maize oil, mustard seed oil, soybean oil, sesame
- oil, sunflower oil, cottonseed oil, rapeseed oil and tall oil fattyacids. Of these, the last-mentioned five oils and the tall oil fatty
acids are preferred. The sodium soaps may be prepared by neutralizing
the fatty acids, obtained from these sources and this is preferred
when tall oil fatty acids are used.
In the case of the other suitable oils, however3 it has been found
that the sodium soap can also be prepared in a practical and
advantageous manner by carrying out saponification of the oil in
the presence of suitable emulsifying agents and neutralization of
the fatty acids in situ in the liquid detergent composition. In this
manner, an easy way of preparing the compositions of the invention
is provided, leading to physically stable products.
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It is essential in this process that an emulsifying agent is present
in the liquid in which the saponification takes place. Such emulsi-
fying agents are e.g. nonionic detergent surfactants like theethoxylation and/or propoxylation products of linear or branched-
chain primary or secondary, natural or synthetic alcohols having
8-24 carbon atoms in their alkyl chain, of mono- or dialkylphenols
having from 8-18 carbon atoms in thier alkyl chain, of C8-C22 fatty
acids, of polyethylene- or polypropylene-~lycols, of C8-C22 fatty
amines, -amides or -alkylolamides and so on. Tertiary amine oxides
havin~ one C8-C18 alkyl chain and two C1-C5 alkyl chains are also
included in the term nonionic detergent. Amphoteric and zwitterionic
detergents may also be used, such as sulphobetaines, amido-betaines,
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~ C 583 (R)
alkylaminocarboxylic acids etc.
The amount of such emulsifying agen-t is not critical; in fact it
is often desirable to add more than is necessary ~or the saponifi-
cation, i.e. in the cases where the presence of a nonionic detergentin the compositions of the invention is required ~or further improved
washing and laundering efficacy, e.g. in underbuilt ~ituatlons as well
as physical stability. In general therefore the compositions of the
invention contain from 0-40% by weight of a nonionic detergent material
(0% only ;n the case where the sodium linoleate or sodium linoleate/
sodium oleate constitutes the whole nf the soap component, and is not
prepared by in situ saponification and neutralization) and preferably
from 5-30% of a nonionic detergent material is present.
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The amount of the soap component in the liquid composition is
generally from 2.5-40, preferably 5-35% by weight.
The compositions of the invention may furthermore contain hydro-
tropes, buffers, fluorescers, soil-suspending agents, enzymes,
stabilizers for enzymes, dyes, perfumes, anti-oxidants and so on,
all in amounts usually encountered in products of this type.
Sequestrant builders can also be included in an amount of up to
2-0% by weight.
25 The invention, as well as its benefits, will further be illustrated
by the following Examples.
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- Example 1
The following liquid detergent compositions were formulated
% by weight
Tall oil fatty acids 25 30
C12-C13 p-alcohol, condensed with 6.5 moles
of ethylene oxide 25 10
NaOH (33% aqueous solution) 15 18
triethanolamine 10 10
isopropyl alcohol 10 10
enzyme (Alcalase ~ ) 0.3 0.3
dye and perfume 0.25 0.25
boric acid 2 2
water balance balance
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These liquid compositions were stable: they remained homogeneous
after the two weeks' storage at 0C.
_ample 2
In the formulations of Example 1, the tall oil fatty acids were
replaced by fatty acids, derived from soybean-, sunflower-, rape-
seed- and cottonseed oil, and mixtures thereof. This was done in
the following way: the mixture of the 1ye, the triethanolamine,
the nonionic detergent and water was heated till sac, after which
~he oil was added. Subsequently, after cooling ti11 60C 7 the
; isopropyl alcohol was addedg and subsequently,after further cool-
ing~the enzyme and the other ingredients.
Similar formulations were prepared in the same manner,with varying
amounts of soap and nonionic detergent. These formulations were
stored for 2 weeks at 0C, and their phase stability was assessed.
The following results were obtained:
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` With soybean oil fatty acids: the liquids were stable at the 10~
soap level in the whole range of 10-25% of the nonionic detergent.
With sunflower oil fatty acids: the liquids were stable at a 10 and
15Yo soap level in the whole range of 10-25% nonionic detergent,
and also at the 20% soap level with 15% nonionic detergent.
. 25 With rapeseed oil fatty acids~ the liquids were all stable in the
; ; whole soap range of 10-25% and in the whole nonionic detergent
range of 10-25%. With cottonseed oil fatty acids, stability was
obtained at the 10% soap level in the nonionic range of 10-25%~
as well as at the 15~ soap level and 15% nonionic level. Mix-
tures of soybean- and rapeseedoil fatty acids (ratio of 1 to
1) gave products, which were stable at nearly all soap and non-
ionic levels within the 10- 25% range.
Example 3
Using coconut dimethyl amine oxide (5%) in the formulation of
Example 1 as the nonionic with 5~ 10~ 15 and 20% sodium soap of
soybean oil fatty acids (saponified and neutralized in situ)
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- 6 - C 588 (R)
gave stable products.
Example 4
The following liquid compositions C and D were assessed for detergency
in a Tergotometer at 60C, 15 minutes washing, hardness 26 French
hardness (only Ca2+) at a dosage of 8, ~.5 and 11 9/1. Three types
of soiled standard test pieces (WFK, ERTC and VCD) were used, and
the number of repeats was 8.
The compositions were as follows:
% by weight
C D
sodium oleate 12.5 12.5
sodium linoleate 12.5
sodium coconut soap - 12.5
triethanolamine 10.0 10.0
isopropylalcohol 10.0 10.0
water balance balance
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20 The following differences in reflectance ( ~R) were measured:
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concentr .
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Test piececompositi~ - 8 9.5 11
25 WFK D 5.0 6.9 11.9
C 7.2 10.3 14.7
:~ ~ ERTC D 3.3 11.1 22.7
. C 2.9 19.5 22.7
- VCD D 3.3 13.4 16.9
~ ~: : C 4.6 16.7 18.5
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