Articles and methods for treating fabrics
First Claim
Patent Images
1. An article of manufacture adapted for providing fabric soil release and softening benefits within an automatic clothes dryer, said article comprising:
- (a) a fabric conditioning composition solid at room temperature and being flowable at dryer operating temperatures, said fabric conditioning composition comprising;
i. 1% to 70% of a polymeric soil release agent;
wherein said polymeric soil release agent is a crystallizable polyester copolymer with repeat units of ethylene terephthalate units containing 10-50% by weight of ethylene terephthalate units together with 90-50% by weight of polyoxyethylene terephthalate units, derived from a polyoxyethylene glycol of average molecular weight of from about 300 to about 6,000, and the molar ratio of ethylene terephthalate units to polyoxyethylene terephthalate units in the crystallizable polymeric compound is between 2;
1 and 6;
1; and
ii. 30% to 99% of a fabric softening agent selected from cationic and nonionic fabric softeners and mixtures thereof;
0 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
Dryer-added fabric conditioning articles and methods utilizing a fabric softener agent and a polymeric soil release agent. More specifically, damp fabrics are commingled with softener active and polymeric soil release agent in an automatic clothes dryer and are provided with a soft, antistatic finish and soil release benefits concurrently with the drying operation. The softening and antistatic soil release agents herein are preferably employed in combination with a dispensing means adapted for use in an automatic dryer.
54 Citations
34 Claims
-
1. An article of manufacture adapted for providing fabric soil release and softening benefits within an automatic clothes dryer, said article comprising:
(a) a fabric conditioning composition solid at room temperature and being flowable at dryer operating temperatures, said fabric conditioning composition comprising; i. 1% to 70% of a polymeric soil release agent;
wherein said polymeric soil release agent is a crystallizable polyester copolymer with repeat units of ethylene terephthalate units containing 10-50% by weight of ethylene terephthalate units together with 90-50% by weight of polyoxyethylene terephthalate units, derived from a polyoxyethylene glycol of average molecular weight of from about 300 to about 6,000, and the molar ratio of ethylene terephthalate units to polyoxyethylene terephthalate units in the crystallizable polymeric compound is between 2;
1 and 6;
1; andii. 30% to 99% of a fabric softening agent selected from cationic and nonionic fabric softeners and mixtures thereof; - View Dependent Claims (3, 5, 8, 9, 10, 12, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 23, 25, 27, 30, 32, 33)
- 2. (b) dispensing means which provides for release of said conditioning composition within an automatic laundry dryer at dryer operating temperatures.
-
7. An article of manufacture adapted for providing fabric soil release and softening benefits within an automatic clothes dryer, said article comprising:
-
(a) a fabric conditioning composition solid at room temperature and being flowable at dryer operating temperatures, said fabric conditioning composition comprising; i. 1% to 70% of a polymeric soil release agent;
wherein the soil release agent is a polymer comprising repeating units of ethylene terephthalate and polyoxyethylene terephthalate at a molar ratio of ethylene terephthalate units to polyoxyethylene terephthalate units of from about 25;
75 to about 35;
65, said polyoxyethylene terephthalate containing polyoxyethylene blocks having a molecular weight of from about 300 to about 700, the molecular weight of said soil release polymer being in the range of from about 25,000 to about 55,000 and the melting point of said polymer being below 100°
C.; andii. 30% to 99% of a fabric softening agent selected from cationic and nonionic fabric softeners and mixtures thereof; (b) dispensing means which provides for release of said conditioning composition within an automatic laundry dryer at dryer operating temperatures.
-
-
11. An article of manufacture adapted for providing fabric soil release and softening benefits within an automatic clothes dryer, said article comprising:
-
(a) a fabric conditioning composition solid at room temperature and being flowable at dryer operating temperatures, said fabric conditioning composition comprising; i. 1% to 70% of a polymeric soil release agent;
wherein said polymeric soil release agent has the formula;
space="preserve" listing-type="equation">X--(OCH.sub.2 CH.sub.2).sub.n (OR.sup.5).sub.m ][(A--R.sup.1 --A--R.sup.2).sub.u (A--R.sup.3 --A--R.sup.2).sub.v --]--A--R.sup.4 --A--[--(R.sup.5 O).sub.m (CH.sub.2 CH.sub.2 O).sub.n --]--Xwherein the A moieties are essentially ##STR5## moieties;
the R1 moieties are essentially 1,4-phenylene moieties; and
R2 moieties are essentially ethylene moieties, or substituted ethylene moieties having C1 -C4 alkyl or alkoxy substituents;
the R3 moieties are substituted C2 -C18 hydrocarbylene moieties having at least one --SO3 M, --COOM, --O--R5 O)m (CH2 CH2 O)n --X or --A--(R2 --A--R4 --A)--w --R5 O)m (CH2 CH2 O)n --X substituent or at least one moiety --A--(R2 --A--R4 --A)--w R2 --A-- crosslinked to another R3 moiety;
the R4 moieties are R1 or R3 moieties, or a mixture thereof;
each R5 is C3 -C4 alkylene, or the moiety --R2 --A--R6 --, wherein R6 is a C1 -C12 alkylene, alkenylene, arylene or alkarylene moiety;
each M is H or a wate-soluble cation;
each X is H, C1 -C4 alkyl or ##STR6## wherein R7 is C1 -C4 alkyl;
m and n are numbers such that the moiety --(CH2 CH2 O)-comprises at least about 50% by weight of the moiety --[--R5 O)m --(CH2 CH2 O)n --]--, provided that when R5 is the moiety --R2 --A--R6 --, m is 1;
each n is at least about 10;
u and v are numbers such that the sum of u+v is from about 3 to about 25;
w is 0 or at least 1; and
when w is at least 1, u, v and w are numbers such that the sum of u+v+w is from about 3 to about 25; andii. 30% to 99% of a fabric softening agent selected from cationic and nonionic fabric softeners and mixtures thereof; (b) dispensing means which provides for release of said conditioning composition within an automatic laundry dryer at dryer operating temperatures.
-
-
13. An article of manufacture adapted for providing fabric soil release and softening benefits within an automatic clothes dryer, said article comprising:
-
(a) a fabric conditioning composition solid at room temperature and being flowable at dryer operating temperatures, said fabric conditioning composition comprising; i. 1% to 70% of a polymeric soil release agent;
wherein said polymeric soil release agent is a cellulosic polymer andii. 30% to 99% of a fabric softening agent selected from cationic and nonionic fabric softeners and mixtures thereof; (b) dispensing means which provides for release of said conditioning composition within an automatic laundry dryer at dryer operating temperatures.
-
-
29. An article of manufacture adapted for providing fabric soil release and softening benefits within an automatic clothes dryer, said article comprising:
-
(a) a fabric conditioning composition being solid at room temperature and flowable at dryer operating temperatures, said fabric conditioning composition comprising; i. 43% to 70% of a polymeric soil release agent; and ii. 30% to 57% of a fabric softening agent selected from cationic and nonionic fabric softeners and mixtures thereof; (b) dispensing means which provides for release of said conditioning composition within an automatic laundry dryer at dryer operating temperatures.
-
-
34. A method for imparting an improved combination of soil release, softening and antistatic effects to fabrics in an automatic laundry dryer comprising commingling pieces of damp fabrics by tumbling said fabrics under heat in an automatic clothes dryer with an effective amount of a fabric conditioning composition, said composition being solid at toom temperature and being flowable at dryer operating temperatures, said composition comprising from about 1% to 70% of a polymeric soil release agent, and 30% to 99% of a fabric softening agent;
- and wherein the fabric conditioning composition is applied to the fabrics from a flexible substrate; and
wherein the fabric conditioning composition comprises;(a) from about 7% to about 20% of ditallowdimethylammonium methylsulfate; (b) from about 15% to about 35% of stearyldimethylammonium salt of tallow fatty acid; (c) from about 10% to about 20% of C16 -C18 fatty alcohol; (d) from about 10% to about 60% of a crystallizable polyester copolymer with repeat units of ethylene terephthalate units containing 10-50% by weight of ethylene terephthalate units together with 90-50% by weight of polyoxyethylene terephthalate units, derived from a poloxyethylene glycol of average molecular weight of from about 300 to about 6,000, and the molar ratio of ethylene terephthalate units to polyoxyethylene terephthalate units in the crystallizable polymeric compound is between 2;
1 and 6;
1, said copolymer having a softening phase transition temperature of at least about 30°
C., and becomes a flowable liquid below 100°
C.;(e) from about 2% to about 10% of a particulate clay; and (f) from about 0.5% to about 4% of a perfume.
- and wherein the fabric conditioning composition is applied to the fabrics from a flexible substrate; and
Specification