Star macromolecules for personal and home care

• US 8,173,750 B2
• Filed: 10/27/2010
• Issued: 05/08/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 04/23/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Pilot Polymer Technologies Incorporated
• Original Assignee: ATRP Solutions, Inc. (Pilot Chemical Corp.)
• Inventors: Jakubowski, Wojciech, McCarthy, Patrick, Tsarevsky, Nicolay, Spanswick, James
• Primary Examiner(s): Jagannathan, Vasu
• Assistant Examiner(s): KAUCHER, MARK S
• Application Number:
  US12/926,143
• Publication Number:
  US 20110112267A1
• Time in Patent Office: 559 Days
• Field of Search: 525/50, 525/191, 525/193, 525/241, 525/244, 525/301, 525/221, 525/227, 525/223, 525/70
• US Class Current: 525/244
• CPC Class Codes: A61K 2800/10 General cosmetic use
• CPC Class Codes: A61K 2800/48 Thickener, Thickening system
• CPC Class Codes: A61K 8/72 containing organic macromolecular compounds
• CPC Class Codes: A61K 8/8147 Homopolymers or copolymers of acids; Metal or ammonium salts thereof, e.g. crotonic acid, (meth)acrylic acid; Compositions of derivatives of such polymers
• CPC Class Codes: A61K 8/8152 Homopolymers or copolymers of esters, e.g. (meth)acrylic acid esters; Compositions of derivatives of such polymers
• CPC Class Codes: A61K 8/90 Block copolymers A61K8/89 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61Q 19/00 Preparations for care of the skin
• CPC Class Codes: C08F 2438/01 Atom Transfer Radical Polymerization [ATRP] or reverse ATRP
• CPC Class Codes: C08F 265/02 on to polymers of acids, salts or anhydrides
• CPC Class Codes: C08F 265/04 on to polymers of esters
• CPC Class Codes: C08F 293/005 using free radical "living" or "controlled" polymerisation, e.g. using a complexing agent
• CPC Class Codes: C08F 299/04 from polyesters
• CPC Class Codes: C08F 299/0492 the unsaturation being in acrylic or methacrylic groups
• CPC Class Codes: C08G 83/003 Dendrimers
• CPC Class Codes: C08J 2300/206 Star polymers

Abstract

A polymer composition comprising star macromolecules is provided. Each star macromolecule has a core and five or more arms, wherein the number of arms within a star macromolecule varies across the composition of star molecules. The arms on a star are covalently attached to the core of the star; each arm comprises one or more (co)polymer segments; and at least one arm and/or at least one segment exhibits a different solubility from at least one other arm or one other segment, respectively, in a reference liquid of interest.

Claims

1. A star macromolecule represented by Formula X:

[(P1)_q1-(P2)_q2]_t-Core-[(P3)_q3]_r 

 

Formula X

wherein;

Core represents a crosslinked polymeric segment;

P1 represents a homopolymeric segment comprised of repeat units of monomeric residues of polymerized hydrophobic monomers;

P2 represents a homopolymeric segment comprised of repeat units of monomeric residues of polymerized hydrophilic monomers;

P3 represents a homopolymeric segment comprised of repeat units of monomeric residues of polymerized hydrophilic monomers;

q1 represents the number of repeat units in P1 and has a value between 1 and 50;

q2 represents the number of repeat units in P2 and has a value between 30 and 500;

q3 represents the number of repeat units in P3 and has a value between 30 and 500;

r represents the number of homopolymeric arms covalently attached to the Core;

t represents the number of copolymeric arms covalently attached to the Core; and

wherein the molar ratio of r to t is in the range of between 20;

1 and 2;

1.

2. The star macromolecule of claim 1, wherein the one or more star macromolecules have a molecular weight of between 150,000 g/mol and 600,000 g/mol.

3. The star macromolecule of claim 1, wherein the sum total number of arms (r +t) is between 15 and 45.

4. The star macromolecule of claim 1, wherein the molar ratio of r to t is in the range of between 8:

1 and 3;

1.

5. The star macromolecule of claim 1, wherein both q2 and q3 have a value greater than 100, and wherein q2 is greater than q3.

6. The star macromolecule of claim 1, wherein the arms represented by [(P1)_q1-(P2)_q2] have an HLB value greater than 18.

7. The star macromolecule of claim 1, wherein the P1 homopolymeric segment is a hydrophobic homopolymeric segment having an HLB value of less than 7.

8. The star macromolecule of claim 1, wherein the core comprises a hydrophobic crosslinked polymeric segment.

9. The star macromolecule of claim 1, wherein the star macromolecule is a water soluble mikto star macromolecule.

10. The star macromolecule of claim 1, wherein the star macromolecule, when dissolved in water at a concentration of at least 0.2 wt. %, forms a clear, homogeneous gel having a viscosity of at least 20,000 cP.

11. The star macromolecule of claim 1 having a molecular weight of between 150,000 g/mol and 600,000 g/mol that forms a dear, homogeneous gel when dissolved in water at a concentration of at least 0.2 wt. %;

wherein the gel has;

i) a dynamic viscosity of at least 20,000 cP;

ii) a saltinduced break value of at least 60%;

iii) a shear-thinning value of at least 10; and

/or

iv) an emulsion value of greater than 12 hours.

12. The star macromolecule of claim 11, wherein the gel-forming star macromolecule has a viscosity of greater than 40,000 cP at a pH between 6 to 11.

13. The star macromolecule of claim 11, wherein the gel-forming star macromolecule has a viscosity of less than 5,000 cP at a shear rate of 4 sec⁻

1.

14. The star macromolecule of claim 11, wherein the gel-forming star macromolecule has a PDI of less than 2.5.

15. The star macromolecule of claim 11, wherein the gel-forming star macromolecule is a water-soluble mikto star macromolecule.

16. The star macromolecule of claim 11, wherein the gel-forming star macromolecule has between 15 to 45 arms.

17. The star macromolecule of claim 11, wherein the arms of the gel-forming star macromolecule have an HLB of between 18 and 20.

18. An emulsion comprising:

the star macromolecule of claim 1 having;

i) a molecular weight of at least 150,000 g/mol; and

ii) a dynamic viscosity of at least 20,000 cP at a concentration of 0.4 wt. %.

19. The emulsion of claim 18, wherein the emulsion is an emulsifier-free emulsion.