Page aa
Liquid Detergents
Page ab
SURFACTANT SCIENCE SERIES CONSULTING EDITORS MARTIN J. SCHICK Consultant F...
1531 downloads
5852 Views
8MB Size
Report
This content was uploaded by our users and we assume good faith they have the permission to share this book. If you own the copyright to this book and it is wrongfully on our website, we offer a simple DMCA procedure to remove your content from our site. Start by pressing the button below!
Report copyright / DMCA form
Page aa
Liquid Detergents
Page ab
SURFACTANT SCIENCE SERIES CONSULTING EDITORS MARTIN J. SCHICK Consultant FREDERICK M. FOWKES (19151990) New York, New York 1. Nonionic Surfactants, edited by Martin J. Schick (see also Volumes 19, 23, and 60) 2. Solvent Properties of Surfactant Solutions, edited by Kozo Shinoda (see Volume 55) 3. Surfactant Biodegradation, R. D. Swisher (see Volume 18) 4. Cationic Surfactants, edited by Eric Jungermann (see also Volumes 34, 37, and 53) 5. Detergency: Theory and Test Methods (in three parts), edited by W. G. Cutler and R. C. Davis (see also Volume 20) 6. Emulsions and Emulsion Technology (in three parts), edited by Kenneth J. Lissant 7. Anionic Surfactants (in two parts), edited by Warner M. Linfield (see Volume 56) 8. Anionic Surfactants: Chemical Analysis, edited by John Cross (out of print) 9. Stabilization of Colloidal Dispersions by Polymer Adsorption, Tatsuo Sato and Richard Ruch (out of print) 10. Anionic Surfactants: Biochemistry, Toxicology, Dermatology, edited by Christian Gloxhuber (see Volume 43) 11. Anionic Surfactants: Physical Chemistry of Surfactant Action, edited by E. H. LucassenReynders (out of print) 12. Amphoteric Surfactants, edited by B. R. Bluestein and Clifford L. Hilton (see Volume 59) 13. Demulsification: Industrial Applications, Kenneth J. Lissant (out of print) 14. Surfactants in Textile Processing, Arved Datyner 15. Electrical Phenomena at Interfaces: Fundamentals, Measurements, and Applications, edited by Ayao Kitahara and Akira Watanabe 16. Surfactants in Cosmetics, edited by Martin M. Rieger (out of print) 17. Interfacial Phenomena: Equilibrium and Dynamic Effects, Clarence A. Miller and P. Neogi 18. Surfactant Biodegradation: Second Edition, Revised and Expanded, R. D. Swisher 19. Nonionic Surfactants: Chemical Analysis, edited by John Cross
Page ac
20. Detergency: Theory and Technology, edited by W. Gale Cutler and Erik Kissa 21. Interfacial Phenomena in Apolar Media, edited by HansFriedrich Eicke and Geoffrey D. Parfitt 22. Surfactant Solutions: New Methods of Investigation, edited by Raoul Zana 23. Nonionic Surfactants: Physical Chemistry, edited by Martin J. Schick 24. Microemulsion Systems, edited by Henri L. Rosano and Marc Clausse 25. Biosurfactants and Biotechnology, edited by Naim Kosaric, W. L. Cairns, and Neil C. C. Gray 26. Surfactants in Emerging Technologies, edited by Milton J. Rosen 27. Reagents in Mineral Technology, edited by P. Somasundaran and Brij M. Moudgil 28. Surfactants in Chemical/Process Engineering, edited by Darsh T. Wasan, Martin E. Ginn, and Dinesh O. Shah 29. Thin Liquid Films, edited by I. B. Ivanov 30. Microemulsions and Related Systems: Formulation, Solvency, and Physical Properties, edited by Maurice Bourrel and Robert S. Schechter 31. Crystallization and Polymorphism of Fats and Fatty Acids, edited by Nissim Garti and Kiyotaka Sato 32. Interfacial Phenomena in Coal Technology, edited by Gregory D. Botsaris and Yuli M. Glazman 33. SurfactantBased Separation Processes, edited by John F. Scamehorn and Jeffrey H. Harwell 34. Cationic Surfactants: Organic Chemistry, edited by James M. Richmond 35. Alkylene Oxides and Their Polymers, F. E. Bailey, Jr., and Joseph V. Koleske 36. Interfacial Phenomena in Petroleum Recovery, edited by Norman R. Morrow 37. Cationic Surfactants: Physical Chemistry, edited by Donn N. Rubingh and Paul M. Holland 38. Kinetics and Catalysis in Microheterogeneous Systems, edited by M. Grätzel and K. Kalyanasundaram 39. Interfacial Phenomena in Biological Systems, edited by Max Bender 40. Analysis of Surfactants, Thomas M. Schmitt 41. Light Scattering by Liquid Surfaces and Complementary Techniques, edited by Dominique Langevin 42. Polymeric Surfactants, Irja Piirma 43. Anionic Surfactants: Biochemistry, Toxicology, Dermatology. Second Edition, Revised and Expanded, edited by Christian Gloxhuber and Klaus Künstler 44. Organized Solutions: Surfactants in Science and Technology, edited by Stig E. Friberg and Björn Lindman 45. Defoaming: Theory and Industrial Applications, edited by P. R. Garrett 46. Mixed Surfactant Systems, edited by Keizo Ogino and Masahiko Abe 47. Coagulation and Flocculation: Theory and Applications, edited by Bohuslav Dobiáš
Page ad
48. Biosurfactants: Production • Properties • Applications, edited by Naim Kosaric 49. Wettability, edited by John C. Berg 50. Fluorinated Surfactants: Synthesis • Properties • Applications, Erik Kissa 51. Surface and Colloid Chemistry in Advanced Ceramics Processing, edited by Robert J. Pugh and Lennart Bergström 52. Technological Applications of Dispersions, edited by Robert B. McKay 53. Cationic Surfactants: Analytical and Biological Evaluation, edited by John Cross and Edward J. Singer 54. Surfactants in Agrochemicals, Tharwat F. Tadros 55. Solubilization in Surfactant Aggregates, edited by Sherril D. Christian and John F. Scamehorn 56. Anionic Surfactants: Organic Chemistry, edited by Helmut W. Stache 57. Foams: Theory, Measurements, and Applications, edited by Robert K. Prud'homme and Saad A. Khan 58. The Preparation of Dispersions in Liquids, H. N. Stein 59. Amphoteric Surfactants: Second Edition, edited by Eric G. Lomax 60. Nonionic Surfactants: Polyoxyalkylene Block Copolymers, edited by Vaughn M. Nace 61. Emulsions and Emulsion Stability, edited by Johan Sjöblom 62. Vesicles, edited by Morton Rosoff 63. Applied Surface Thermodynamics, edited by A. W. Neumann and Jan K. Spelt 64. Surfactants in Solution, edited by Arun K. Chattopadhyay and K. L. Mittal 65. Detergents in the Environment, edited by Milan Johann Schwuger 66. Industrial Applications of Microemulsions, edited by Conxita Solans and Hironobu Kunieda 67. Liquid Detergents, edited by KuoYann Lai ADDITIONAL VOLUMES IN PREPARATION Surfactants in Cosmetics: Second Edition, Revised and Expanded, edited by Martin M. Rieger and Linda Rhein Powdered Detergents, edited by Michael S. Showell Enzymes in Detergency, edited by Jan H. van Ee, Onno Misset, and Erik J. Baas
Page i
Liquid Detergents edited by KuoYann Lai ColgatePalmolive Company New York, New York
M ARCEL DEKKER, INC. N EW YORK • BASEL
Page ii
Library of Congress CataloginginPublication Data Liquid detergents / edited by KuoYann Lai. p. cm. — (Surfactant science series ; v. 67) Includes index. ISBN 0824793919 (hardcover : alk. paper) 1. Detergents. I. Lai, KuoYann. II. Series. TP992.5.L56 1996 668'.14—dc20 9644787 CIP The publisher offers discounts on this book when ordered in bulk quantities. For more information, write to Special Sales/Professional Marketing at the address below. This book is printed on acidfree paper. Copyright © 1997 by Marcel Dekker, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Neither this book nor any part may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, microfilming, and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Marcel Dekker, Inc. 270 Madison Avenue, New York, New York 10016 Current printing (last digit): 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
Page iii
Preface Liquid detergents play very important roles in our daily lives for personal care, household surface care, and fabric care. We use these products just about every day from washing our hands, hair, dishes, clothes to cleaning various surfaces in our homes. In the last three decades, liquid detergents have gained an increasing popularity largely due to the convenience they offer over other forms. During this period, there have been significant advances in both science and technology in this area. Numerous papers have been published in professional journals and trade magazines, thousands of patents have been granted, and large number of new products have been introduced to the marketplace. The objective of this volume is to provide a comprehensive review of these advances. This is the first book specifically devoted to the review and discussion of liquid detergents. It is intended primarily for scientists and engineers working in the detergent industry and the detergent raw materials industry around the world. Researchers in other industries—such as those in the petroleum industry who are involved in enhanced oil recovery and those in textile processing—as well as those in academia will also useful information in this volume. Consistent with the overall aim of the Surfactant Science Series, this volume covers both theoretical and applied aspects of liquid detergents. There are a total of 14 chapters. Chapter 1 gives a concise account of the past, present, and future of liquid detergents. The rest of the volume is structured into two parts—theories and applications. Chapters 2–6 present an indepth discussion of theories of common importance to most liquid detergent systems including hydrotropy, phase equilibria, rheology, polymeric stabilizers, and nonaqueous surfactant systems. Chapters 7–13 cover the technological aspects of liquid detergents in various practical applications from light and heavyduty liquid
Page iv
detergents, liquid automatic dishwasher detergents, liquid soaps, shampoos and conditioners, and fabric softeners to specialty liquid household surface cleaners. Chapter 14 focuses on the manufacturing aspects of liquid detergents. It is hoped that this volume will not only serve as a handy reference to researchers but also stimulate many new innovations in the detergent field. I want to take this opportunity to express my sincere thanks to Colgate Palmolive Company for permitting me to undertake this project and to the leadership team at its Global Technology Division for their strong support. Special thanks also go to all the contributors of this book not only for sharing their expertise and extensive experience but also for patiently enduring the unavoidable delays of a multiauthored book. I would also like to express my gratitude to Dr. Martin Schick, the consulting editor of this series, for his valuable suggestions, encouragement and patience; and to the publisher, Marcel Dekker Inc., in particular, Ms. Anita Lekhwani, Associate Acquisitions Editor, and Mr. Joseph Stubenrauch, Production Editor, for their patience and invaluable help. Finally, I want to thank my wife, Jane, and my children, Melody, Amy, and Peter for their endurance and support in the last several years. It was with their love and understanding that I was able to devote numerous evenings and weekends to complete this task. KUOYANN LAI
Contents Preface Contributors 1. Liquid Detergents: An Overview Arno Cahn 2. Hydrotropy Stig E. Friberg and Chris Brancewicz 3. Phase Equilibria Guy Broze 4. Rheology of Liquid Detergents R. S. Rounds 5. Polymeric Stabilizers for Liquid Detergents Madukkarai K. Nagarajan and Hal Ambuter 6. Nonaqueous Surfactant Systems Marie Sjöberg and Torbjörn Wärnheim 7. LightDuty Liquid Detergents KuoYann Lai, Elizabeth F. K. McCandlish, and Harry Aszman 8. HeavyDuty Liquid Detergents Amit Sachdev and Santhan Krishnan 9. Liquid Automatic Dishwasher Detergents Philip A. Gorlin, KuoYann Lai, and Nagaraj Dixit
10. Shampoos and Conditioners Clarence R. Robbins 11. Liquid Soaps Richard E. Reever 12. Fabric Softeners Alain Jacques and Charles J. Schramm, Jr. 13. Specialty Liquid Household Surface Cleaners Karen Wisniewski 14. Manufacture of Liquid Detergents R. S. Rounds Index
Page vii
Contributors Hal Ambuter Specialty Chemical Division—Product Development, The BFGoodrich Company, Brecksville, Ohio Harry Aszman Research and Development, Global Technology, Colgate Palmolive Company, Piscataway, New Jersey Chris Brancewicz Department of Chemistry and Center for Advanced Materials Processing, Clarkson University, Potsdam, New York Guy Broze Advanced Technology Department, ColgatePalmolive Research and Development, Inc., Milmort, Belgium Arno Cahn Arno Cahn Consulting Services, Inc., Pearl River, New York Nagaraj Dixit Research and Development, Global Technology, Colgate Palmolive Company, Piscataway, New Jersey Stig E. Friberg Department of Chemistry and Center for Advanced Materials Processing, Clarkson University, Potsdam, New York Philip A. Gorlin Research and Development, Global Technology, Colgate Palmolive Company, Piscataway, New Jersey Alain Jacques Fabric Care, ColgatePalmolive Research and Development, Inc., Milmort, Belgium Santhan Krishnan Research and Development, Global Technology, Colgate Palmolive Company, Piscataway, New Jersey
Page viii
KuoYann Lai Global Materials and Sourcing (AsiaPacific Division), Global Technology, ColgatePalmolive Company, New York, New York Elizabeth F. K. McCandlish Research and Development, Global Technology, ColgatePalmolive Company, Piscataway, New Jersey Madukkarai K. Nagarajan Specialty Chemical Division—Product Development, The BFGoodrich Company, Brecksville, Ohio Richard E. Reever Richard Reever and Associates, Inc., Minnetonka, Minnesota Clarence R. Robbins Research and Development, Global Technology, ColgatePalmolive Company, Piscataway, New Jersey R. S. Rounds Fluid Dynamics, Inc., Piscataway, New Jersey Amit Sachdev Research and Development, Global Technology, Colgate Palmolive Company, Piscataway, New Jersey Charles J. Schramm, Jr. Research and Development, Global Technology, ColgatePalmolive Company, Piscataway, New Jersey Marie Sjöberg Institute for Surface Chemistry, Stockholm, Sweden Torbjörn Wärnheim* Institute for Surface Chemistry, Stockholm, Sweden Karen Wisniewski Research and Development, Global Technology, ColgatePalmolive Company, Piscataway, New Jersey *Current affiliation: Pharmacia & Upjohn, Stockholm, Sweden
1 Liquid Detergents: An Overview ARNO CAHN Arno Cahn Consulting Services, Inc., Pearl River, New York I. Introduction II. LightDuty Liquids III. HeavyDuty Liquids IV. Liquid Automatic Dishwasher Detergents V. Shampoos and Conditioners VI. Liquid Soaps VII. Fabric Softeners VIII. Specialty Liquids IX. Manufacture and Raw Materials References
I. Introduction Liquid detergents are convenience products. Compared with powdered detergen dissolve more rapidly, particularly in cold water, they generate less dust, and they dose. It is not surprising, therefore, that liquid forms of household cleaning produ developed by manufacturers. With the exception of fabric softeners and shampoos, the solid form of cleaning p preceded the liquid form. This is true of manual and automatic dishwashing, laund general personal washing products. As a result,
Page 2
the technical history of liquid detergents is to a large extent one of emulating the performance features of the powder models. All other factors—soil, water hardness, and temperature—being equal, cleaning performance is a function of the concentration and type of the active ingredients that are delivered into the cleaning bath. Almost by definition, the liquid form involves a dilution of the active ingredients, that is, a given volume of a powdered detergent can generally deliver more active ingredients than an equal volume of a liquid detergent. The task to provide performance equality with powders is therefore not insignificant. It is made even more difficult when inorganic salts are used to provide certain specific performance features. These salts often pose problems of solubility and compatibility with the organic surfactants of the formulation. Finally, formulation problems are most severe when the active component is less stable in an aqueous environment than in a solid matrix. These considerations apply principally to the heavyduty liquids, the largest of the liquid detergent categories, but they also come into play with liquid automatic dishwasher detergents. The situation is different for products designed for lightduty, hand dishwashing and for softening fabrics. These liquids are generally superior in performance to their powdered counterparts to the extent that these existed in the first place. This is also true of shampoo formulations, for which there is no common solid equivalent. This chapter gives an essentially historical overview of the various categories. Historically, soapbased shampoos and the liquid potassium oleate formulations found in washroom dispensers were probably the earliest commercial liquid detergents. II. LightDuty Liquids On a truly commercial scale, the age of liquid detergents can be said to have begun in the late 1940s when the first liquid detergent for manual dishwashing was introduced. This liquid consisted essentially of a nonionic surfactant: alkylphenol ethoxylate. In use, it produced only a moderate amount of foam in the dishpan. This proved to be a serious detriment. To be successful, consumer product innovations must show a large measure of similarity to the conventional products they are intended to displace. In this case, copious foam was the essential performance attribute that needed to be as close to that which could be generated from powders and soap chips. The requirement for copious foam levels has a technical basis and is more than a mere emotional reaction to a visual phenomenon. With soapbased products, the appearance of a permanent foam signaled that all hard water ions had
Page 3
been removed by precipitation as calcium and magnesium carboxylates and that excess soap was now available to act as a surfactant. The foaming requirements for lightduty liquids were met by the next series of product introductions in the early 1950s. These formulations were based on highfoaming anionic surfactants. They were capable of maintaining adequate levels of foam throughout the dishwashing process and possessed sufficient emulsifying power to handle the load of grease in the dishpan to produce “squeaky clean” dishware. In practice, this was accomplished by a mixture of anionic surfactants— alkylbenzenesulfonate, alcohol ether sulfate, and alcohol sulfates—sometimes in combination with nonionic surfactants. To maintain foam stability, alkanolamides were incorporated. In some products, alkanolamides were subsequently replaced by longchain amine oxides. The formulation of lightduty liquids overcame a second major technical hurdle inherent in the formulation of all liquid detergents: to maintain homogeneity in the presence of significant levels, about 30% or more, of moderately soluble organic surfactants. Coupling agents or hydrotropes were introduced for this purpose, specifically the shortchain alkylbenzenesulfonates, such as xylene, cumene and toluenesulfonates, as well as ethanol. Lightduty liquids have maintained a significant market volume to this day. This is somewhat surprising because the primary function of these products is to wash dishes. In newer homes and apartments, this function has been taken over by automatic dishwashing machines and the special detergents developed for use in these machines. Both have expanded greatly since their introduction in the late 1950s. Some part of the persistence of lightduty liquids is no doubt a result of their use as finefabric detergents for washing delicate laundry items by hand. Over the years, minor additives have been incorporated into lightduty liquid formulations, principally to support marketing claims for special performance features. For a period of time in the 1960s, antimicrobials were incorporated into some products designed to prevent secondary infections of broken skin during dishwashing. After an absence of some 30 years, antimicrobials are again appearing in lightduty liquids. Their return is no doubt connected with increasing awareness of the possible presence of bacteria in foods, especially in chicken. Other commercial products contained protein as a skin benefit agent. Improving the condition of skin as a result of exposure to lightduty liquid solutions proved to be technically very difficult. Exposure times are relatively short, about 20 minutes, three times a day under the best of circumstances, and use concentrations are low, about 0.15%. The combination of low use levels and short exposure times makes it difficult to overcome the adverse effects of skin exposure to other inimical influences, such as dry air in heated homes and strong household chemicals.
Page 4
Generally speaking, lightduty liquid compositions are relatively nonirritating to skin. Mildness to skin could therefore be claimed by these products with reasonable justification. During the 1960s and 1970s, the cosmetic image was further enhanced by opacifying lightduty liquids and conferring upon them a lotionlike appearance. In more recent years, dishwashing efficacy—effective emulsification of grease—combined with persistent foam, has been the main objective of technical product improvement. In line with cleaning efficacy, solid particles have also been incorporated into some lightduty liquid formulations with the objective of raising the effectiveness of the products in removing solid cakedon soil from dishes. III. HeavyDuty Liquids Once lightduty liquid products had established an attractive market position, the development of heavyduty liquids could not be far behind. Here, too, the requirement of similarity to the existing products had to be met, in this case powdered laundry detergents. The powdered laundry detergents of the 1950s were characterized by the presence of high levels of builder, specifically pentasodium tripolyphosphate (STPP), and relatively low levels, about 15%, of surfactants. In formulating a heavyduty liquid, therefore, the major technical objective was to find ways of stably incorporating maximum levels of builder salts. The first commercially important heavyduty liquid was introduced into the U.S. market in 1958. The product was built with tetrapotassium pyrophosphate, which is more soluble than STPP. Even so, in the presence of a surfactant system of sodium alkylbenzenesulfonate and a mixture of alkanolamides, the formulation could tolerate only 15–20% of tetrapotassium pyrophosphate. Incorporation of an antiredeposition agent, another ingredient present in laundry powders, proved to be another major technical hurdle. Antiredeposition agents, generally carbohydrate derivatives, such as carboxymethylcellulose, had been introduced into laundry powders to prevent greying after a number of repeat wash cycles. In one product, the patented solution to this problem consisted of balancing two antiredeposition agents of different specific gravity such that the tendency of one to rise in the finished product was counterbalanced by the tendency of the second agent to settle out of the product [1]. Even though the first major commercial heavyduty liquid composition was formulated with a builder system, the concentrations of builders and surfactants it delivered into the washing solution were lower than those provided by the conventional detergent powders. As a liquid, however, the product possessed a unique convenience in use, particularly for fullstrength application to specific soiled areas of garments. Convenience was accompanied by effectiveness,
Page 5
because the concentration of individual ingredients in the neat form approached that of a nonaqueous system. This is illustrated by the following consideration. Recommended washing product use directions lead to washing solutions with a concentration of about 0.15% of the total product. At a surfactant level of about 15% in the product, the final concentration of surfactant in the wash liquor is about 0.0225%. The efficacy of surfactant in providing observable cleaning at such low concentration attests to the power of the interfacial phenomena that underlie the action of surfactants. By contrast, a heavyduty liquid containing 20% surfactant, applied full strength, leads to a surfactant concentration of 20%, some three orders of magnitude larger than in the earlier case. At these—almost nonaqueous— concentrations, solution phenomena, such as those operating in nonaqueous dry cleaning, are likely to be responsible for cleaning efficacy. The popularity of heavyduty liquids for pretreating stains was thus based not only on convenience but also on real performance. In the mid1960s, the branchedchain surfactants were replaced by more biodegradable analogs in all laundry products. In heavyduty liquids, sodium alkylbenzenesulfonate, derived from an alkylbenzene with a tetrapropylene side chain, was replaced by its straightchain analog, referred to as sodium linear alkylbenzenesulfonate (LAS). The conversion to more biodegradable surfactants was prompted by the appearance of foams on river. The appearance of excessive algal growth on stagnant lakes prompted a second environmental development that proved to be beneficial to the expansion of heavyduty liquids: the reduction or elimination of the sodium tripolyphosphate builder from laundry detergents. Restrictions on the use of phosphate in laundry detergents were imposed by a number of states and smaller administrative agencies beginning in 1970. Because no totally equivalent phosphate substitute was immediately available, the performance of heavyduty laundry powders was adversely affected. As the wholewash performance differential between powders and liquids narrowed, the usage of heavyduty liquids for the whole wash expanded, markedly so in areas where phosphate had been banned. In the first nonphosphate version of the commercial product, phosphate was replaced by NTA (trisodium nitrilotriacetate), a powerful builder, comparable to the condensed phosphates in its efficacy in sequestering calcium ions in the washing solution. Because of reports of adverse teratogenic effects in laboratory experiments, this builder was withdrawn from the market late in 1971. It was replaced by sodium citrate, an environmentally more acceptable but inherently less powerful calcium sequestrant. At the same time, surfactant levels were increased by a factor of about 3. What had happened in practice (if not in theory) was that higher levels of surfactants had been introduced to compensate
Page 6
for the loss in the building contribution to washing efficacy provided earlier by phosphate. The 1970s saw the introduction of several heavyduty liquids that carried this substitution to its ultimate, being totally unbuilt and consisting solely of surfactants at levels ranging from 35% to about 50%. These compositions were distinguished from lightduty liquids by the presence of surfactants with longer hydrophobes and, of course, by the presence of laundry auxilaries, such as fluorescent whiteners and antiredeposition agents. With the exception of a few products based on surfactants only, most heavyduty liquids are formulated with a mixture of anionic and nonionic surfactants, with anionics predominating. The steady expansion of phosphate bans across the United States, accompanied by an expanding perception of the convenience and efficacy of heavyduty liquids, led to an expansion of this product category in the two decades beginning 1970. This expansion was fueled not only by the publicity that normally accompanies the introduction of new brands but also by some significant product improvements. The first of these to appear late in the early 1980s was the incorporation of proteolytic and, later, amylolytic enzymes. In liquid detergents, with their relatively high level of water, proteolytic enzymes must be stabilized to prevent degradation during storage [2,3]. Enzymes make a significant and demonstrable contribution to washing efficacy, not only in the removal of enzymespecific stains, such as grass and blood, by proteinases, but also in an increase in the level of general cleanliness. The latter effect is the result of the ability of a proteolytic enzyme to act upon proteinaceous components of the matrix that binds soil to fabric. Enzymes had been used in detergent powders in the United States and Europe as early as 1960. They were subsequently withdrawn in the United States, but not in Europe, when the raw proteinase of the time proved to have an adverse effect on the health of plant workers. Improvements in the enzymes, specifically encapsulation, eliminated their dustiness and made it possible to use these materials in detergent plants without adverse health effects. The second product innovation was the incorporation of a fabricsoftening ingredient. Again, a powdered version of a “softergent” that had been on the market for some time served as the model product. In the powder, the mutually antagonistic anionic surfactants and cationic softening ingredients could be kept apart so that they would not neutralize their individual benefits in the wash cycle. In a liquid, this proved to be unattainable. As a result, the choice of surfactants in liquid softergents was restricted to nonionics. Although the incorporation of enzymes and fabric softeners strengthened the market position of heavyduty liquids, it did not solve the basic problem of limited general detergency performance in normal washing. As noted earlier, heavyduty liquids came close to the performance of the first nonphosphate laundry powders. With time, however, the performance of nonphosphate laundry
Page 7
powders improved as new surfactant systems and new nonphosphate builders, notably zeolite in combination with polycarboxylate polymers, were introduced. The last decade saw a partial conversion of some major brands from unbuilt to built compositions. The first of these products employed a builder system consisting of sodium citrate in combination with potassium laurate [2]. In the most recent versions, potassium laurate has been replaced by a smallmolecule ether polycarboxylate sequestrant, a mixture of sodium tartrate monosuccinate and sodium tartrate disuccinate [3]. In these built products, the stabilization of enzymes is technically more difficult than in unbuilt systems. A combination of lowmolecularweight fatty acids, lowmolecularweight alcohols, and very low levels of free calcium ions proved to be the solution to this problem. At the height of their popularity, heavyduty liquids accounted for 40–45% of the heavyduty laundry products category in the United States. Not unexpectedly, the market share of heavyduty liquids has declined somewhat as new developments in laundry powders, notably the introduction of a bleaching function and of concentrated, higher density detergent powders, has reinvigorated this product category. If the emulation of the performance of laundry powders is to continue in the future, and there is no reason to doubt this trend, the incorporation of a stain removal and bleaching function into heavyduty liquids should be the next technical improvement in these products. Indeed, the first product claiming a bleaching ingredient has made its appearance at this writing. In laundry powders, effective bleaching has been attained in the last decade by incorporating a combination of sodium perborate and an activator. In Europe, sodium perborate has been used for many decades as a major (about 20%) ingredient of laundry detergents. At temperatures near 100°C, sodium perborate alone provides effective bleaching. As washing temperatures have decreased over the past 15 years, a need has arisen for an activator that reacts with sodium perborate to form unstable peroxy intermediates, which in turn can effect bleaching at the lower temperatures. To prevent premature reaction with the oxygen source, usually sodium perborate, the activators can easily be encapsulated in powdered detergent products. In an aqueous environment, this is technically much more difficult. One approach toward the incorporation of activated perborate into heavyduty liquids is to remove the aqueous environment and formulate nonaqueous systems [5]. To attain product homogeneity, these formulations require significant levels, about 20%, of organic solvents, such as propylene glycol and/or ethanol. Nonaqueous systems have been patented extensively, particularly in Europe, but so far have not been reflected in major new product introductions. Nonaqueous liquids could be considered “superconcentrated” and as such are in tune with the recent trend to concentrated laundry powders. However, the
Page 8
need for organic solvents combined with the high level of surfactants present in these formulations represents a burden on the environment and adds to the cost of such products. In Europe, specifically in Germany, discharge into the environment is a serious problem that is likely to inhibit expansion of both aqueous and nonaqueous heavyduty liquids. Such superconcentrated, nonaqueous heavyduty liquids have not made an appearance in the marketplace, but “concentrated” products have been introduced, in consonance with a general trend toward compaction initiated by the introduction of compact or concentrated detergent powders. Two technical approaches toward more concentrated products have been followed. The first, originating in Europe, results in an opaque product containing relatively high levels of builder salts in suspension. A stable suspension is achieved by salting out the surfactant system by an excess of electrolyte (which includes the builder salts) to form lamellar or spherulitic surfactant aggregates that are capable of suspending builder in excess of its solubility in the formulation. The relatively high builder levels contribute to improved wholewash performance, especially in the European liquids, which contain sodium tripolyphosphate as the builder [4]. A second approach toward compaction yields clear, isotropic liquids that appear to be preferred by U.S. consumers. Technically, this involves a difficult balancing act because conventional hydrotroping agents, such as cumeneor xylenesulfonates, may lose their efficacy in a system enriched in organic components. As the system becomes more organic in nature, higher levels of solvents, such as ethanol, are required in combination with neutralization of acidic functionalities (LAS or citric acid) with alkanolamines, such as mono and triethanolamine. In general, the phase stability of the system becomes more sensitive to changes in active levels because the stable operating region of the phase diagram is narrowed relative to more dilute systems. IV. Liquid Automatic Dishwasher Detergents The development of liquid automatic dishwashing detergents continued the pattern of emulating the composition of solid products in a liquid form. Liquid automatic dishwashing detergents were first introduced in 1986 at a time when the market penetration of heavyduty liquid laundry detergents was on a pronounced upswing, without an upper limit in sight. A liquid version of the automatic dishwashing detergent powders therefore appeared to be attractive and timely. These liquid detergent products are suspensions rather than true solutions. Nonetheless, the technical problems of formulating thick but flowable suspensions are considerable. Again, the primary task was to incorporate as much of
Page 9
the important ingredients—principally builders in this case—as possible. Even approaching the levels of sodium tripolyphosphate and sodium carbonate present in the powdered versions gives rise to a very thick suspension that can be coaxed out of the container only with considerable difficulty. Making the suspension thixotropic by incorporation of the appropriate clay materials and, optionally, polycarboxylate polymers provides a solution to the flow problem [6]. Before use by the consumer, the product must be shaken to reduce viscosity and promote flow. Another major technical problem is the inadequate stability in an aqueous environment of chlorinated isocyanurates, the organic chlorine source used in powders. Sodium hypochlorite satisfies the stability requirements but, on the other hand, reacts with the surfactant types used in powder formulations. The specification of surfactants for use in liquid automatic dishwashing products therefore includes not only the universal requirement of low foam levels (and ideally the capability of destroying the foams generated during the dishwashing process by proteinaceous soil) but also stability to sodium hypochlorite. To a large extent, these requirements have been met by the alkyldiphenyl oxide disulfonate surfactants. In some commercial liquid automatic dishwashing formulations, the surfactant is omitted altogether. In practice, this is a possible solution because detergency in hard surface cleaning, such as dishwashing, is accomplished primarily by the phosphate builder. However, in the absence of surfactant there is little defoaming of natural soils and no contribution to the “sheeting” of water just before drying. Such sheeting minimizes the formation of water spots on dishes that have gone through the dishwashing process. V. Shampoos and Conditioners Shampoos are liquid detergents designed to clean a particular substrate, that is, hair and scalp. They bear some resemblance to hand dishwashing liquids in that they are essentially unbuilt surfactant solutions. Esthetic properties, such as appearance (clear or pearlescent), viscosity, and fragrance, are perhaps more important in this product group than in any other product category discussed in this book. Development and maintenance of an adequate foam level is at once a performance property and also a esthetic property in that it is noticed and evaluated by the user. Shampoos almost always contain additives with activity in areas other than cleaning and foaming, designed to provide specific performance attributes that confer such properties as luster, manageability to hair, and elimination of dandruff. The concentration in use of shampoos is estimated as near 8%. This is an order of magnitude greater than the use concentrations of laundry and dishwashing
Page 10
liquids. Mildness to skin and low irritation to eyes are therefore important requirements for shampoos. Salts, generally sodium but also triethanolammonium, of longchain alcohol sulfates and alcohol ether sulfates are the most widely used surfactants in shampoo formulations. Alkanolamides act as viscosity regulators as well as foam stabilizers. The most general benefits associated with the use of conditioners is a reduction in static charge on hair and hence a greater ease of combing, that is, improved manageability. Cationic, quaternary surfactants and cationic polymers provide these benefits as a result of electrostatic adsorption on hair. In analogy with “softergents,” the mutual antagonism of the cationic conditioners and the anionic surfactants that provide the primary shampoo function of removing oily soil presents a problem in the development of conditioning shampoos. Some anionic surfactants, notably carboxylated nonionics, have been found to be more tolerant toward cationic surfactants than the alcohol sulfates or alcohol ether sulfates. The history of shampoos is long, beginning well before the days of synthetic surfactants. The advent of the latter greatly expanded options for the formulator and at the same improved the esthetics of the products. VI. Liquid Soaps Liquid soaps is the popular description given to this product category. This definition is technically not quite accurate. These products may contain some fatty acid salts, but they are predominantly solutions of (synthetic) surfactants rather than of soap. Apart from the potassium oleate solutions mentioned earlier, the history of liquid soaps is relatively short. It offers a relatively representative illustration of the development of a product category or subcategory in the U.S. market. The first liquid soap was first introduced by a smallish U.S. company in the late 1970s. The product proved to be sufficiently attractive to U.S. consumers to capture a significant market share in the personal washing category. In short order, many competitive brands were introduced that saturated the field and, it seemed, stunted the growth of the category. In the most recent stage, the field reduced to fewer, larger brands and the category has reached a relatively firm level from which slow and steady growth can be anticipated. Liquid soaps can be stored and dispensed with the convenience characteristic of all liquids. Beyond these generic attractions, they possess an esthetic advantage over conventional personal washing bars in that during use, and particularly during occasional use, they are not subject to the visual and physical deterioration in appearance of personal washing bars. Stored in an aqueous
Page 11
matrix (residual water from washing), bars tend to slough and crack to various degrees. The cracks, in turn, can collect soil, which leads to a less than attractive appearance. Liquid soaps can be considered successors to the potassium oleate solutions noted earlier. Presentday products, however, are formulated principally with nonsoap surfactants, including olefinsulfonate, alkyl sulfates, and alkyl ether sulfates. Some products, however, still depend on potassium salts of fatty acids as the principal constituent. As in other personal products, specialty surfactants also find application in liquid soap formulations. These include alkyl phosphate esters, sarcosinates, and sulfosuccinates. As expected from consumer products that contact skin, a number of specialty ingredients can be found in products making specific marketing claims. These ingredients include glycerin, aloe vera, and antimicrobial phenolics. Small levels of calcium sequestrants, such as EDTA, and sodium citrate, are also present. VII. Fabric Softeners Fabric softeners or conditioners, as the name implies, are products that confer softness to washed textile goods. They first made their appearance in the U.S. market in the 1950s. The major active ingredient in fabric softening compositions is a cationic surfactant, a di(longchain)alkyldimethylammonium halide or methosulfate. The positive charge on the nitrogen atom, combined with the high molecular mass associated with the long alkyl chains, ensured adsorption of the compound on the substrate and a soft feel of the conditioned fabric. In contrast to most other liquid detergent categories, fabric softeners are not true solutions. The longchain quaternary salts do not dissolve to form an isotropic solution. Cotton is the primary target substrate for fabric softeners. On repeated washing, the fine structure of cotton at the surface of the fabric becomes dendritic, that is, many fine spikes of cotton fibers are formed that protrude from the surface of the textile. Electrostatic repulsion holds these spikes in place, but in the presence of the cationic softening agent, they are smoothed out. Synthetic fabrics, such as polyester and nylon, are not subject to this phenomenon. Much of the “softening” with these substrates is provided by the mechanical flexing action in the drier. However, the mechanical action causes a buildup of static electricity on synthetic fabrics, which can result in considerable sparking when garments made of synthetic fibers are withdrawn from a clothes drier. Fortunately, the agents that confer softening to cotton fibers also reduce the buildup of static charges on synthetics.
Page 12
In a conventional fabric softener formulation, the level of the quaternary surfactant is about 5%. Low concentrations of “leveling agents” can also be present. These materials, often nonionic surfactants, assist in uniform deposition of the softening quaternary. In addition, a buffering system is used to assure an acidic pH. Finally, a solvent, such as isopropanol, present at levels of about 10–15%, assures a viscosity range suitable for easy dispensing from the bottle. As an additive to improve ease of ironing and to reduce the wrinkling tendencies of the treated textile, silicone derivatives, such as polydimethyl siloxanes, have been incorporated into liquid fabric softener compositions [7]. As an alternative softening quaternary, imidazolinium compounds have been introduced with a claim of superior rewet performance. This can be a useful performance feature because with continuing usage and buildup of cationics on the substrate, the water absorption of the substrate can be adversely affected. The use of anionic detergents in the main wash can mitigate this phenomenon because the anionic surfactant can combine with the cationic fabric softener to form a combination that is removed as part of the oil on the fabric. Since the late 1970s, concentrated fabric softener products have been marketed in the United States and in Europe. In these products, the concentration of the softening cationic is about three times as high as in the conventional products. In the most recent past, the environmental acceptability of the dialkyldimethyl ammonium quaternary has been questioned, particularly in Western Europe. In response, the nature of the alkyl group has been modified and a moderately extensive patent literature has arisen covering these modifications. For the most part, the patented structures include an ester linkage, generally at the third carbon atom, which makes for a more rapid biological breakdown of the parent compound [8]. The liquid fabric softeners just described are also referred to as rinse cycle softeners. The reason is that these products are added to the rinse cycle of the wash when no or very little of any anionic residue from the detergent used in the main wash can be expected to be present. As in all textile treatments, fabric softening and conditioning are inherently more effective when they are carried out in a liquid bath, that is, when a rinse cycle softener is employed. Adding a product to the rinse cycle softener represents a measure of inconvenience to the user. Before special ports for the automatic addition of rinse cycle became a widespread feature of washing machines, the use of a rinse cycle softener usually required an appropriately timed second trip to the washing machine. It is not surprising, therefore, that alternative means of softening products were sought and developed. Here, however, the usual situation was reversed, in that now greater convenience rested with “solid” products, that is, flexible sheets treated with a fabric softening compositions that performed their softening
Page 13
and static reducing functions in the clothes drier rather than in the washing machine. Softergents, mentioned earlier in connection with heavyduty liquids, can be viewed as representing the ultimate in convenience. These products require no additional effort beyond laundering. As noted, this convenience is bought at some cost in both the washing and softening performance. VIII. Specialty Liquids In addition to the major liquid detergent categories discussed earlier, several more specialized liquid product categories have been marketed for a number of years. In terms of function, character, and formulation ingredients, this is the most fragmented group of products considered here. The largest group comprises the “general” hard surface cleaners. In addition, there is a large variety of specialties within specialty liquids, such as window cleaners, bathroom cleaners, and toilet bowl cleaners. The major category of general hard surface cleaners has evolved into two principal types: allpurpose cleaners and solvent cleaners. Allpurpose liquids are essentially dilute versions of heavyduty liquids. Again, a solid product that required dissolution before use was the model for the liquid cleaners. Early versions of the liquid cleaners were based on low levels of tetrapyrophosphate builder and surfactant and, additionally, auxiliaries, such as alkanolamide and a sufficient amount of hydrotrope, to keep the composition homogeneous. For sanitizing products, the auxiliaries include compounds with antimicrobial efficacy, such as pine oil or antimicrobial cationics. With the advent of phosphate bans, sodium citrate has emerged as the most common phosphate replacement in these products. For increased efficacy in removing particulate soil adhering to the substrate, some generalpurpose cleaners incorporate a soft abrasive, such as calcium carbonate. The resulting products are milky suspensions with about 40–50% of suspended calcium carbonate [9]. Keeping these compositions homogeneous through extended storage is a technical challenge. One approach to solving this problem is to provide “structure” to the liquid medium. Surfactants present as a lamellar phase are capable of structuring liquids. Most recently, a composition containing both soft abrasive and bleach has been introduced [10]. These hard surface cleaners have not escaped the recent trend toward compaction. Here, the approach toward “ultra” products is based on the use of shorter chain surfactants that combine the soil penetration efficacy of solvents with the grease emulsification of traditional surfactants. These surfactants are also said to require no builders because their performance is not affected by water hardness.
Page 14
Solvent cleaners are generally free of builder salts and depend for their efficacy on solventtype compounds, such as glycol ethers. Solvent cleaners are less effective on particulate soil, such as mud tracked into the house from the outside, but target their efficacy against oily soils, particularly on oily soil on modern plastic surfaces. Window cleaning products constitute a specialty within the solvent cleaner category. Because any residue left on glass after drying leads to streaking or an otherwise undesirable appearance, these products are highly dilute aqueous solutions containing extremely low surfactant levels—most often nonionic surfactants—and a combination of glycol ethers and isopropyl alcohol as the solvent system. Bathroom cleaners, sometimes referred to as tubtileandsink cleaners, represent “subspecialty” liquids that must be effective against a combination of sebum soil deposited from skin detritus during bathing or showering and the hardness deposits deriving from hard water itself or from its interaction with soap, that is, calcium salts of fatty acids. One subset in this group depends on acids for removing this combination. The acids contained in the products range from the strong hydrochloric and phosphoric acids to moderately strong organic acids, such as glycollic acid. Other products are formulated at a basic pH, incorporating an calcium sequestrants, such as the sodium salt of ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA), surfactants, and, in the case of products with disinfecting action, antimicrobial quaternaries. Like bathroom cleaners, toilet bowl cleaners are formulated to remove mineral deposits, principally iron salts, that form an unsightly deposit at the water level. Again, acids ranging in strength from hydrochloric to citric are found in these products. Another subsegment of the specialty liquids is that of the drain cleaners. These are strongly basic products based on combinations of sodium hydroxide and sodium hypochlorite. IX. Manufacture and Raw Materials In principle, the manufacture of liquids is simple, involving only the formulation of a generally aqueous solution or suspension. For light and heavyduty liquids, which contain sodium salts of surfactant acids, neutralization can be carried out in situ, that is, as a first step in the mixing process. The heat of neutralization must be dissipated before addition of the more temperaturesensitive ingredients, such as the fragrance. Heat must also be dissipated in the production of products that require heat input to solubilize individual ingredients. The raw materials for the liquid household products discussed in this book are relatively few in number, including the “workhorse” surfactants, builders,
Page 15
hydrotropes, and a small number of special function ingredients. Cost constraints on the finished products are one of the important limiting factors. The situation is different for the personal liquid detergents and liquid soaps and especially so for shampoos and conditioners. Cost constraints are relaxed, and the range of performance claims based on specific and unique ingredients is now very much expanded. Although the variety of the essential surfactants is still manageable, the number of specialty surfactants and special function ingredients is very much greater. A detailed discussion of these ingredients is beyond the scope of this chapter. Details of the characteristics, properties, and manufacture of the raw materials can be found in other reference works [11]. In the following, the raw materials found in liquid detergent compositions are listed to provide a convenient summary for further reference. For the large scale categories of light and heavyduty liquids, for automatic dishwasher detergents, and for fabric softeners, the list is fairly complete. For specialty liquids, shampoos and conditioners, and to a lesser extent for liquid soaps, only limited examples of special functional ingredients have been selected. I. Lightduty liquids A. Surfactants 1. Alkylbenzenesulfonate (linear alkylate sulfonate, LAS) salts 2. Alkyl ether sulfate salts 3. Alkyl sulfate salts 4. Betaines 5. Alkylpolyglycosides B. Foam stabilizers 1. Fatty acid alkanolamides (mono and di) 2. Alkyldimethylamine oxides C. Hydrotropes 1. Shortchain alkylbenzenesulfonates (xylenesulfonate salts) 2. Ethanol II. Heavyduty liquids A. Surfactants 1. Alkylbenzenesulfonate salts 2. Alkyl ether sulfate salts 3. Alkyl sulfate salts
A. Surfactants 1. Alkylbenzenesulfonate salts 2. Alkyl ether sulfate salts 3. Alkyl sulfate salts 4. Alcohol ethoxylates 5. Nmethylglucamides
Page 16
B. Builders 1. Sodium citrate 2. Sodium salts of tartrate mono and disuccinate mixture C. Hydrotropes 1. Salts of shortchain alkylbenzenesulfonates (xylenesulfonate, cumenesulfonate, toluenesulfonate) 2. Ethanol D. Bases: Alkanolamines E. Other special functional ingredients 1. Enzymes (proteinase, amylase, lipase): stain remover 2. Borax (cleaning aid) 3. Sodium formate, calcium chloride (enzyme stabilizing system) 4. Hydrogen peroxide (bleach) 5. Propylene glycol (solvent) III. Liquid automatic dishwasher detergents A. Surfactants 1. Alkyldiphenyl oxide disulfonate salts 2. Hydroxyfatty acid salts B. Builders: 1. Pentasodium tripolyphosphate 2. Tetrasodium pyrophosphate 3. Sodium carbonate 4. Sodium silicate C. Bases: Sodium and potassium hydroxide D. Other special functional ingredients 1. Sodium hypochlorite (bleach) 2. Clay (smectite, bentonite): viscosity regulator, suspending agent 3. Polyacrylate sodium salts (viscosity regulator) 4. Monostearyl acid phosphate (suds depressant) IV. Shampoos and conditioners
2. Clay (smectite, bentonite): viscosity regulator, suspending agent 3. Polyacrylate sodium salts (viscosity regulator) 4. Monostearyl acid phosphate (suds depressant) IV. Shampoos and conditioners A. Surfactants 1. Alkyl sulfate salts 2. Alkyl ether sulfate salts 3. Acylaminopropyl betaines 4. Olefinsulfonate salts B. Foam stabilizers/viscosity regulators: Fatty acid alkanolamides
Page 17
C. Other special functional ingredients 1. Polyquaternium 7 (cationic conditioner) 2. Glycol monostearate (opacifier) 3. Aloe vera (luster promoter) 4. Jojoba (luster promoter) 5. Derivatives of hydrolyzed keratin (skin and hair conditioner) V. Liquid Soaps A. Surfactants 1. Alcohol sulfate salts 2. Alkyl ether sulfate salts 3. Olefinsulfonate salts 4. Fatty acid salts B. Sequestrants 1. EDTA 2. Sodium citrate C. Foam stabilizers/viscosity regulators: Fatty acid alkanolamides D. Other special functional ingredients 1. Phenolic antimicrobials 2. Glycerin VI. Fabric conditioners A. Surfactants 1. Dialkyldimethylammonium halide or methosulfate salts 2. Monoalkyltrimethylammonium halide salts 3. Alkylimidazolinium salts 4. Alcohol ethoxylates 5. Alkyl (ethylene oxide/propylene oxide) nonionics B. Solvents 1. Isopropanol 2. Ethanol C. Other special functional ingredients: Polydimethylsiloxanes (leveling agent)
B. Solvents 1. Isopropanol 2. Ethanol C. Other special functional ingredients: Polydimethylsiloxanes (leveling agent) VII. Specialty liquids A. Surfactants 1. Alkylbenzenesulfonate salts 2. Alcohol sulfate salts
Page 18
3. Alkanesulfonate salts 4. Alkyl ether sulfate salts 5. Alkylphenol ethoxylates 6. Alcohol ethoxylates B. Builders/sequestrants 1. Sodium carbonate 2. Sodium sesquicarbonate 3. Sodium citrate 4. EDTA C. Acids/alkalis 1. Hydrochloric acid 2. Phosphoric acid 3. Glycollic acid 4. Sodium hydroxide 5. Sodium metasilicate 6. Alkanolamines D. Hydrotropes: Shortchain alkylbenzenesulfonate salts (toluene, cumene) E. Bases: Alkanolamines F. Other special functional ingredients 1. Pine oil (disinfectant) 2. Benzalkonium cationics (antimicrobials) 3. Sodium hypochlorite (bleach) 4. Calcium carbonate (soft abrasive) 5. Alumina (suspending aid) 6. Alkyl glycol ethers (solvents) 7. Isopropanol (solvent) References 1. I. Reich and H. Dallenbach, U.S. Patent 2,994,665 to Lever Brothers Company (1963). 2. J. C. Letton and M. J. Yunker, U.S. Patent 4,318,818 to the Procter &
References 1. I. Reich and H. Dallenbach, U.S. Patent 2,994,665 to Lever Brothers Company (1963). 2. J. C. Letton and M. J. Yunker, U.S. Patent 4,318,818 to the Procter & Gamble Company (1982). 3. R. D. Bush, D. S. Connor, S. W. Heinzman, and L. N. Mackey, U.S. Patent 4,663,071 to the Procter & Gamble Company (1987). 4. B. J. Akred, E. T. Messenger, and W. T. Nicholson, British Patent 2,153,839 A to Albright & Wilson Limited (1985). 5. G. Broze, D. Bastin, and L. Laitem, U.S. Patent 4,749,512 to Colgate Palmolive Company (1988). 6. M. Julemont and M. Marchai, British Patent 2,116,119 A to Colgate Palmolive Company (1982).
Page 19
7. R. J. Dumbrell, J. P. Charles, I. M. Leclerq, R. M. A. de Bakker, P. C. E. Goffinet, B. A. Brown, R. E. Atkinson, and F. E. Hardy, British Patent 1,549,180 to the Procter & Gamble Company (1979). 8. J. C. Letton, U.S. Patent 4,228,042 to the Procter & Gamble Company (1980). 9. U.S. Patent 4,129,527, F. P. Clark, R. C. Johnson, and J. Topolewski to the Clorox Company (1978). 10. C. K. Choy, F. I. Keen, A. Garabedian, and C. J. Spurgeon, U.S. Patent 4,695,394 to the Clorox Company (1987). 11. G. Barker, in Surfactants in Cosmetics (M. M. Rieger, ed.), Marcel Dekker, New York, 1985.
2 Hydrotropy STIG E. FRIBERG and CHRIS BRANCEWICZ Department of Chemistry and Center for Advanced Materials Processing, Clarks Potsdam, New York I. Introduction II. Historical Review III. Fundamentals IV. Cleaning and Washing V. Summary References
I. Introduction Liquid detergent concentrates commonly contain hydrotropes to avoid excessive the formulation and to improve their detergency. Both functions rely on the funda properties of hydrotropes. In this chapter, historical knowledge about the function of hydrotropic molecules i reviewed, followed by a description of hydrotropic action in liquid detergents usi commercial hydrotrope with an unusual structure. II. Historical Review The term “hydrotropy” was coined in 1916 by Neuberg [1,2], who found that aq solutions of certain salts possessed the ability to enhance the solubility in water of otherwise waterinsoluble substances. He found that the alkali metal salts of benz salicylic acid, benzenesulfonic acid and its
Page 22
many derivatives, naphthoic acid, and various other hydroaromatic acids displayed hydrotropic activity. In his study, Neuberg investigated a large number of organic solutes, such as carbohydrates, alcohols, aldehydes, ketones, hydrocarbons, esters, ethers, lipids, fats, and oils. The second phase or period of activity started 30 years later, with an emphasis on chemical engineering and industrial applications. McKee [3] showed that concentrated aqueous solutions of very soluble neutral salts of organic acids, such as sodium benzoate (NaB), salicylate (NaS), benzenesulfonate (NaBS), ptoluenesulfonate (NaPTS), xylenesulfonate (NaXS), cumenesulfonate (NaCS), and cymenesulfonate (NaCyS), increased the solubility of a wide variety of organic and some inorganic compounds in water. He noted that most hydrotropic solutions precipitated the solubilized solute on dilution with water and showed that this permits easy recovery of the hydrotrope for further use. Lumb [4] studied the ternary phase diagrams of systems consisting of water octanolpotassium alkanoates and, based on their similarities, postulated that the hydrotropy exhibited by the lower alkanoates (e.g., butyrate) and surfactant solubilization were essentially the same phenomenon. On the other hand, Licht and Wiener of the University of Cincinnati [5] agreed with McKee [3]. They attributed the increase in solubility to a “saltingin” effect rather than by a similarity in structure to surfactants. The final comparison with surfactant phase equilibria was made two decades later when Lawrence [6], Friberg and Rydhag [7], and Pearson and Smith [8] presented phase diagrams for hydrotropes. These phase diagrams demonstrated hydrotropic solubilization as an extension of surfactant solubilization into less ordered systems. In modern times, hydrotropes have found many applications. Their use includes the pharmaceutical field, with solubilization of drugs, specifically temazepam [9] and the coronary vasodilator nifedipine [10]. Hydrotropes have shown promise in enhancing the action of drugs with such combinations as theophylline with insulin [11] and have been utilized to improve transdermal delivery systems [12]. In chemical engineering, the original McGee [3] approach was recently continued in such processes as catalysis and extraction [13,14]. It is also used in the paper and pulp industry [15–19]. The application in liquid detergents is a direct consequence of the fundamentals of hydrotropic solubilization. Hence, in this chapter we first describe hydrotropic action in general, followed by a treatment of an unusual hydrotropic agent in the context of detergency. III. Fundamentals There are two essential features of hydrotrope solubilization: comparatively large concentrations of hydrotrope are required to initiate solubilization, and the
Page 23
maximum amount solubilized into the aqueous hydrotrope solution is large compared with what is found in an aqueous micellar solution of a surfactant. These two characteristics are illustrated in Fig. 1 [7]. The dashed line shows the strongly enhanced solubility of octanoic acid in a sodium xylene sulfonate solution at concentrations in excess of 20% by weight of the hydrotrope. The contrast between a solubility of less than 1% for concentrations at 15% of the hydrotrope and the rapid increase to more than 30% by weight of octanoic acid at higher concentrations illustrates the typical properties of hydrotrope mediated
Fig. 1 The solubility of octanoic acid into an aqueous solution of a hydrotrope sodium xylene sulfonate, dashed line, requires high concentrations of the hydrotrope to initiate solubilization (~20%), but the solubilization increases steeply to large values for small increases in hydrotrope concentrations above those values. The surfactant (sodium octanoate), on the other hand (solid line), requires lower concentrations to start the solubilization (~5%) but the maximum solubilization is limited.
Page 24
solubilization. The contrast between the values for the dashed and solid lines illustrates the distinction of hydrotrope solubilization from that by a surfactant, in this case sodium octanoate. The solubilization of the octanoic acid with the surfactant is initiated at a much lower concentration than with the hydrotrope, but the maximum amount of the acid solubilized remains at a modest level of less than 8%. The comparison with surfactant solubilization offers an immediate explanation for the high concentration of hydrotrope required to initiate the solubilization. It has been well known for many years [20] that a surfactant with a shorter hydrocarbon chain has an increased value of the critical micellization concentration (CMC). The CMC is the concentration at which solubilization begins. Hence, the high hydrotrope concentration for initial solubilization (Fig. 1) is reasonable and expected because the phenyl group is analogous to only three to four carbons in a straight chain. The very high hydrotrope concentration for initial association of the molecules and the accompanying solubilization are given a rational explanation. The much higher values of solubilized material for the hydrotrope in comparison with the values for the surfactant (Fig. 1) are understood first after a more complete phase diagram is considered for the two compounds. Figure 2 reveals the essential features of the two solubilized mechanisms. Increased amounts of octanoic acid in the surfactantwater solution give rise to several phases, four of which are illustrated in Fig. 2. Area a in Figure 2 consists of an aqueous solution of normal micelles, the structure of which is shown in Fig. 3a. At higher surfactant concentrations a liquid crystalline phase containing cylindrical surfactant associations stacked in a close packed hexagonal array is formed. This region is labeled area d in Fig. 2, and its structure is shown in Fig. 3d. At increasing concentrations of octanoic acid, a lamellar liquid crystal is formed, as shown in Fig. 2, region c. This phase has a structure of “infinite” bilayers of surfactant interlaced with layers of water, as shown in Fig. 3c. A further increase in the content of the solubilizate results in the formation of an octanoic acid solution of inverse micelles, which contain water solubilized in their cores. This region is shown as area b in Fig. 2, and the structure of an inverse micelle is depicted in Fig. 3b. The essential feature of the phase diagram is the presence of the lamellar liquid crystal region, which separates the normal micellar solution (Fig. 3a) from the solution of inverted micelles (Fig. 3b). This is in strong contrast to the conditions with hydrotrope (Fig. 2) for which only one solubility region (Fig. 2) of significance is found with increasing
Page 25
Fig. 2 When water and octanoic acid (solid lines) are combined with sodium octanoate, four phases are obtained: a and b are micellar solutions (Fig. 3a and b), and c and d are liquid crystals (Fig. 3c and d). The combination with a hydrotrope sodium xylene sulfonate, dashed line, gives a single area of an isotropic solution (e).
Fig. 3 The amphiphile organization in a normal micelle (a), in an inverse micelle (b), in a lamellar liquid crystal (c), and in a liquid crystal of hexagonally packed amphiphile cylinders (d).
Page 26
amounts of octanoic acid. As shown by the dashed line, a continuous isotropic liquid phase reaches from the aqueous corner to 80% octanoic acid without interruption. With this information, the reason for the “anomalously” high solubilization by the hydrotrope is obvious. Its solubility region is not interrupted by the formation of a liquid crystal; the shift from water continuous to octanoic acid continuous solution now takes place without a phase transition. It is essential to realize that the phase changes when octanoic acid is added to the watersodium octanoate combination are not a question of solubility. The octanoic acid is certainly soluble in the liquid crystalline phase, region c (Fig. 2) and infinitely so in its own solution, region b (Fig. 2). The different phases found in the surfactant system are only a matter of molecular organization of the system components, not of their mutual solubility. The similarity between the solubilization action of surfactant and hydrotrope (Fig. 4) is now immediately evident. The surfactant and hydrotrope solubility regions are analogous with the surfactant requiring lower concentrations because of its greater hydrophobic character. Hence, the difference between regions in Fig. 2 is not a distinction in solubility; numerous phases in the surfactant system in Fig. 2 are a result of packing restrictions imposed by the length of the hydrocarbon chains. The transition between normal and inverse micelles requires a lamellar packing for two hydrocarbons chains of eight carbons each. As the structures in Fig. 5 suggest, a combination of the bulky hydrotrope and the long hydrocarbon chain of a solubilizate does not stabilize a lamellar packing, and the transition from normal to inverse association structures takes place via disordered aggregates, as shown in Fig. 4b. IV. Cleaning and Washing These processes are mainly concerned with the removal of “oily dirt,” depending to a high degree on the complex phase equilibria encountered in the surfactantwater“oily dirt” system [21]. Two treatments have been published [22,23] on the action of a nontraditional hydrotrope structure in such systems. Instead of the usual bulky molecule (Fig. 5), this compound [24] is a dicarboxylic acid of considerable chain length (Fig. 6). The fundamental phenomena have been investigated of the action of this hydrotrope in a liquid cleaner. In such an application, the hydrotrope functions in the formulation concentrate by preventing gelation. In addition, under the dilute conditions in the washing process, the hydrotrope facilitates the removal of oily dirt from the fabric. In the following section these two functions are related to the phase equilibria of wateramphiphile systems. The formula for the dicarboxylic acid (Fig. 6) has a hydrophilic lipophilic balance similar to that of octanoic acid, but the influence of the two acids on
Page 27
Fig. 4 The total solubility region in the surfactant system (a) is similar to that of the hydrotrope (b); the only difference is that the change from normal to inverse association structures takes place via an ordered lamellar liquid crystal (a phase separation) in the surfactant case (a), and in the hydrotrope system the transition takes place over disordered aggregates within the solution (b).
amphiphilic association structures is entirely different, as can be seen in Fig. 7 [25]. The octanoic acid causes the formation of a liquid crystal when added to a solution of water in hexylamine. The size of the lamellar liquid crystalline region is large (Fig. 7a). Addition of the dicarboxylic acid, on the other hand, gives no liquid crystal, and it may be concluded that its action in con
Page 28
Fig. 5 The reason for the difference in transition structures, Fig. 4, is that the carboxylic acid and the surfactant (octanoic acid and sodium octanoate) are of similar chain length and a lamellar packing is easily stabilized. The difference in structure in the hydrotrope and fatty acid combination (sodium xylene sulfonate and octanoic acid), on the other hand, results in a disordered structure.
centrated systems is similar to that of the common shortchain hydrotropes despite its long hydrocarbon chain (Fig. 7b). Activity in dilute systems was investigated using a model system from Unilever [26] in which octanol mimicks the oily dirt. A lamellar liquid crystal was present at low concentration of the oily dirt [23], in the absence of the hydrotrope (Fig. 8). After addition of the hydrotrope, the amount of model oily dirt solubilized without liquid crystal formation was greatly enhanced. Clearly, this hydrotrope functions not only as a destabilizer of liquid crystals in the formulation concentrate but also as a destabilizer of liquid crystals under the dilute conditions of the washing process.
Fig. 6 The dicarboxylic acid hydrotrope has an elongated structure.
Page 29
Fig. 7 The combination of water and hexylamine with octanoic acid (a) gives a huge area of a lamellar liquid crystal (LC); the combination with the dicarboxylic acid in Fig. 6 results in an isotropic liquid solution only (b).
The molecular mechanism behind the destabilization of liquid crystals was clarified later [27]. The specific disordering brought forward by the hydrotrope in the watersurfactantoily dirt liquid crystal was first determined, followed by an investigation into the conformation of the diacid molecule itself [22]. The order of the hydrocarbon chains in a liquid crystal is directly obtained from nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectra using amphiphiles with deuteriated chains. Each methylene group and the terminal methyl group give a NMR signal doublet, and the difference in frequency between the two signals is proportional to the order parameter [27]. Using a lamellar liquid crystal model system of “oily dirt,” surfactant, and water, the influence of the hydro
Page 30
Fig. 8 The solubilization of a model compound for oily dirt was small in a surfactant solution at concentrations below the CMC () because of the formation of a liquid crystal. A combination of hydrotrope and surfactant gave an increased solubilization (—) caused by the hydrotrope destabilization of the liquid crystal.
trope on the structure could be directly determined using NMR. Addition of the hydrotrope molecule resulted in a narrowing of the difference between the NMR signals due to a disordering of the liquid crystal, as shown in Fig. 9 [26]. It was assumed that this was the primary factor in the destabilization of the liquid crystal. Next, the diacid conformation was determined after it was added to the oily dirt liquid crystalline phase. Figure 10 shows two possibilities for the conformation of the hydrotrope in the liquid crystal. In one form of the diacid (Fig. 10b), both polar groups are located at the interface between the amphiphile polar groups and the water; the other possibility is that only the terminal carboxylic group is found at this site (Fig. 10a). The two conformations result in different interlayer spacing (Fig. 10), and a determination of this dimension was used to distinguish between the two alternatives. Lowangle xray diffraction gives the interlayer spacing directly from the maxima in the diffraction pattern. Interpretation of the results is straightforward; if addition of the diacid to a lamellar liquid crystal model dirt system did not increase the interlayer spacing, the conformation in Fig. 10b is correct; if an increase took place, then Fig. 10a would describe the structural organization of the diacid molecule. The interlayer spacing with the diacid added was very close to the host liquid crystal (Fig. 11), and the first conformation (Fig. 10b) is obviously the one encountered in the liquid crystal. As a comparison, the addition of oleic acid with one polar group located at the interface, gave the expected increase in interlayer spacing, as shown in Fig. 11. Destabilization of the lamellar liquid
Page 31
Fig. 9 Addition of a hydrotrope, Fig. 6, to a lamellar liquid crystal gave a reduction of the order parameter of the surfactant hydrocarbon chain ( ); addition of a surfactant gave no change in order ( ).
Fig. 10 A hydrotrope, Fig. 6, conformation with only one polar group at the water/amphiphile interface (left) results in an enhanced interlayer spacing d compared with the value d for a conformation with both polar 1
2
groups at the interface (right).
Page 32
Fig. 11 The lowangle xray values for interlayer spacing in a lamellar liquid crystal (×) was unchanged with the addition of a hydrotrope ( ), Fig. 6. Addition of a longchain compound, oleic acid, gave the expected increase ( ).
crystalline phase is not only affected by the diacid; it appears to be a general property shared by other hydrotropes, such as alkanols, shortchain quaternary ammonium salts, xylenesulfonates, and glycols, as shown by Pearson and Smith [8] and Darwish et al. [28]. In some cases, the oily dirt is less polar than the model system by Kielman and Van Steen [26]; for less polar fatty oils the concept of hydrotropic breakdown of a liquid crystal is also useful [29]. V. Summary The function of hydrotropes in the detergency is discussed against their interaction with lyotropic liquid crystals. The main activity of the hydrotrope as a part of a liquid detergent is to avoid gelation in both concentrated and dilute surfactant systems. This ability is directly related to a detergent's phase equilibria with hydrophobic amphiphiles. These phase equilibria illustrate and explain the two basic characteristics of hydrotropes: that is, their high association concentration and their pronounced solubilizing power.
Page 33
References 1. C. Neuberg, Biochem. Z., 76:107 (1916). 2. C. Neuberg, J. Chem. Soc., 110(II):555 (1916). 3. R. H. McKee, Ind. Eng. Chem. Ind. Ed., 38:382 (1946). 4. E. C. Lumb, Trans. Faraday Soc., 47:1049 (1951). 5. W. Licht and L. D. Wiener, Ind. Eng. Chem., 41:1528 (1949). 6. A. S. C. Lawrence, Nature (London), 183:1491 (1959). 7. S. E. Friberg and L. Rydhag, Tenside, 7:80 (1970). 8. J. T. Pearson and J. M. Smith, J. Pharm. Pharmacol., 26:123 (1974). 9. A. D. Woolfson, D. F. McCaffer, and A. P. Launchbu, Int. J. Pharm., 34:17 (1986). 10. N. K. Jain, W. Patel, and L. N. Taneja, Pharmazie, 43:254 (1988). 11. T. Nishihata, J. H. Rytting, and T. Higuchi, J. Pharm. Sci., 70:71 (1981). 12. D. W. Osborne, Colloids Surf., 30:13 (1988). 13. V. G. Gaikar and M. M. Sharma, Solvent Extr. Ion Exch., 4:839 (1986). 14. A. Mahapatra, V. G. Gaikar, and M. M. Sharma, Sep. Sci. Technol., 429:23 (1988). 15. G. E. Styan and A. E. Bramhall, Pulp Puu. Can., 80:725 (1979). 16. D. E. Bland, Res. Rev. Aust. CSIRO Chem. Technol., 27 (1976). 17. P. J. Nelson, Appita, 31:437 (1978). 18. D. E. Bland, J. Skicko, and M. Menshun, Appita, 31:374 (1978). 19. E. L. Springer and L. L. Zoch, Pap. 6:815 (1979). 20. K. Shinoda, Colloidal Surfactants, Academic Press, New York, (1963), pp. 9–15. 21. K. H. Raney and C. A. Miller, J. Coll. I. Sc., 119:539 (1987). 22. T. Flaim and S. E. Friberg, J. Coll. I. Sc., 97:26 (1984). 23. J. M. Cox and S. E. Friberg, J. Am. Oil Chem. Soc., 58:743 (1981). 24. B. F. Ward, Jr., C. G. Force, A. M. Bills, and F. E. Woodward, J. Am. Oil Chem. Soc., 52:219 (1975). 25. T. Flaim, S. E. Friberg, C. G. Force, and A. Bell, Tenside Detergents, 20:177 (1983). 26. H. S. Kielman and P. J. F. Van Steen, Faraday Disc., 191 (1979).
24. B. F. Ward, Jr., C. G. Force, A. M. Bills, and F. E. Woodward, J. Am. Oil Chem. Soc., 52:219 (1975). 25. T. Flaim, S. E. Friberg, C. G. Force, and A. Bell, Tenside Detergents, 20:177 (1983). 26. H. S. Kielman and P. J. F. Van Steen, Faraday Disc., 191 (1979). 27. S. E. Friberg, S. B. Rananavare, and D. W. Osborne, J. Coll. I. Sc., 109:487 (1986). 28. I. A. Darwish, A. T. Florence, G. M. Ghaly, and A. M. Saleh, J. Pharm. Pharmacol., 40:25 (1988). 29. S. E. Friberg and L. Rydhag, J. Amer. Oil Chem. Soc., 48:113 (1971).
3 Phase Equilibria GUY BROZE Advanced Technology Department, ColgatePalmolive Research and Developm Milmort, Belgium I. Introduction II. What is a Phase Diagram? A. Twocomponent phase diagrams B. Threecomponent phase diagrams C. Recording phase diagrams III. Phase Diagrams for Ionic SurfactantContaining Systems A. Ionic surfactant: water B. Ionic surfactant, water, and organic material ternary systems C. Ionic surfactant, water, protondonating material, and hydrocarbon quaternary systems IV. Phase Diagrams for Nonionic SurfactantContaining Systems A. Nonionic surfactant and oil B. Nonionic surfactant and water C. Nonionic surfactant, water, and oil D. Effects of system parameters on phase behavior References
I. Introduction All liquid detergents contain at least one surfactant in the presence of other materi electrolytes, oily materials, and other impurities. Unlike academic research, the fo work with industrialgrade raw materials
Page 36
containing significant amounts of molecules, the properties of which differ from those of the main product. The understanding of how a given property of a give “pure” system is affected by “impurities” is accordingly of essential practical importance. Understanding the principles by which a given product behaves (as is or under use conditions) allows us to replace counterproductive trial anderror by more efficient methods with a broader range of potential applications. II. What Is a Phase Diagram? A phase diagram is a graphic representation of the phase behavior of a system studied. The solidliquidvapor behavior of a single compound as a function of temperature and pressure can be represented by a phase diagram. Phase diagrams usually involve more than one component. They are very useful tools for formulation, because they allow the formulator to define not only the acceptable composition of a product but also the order of addition of the different raw materials. A. TwoComponent Phase Diagrams 1. Temperature and Composition Whether a given proportion of two (liquid) compounds will mix is defined by thermodynamics. Although, in regular systems, the entropy of mixing is always positive and accordingly favorable to mixing, the enthalpy of mixing can be positive or negative depending on the energy of formation of the heterocontacts at the expense of the homocontacts. An exothermic mixture usually leads to mixing in all proportions. If the mixing is endothermic, the number of coexisting phases and their composition depend on temperature. Increasing temperature usually results in an increase in the mutual solubilities of the two compounds, eventually leading to complete miscibility above a critical temperature, the upper consolute temperature (UCT). Note that some abnormal systems can also present a lower consolute temperature (LCT). Both UCT and LCT are thermodynamic critical points. At a critical point, the compositions of the two phases in equilibrium become identical. Figure 1 is a schematic representation of a twocomponent phase diagram characterized by UCT. The left axis corresponds to pure A, and the right axis corresponds to pure B. the abscissa corresponds to different AB compositions. It is very common to express the compositions in weight fractions, although not compulsory. Mole fractions or volume fractions can also be used. The central, shaded area corresponds to the twophase domain. The clear zone around it is single phase.
Page 37
Fig. 1 Phase diagram of two substances that are only partly miscible at low temperature and become fully miscible above the “upper consulate temperature.”
2. Tie Lines and Lever Rule When a mixture separates in two phases, it is important to know the compositions and the amounts of the two phases in equilibrium. A tie line links the two compositions in equilibrium. This means that any composition located on the same tie line will separate in two phases, the compositions of which are defined by the points of contact of the tie line with the phase boundary. The relative amounts of the two phases is determined according to the lever rule (Figure 2). If the compositions are expressed in weight fractions, the weight fraction of phase A is CB/AB and the weight fraction of phase B is AC/AB. B. ThreeComponent Phase Diagrams Practical systems involve more than two components. A threecomponent system can be represented in an equilateral triangle (Figure 3). A corner of the triangle represents a pure component, a side represents binary mixtures of the components represented by the adjacent corners, and any point in the triangle represents one and only one tricomponent composition.
Fig. 2 Lever rule, allowing quantification of the proportion of the two coexisting phases in a twophase domain of a phase diagram.
Page 38
Fig. 3 Method of determining the composition of a threeingredient mixture.
The weight fraction of component A in the composition represented by P in the triangle is given by the ratio of the lengths of the segments perpendicular to the sides Pa/(P b + Pb + Pc). Similarly, the amount of B is given by Pb/(P a + Pb + Pc) and the amount of C by Pc/(P a + Pb + Pc). Of course, such a phase diagram is isothermal. The effect of temperature on a threecomponent phase diagram can be visualized in three dimensions, with temperature at the elevation axis. The phase diagram looks like a triangular prism, with every horizontal slice corresponding to one temperature. 1. Fields and Densities There is an important difference among the thermodynamic functions of state as far as phase equilibria are concerned. Some thermodynamic functions of state, such as temperature and pressure, have the same value in all the phases of a system at equilibrium. They are actually the forces driving a system to its equilibrium. Such functions are referred to as fields [1]. The other thermodynamic functions of state generally present different values in the different phases of a system at equilibrium. Typical examples are the volumes of the phases and their composition. Such functions are densities. A thermodynamic expression of functions of state can be expressed as a sum of field variables multiplied by their conjugated density. For example, G = U + PV TS + ini where U is the internal energy, PV is the product of the field variable pressure and the density variable volume, TS is the product of the field variable temperature and the density variable entropy; and ini is the product of the field variable chemical potential of i and the density variable number of moles of i.
Page 39
The chemical potentials are the field functions conjugated with the concentrations. 2. Phase Rule For a multicomponent system, the phase rule [2] allows us to know the number of independent variables necessary to define completely (from a compositional point of view) a system. This number is called the number of degrees of freedom or the variance of the system. The variance ƒ is given by the relation ƒ = C + 2 where C is the number of chemically independent ingredients in the system, is the number of coexisting phases at the equilibrium, and the last term takes care of temperature and pressure. For isobar systems, such as all systems under atmospheric pressure, the last term should be 1. Similarly, isobar and isotherm systems have 0 as the last term. A direct implication of the phase rule is that a threecomponent system in one phase at atmospheric pressure and at 25°C has a variance equal to 2. This means that two dimensions are necessary to describe such a system. Another implication is that such a system could show a maximum of three coexisting phases. A system based on five components will need, according to the phase rule, a fourdimension hyperspace to be completely described. To represent such a system, some variables are usually grouped. The accuracy of the representation is, of course, imperfect. A more accurate procedure is to set a variable to a constant value. This is impossible with a composition because it is a density and is different in each of the coexisting phases. The phase rule determines the number of independent variables a system needs to be represented but does not introduce any restriction on the choice of the independent variables. It is accordingly much better to fix a field variable to reduce a system of one dimension. Instead of using concentrations (density variables), a representation as a function of the chemical potentials is easier to read and is more accurate. The problem is that, in practice, it is very complicated to work at defined chemical potentials. 3. Tie Lines and Critical Points Let us consider two liquids A and B that are not very soluble in each other. Addition of liquid C increases the miscibility of B in A and of A in B. C behaves like increasing temperature in the binary phase diagram. The major difference is that the tie lines are no longer parallel to the baseline, and the critical end point is no longer at the maximum of the miscibility gap (Figure 4). This is because C does not partition evenly between the two coexisting phases.
Page 40
Fig. 4 A Winsor II ternary phase diagram.
In the present case, it goes preferably in B. The critical end point is located near the A corner. An isothermal critical end point is usually referred to as a plait point. 4. ThreePhase Domain In some cases a threephase region can be observed (Figure 5). The coexistence of three phases in equilibrium in an isothermal threecomponent phase diagram is a zerovariant situation. Of course, an infinity of different compo
Fig. 5 A Winsor III ternary phase diagram.
Page 41
sitions fall inside the threephase triangle, but the compositions of the three coexisting phases do not change with the initial composition. They are represented by the three corners of the threephase triangle. All that change are the relative amounts of the three phases. C. Recording Phase Diagrams There are basically two methods of recording phase diagrams: the titration technique and the constant composition method. Both have advantages and drawbacks. 1. Titration Method In the titration method, a mixture is titrated by another. Typically, a mixture of two of the ingredients is titrated by the third. The weight of titrant to reach a phase boundary is carefully recorded and plotted on the phase diagram. The process is then repeated to cover the whole domain to be investigated. Such a method is relatively quick and can give a good idea of the phase boundaries. There are nevertheless two major drawbacks to this method. First, this method gives the phase diagram at one temperature only. To determine the phase diagram at another temperature, the process must be repeated. The temperature domain practically available with the titration method is limited, because everything must be kept at the same temperature. The second drawback of the titration method is that it is usually used in an out ofequilibrium condition. In some systems, such as those involving lyotropic liquid crystals, the time needed to reach equilibrium can be very long; besides, metastable phases can also be encountered. A phase diagram recorded by the titration method should be used as a guide only and should never be applied to longterm stability prediction. 2. Constant Composition Method In the constant composition method, a series of compositions, covering the composition range to be studied, are prepared in test tubes, which are closed. The test tubes are shaken thoroughly and allowed to stand in a thermostatic bath. The test tubes containing turbid solutions are allowed to stand until they separate into two or more completely clear phases. The number of clear phases can be reported on the phase diagram, and the phase domains can be mapped. This method is very long, but it allows one to approach the true equilibrium conditions, and the tubes can be used at other temperatures. Another advantage of this method is that, when a system gives more than one phase, it is possible to analyze the phases and to know exactly where the phase boundaries are, as well as the orientation of the tie lines.
Page 42
III. Phase Diagrams for Ionic SurfactantContaining Systems A. Ionic Surfactant: Water 1. Krafft Point The Krafft point can be defined as the temperature Tk above which the amphiphile solubility in water greatly increases [3]. The reason is that the water solubility of the amphiphile, which increases with the temperature, reaches the amphiphile critical micelle concentration (CM in Figure 6). When the solubility curve is above CM, the dissolved amphiphile is forming micelles and the amphiphile activity in water solution no longer increases. There is accordingly no longer a limitation to solubilization. The Krafft point is a triple point because at this temperature, three “phases” coexist [4]: hydrated solid amphiphile, individual amphiphile molecules in solution (monomers), and amphiphile molecules involved in micelles. Tk increases as the hydrophobic chain length increases. The Krafft points of the sodium salts of the classic amphiphiles (alkyl sulfates, sulfonates, and benzenesulfonates) are below room temperature. The Krafft point is also a function of the counterion, the alkalineearth cations giving higher Krafft points: sodium laurylsulfate, Tk = 9°C; Ca salt, 50°C; Sr salt, 64°C; and Ba salt, 105° C. Because the Krafft point imposes a limitation in formulation processes, the following rules to reduce Tk can be of essential interest: Chain branching and polydispersity reduce Tk. Complexation of Mg and Ca reduces Tk.
Fig. 6 The Krafft point is the temperature at which the solubility of the amphiphile becomes higher than its critical micelle concentration.
Page 43
The presence of an unsaturation decreases Tk. A very efficient way to reduce Tk is to incorporate two or three oxyethylene monomers between the hydrophobic chain and the polar head group (alcohol ethoxy sulfates). Of course, in each case, other properties of the amphiphile, such as the surface activity, can be consequently be modified. 2. Phase Diagram The phase diagram of sodium dodecyl sulfate/water is representative of many ionic systems (Figure 7) [5]. Liquid (L1) is the aqueous micellar phase; Ha is the hexagonal lyotropic liquid crystal, sometimes called the middle phase; and La is the lamellar lyotopic liquid crystal, sometimes called the neat phase. On the surfactantrich side, several hydrated solid phases are present. As a general rule, in any (real) phase diagram, at any point representative of a region and on its boundaries, the number of phases and their nature are similar. A tie line is the line joining the points representative of two coexisting phases. If the total composition of a mixture C falls in a twophase region, it separates in the two phases located at both sides of the tie line that passes the formulation point (A and B). The weight distribution of the two phases is given by the lever rule.
Fig. 7 Typical phase diagram of a wateranionic surfactant system.
Page 44
B. Ionic Surfactant, Water and Organic Material Ternary Systems 1. Organic Material = Hydrocarbon Let us consider an isotherm of a waterionic amphiphile binary mixture above the Krafft point (for example, watersodium octanoate) [6]. At an amphiphile concentration of 7% (the critical micellar concentration), the micellar isotropic solution L1 appears and lasts up to 41%. Between 41 and 46% is the miscibility gap between L1 and H1, the hexagonal phase, which lasts up to 52%. Above 52% is the miscibility gap between H1 and the hydrated crystal. If a nonpolar component (aliphatic hydrocarbon or tetrachloromethane) is added, almost nothing happens (Figure 8a). The solubility of decane in either the micellar solution or the liquid crystal is very limited. This is true of any molecule exhibiting only dispersion cohesive forces. 2. Organic Material = Polar but Not ProtonDonating Material The solubility of a molecule exhibiting dipoledipole cohesive forces and low H bonding cohesive forces, such as methyl octanoate, is higher than that of a hydrocarbon, but nothing special happens in the center of the phase diagram. 3. Organic Material = ProtonDonating Material If the third component is a nonwatersoluble alcohol (five carbons or more), amine, carboxylic acid, or amide, the phase topography is profoundly modified. The phase diagram presented in Figure 8b [7] shows in addition to L1 and H1 a huge lamellar phase, a narrow reverse hexagonal phase H2, and, even more important, a “sectorlike” area of reverse micelles L2. This means that the solubility in ndecanol of a sodium octanoatewater mixture containing between 25 and 62% amphiphile is by far more important (30–36%) than pure water (4%) and pure sodium octanoate (almost nil). This phase is essential to obtain water in oil (w/o) microemulsions. The solubility of ndecanol in the L1 phase is also important (up to 12% at the “end” of the L1). The L1 phase is responsible for the observation of oilinwater (o/w) microemulsions. The La domain, generally located in the middle of the diagram, points toward the water side for a critical surfactant/cosurfactant ratio. (A 1:2 sodium octanoate to ndecanol ratio leads to a lamellar phase with as little as 17% surfactantcosurfactant.) In some cases, such as octyl trimethyl ammonium bromidehexanolwater, the lamellar phase already exists for 3% hexanol + 3% OTAB! The practical interest of a lamellar liquid crystal lies in its suspending capability. A lyotropic liquid crystal exhibits a viscoelastic behavior that allows
Page 45
Fig. 8 (a) Typical ternary phase diagram of water, an amphiphile (sodium octanoate), and a hydrocarbon (octane). (b) Typical ternary phase diagram of water, an amphiphile (sodium octanoate), and a coamphiphile (decanol). This phase diagram was established by Ekwall in 1975.
suspension of solid particles for a very long time. The lamellar phase is additionally characterized by an ideal critical strain to provide the suspension with good resistance to vibrations and convections, without impairing its flowability by a slimy aspect.
Page 46
C. Ionic Surfactant, Water, ProtonDonating Material, and Hydrocarbon Quaternary Systems The solubilization of an oil, such as decane, in the micellar isotropic solution L1 or in the reverse micellar isotropic solution L2 can be very important. L1 leads to water in oil (w/o) microemulsions and L2 to oilinwater (o/w) microemulsions. Note that the “cosurfactant” is an amphiphile with (generally) a lower molecular weight than the “main” amphiphile, the “surfactant.” 1. WaterinOil Systems As illustrated by Figure 9, the L2 phase is able to solubilize a very large amount of an hydrocarbon, such as decane or hexadecane. In fact, a composition containing up to 75% decane and water/surfactant/cosurfactant proportions corresponding to the L2 phase is still clear, fluid, and isotropic, forms spontaneously, and is thermodynamically stable. The structure of this microemulsion can be (to some extent) regarded as a dispersion of tiny water droplets (reverse micelles) in a continuous phase of the hydrocarbon. The surfactant and cosurfactant are at the water/oil interphase. This type of system is often referred to as a waterinoil microemulsion. The term “microemulsion” to qualify such systems is not well chosen: it conveys the idea of an actual emulsion characterized by submicrometer (below 0.1 m) droplets. As is well known, an emulsion is not thermodynamically stable and cannot be represented by a single phase domain in a thermodynamic phase diagram. On the other hand, the socalled microemulsions must be considered real micellar solutions containing oil in addition to water and surfactants.
Fig. 9 A “waterinoil” microemulsion.
Page 47
These solutions, although very far from “ideal” in the thermodynamic sense, are nevertheless always real in the thermodynamic sense. Another great difference between the microemulsions and the emulsions is that, in the very general case, a microemulsion requires significantly more surfactant than an emulsion. These waterinoil microemulsions exhibit other important characteristics: The domain of existence is large. Significant compositional changes can occur without crossing a phase boundary. Such behavior is particularly important for manufacturing processes, because it tolerates some “freedom” during formulation. They are very stable in a large temperature range, usually from the Krafft point up to the boiling point. Moreover, the phase boundaries are almost insensitive to temperature. The phase topography remains almost unchanged even up to 75% of the ionic amphiphile is replaced by a nonionic amphiphile. To obtain a wide waterinoil microemulsion, it is essential to adjust carefully the cosurfactant structure (usually its chain length) and its relative amount. Although trial and error is still the most commonly used method of obtaining microemulsions, a tentative rule is to combine a very hydrophobic cosurfactant (ndecanol; C10OH) with a very hydrophilic ionic surfactant (alcohol sulfates) and a less hydrophobic cosurfactant (C6OH) with a less hydrophilic ionic surfactant (octyl trimetyl ammonium bromide). For very hydrophobic ionic surfactants, such as dialkyl dimethyl ammonium chloride, even a watersoluble cosurfactant, such as butanol or isopropanol, is adequate (this rule derives at least partially from the fact that an important feature of the cosurfactant consists of readjusting the surfactant packing at the solvent/oil interface). 2. OilinWater Systems We stated earlier that the solubility of decane in the L1 phase is almost nil. For a welldefined surfactant/cosurfactant ratio, huge quantities of decane (or any hydrocarbon) can be solubilized from the L1. A thin, snakelike single phase domain develops toward the oil pole (Figure 10). This phase can be regarded as amphiphile micelles swollen with oil. Generally, the oilinwater microemulsion phases are only metastable systems. As every metastable system, o/w microemulsions need an activation energy to separate, and sometimes this activation energy is so large that the separation almost never occurs. Such systems are not thermodynamically stable and could accordingly not be considered in a phase diagram. On the other hand, they form spontaneously and are stable (because of the high activation energy for separation) for a very long time.
Page 48
Fig. 10 An “oilinwater” microemulsion.
A typical example of a very stable metastable system is a mixture of one volume of oxygen with two volumes of hydrogen. The mixture is spontaneous and stable for a very long time, without being thermodynamically stable. The final thermodynamically stable state is obtained by adding a catalyst (platinum foam) or a flame to the mixture. Although not thermodynamically stable, o/w microemulsions form spontaneously and are accordingly useful (ease of manufacture). Nonthermodynamic stability implies some constraints: The position of a o/w microemulsion can depend on the order of mixing of the raw materials and on the shear imposed on the system. Their domain of existence is generally narrow. The system can be sensitive to freeze and thaw cycles. IV. Phase Diagrams for Nonionic SurfactantContaining Systems The phase topography of a ternary system involving water, a hydrocarbon, and a polyethoxylated fatty alcohol depends on the hydrocarbon chain length, branching, degree of insaturation, aromaticity, and so on, on the amphiphile structure (hydrophobic and hydrophilic chain length), and also on temperature, which exerts a very strong influence on the configuration (and accordingly on the solubility) of the polyoxyethylene segments in water solution. A review has been presented by Kalhweit et al. in a series of papers [8–11].
Page 49
The phase topography is strongly influenced by the more elementary behavior of the binary amphiphileoil and amphiphilewater systems. A. Nonionic Surfactant and Oil Polyethylene oxide is not soluble in a hydrocarbon, such as hexane or decane. If a fatty chain is attached to a short segment of polyethylene oxide (4–8 EO units), the nonionic amphiphile obtained exhibits a solubility profile in oil depending on temperature. At low temperatures, a miscibility gap is obtained, translating the nonsolubility of the polyethylene oxide chain in the oil. At high temperatures, the effect of the energy is preponderant and the amphiphile is soluble in all proportions in the oil. As predicted by the FloryHuggins theory, such a system shows a lower miscibility gap characterized by an upper critical point, the temperature Ta which depends on both the oil and the amphiphile structure (Figure 11a). The critical composition is usually not far from the pure oil side. Figure 11b shows the lower miscibility gap between some nalkanes and C6E5 (nhexanol ethoxylated with 5ethylene oxide molecules). The upper critical temperature Ta rises with increasing the oil chain length (its hydrophobicity). The critical temperature Ta is often referred to as the haze point temperature, and the miscibility gap between oil and amphiphile plays an essential role in the ternary phase diagram.
Fig. 11 (a) The haze point temperature. (b) Set of phase diagrams showing how the haze point temperature is affected by the structure of the oil.
Page 50
B. Nonionic Surfactant and Water 1. Cloud Point The phase diagram of the binary system nonionic amphiphilewater is more complicated (see Figure 12). A “classic” upper critical point exists, but usually below 0°C. At higher temperatures, most nonionic amphiphiles show an upper miscibility gap, which is actually a closed loop with an upper as well as lower critical point. The lower critical point Tb is often referred to as the cloud point temperature. The upper critical point often lies above the boiling temperature of the mixture (at 0.1 MPa pressure). The position and the shape of the loop depend on the chemical nature of the amphiphile. The cloud point temperature Tb plays an essential role in three component phase diagram topography. The closed loop can be regarded as a vertical section through a “nose” in the concentrationtemperaturepressure space, at constant pressure (see Figure 13a). When the pressure rises, the surface covered in the temperature concentration phase by the phase separation loop decreases and vanishes at a critical pressure P*. The shrinking of the loop of the system waterC4E1 with increasing pressure is given in Figure 13b. The critical conditions for the loop to vanish are T* = 95° C, P* = 80 MPa, and C* = 28 wt%. To show the multidimensional nature of these phenomena, note that similar effects (shrinking of the loop, f.i.) can be achieved by the addition of “hydrotropic” electrolytes at constant pressure or by increasing the hydrophilicity of the amphiphile. Figure 13c exhibits the loop areas of butanol (C4EO), ethylene glycol butyl ether (C4E1), and diethylene glycol butyl ether (C4E2). The last does not exhibit a loop at 0.1 MPa (± 1 atm), but the system behaves actually as if the nose were “lurking.” Although no phase separation occurs in
Fig. 12 The phase behavior of a waternonionic amphiphile system.
Page 51
Fig. 13 (a) The effect of pressure on the size of the “closed loop.” (b) Closed loop of the system waterethylene glycol butyl ether at different pressures. (c) Effect of the hydrophilic group of the amphiphile on the shape of the closed loop. (From Ref. [16], with permission.)
water, the lurking nose exerts some influence on the threecomponent phase diagram. Another way to look at the same phenomenon is to consider that, in conditions close to T = 90°C and C = 30 wt%, the C4E2water system is such that the mixing entropy is just high enough to maintain the molecules in a single phase, the enthalpic term being positive (endothermic). As soon as a third incompatible ingredient (the oil f.i.) is incorporated, the entropy is no longer able to maintain the molecules in a single phase, and phase separation occurs.
Page 52 TABLE 1
Amphiphile
HLB
min (wt%)
C4E1
10.3
58.9
48.7
29.0
C6E3
12.7
47.4
45.4
13.5
C8E4
12.6
29.6
39.6
6.9
C10E5
12.5
19.7
40.3
3.5
C12E6
12.4
10.6
48.0
2.2
b
(°C)
Cb (wt%)
In Table 1, the HLB is calculated according to the empirical equation HLB = 20 MH/M where MH is the molar mass of the hydrophilic group and M the total molar mass of the product. g min is the minimum amphiphile concentration required for the homogenization of a 1:1 mixture of water and ndecane at around 40°C (wt%). Tb and Cb are the coordinates of the lower critical points (cloud point). Although the HLB seems to be correlated with the cloud point, it cannot give any information on the amphiphile efficacy (g min). Even if the HLB remains constant, increasing both the polar part and the nonpolar part of a surfactant molecule significantly improves its efficacy (at least its wateroil compatibilizing efficacy). 2. Liquid Crystals The closed loop is not the only characteristic of the nonionic surfactantwater binary phase diagram. Like the ionic surfactantwater mixture, the nonionic surfactants, at a higher concentration in water, exhibit lyotropic mesophases. Figure 14 shows a typical binary phase diagram exhibiting the full lyotropic mesophase sequence: I1: cubic, isotropic phase H1: direct hexagonal phase (middle phase) V1: special cubic (viscous phase) La: lamellar phase (neat phase) Note the presence of the twophase domains surrounding each mesophase, the critical point on top of each, and the zero variant threephase situation. Although very difficult to determine with accuracy, the miscibility gaps always exist, as well as the threephase situations. Of course, the critical temperatures and concentrations corresponding to each mesophase depend on the chemical nature of the amphiphile, the pressure, and the optional presence of an electrolyte.
critical point on top of each, and the zero variant threephase situation. Although very difficult to determine with accuracy, the miscibility gaps always exist, as well as the threephase situations. Of course, the critical temperatures and concentrations corresponding to each mesophase depend on the chemical nature of the amphiphile, the pressure, and the optional presence of an electrolyte.
Page 53
Fig. 14 Binary phase diagram of a waterethoxylated nonionic amphiphile phase diagram, including lyotropic liquid crystal domains. (From Ref. [11], with permission.)
Figure 15 shows some examples of nonionic amphiphilewater binary phase diagrams [10,12]. As a rule, amphiphiles with hydrocarbon chain length of 8 or fewer carbon atoms exhibit only the loop (in a domain depending on the ethoxylation) and no mesophase. Longer chain amphiphiles show one or more mesophases, one being preponderant. The type of main mesophase (the one exhibiting the highest critical temperature) depends on the relative volumes of the EO and hydrocarbon chains. If the volumes are similar, the lamellar phase is preponderant. This is the case with C12E6. If the volume of the EO chain is significantly higher than the volume of the hydrocarbon chain, the hexagonal phase will melt at higher temperature (C12E7); if the volume of the EO chain is much higher than the volume of the hydrocarbon chain, the cubic phase I1 may appear. In some cases, such as C12E5, the lamellar phase La (or the H1) interferes with the loop (with the cloud point curve) and induces the socalled critical phase, L3. L3 is an isotropic, often lactescent phase, exhibiting a zerovariant three phase critical point at its lower temperature of existence. The nature of the three phases in presence at the critical conditions are W (water with a minute amount of amphiphile), L3 and La. The L3 phase seems to have a beneficial action on cleaning performance, maybe because of the presence of the critical point. C. Nonionic Surfactant, Water, and Oil From the phase behavior of both binary mixtures (wateramphiphile and oil amphiphile), it is now possible to account, at least qualitatively, for the three component phase diagram as a function of temperature. The presence of a haze point on the oilamphiphile phase diagram (critical point a) at temperature Ta shows that the surfactant is more compatible with the oil at high temperature
Page 54
Fig. 15 Real examples of waterethoxylated nonionic amphiphile binary phase diagrams. (From Ref. [10], with permission.)
Page 55
than at low temperature. The presence of a cloud point on the water amphiphile phase diagram (the lower critical point ) at temperature Tb shows that (at least in the neighborhood temperature domain) the amphiphile is less compatible with water at high than at low temperatures. As a consequence (the other parameters being kept constant), the amphiphile behavior depends on temperature. At low temperature, these mixtures are more compatible with water than with oil. The phase diagram corresponding to this situation is illustrated in Figure 16, a1 or a2. The tie line orientation is directly deduced from the partitioning of the amphiphile between water and oil: because under the current conditions the surfactant is more compatible with water than with oil, the majority of the amphiphile is in the water phase and only a limited amount of amphiphile is present in the oil. Accordingly, the tie lines point in the direction of the oil corner. Diagrams a1 and a2 (Figure 16) are referred to as Winsor I (WI). If the temperature at which the phase diagram is recorded lies above Ta (the haze point), a critical point CPa is present near the oil corner (although pure amphiphile and pure oil are miscible, the presence of a small amount of water “recalls” the lack of compatibility between amphiphile and oil). On the other hand, if the temperature lies below Ta, no critical point appears in the three component phase diagram (it seems to lie for a negative water concentration). At high temperatures, these mixtures are more compatible with oil than with water. The phase diagram corresponding to this situation is c1 or c2 in Figure 16. The amphiphile partitioning now favors the oil, and the tie lines point in the direction of the water corner. c1 and c2 are referred to as Winsor II (WII). A critical point CPb is found if the temperature lies below the cloud point
Fig. 16 Evolution of waterethoxylated nonionic amphiphileoil ternary phase diagrams with temperature (rising from a to c).
Page 56
Tb but more often, the critical point lies outside the Gibbs triangle (T > Tb ). In WI and WII representations, the critical point CPb or CPa is called a plait point. If the temperature difference between the temperature T at which the phase diagram is recorded and the critical point of the binary mixture. Tb or Ta, increases, the distance from the plait point to the oilamphiphile axis for CPb and wateramphiphile for CPa increases, too. An important characteristic of a ternary system is the line that links the plait points as a function of temperature. The plait point curve is really the trace of the partitioning of the amphiphile between oil and water. The closer to the oil is the plait point, the amphiphile is more in the water, and vice versa. At low temperatures, the amphiphile is more compatible with water because water interacts strongly with the hydrophilic head group. Accordingly, the hydrodynamic volume of the head group is greater than the hydrodynamic volume of the hydrocarbon tail. At high temperatures, head group hydration is reduced and so is hydrodynamic volume, which becomes smaller than the hydrodynamic volume of the hydrocarbon tail. There is necessarily a temperature at which the hydrodynamic volumes of the two antagonistic parts of the amphiphile molecule are equal. This particular temperature, represented by , is the phase inversion temperature (also called the HLB temperature). The phase inversion temperature is a characteristic (and is accordingly a function) of the nature of the oil, the amphiphile, and the brine (if electrolytes are present). If the pressure can vary (as in oil recovery), it also changes . It is important to realize that can be higher than both CPb and CPa when the amphiphile solubility is very small in water and total in oil. The topography of the phase diagram at the phase inversion temperature depends on the mutual incompatibilities between oilamphiphile, water amphiphile, and wateroil. Even with a polar oil and water containing a chaotropic (hydrotropic) electrolyte, the wateroil incompatibility is high enough to guarantee a miscibility gap from 0 to 100°C. With the amphiphile, the situation is not as simple. We showed that, at , the amphiphile is equally compatible with water and oil, but no assumption is made about the degree of compatibility. Two limit cases can occur: 1. The amphiphile is either very compatible with both water and oil or not very incompatible. The phase diagram will look like Figure 16 b1, with a plait point only for an equal amount of oil and water and with the lines parallel to the wateroil side. (equal partitioning). This plait point corresponds to the merger of the CPa and CPb lines, and the projection of the plait point curves on the oil watertemperature phase diagram should look like Figure 17a or b. 2. The amphiphile is equally (and significantly) incompatible with both water and oil. The phase diagram will now look like Figure 14 b2. A threephase triangle (3PT) appears.
Page 57
Fig. 17 Transition from an infratricritical situation (a and b) to a supertricritical situation (d and e) through a tricritical point (c). (From Ref. [11], with permission.)
Three phases are now in equilibrium: 1. A waterrich phase (W) 2. An oilrich phase (O) 3. An amphiphilerich phase (S) The amphiphilerich phase is also called the surfactant phase or the middle phase. The last terms, due to Shinoda, results from the physical appearance of a threephase body: 1. A dense, waterrich phase at the bottom 2. A light, oilrich phase at the top 3. A phase containing most of the amphiphile in the middle It is worth noting that with higher molar volume amphiphiles, such as C12E4, a significant amount of the amphiphile can be present in the oil phase, even at . Here, too, the plait points CPa and CPb will be or will not be inside the Gibbs triangle depending on the relative positions of , Ta, and Tb . If the phase diagram exhibits a threephase triangle, it is called a Winsor III (WIII) system. In such a situation, the plait point curves do not merge but “cross” each other and stop at two terminal critical points (see Figure 17d or e). The sequence of the evolution of a threecomponent system when temperature has risen can be summarized as follows. If the amphiphile is strongly incompatible with oil and water, WI
WIII
WII
If the amphiphile is compatible or is weakly incompatible with oil and water, WI
WII
A way to modify amphiphile compatibility with oil and water is to change its molecular weight, keeping the proper balance between oleophobicity and hydro
Page 58
phobicity. A highmolecularweight amphiphile like C12E6 will show a WIWII WII sequence, although a lowmolecularweight amphiphile like C4E2 will show (with decanol acetate as the oil) a WIWII sequence. By varying the amphiphile (in)compatibility through its molecular weight, it is possible to pass from a WIWII to a WIWIIIWII sequence. At a certain point, a situation as illustrated in Figure 15c will occur: the plait point curves just merge critically and the threephasetriangle (3PT) collapses. This situation corresponds to a tricritical point, an essential concept in theoretical thermodynamics. When the system is such that a 3PT appears (by far the most common case), the 3PT exists from a temperature T1 lower than to a temperature Tu above . To some extent, the difference between T1 and Tu is a measure of how far the system is from the tricritical conditions. (Note that is not necessarily the average of Tu and T1.) The thermal evolution of a typical system, with broken critical lines (see Fig. 18), can be summarized as follows: At T 400
Page 237
Fig. 11 Water uptake as a function of surfactant concentration using the collagen swelling test. (Source: From Ref. 84, reproduced by permission.)
interfacial tensions are usually an indication of the surfactant's effective ability to emulsify grease and oily soils [18]. (b) Drainage Test. Faster drying and spotfree utensils may be other consumerdesired benefits of LDLDs. A test method to measure the draining of lightduty liquids was described in U.S. Patent 5,154,850 [66]. In this test plates are immersed in a solution of product for a fixed number of times, removed, and dried under ambient conditions. This cycle is repeated, with the final dipping followed by rinsing. The plate is allowed to dry and the water spots are counted. A product that provides good drainage leaves few or no spots on the utensils. In another drainage test [87], various regular kitchen utensils, such as drinking glasses, glass dinner plates, and ceramic dinner plates, are washed in test compositions under controlled conditions. The utensils are then rinsed and placed in a rack to dry. The time at which drainage begins and the percentage area dried by this drainage are recorded. (c) Rinsing Test. Although copious and longlasting foams are desirable for LDLDs, consumers also want the foam to be easily rinsed away from the dishes so as not to leave residue that could appear as spots. A test method was disclosed in U.S. Patent 5,154,850 for the evaluation of the rinsability of foam generated for an LDLD [66]. This involves making a solution of product, charging it to a container and stirring. The solution is discharged from bot
Page 238
tom of the container, leaving residual foam in the container. Tap water is added to the container with residual foam and stirred again. The stirring and draining steps are repeated until no foam remains in the container. The product that needs fewer additions of water is considered to have better rinsing characteristics. V. Formulation Technology A. Formulation Formulating an LDLD is both a science and an art. It requires a good balance among product performance, esthetics, safety, and cost. From the consumer point of view, the important attributes for a liquid hand dishwashing detergents are listed in Table 12. Consequently, liquid dishwashing detergents are formulated to deliver against these consumerrelevant attributes. Formation of LDLDs typically involves (1) selecting appropriate raw materials for the desired performance, (2) developing formulas and optimizing for performance, (3) optimizing product esthetics, (4) testing product safety, (5) optimizing product cost, and (6) aging for product stability, and (7) validating with consumers. The following section presents a review on formulation against these performance attributes with the intent of providing some guidelines. B. Guidelines and Examples 1. Formulating for Effective Cleaning The most important performance attribute of a LDLD is cleaning. As discussed earlier, cleaning of dishes with an LDLD relies primarily on the interfacial properties provided by the surfactants. Various surfactants exhibit different interfacial properties and thus varying ability in removing different soils from TABLE 12 Important Attributes of a Hand Dishwashing Liquid Detergent
Effective cleaning
Copious and longlasting foam
Mildness to hands
Pleasant fragrance
Convenient to use
Safe to humans
Safe to dishes and tableware
Storage stability
Economic to use
Page 239
various surfaces. In general, a combination of surfactants is necessary for an LDLD to be effective against the wide spectrum of soils encountered in the real world. A significant number of patents on LDLDs have been issued in the United States, Europe, and Japan in recent years. Listed in Table 13 are recent U.S. patents [27,28,29,62,88–110] on LDLD formulated for effective cleaning. The technology utilized in these patents ranges from special surfactants, surfactant mixtures, salts, and microemulsions to the use of special additives, such as lemon juice and abrasives. 2. Formulating for High and LongLasting Foam It is wellrecognized that foam is the most important visual signal consumers use to judge the performance of an LDLD. This is despite the lack of direct correlation between the foaming and cleaning properties of an LDLD, as discussed earlier. Therefore, it is critically important that the formulators create an LDLD with copious and longlasting foam. Copious foam usually requires the use of highfoaming surfactants, typically anionic or amphoteric surfactants [10,21,111] or a mixture of surfactants. Longlasting foam often requires foam stabilizers [22] in addition to a proper surfactant mixture. Table 14 is a summary of recent U.S. patents [26,72,112– 132] on LDLDs formulating for good foaming properties. The technologies involved are either using novel surfactants or surfactant blends or novel foam stabilizers. 3. Formulating for Mildness For some consumers, mildness to skin is an important attribute of a LDLD, especially those who have sensitive skins. There are essentially two approaches to formulate an LDLD for mildness: (1) use mild surfactants, such as nonionic surfactants, zwitterionic surfactants, or a combination; and (2) use additives that are antiirritants, such as modified proteins or polymers. Recent U.S. patents [13,25,30,66,133–151] on LDLDs claiming a mildness benefit are summarized in Table 15. 4. Formulating for Desirable Esthetics The esthetic attributes of LDLDs are just as important as their performance. This includes color, fragrance, cloud and clear points, viscosity, and product stability. Color, fragrance, and viscosity are usually chosen based on consumer preference. The cloud and clear points must be adequate for the temperature to which the product is likely to be exposed. (a) Cloud and Clear Points. The cloud point is the temperature at which the product begins to turn cloudy or hazy upon cooling. The clear point is the temperature at which the cloudy product turns clear again upon warming. In
Pa
Page 24
Page 2
Page
North America and Europe, it is desirable that the cloud point be below 5°C and the clear point not exceed 10°C. The cloud and clear points of an LDLD can be adjusted using hydrotropes [6,15 such as sodium xylene sulfonate, sodium cumene sulfonate, alcohols, or urea. Fig 12 shows the significant effect of SXS on the clear point of an LDLD formulation is hypothesized that hydrotropes act by destabilizing liquid crystalline phases that might form and separate from the bulk mixture [153]. (b) Viscosity. The viscosity of an LDLD is very important for its consumer acceptability and its dispersibility on dilution [154]. The viscosity of an LDLD is typically in the range of 100–500 CPS. In some markets, such as Malaysia and Hong Kong, consumers like much thicker product with viscosity in the range of 2000–3000 CPS. The viscosity of an LDLD is a strong function of its active ingredient level, the isomer distribution in the surfactant, the relative amount of different surfactants, and the salt levels. Salt can be both a viscosity builder and a viscosity reducer. An example of a simple system is sodium AEOS (2.8 EO) at 15% concentration. The viscosity first increases with the addition of NaCl and th decreases as the amount of NaCl increases [155]. AEOS with narrow EO distribution thickens much more than AEOS
Pag
Page 2
with a conventional, broad EO distribution. Other factors that affect salt thickenin are carbon chain legnth and carbon chain distribution [155]. Salt also has a significant effect on the viscosity of LAS. Depending on the cation of the LAS, salt in the range 0–2% can have a modest or great effect on the viscosity [154].
Page 246
Fig. 12 Effect of sodium xylene sulfonate on clear point of a premium LDL blend. (Source: From Ref. 6, reproduced by permission.)
Fatty alkanolamides are mainly used as foam stabilizers, but they can also have a significant effect on the viscosity of an LDLD formulation. Other viscosity modifiers include hydrotropes, such as alcohol, SXS, SCS, urea, and water soluble polymers. (c) Physical Stability. Physical stability is another important product attribute that cannot be overlooked. Consumers do not want to purchase a product that changes physically over time. This may include precipitation, phase separation, or microbial contamination. Aging studies are typically conducted to achieve physical stability of product at market age. Various aging conditions are necessary to simulate the conditions the product may encounter from warehousing and transportation to storage in stores and at home. This includes elevated temperature, such as 50°C, and low temperature—just above the freezing point. The other standard aging study normally conducted is to expose the product to sunlight to simulate storage of product at home near a kitchen window for color and fragrance stability. During aging, periodic examinations of product are made to check for pH, color, fragrance, appearance and containers for any changes and deviations from room temperature samples. Any unacceptable changes and deviations need to be investigated to identify the cause and to determine corrective measures. The
Page 247
entire series of aging studies must be repeated when corrections are made to the formula. To be sure that the product can withstand microbial contamination, adequacy of preservation studies must be conducted. If the product is not able to control the growth of microorganism, incorporation of a suitable preservative is necessary. (d) Product Safety. In addition to performance and esthetics, already discussed, the safety of the final product cannot be overlooked in formulating a dishwashing detergent. This includes safety to humans, safety to surfaces it cleans, and safety to the environment. Typically, eye and skin irritation tests are required. The safety testing and product labeling requirements may vary from country to country. It is important to ensure that all safety testing is conducted in accordance with government regulatory requirements. 5. Other Formulation Technology Other formulation technology may include ways to concentrate an LDLD product and formulating for cost effectiveness and improved odor stability. Table 16 lists recent U.S. patents [31,156–165] on these formulation technologies. VI. New Products and Future Trends Liquid hand dishwashing detergents have gone through continued evolution in recent years. Many new products have been introduced to the marketplace. There are also some significant formulation changes as a result of the advances in new technologies and the changes in consumer habits and practices. A. Line Extensions A perennially popular way of expanding the market for a product is to produce line extensions. In a line extension, the same brand name is applied to a different form of the product. Sometimes there is an alternative physical form, such as a concentrate, powder, or liquid. Sometimes the line extension has new esthetics, such as new color, degree of translucency, or opacity or fragrance. Last, there might be other new features, such as increased mildness, antibacterial efficacy, or presence of a special ingredient. This trend continued to be strong in the early 1990s because of the expense in introducing a new brand name and the difficulties of attracting customer attention in a crowded market [166]. In the United States competition is particularly keen because of a trend to slow growth in the overall LDLD volume. The cooking and eating habits of consumers are changing to lower fat, easier, simpler meals and increased use of prepared food, all of which translates into less dish liquid use [167]. Line extensions are a way of combating this trend.
Page
B. Clear, Colorless Products Since 1990 there has been a broad trend in the consumer market to clear, water white products. Colorless products present the consumer with a new esthetic experience. Colorless detergent connotes mildness, purity, and safety to the environment. Products as diverse as beer and deodorant have been formulated a clear variants [168,169]. As part of this trend, at least three clear dishwashing liquids have appeared in the United States and spread to Europe (Palmolive Sensitive Skin from
Page 24
Colgate and Ivory and Dawn Free from P&G). Ivory was formerly an opacified product. One method was developed [31] to enhance the stability of colorless detergent compositions. It involves the addition of 0.05–0.5% oxygen bleach, preferably H2O2, and 0.01–2% chelating agent, preferably citric acid, as a way to keep the percentage transmittance at 97% after 6 months at 140°F. Table 17 shows two LDLD compositions utilizing such technology for a stable colorless LDLD. Also, there are recent patents on the use of purer and lighter colored raw materials [170,171]. C. Increased Use of Nonionics The appearance of dishwashing liquids using more nonionic surfactants is another recent trend. Small amounts of nonionics, such as amides and amine oxides, have long been used as foam boosters. As discussed earlier, nonionics have not been widely used traditionally because of their low foaming characteristics. By proper formulation, it is possible to have a satisfactorily foaming dish liquid that contains at least 50% ethoxylated fatty alcohol [13]. Examples of nonionic surfactant based compositions having foaming properties equal to or better than those of a conventional anionic surfactantbased dishwashing liquid are listed in Table 18. New nonionics are becoming available that are relatively high sudsing. Alkylpolyglycosides (APGs) are a prime example [172]. Although APGs are not as foamy as anionics, such as ethoxylated alcohol sulfates, they are much foamier TABLE 17 Examples of Stable Colorless Liquid Dishwashing Detergent Compositions Using H2O2
Ingredient
A (%)
B (%)
NH 4C12–13alkylEO1sulfate
15.5
28.5
NH 4C12–13alkylEO6.5sulfate
12
Tetronic 704
0.1
Cocoamidopropylbetaine
0.9
C12dimethylamine oxide
5
2.6
NaCl
1
MgCl2
3.3
Ammonium xylene sulfonate
4
3.0
Ethanol
5.5
4
Perfume
0.09
0.18
Citric acid
0.1
Disodiumdiethylene pentaacetate
0.1
H2O2
0.18
0.17
Pa TABLE 18 Examples of HighFoaming Nonionic SurfactantBased Liquid Dishwashing Detergent Compositions Ingredient
A (%)
B (%)
C (%
Neodol 918
16
19
Neodol 916
19
Ammonium lauryl sulfate
6
6
6
Cocoamidopropylbetaine
4
4
4
LMMEA
3
5
5
Ethanol
5
5
5
SXS
7
7
7
Water, fragrance, color
Balance
than nonionics. By the RossMiles foam method (0.1% solution, 49°C, after 5 minutes), a C12 alcohol sulfate would have 18.5 cm foam, a C12 alkyl polyoxyethy (6.5 EO) alcohol would have 2.5 cm foam, and a C12 APG would have 15 cm fo [173]. APGs of varying hydrophobes and degrees of polymerization are availabl least three commercial dishwashing detergents contain APGs, one in Europe, one the United States, and one in Japan [174,175]. In addition to being relatively high foamers, APGs have some other useful properties. They are completely biodegradable, ecologically safe, and mild to the skin and offer wetting properties similar to those of anionic surfactants. Both the hydrophile and hydrophobe come from oleochemical resources [176]. Table 19 shows examples of LDLDs formul with APGs [116]. Polyoxyalkalenes and fatty acid glucamides are also part of the trend to the incre use of nonionics in dish liquids. Fatty acid glucamides interact strongly with anioni surfactants to give suds boosting, interfacial tension lowering, and irritancy reducti [177]. The glucamides are completely and rapidly biodegradable in the Sterm tes They are highly removed in activated sludge sewage treatment [178]. A partial p diagram has been reported. There are two crystal structures of polymorphs, one extended and one bent [179]. Examples of LDLDs formulated with fatty acid glucamides are listed in Table 20 [18,20]. D. Environmental and Regulatory Concerns Products with an environmental positioning are a continuing trend, especially in Europe [180]. In 1992, Pril, a leading German brand, was reformulated to have mildness and environmental friendliness platform. One feature of both
TABLE 19 Examples of Liquid Dishwashing Detergent Compositions Using Alkyl Polygly Ingredient
A (%)
B (%)
Ammonium C11–12alkylbenzene sulfonate
17.5
—
Magnesium C11.4alkylbenzene sulfonate
6.4
—
Ammonium C12–13alkylpolyoxyethylene (EO0.8) sulfate
6.1
—
Ammonium C12–13alkylsulfate
—
15.7
Sodium C12–16 olefin sulfonate
—
10.4
Cocomonoethanolamide
—
5.5
C12–13alkyl polyglycoside1.7
5.0
5.9
C12alkyl dihydroxyethylamine oxide
—
—
MgCl2∙6H2
—
5.6
Ammonium xylene sulfonate
3.0
—
Ethanol
3.7
4
Water, perfume, minors
Balance
APG and fatty acid glucamides is that both hydrophobic and hydrophilic ends ca “naturally derived” or from “renewable resources.” Neither is a natural product. are intensively processed. There is considerable debate over whether oleochemic petrochemical sourcing is better for the environment [181]. Government regulations are a continuing source of challenge to the makers of con detergent products. For example, in Europe, the Directive on the Classification, Labeling of Dangerous Substances of the European Economic Community (EEC published [182]. Since then, the directive has been amended to require manufact consumer products TABLE 20 Examples of Liquid Dishwashing Detergent Compositions Using Methyl Ester Glucamide Surfactant
A (%)
B (%)
C12–14alkyl EO8
16
AEOS
15
Amine oxide
4
Glucamide
8
10
Betaine
2
3
C9–11EO8
8
4
Mg
0.025
0.25
Glucamide
8
10
Betaine
2
3
C9–11EO8
8
4
Mg
0.025
0.25
Page 252
according to the hazards posed to the consumer (toxic, corrosive, carcinogenic, eye or skin irritant, and so on) and package and label them accordingly [183,184]. The member states of the EEC had to incorporate the directive into their laws by October 1993. The method of classification is basically either directly to test the final composition or to estimate the hazards by using a calculation (called the conventional method). The calculation depends on the sum of the hazards of the individual components and their percentage in the final composition. The products must be classified according to their concentration when they are sold to the public. LDLDs with concentration above 20% AI must be sold in packages with irritant warning labels, even though the the LDLD is mild when diluted for use. Labeling requirements affect the composition of dish liquids by accelerating the incorporation of milder surfactants. E. Dish Liquids with Added Benefits Another trend is the addition of new benefits. This is in part a reflection of the overall trend of making consumer products multipurpose [185]. An example is the introduction of a combination dishwashing liquid and antibacterial hand soap by Colgate Palmolive in 1994. About twothirds of the people who wash their hands in the kitchen use dish detergent [186], possibly because it is handy. This product has the benefit that, in addition to washing dishes, when used undiluted it kills possibly pathogenic germs on hands. Colgate's product was quickly followed by Dial dishwashing liquid, which also claimed antibacterial hand soap properties. The interest in antibacterial properties fits a growing concern about germs on the part of the public [187]. F. Concentrates Dish detergents in developed markets have become more concentrated as part of a general trend that can also be seen in laundry detergents and hard surface cleaners [188–190]. The trend toward dish liquid concentrates in formerly dilute markets started in Europe in 1992. In Germany (previously a 20–25% AI market), the market was evolved into concentrated products with the introduction of Unilever's Sunlight Progress, Colgate's Ultra Plus, Henkel's Pril Supra, and P&G's Fairy Ultra. It remains to be seen whether products with even higher active levels (40–50%) will be accepted by consumers in the United States and Europe. References 1. H. Andree and B. Middelhauve, in Proceedings of the 3rd World Conference on Detergents: Global Perspectives (A. Cahn, ed.), AOCS Press, Illinois, 1994, pp. 95–98.
Page 253
2. C. Kaiser, in Detergent inDepth '80, Symposium Series by the Soap and Detergent Association, San Francisco, CA, 1980, pp. 30–33. 3. W. Chirash, J. Am. Oil Chem. Soc. 58:362A (1981). 4. J. C. Drozd, Chemical Times & Trends 7:29 (1984). 5. J. C. Drozd, Chemical Times & Trends 7:41 (1984). 6. J. C. Drozd, Chemical Times & Trends 8:49 (1985). 7. K. M. Fernee, in Proceeding of the Second World Conference on Detergents (A. R. Baldwin, ed.), Amer, Oil Chem. Soc., 1986. 8. P. Berth, P. Jeschke, K. Schumann, and H. Verbeek, in Proceedings of the Second World Conference on Detergents (A. R. Baldwin, ed.), American Oil Chemists Society, 1987, pp. 113–117. 9. H. Heitland and H. Marsen, in Surfactants in Consumer Products: Theory, Technology and Application (J. Falbe, ed.), SpringerVerlag, Heidelberg, 1987, Chap. 5. 10. W. M. Linfield, Ed., in Anionic Surfactants, Surfactant Science Series, Vol. 7, Marcel Dekker, New York, 1976. 11. J. M. Quack and M. Trautman, Ann. Chim. 77:245 (1987). 12. M. J. Schick (ed.), in Nonionic Surfactants—Physical Chemistry, Surfactant Science Series, Vol. 23, Marcel Dekker, New York, 1987. 13. K. Y. Lai, U.S. Patent 4,595,526 to Colgate Palmolive Co. (1986). 14. C. F. Putnik and N. F. Borys, Soap Cosmetics Chemical Specialties 86 (6):34 (1986). 15. B. Brancq, in Proceedings of the 3rd World Conference on Detergents: Global Perspectives (A. Cahn, ed.), AOCS Press, Illinois, 1994, pp. 147–150. 16. B. Fabry and J. E. Drach, HAPPI 31(8):111 (1994). 17. Y. C. Fu and J. J. Scheibel, International Application WO 92/06157 to Procter & Gamble Co. (1992). 18. J. A. Dyet and P. R. Foley, International Application WO 92/06171 to Procter & Gamble Co. (1992). 19. M. HsiangKuen Mao, International Application WO 92/06161 to Procter & Gamble Co. (1992). 20. R. T. Rolfes, International Application WO 92/06161 to Procter & Gamble Co. (1992). 21. B. R. Bluestein and C. L. Hilton (eds.), in Amphoteric Surfactants, Surfactant Science Series, Vol. 12, Marcel Dekker, New York, 1982. 22. K. Y. Lai and N. Dixit, in Foams: Theory, Measurements and
20. R. T. Rolfes, International Application WO 92/06161 to Procter & Gamble Co. (1992). 21. B. R. Bluestein and C. L. Hilton (eds.), in Amphoteric Surfactants, Surfactant Science Series, Vol. 12, Marcel Dekker, New York, 1982. 22. K. Y. Lai and N. Dixit, in Foams: Theory, Measurements and Applications (R. K. Prud'homme and S. A. Khan ed.), Marcel Dekker, New York, 1995, Chap. 8. 23. McCutcheon's Emulsifiers and Detergents, North American and International Editions, 1994. 24. J. C. Drozd, Chemical Times & Trends 8:50 (1985). 25. R. A. Marsh, G. J. Mackic, and P. Hale, U.S. Patent 4,195,077 to Procter & Gamble (1980). 26. R. Billington, D. J. Edge, and P. Winterbotham, U.S. Patent 4,434,089 to Lever Brothers Co. (1984).
Page 254
27. W. Chirash, H. E. Crosier, and C. R. Proulx, U. S. Patent 4,772,425 (1988). 28. K. Schumann, O. Guirr, P. Schulz, and F. Foerg, U.S. Patent 4,797,231 (1989). 29. J. T. Reilly, R. B. Hobson, and G. J. Abdey, U.S. Patent 4,614,612 to Lever Brothers Co. (1986). 30. K. Deguchi, K. Saito, and H. Saijo, U.S. Patent 5,230,835 to Kao Corp. (1993). 31. B. J. Roselle and D. T. Speckman, U.S. Patent 5,244,593 to Procter & Gamble Co. (1993). 32. Soap, Cosmetic, Chemical Specialties 70(10):82 (1994). 33. T. Branna, Household and Personal Care Products, 31(3):86 (1994). 34. Soap, Cosmetics, Chemical Specialties 70(4):53 (1994). 35. D. M. Day, J. Am. Oil Chem. Soc. 52:461 (1975). 36. B. J. Carroll, Colloids and Surfaces A 74:131 (1993). 37. D. Myers, in Surfactant Science and Technology, VCH Publishers, New York, 1988, p. 277. 38. N. C. Power, J. Amer. Oil Chem. Soc. 40:290 (1963). 39. J. L. Lynn, Detergency, in KirkOthmer Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology (J. Kroschwitz and M. GrantHowe, eds.), 4th ed., Vol. 7, 1994, p. 1072. 40. N. K. Adam, J. Soc. Dyers Colour 53:121 (1937). 41. A. W. Adamson, in Physical Chemistry of Surfaces, 5th ed., John Wiley and Sons, New York, 1990, pp. 385, 507. 42. C. A. Miller and K. H. Raney, Colloids and Surfaces A 74:169 (1993). 43. A. M. Schwartz, in Surface and Colloid Science (E. Matijevic, ed.), John Wiley and Sons, New York, 1972, p. 195. 44. W. G. Cutler and R. C. Davis (eds.), Detergency: Theory and Test Methods, Vols. 1 and 2, Marcel Dekker, New York, 1972. 45. J. L. Lynn, Detergency, in KirkOthmer Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology (J. Kroschwitz and M. GrantHowe, eds.), 4th ed., Vol. 7, 1994, p. 1096. 46. O. W. Neiditch, in Detergency: Theory and Test Methods (W. G. Cutler and R. C. Davis, eds.), Vol. 1, Marcel Dekker, New York, 1972, p. 8. 47. G. Broze, in Solubilization in Surfactant Aggregates, Surfactant Science Series 55:493 (1995).
46. O. W. Neiditch, in Detergency: Theory and Test Methods (W. G. Cutler and R. C. Davis, eds.), Vol. 1, Marcel Dekker, New York, 1972, p. 8. 47. G. Broze, in Solubilization in Surfactant Aggregates, Surfactant Science Series 55:493 (1995). 48. A. W. Adamson, Physical Chemistry of Surfaces, 5th ed., John Wiley and Sons, New York, 1990, p. 510. 49. C. S. Dunaway, S. D. Christian, and J. F. Scamehorn, in Solubilization in Surfactant Aggregates (S. D. Christian and J. F. Scamehorn, eds.), Marcel Dekker, New York, 1995, Chap. 1. 50. J. L. Lynn, Detergency, in KirkOthmer Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology (J. Kroschwitz and M. GrantHowe, eds.), Vol. 7 1994, p. 1081 (and references therein.) 51. F. Schambil and M. J. Schwuger, in Surfactants in Consumer Products (J. Falbe, ed.), SpringerVerlag, Heidelberg, 1987, pp. 133192. 52. K. L. Matheson and T. P. Matson, J. Am. Oil Chem. Soc. 60:1693 (1983). 53. M. F. Cox, J. Am. Oil Chem. Soc., 66:367 (1989). 54. M. J. Rosen, in Surfactants and Interfacial Phenomena, 2nd ed., Wiley Interscience, New York, 1989, pp. 135.
Page 255
55. L. Cohen, R. Vergara, A. Moreno, and J. L. Berna, J. Am. Oil Chem. Soc. 70:723 (1993). 56. M. J. Rosen, in Surfactants and Interfacial Phenomena, 2nd ed., Wiley Interscience, New York, 1989, pp. 56–59. 57. European Patent Application 39110 to Procter & Gamble 1983. 58. M. J. Rosen, in Surfactants and Interfacial Phenomena, 2nd ed., Wiley Interscience, New York, 1989, p. 372. 59. L. Cohen, R. Vergara, A. Moreno, and J. L. Berna, J. Am. Oil chemists Soc. 72(1):115 (1995). 60. B. D. Condon and K. L. Matheson, J. Am. Oil Chemists Soc. 71(1):53 (1994). 61. G. J. Jakubicki and D. Warschewski, European Patent Application 0487169 A1 to ColgatePalmolive Co. (1991). 62. F. A. Simion, D. Warscjewski, and L. A. Zyzyck, U. S. Patent 4,923,635 to ColgatePalmolive Co. (1990). 63. E. P. Duliba, C. Nguyen, G. D. Riska, G. W. Hawrylak, and F. J. Bala, International Application WO 90/02164 to ColgatePalmolive Co. (1990). 64. M. Tosaka, Y. Hayakawa, and K. Deguchi, UK Patent Application GB 2219594 A to Kao Corp. (1989). 65. ASTM D 117353, Vol. 15.04, Annual Book of ASTM Standards, American Society for Testing and Materials, Philadelphia, PA, 1992. 66. K. Deguchi, K. Saito, and H. Saijo, U.S. Patent 5,154,850 to Kao Corp. (1992). 67. K. F. Rubin, D. Van Blarcom, and J. A. Lopez, International Application WO 93/03129 to Unilever (1993). 68. C. Nguyen, G. Riska, G. Hawrylak, and F. Malihi, Characterization of foam properties in light duty liquid dishwashing products, presented at the AOCS Symposium, May 4–7, 1989, Cincinnati, Ohio. 69. M. Massaro and M. E. Rerek, European Patent Application EP 0373851 A2 to Unilever (1989). 70. ASTM D 400992, Vol. 15.04, Annual Book of ASTM Standards, American Society for Testing and Materials, Philadelphia, PA, 1992. 71. R. M. Anstett and E. J. Schuck, J. Am. Oil Chem. Soc. 43:576 (1966). 72. A. R. Naik, U.S. Patent 4,528,128 to Lever Brothers Co. (1985). 73. A. M. Patel, C. R. Robbins, N. S. Dixit, and R. E. Babecki, European Patent Application 0410567 A2 to Colgate Palmolive Co. (1990). 74. P. Frosch and A. Kligman, J. Am. Acad. Dermatol. 1:35 (1979).
72. A. R. Naik, U.S. Patent 4,528,128 to Lever Brothers Co. (1985). 73. A. M. Patel, C. R. Robbins, N. S. Dixit, and R. E. Babecki, European Patent Application 0410567 A2 to Colgate Palmolive Co. (1990). 74. P. Frosch and A. Kligman, J. Am. Acad. Dermatol. 1:35 (1979). 75. J. K. Smid and H. C. Meljer, European Patent Application 0215504 A1 to Stamicarbon B.V. (1986). 76. R. S. Berger and J. P. Bowman, J. Tox. Cutaneous Occular 1:109 (1982). 77. G. Imokawa, K. Sumura, and M. Katsumi, J. Am. Oil Chem Soc. 52:484 (1975). 78. C. Prottey, D. Oliver, and A. C. Coxon, Int. J. Costmet. Sci. 6:263 (1984). 79. A. R. Naik and A. C. Coxon, European Patent Application 0232153 A2 to Unilever NV (1987). 80. H. Tanaka, Y. Horiuchi, and K. Konishi, Anal. Biochem 66:489 (1975). 81. T. Kanekiyo, N. Tanaka, and S. Sano, European Patent Application 0356784 A2 to Mitsubishi Petrochemical Co. (1989).
Page 256
82. K. Miyazawa, M. Ogawa, and T, Mitsui, Int. J. Cosmet. Sci. 6:33 (1984). 83. E. Gotte, Chem. Phys. Surface Active Subst. Proc. Int. Congr. 4:83 (1964). 84. J. C. BlakeHaskins, D. Scala, and L. D. Rhein, J. Soc. Cosmet. Chem. 37:199 (1986). 85. G. J. Putterman, N. F. Wolejsza, M. A. Wolfram, and K. Laden, J. Soc. Cosmet. Chem. 28:521 (1977). 86. A. S. Anavkar and C. V. Natraj, J. Am. Oil Chem. Soc. 66:1386 (1989). 87. M. P. Aronson, E. A. Larrauri, and Z. J. Hussain, European Patent Application 0013585 to Unilever Limited (1980). 88. K. OfosuAsante, U.S. Patent 5,378,409 to Procter & Gamble Co. (1995) 89. T. A. Cripe and K. OfosuAsante, U.S. Patent 5,376,310 to Procter & Gamble Co. (1994). 90. E. H. Brumbaugh, U.S. Patent 5,298,195 to Amway Corp. (1994). 91. K. OfosuAsante, U.S. Patent 5,269,974 to Procter & Gamble Co. (1994). 92. R. M. Wise and T. A. Cripe, U.S. Patent 5,230,823 to Procter & Gamble Co. (1993). 93. M. A. Rahman and S. R. Wu, U.S. Patent 5,236,612 to Lever Brothers Co. (1993). 94. E. J. Pancheri and M. H. K. Mao, U.S. Patent 5,167,872 to Proter & Gamble Co. (1992). 95. M. Tosaka, Y. Fujii, N. Morii, and K. Deguchi, U.S. Patent 5,096,621 to Kao Corp. (1992). 96. R. J. Corring, V. Lamberti, and M. P. Aronson, U.S. Patent 4,992,212 to Lever Brothers Co. (1991). 97. E. J. Pancheri, Y. S. Oh, and R. M. Wise, U.S. Patent 4,904,359 to Procter & Gamble Co. (1990). 98. P. Durbut, A. Mehreteab, M. Mondin, and G. Broze, U.S. Patent 4,919,839 to ColgatePalmolive Co. (1990). 99. C. D. Roth, K. B. Moser, G. M. Howell, and A. D. Urfer, U.S. Patent 4,834,903 to Henkel Corp. (1989). 100. K. D. Wisotzki, O. Guirr, P. Jeschke, K. Schumann, K. H. Schmid, and M. Biermann, U.S. Patent 4,839,098 to Henkel Corp. (1989). 101. S. Choi, U.S. Patent 4,853,147 to ColgatePalmolive Co. (1989).
99. C. D. Roth, K. B. Moser, G. M. Howell, and A. D. Urfer, U.S. Patent 4,834,903 to Henkel Corp. (1989). 100. K. D. Wisotzki, O. Guirr, P. Jeschke, K. Schumann, K. H. Schmid, and M. Biermann, U.S. Patent 4,839,098 to Henkel Corp. (1989). 101. S. Choi, U.S. Patent 4,853,147 to ColgatePalmolive Co. (1989). 102. M. Biermann, O. Guirr, P. Sandkuehler, K. H. Schmid, K. Schumann, E. Sung, and K. D. Wisotzki, U.S. Patent 4,732,704 to Henkel Corp. (1988). 103. E. J. Pancheri and M. H. K. Mao, U.S. Patent 4,772,423 to Procter & Gamble Co. (1988). 104. L. W. Bernardino, E. W. Kuhl, M. H. Mao, and E. J. Pancheri, U.S. Patent 4,681,704 to Procter & Gamble Co. (1987). 105. J. B. Welch, U.S. Patent 4,492,646 to Procter & Gamble Co. (1985). 106. R. C. Pierce and F. J. Bala, U.S. Patent 4,430,237 to ColgatePalmolive Co. (1984). 107. M. P. Aronson, E. A. Larrauri, and Z. J. Hussain, U.S. Patent 4,368,146 to Lever Brothers Co. (1983). 108. E. J. Pancheri, U.S. Patent 4,316,824 to Procter & Gamble Co. (1982).
Page 257
109. T. P. O'Brien and L. Benjamin, U.S. Patent 4,268,406 to Procter & Gamble Co. (1981). 110. J. A. Hellyer, D. S. Lambert, and R. Mermeistein, U.S. Patent 4,133,779 to Procter & Gamble Co. (1979). 111. M. Rosen, Surfactant and Interfacial Phenomena, 2nd ed., John Wiley and Sons, New York, 1989, Chap. 7. 112. M. A. Rahman and S. R. Wu, U.S. Patent 5,352,387 to Lever Brothers Co. (1994). 113. D. S. Conner, J. J. Scheibel, Y. C. Fu, B. P. Murch, R. A. Watson, and K. L. McKillop, U.S. Patent 5,338,491 to Procter & Gamble Co. (1994). 114. K. Y. Lai, U.S. Patent 4,877,546 to ColgatePalmolive Co. (1989). 115. A. R. Naik and F. M. Orlandini, U.S. Patent 4,732,707 to Lever Brothers Co. (1988). 116. R. A. Llenado, U.S. Patent 4,663,069 to Procter & Gamble Co. (1987). 117. D. J. Edge, A. R. Naik, and M. Scott, U.S. Patent 4,680,143 to Lever Brothers Co. (1987). 118. M. G. J. Macduff, A. R. Naik, and M. Scott, U.S. Patent 4,596,672 to Lever Brothers Co. (1986). 119. R. A. Llenado, U.S. Patent 4,599,188 to Procter & Gamble Co. (1986). 120. R. J. Edwards and P. D. Hardman, U.S. Patent 4,576,744 to Lever Brothers Co. (1986). 121. D. J. Edge, A. R. Naik, and M. Scott, U.S. Patent 4,537,709 to Lever Brothers Co. (1985). 122. Y. Damangeon and A. Jacques, U.S. Patent 4,556,509 to Colgate Palmolive Co. (1985). 123. T. E. Cook and R. A. Llenado, U.S. Patent 4,536,318 to Procter & Gamble Co. (1985). 124. J., D. Hampson, R. Billington, and I. R. Cox, U.S. Patent 4,434,087 to Lever Brothers Co. (1984). 125. J. D. Hampson and R. Billington, U.S. Patent 4,434,090 to Lever Brothers Co. (1984). 126. I. R. Cox and K. Jones, U.S. Patent 4,434,091 to Lever Brothers Co. (1984). 127. K. Y. Lai, R. C. Pierce, J. Dupre, and H. S. Killam, U.S. Patent 4,454,060 to ColgatePalmolive Co. (1984). 128. J. Gerritsen, R. E. Atkinson, A. F. Martin, and M. R. Atkins, U.S. Patent 4,435,317 to Procter & Gamble Co. (1984).
(1984). 127. K. Y. Lai, R. C. Pierce, J. Dupre, and H. S. Killam, U.S. Patent 4,454,060 to ColgatePalmolive Co. (1984). 128. J. Gerritsen, R. E. Atkinson, A. F. Martin, and M. R. Atkins, U.S. Patent 4,435,317 to Procter & Gamble Co. (1984). 129. N. Ootani, T. Ishii, and H. Ikeda, U.S. Patent 4,486,338 to Kao Corp. (1984). 130. I. R. Schmolka, U.S. Patent 4,490,279 to BASF Wyandotte Corp. (1984). 131. K. Tsujii, N. Saito, and M. Kawai, U.S. Patent 4,277,378 to Kao Soap Co. (1981). 132. B. Rossall and J. D. Hampson, U.S. Patent 4,235,752 to Lever Brothers Co. (1980). 133. S. T. Repinec, G. S. Gomes, and R. Erilli, U.S. Patent 5,385,696 to ColgatePalmolive Co. (1995).
Page 258
134. S. T. Repinec, G. S. Gomes, and R. Erilli, U.S. Patent 5,387,375 to ColgatePalmolive Co. (1995). 135. A. R. Naik, U.S. Patent 5,387,373 to Unilever Patent Holding (1995). 136. S. T. Repinec, G. S. Gomes, and R. Erilli, U.S. Patent 5,284,603 to ColgatePalmolive Co. (1994). 137. J. Palicka, U.S. Patent 5,340,502 to Berol Novel AB (1994). 138. R. D. Farris, W. A. Cassidy, J. R. Schwartz, and N. K. Hutchinson, U.S. Patent 5,084,212 to Procter & Gamble Co. (1992). 139. J. R. Wittpenn and R. L. Giovanoni, U.S. Patent 5,139,705 (1992). 140. W. C. Allison and L. J. Nehmsmann, U.S. Patent 5,075,042 to PPG Industries, Inc. (1991). 141. K. Deguchi, K. Saito, H. Saijo, and M. Tosaka, U.S. Patent 5,025,069 to Kao Corp. (1991). 142. K. Deguchi, K. Saito, and H. Saijo, U.S. Patent 5,073,293 to Kao Corp. (1991). 143. D. L. Bissett and H. K. Mao, U.S. Patent 4,555,360 Procter & Gamble Co. (1985). 144. S. C. Klisch, K. Y. Lai, and C. R. Robbins, U.S. Patent 4,554,098 to Colgate Palmolive Co. (1985). 145. N. Fujisawa, K. Ooshima, J. Iijima, and K. Degucki, U.S. Patent 4,526,710 to Kao Corp. (1985). 146. K. A. Jones and H. S. Walker, U.S. Patent 4,371,461 to Procter & Gamble Co. (1983). 147. R. R. Egan and P. L. Cotrell, U.S. Patent 4,256,611 to Sherex Chemical Co. (1981). 148. R. R. Egan and P. L. Cotrell, U.S. Patent 4,247,425 to Sherex Chemical Co. (1981). 149. N. Miyajima, N. Johna, N. Mizushima, and K. Ohbu, U.S. Patent 4,287,102 to Lion Fat & Oil Co. (1981). 150. N. Miyajima, N. Johna, N. Mizushima, and K. Ohbu, U.S. Patent 4,259,216 to Lion Fat & Oil Co. (1981). 151. K. Ohbu, N. Johna, and I. Kashiwa, U.S. Patent 4,235,759 to Lion Fat & Oil Co. (1980). 152. T. P. Matson and M. Berretz, Soap Cosmet. Chem Spec. 55 (12):41. (1979). 153. S. E. Friberg and C. Brancewitz, in Liquid Detergents, Surfactant Science Series, Vol. 2 (K. Y. Lai, ed.), Marcel Dekker, New York, 1996.
& Oil Co. (1980). 152. T. P. Matson and M. Berretz, Soap Cosmet. Chem Spec. 55 (12):41. (1979). 153. S. E. Friberg and C. Brancewitz, in Liquid Detergents, Surfactant Science Series, Vol. 2 (K. Y. Lai, ed.), Marcel Dekker, New York, 1996. 154. J. C. Drozd and W. Gorman, J. Am. Oil Chem. Soc. 65:398 (1988). 155. D. L. Smith, J. Am. Oil Chem. Soc. 68:629 (1991). 156. T. Crutcher, J. W. Perine, J. D. Sauer, K. R. Smith, and J. E. Borland, U.S. Patent 5,167,873 to Procter & Gamble Co. (1992). 157. F. J. Leng and C. A. Leng, U.S. Patent 4,880,569 to Lever Brothers Co. (1989). 158. K. Koch, I. Wegener, and B. Glesen, U.S. Patent 4,772,426 to Henkel Corp. (1988). 159. E. T. Messenger, D. E. Mather, and B. M. Phillips, U.S. Patent 4,753,754 to Albright & Wilson Limited (1988). 160. F. J. Leng, J. Lucassen, D. A. Reed, P. J. Sams, and P. Winterbotham, U.S. Patent 4,784,800 to Levers Brothers Co. (1988).
Page 259
161. R. J. Edwards, P. D. Hardman, M. Scott, C. J. Walsh, and P. Winterbotham, U.S. Patent 4,734,221 to Levers Brothers Co. (1988). 162. R. Erilli, U.S. Patent 4,671,895 to Colgate Palmolive Co. (1987). 163. C. Lamb, J. R. Lawson, and C. Pearson, U.S. Patent 4,671,894 to Procter & Gamble Co. (1987). 164. D. E. Mather, E. T. Messenger, and B. M. Phillips, U.S. Patent 4,440,665 to Albright & Wilson, Limited (1984). 165. P. L. Dawson and E. Willis, U.S. Patent 4,235,758 to Lever Brothers Co. (1980). 166. Household products: Playing the name game, Soap, Cosmetics, Chemical Specialties 71(2):44 (1995). 167. A. E. Sloan, Food Technology 88–100 (1994). 168. S. Wloszcazyna, USA Today (US) Feb. 24, 1993, p. 1. 169. New York Times (National Edition), June 6, 1993, p. F11. 170. German Patent DE 4200850 to Henkel Corp. 171. German Patent DE 4203001 to Henkel Corp. 172. B. Fabry, M. Philipp, and J. E. Drach, HAPPI, 31(8):111 (1994). 173. P. A. Siracusa, HAPPI 29(4):101 (1992). 174. G. R. Whalley, HAPPI 29(8):76 (1992). 175. G. R. Whalley, HAPPI 31(6):122 (1994). 176. D. Balzer, Tenside Surf Det. 28:419 (1991). 177. B. Murch, Am. Oil Chem. Soc, Spring Meeting, Anaheim, CA (1993). 178. E. WeegAerssens, E. Matthijs and M. Stalmans, Am. Oil Chem. Soc. Spring Meeting, Anaheim, CA (1993). 179. Y. C. Fu. Am. Oil Chemists Soc. Spring Meeting, Anaheim, CA (1993). 180. G. R. Whalley, HAPPI 31(6):121 (1994). 181. G. R. Whalley, HAPPI 29(8):75 (1992). 182. Commission Directive (67/548/EEC), Classification, Packaging and Labeling of Dangerous Substances OJ (L257). 183. Commission Directive (88/379/EEC), Classification, Packaging and Labeling of Dangerous Substances OJ(L187) July 16, 1987. 184. Commission Directive (92/32/EEC) Amending Directive 67/548/EEC. 185. T. Branna, HAPPI 30(6):27 (1993).
183. Commission Directive (88/379/EEC), Classification, Packaging and Labeling of Dangerous Substances OJ(L187) July 16, 1987. 184. Commission Directive (92/32/EEC) Amending Directive 67/548/EEC. 185. T. Branna, HAPPI 30(6):27 (1993). 186. T. Branna, HAPPI 31(11):71 (1994). 187. T. Branna, HAPPI 31(4):54 (1993). 188. J. N. Chavez, HAPPI 32(1):74 (1995). 189. A. Teng, HAPPI 31(6):45 (1994). 190. R. F. Lake, SCCS 70(4):53 (1994).
8 HeavyDuty Liquid Detergents AMIT SACHDEV and SANTHAN KRISHNAN Research and Development, Global Technology, ColgatePalmolive Company, P New Jersey I. Introduction II. Physical Characteristics of HDLDs A. Structured liquids B. Unstructured liquids C. Nonaqueous liquids III. Components of HeavyDuty Liquid Detergents and Their Properties A. Surfactants B. Builders C. Enzymes D. Bleaches E. Optical brighteners F. Detergent polymers G. Miscellaneous ingredients IV. Product Evaluation Methods A. Physical properties B. HDLD detergency evaluation V. Future Trends Appendix References
Page 262
I. Introduction Heavyduty liquid detergents (HDLDs) were introduced into the laundry market much later than powder detergents. The first commercial heavy duty liquid detergent appeared in the United States in 1956. Liquid detergents were introduced in the Far East/Pacific countries and Europe only in the 1970s and 1980s, respectively (Fig. 1). Heavyduty liquids have several advantages over powder detergents. The liquid detergents readily and completely dissolve in water, especially cool or cold water. They can be easily dispensed from the bottle or refill package with relatively less messiness than powder detergents, and they do not tend to cake
FIG. 1 Commercial North American (above) and European and Asian/Pacific HDLDs.
Page 263
in storage as powders often do when exposed to moisture. Furthermore, liquid detergents lend themselves to pretreatment at full strength directly on stains and thus provide a convenient way to remove tough stains. A typical heavyduty liquid detergent consists of all or some of the following components: surfactants, builders, optical brighteners, enzymes, polymers, and fragrance. In addition, it may contain other special ingredients designed for specific functions. Both anionic and nonionic surfactants are used in the formulation of liquid detergents. Surfactants are primarily responsible for wetting the surfaces of fabrics as well as the soil, helping to lift the stains off the fabric surface and to stabilize dirt particulates or emulsify grease droplets [1–4]. The main anionic surfactants are sodium alkylbenzene sulfonate, alkyl sulfate, and alkyl ethoxylated sulfate. Nonionic surfactants used are primarily ethoxylated fatty alcohols. Other surfactants are also used in HDLDs and are discussed in a subsequent section. Builders are formulated into detergents mainly to sequester the hardness of the water as well as to disperse the dirt and soil particulates in the washwater. Common builders used are sodium and potassium polyphosphates, silicates, carbonates, aluminosilicates, and citrates [5]. Optical brighteners are colorless dyes that absorb ultraviolet radiation and emit bluish light, making fabrics look whiter and brighter. Most detergents contain brighteners in their composition, their content adjusted more or less to reflect regional consumer preferences and marketing claims. The enzymes in HDLDs usually consist of a protease and an amylase. In addition, the detergent may also contain lipase and cellulase enzymes. The function of the protease is to digest protein stains such as blood and proteinaceous food stains, while the amylase acts on starchy stains. Lipase attacks fatty chains in greasy stains and is good at cleaning certain oily soils. Cellulase is an enzyme that acts on cellulase and is being used in detergents for removing prills in cotton fabrics, thereby restoring reflectance of the fabric surface and making colors look brighter [6]. Liquid laundry detergents may be classified into two main types: unstructured liquids and structured liquids. Unstructured liquid detergents typically are isotropic, have a large and continuous water phase, and are the most widespread type of liquid detergents in the U.S. market. Structured liquid detergents are those consisting of multilamellar surfactant droplets suspended in a continuous water phase. These structured liquids are capable of suspending insoluble particles such as builders (phosphates, zeolites). These liquids are in use in Europe and in Asian and Pacific countries. A further type of liquid is one where the continuous phase is nonaqueous. Only one commercial example of this type of liquid detergent is known.
Page 264
The sections that follow describe the physical characteristics of heavyduty liquids, followed by detailed descriptions of typical formulation components of liquid detergents and their functions. A brief section on evaluation methodologies follows. Finally, emerging trends in the formulation and detergency of heavyduty liquids are discussed. A comprehensive tabulation of the patents relevant to HDLDs is given in the Appendix at the end of this chapter. II. Physical Characteristics of HDLDs The physical form and appearance of laundry liquids can vary greatly among various regions of the world. These differences in types of liquid detergents from region to region is largely dictated by the laundry habits and personal choices of the consumers in that particular market. HDLDs can be broadly classified into two main types: structured and unstructured liquids. A third type, nonaqueous liquids, have been actively studied and are also discussed in this chapter. Structured liquids are opaque and usually thick and are formed when surfactant molecules arrange themselves as liquid crystals [7–9]. This form of liquid detergent is largely marketed in Europe and the Asian/Pacific regions. Unstructured liquids, on the other hand, are usually thin, clear, or translucent and are formed when all ingredients are solubilized in an aqueous medium. Figure 2 gives examples of unstructured and structured HDLDs. Nonaqueous liquids, in which the continuous medium consists of an organic solvent, can be either structured or unstructured. A. Structured Liquids 1. Introduction The general tendency of liquids containing high levels of anionic surfactants and electrolytic builders is to structure themselves with the formation of liquid crystalline surfactant phases [7–12]. This trend can be accelerated with the use of longer or branched chain alkyl groups and by using a higher electrolyte level [13]. The resulting liquid is opaque, extremely thick, unpourable, and frequently physically unstable. It may also subsequently separate into two or more layers or phases: a thick, opaque surfactantrich phase containing the flocculated liquid crystals and a thin, clear electrolyterich phase. The challenge, therefore, in developing such a liquid is to not only to prevent phase separation of the product but also to reduce the viscosity to a pourable level. A pourable level depends, of course, on the preferences, requirements, and convenience of the consumer. Viscosities of commercially available structured liquids vary from 500 to 9000 cps.
Page 265
FIG. 2 Examples of an unstructured (left) and a structured (right) HDLD.
2. Lamellar Structures The liquid crystalline phase in a structured liquid is frequently in the form of spherical lamellar bilayers or droplets [14–18]. The internal structure of these droplets is in the form of concentric alternating layers of surfactant and water. This configuration is often compared to the structure of an onion, which has a similar concentric shelllike structure (Fig. 3). It has been determined that the physical stability of these types of liquids is achieved only when the volume fraction of the bilayer structures is high enough to be spacefilling. This corresponds to a volume fraction of approximately 0.6 [7,8,19]. An excessively high value of this volume fraction, however, will lead to flocculation, high viscosity, and an unstable product. A stable dispersion of the lamellar droplets makes it possible to suspend solids and undissolved particles between the lamellae and in the continuous electrolyte phase. This capability allows the use of relatively high builder/electrolyte levels. Many patents have been issued for structured liquids that have the capability of suspending undissolved solids. The suspended solids include bleaches [20,21], builders such as zeolites [22], and softeners [23,24]. There are a number of factors that determine whether or not a lamellar droplet can form. As a general rule these bilayer structures will develop if the surfactant headgroup is smaller than twice the trans crosssectional area of the alkyl chains of the surfactants [8,13]. This ratio of the areas of the alkyl chain and the surfactant headgroup is referred to as the packing factor of the surfactant system. Among the elements that can accelerate the formation of these struc
Page 266
FIG. 3 Schematic diagrams of a nonflocculated lamellar dispersion, a lamellar droplet, and the internal structure of a lamellar droplet. (Reproduced with permission from Ref. 10.)
tures is the use of longer chain alkyl chains, branched alkyl groups, dual alkyl groups, and higher levels of electrolytes. Conversely, by using short, straight chain alkyl groups, lower electrolyte levels, or hydrotropes, the onset of the liquid crystalline phase can be delayed. A lamellar droplet is held together by an intricate balance of various interand intradroplet forces [10,11]. Any alteration or imbalance in these forces can have a direct impact on the stability of the structured liquid. Electrostatic repulsion between the charged headgroups of the anionic surfactants is compensated by attractive van der Waals forces between the hydrophobic alkyl chains of the anionic and nonionic surfactants. In addition, there are also osmotic and steric forces between the hydrated headgroups of the nonionic surfactants. These particular interactions can be either attractive or repulsive depending on the “quality” of the solvent [8]. The resultant force has a direct influence on the size of the water layers, the size of the droplet, and eventually the stability of the liquid. 3. Stability of Structured Liquids The balance of attractive forces between the surfactant layers and the compressive/repulsive forces due to steric and/or osmotic interactions makes highly concentrated formulations possible. But a singlephase structured liquid, by its
Page 267
very nature, is never in a state of complete equilibrium. However, for practical purposes a stable structured liquid is achieved when the inter and intralamellar forces are manipulated in such a way that phase separation is minimized or avoided. Depending on the extent of concentration of the ingredients, various methods can be employed to stabilize these structured liquids (Fig. 4). The most basic means of achieving stabilization and viscosity reduction is by the addition of electrolytes. The addition of cations in the form of electrolytes such as sodium citrate has the effect of screening out some of the repulsive forces between the negatively charged anionic headgroups. Also, the electrolytes in the continuous layer provide an element of stability by giving it ionic strength. This screening out process reduces the size of the intralamellar water layer and consequently the size of the entire droplet. This reduction of the lamellar size frees up some extra volume in the continuous phase and therefore provides an additional element of stability. Increasing the amounts of citrate works only up to a certain point beyond which there is a greater amount of undissolved salt that will be have to be suspended between the lamellar droplets and can lead to excessive thickening. Another consequence of adding large
FIG. 4 Schematic diagrams depicting the stability of (a) unstable and (b) stable structured HDLDs.
Page 268
amounts of electrolyte is the further erosion of the intralamellar water layer. This water layer has to be maintained at a level that is sufficient to hydrate the headgroups of the nonionic surfactants. Saltingout electrolytes [25], of which sodium citrate is an example, also hydrate and therefore compete with the nonionics and other ingredients for the water. Excessive shrinkage of the water layer can therefore result in product instability. (a) Free Polymers. The addition of electrolytes assists in lowering viscosities and in stabilizing the structured liquid only up to a certain degree [26–28]. Polyethylene glycol and polyacrylates are examples of free polymers. These polymers are nonstructuring, and consequently they do not have the capability of adsorbing onto the lamellar dispersions. Instead they function by means of osmotic compression, which results in shrinkage of the lamellar droplet. The consequence of this reduction in the volume of the individual droplets is a higher void fraction in the liquid. This polymer can therefore be used only up to the point at which the optimum void fraction is achieved. Further increases in the free polymer often lead to depletion flocculation, which is also accompanied by large increases in viscosity as well as phase separation. Concentrating the structured liquid by merely forming thinner lamellar layers and increasing the volume fraction of the lamellae can have implications for the rheology and pourability of the product. The best pourability characteristics are obtained when the volume fraction of the lamellar phase is as low as possible and the lamellae are relatively large. A compromise between these two pathways or strategies has to be achieved in order to formulate a stable, concentrated liquid with acceptable rheological traits. This task becomes increasingly difficult at even higher concentrations. With only a limited void fraction available, the lamellar droplets, even though they are reduced in size, begin flocculating. (b) Deflocculating Polymers. Free polymers are effective in reducing the size of the lamellar dispersion and thereby imparting stability. However, at ever increasing concentrations of surfactants and builders, simply reducing the intralamellar water layer is not sufficient to prevent flocculation. The problem was successfully addressed by researchers at Unilever, who were able to prevent flocculation by altering the interlamellar forces [13,19,29–31]. This was achieved by means of a deflocculating polymer that could be considered to be bifunctional. These polymers consisted of a hydrophilic backbone attached to a hydrophobic side chain. The hydrophilic component is fundamentally like a free polymer or copolymer in both structure and function. The hydrophobe side chain is typically a long alkyl chain. Figure 5 shows a schematic of an example of a Unilever deflocculating polymer—an acrylate lauryl methacrylate copolymer. The unique aspect of this polymer is its ability to not only utilize its hydrophilic component to induce osmotic compression within the lamellar bilayers
Page 269
FIG. 5 An example of a Unilever deflocculating polymer. (Reproduced with permission from Ref. 13.)
but also to employ its hydrophobic side chain to adsorb onto the surfactant layers. This hydrophobicity also permits the deflocculating polymer to attach itself to the outer surface of the lamellar droplet and consequently be able to influence the interlamellar interactions. This trait prevents or at least lessens the likelihood of flocculation occurring. The stability of these structured liquids, therefore, is obtained when the lamellae are not only smaller, but also well separated (Fig. 4). This results in not only a singlephase, stable liquid but also a product with good flowability characteristics. Table 1 shows the list of ingredients typically found in a structured HDLD. B. Unstructured Liquids 1. Introduction Heavy duty liquids on the current U.S. market are predominantly in the thin, clear, and unstructured form. All manufacturers market laundry liquids that are
TABLE 1 Example of Structured HDLD Formation Ingredient
Function
Sodium linear alkylbenzene sulfonate
Anionic surfactant
Sodium alkyl ether sulfate
Anionic surfactant
Alcohol ethoxylate
Nonionic surfactant
Sodium carbonate
Builder
Zeolite
Builder
Sodium perborate
Bleach
Polymer
Stabilizer
Protease
Enzyme
Fluorescent whitening agent
Brightener
Boric acid
Enzyme stabilizer
Preservative
Fragrance
Colorant
unstructured, thin, and clear. Besides the obvious differences in the physical appe properties between the structured and unstructured liquids, there are other dissim the formulation of these liquids that can have a direct impact on the cleaning perfo the product. Unstructured liquids are commonly formulated with higher amounts surfactants in conjunction with lower builder levels (see Table 2). This is in contra structured liquids, which need more builders and electrolytes to sustain the struct TABLE 2 Example of Unstructured HDLD Formulation Ingredient
Function
Sodium linear alkylbenzene sulfonate
Anionic surfactant
Sodium alkyl ether sulfate
Anionic surfactant
Alcohol ethoxylate
Nonionic surfactant
Sodium citrate
Builder
Monoethanolamine
Buffer
Soap
Defoamer
Protease
Enzyme
Fluorescent whitening agent
Brightener
Boric acid
Enzyme stabilizer
Ethanol
Solvent
Sodium xylene sulfonate
Hydrotrope
Preservative
Page 271
phase. The physical appearance and stability of structured liquids are very dependent on surfactant ratios, whereas the clear, unstructured liquids allow far greater flexibility in choosing surfactant ratios as long as a single phase is maintained. The main advantage in structured liquids is their ability to suspend undissolved and insoluble solids. The unstructured, clear liquids, on the other hand, by their very nature do not permit the use of insoluble materials. This results in the use of only soluble builders, and at relatively low levels, and precludes the use of other useful builder ingredients such as zeolites. It cannot be said that one form of liquid has a distinct advantage over the other. The formulation and marketing of either form may be dependent on such factors as efficacy targets, consumer preferences and habits, choice and availability of raw materials, and cost considerations. 2. Stability of Unstructured Liquids Unlike structured liquids, unstructured, thin, clear liquids can be developed only if the onset of the formation of liquid crystals is delayed or broken up. This can be accomplished by two different methods: (1) by adding hydrotropes and solvents that can disrupt or prevent any liquid crystal formation and also aid in solubilizing the other components in the formulation or (2) by increasing the water solubility of the individual components. More than likely a combination of the two techniques is used to develop a stable liquid. The respective costs of these approaches ultimately determines their use in the final formulation. Some of the methods used to formulate stable, singlephase, thin, clear, unstructured liquids are summarized below. Compounds such as sodium xylene sulfonate (SXS), propylene glycol, and ethanol are useful in disrupting and preventing the formation of lamellar structures that can opacify and thicken the liquid. SXS is especially useful in solubilizing LAS. Propylene glycol and ethanol have the additional benefit of contributing to enzyme stability. The main drawback of using these compounds is that they do not contribute to the detergency performance of the product. Their principal function is to aid in achieving the thin, clear appearance by solubilizing various ingredients and preventing precipitation and phase separation. It is possible to form concentrated liquid detergents that do not require additional ingredients to assist in the maintenance of a clear appearance. This is usually accomplished by minimizing the use of LAS and electrolytes and maximizing the use of nonionics. The use of ingredients with increased water solubility is probably the most effective tool for producing a singlephase thin, clear liquid. Potassium salts generally tend to be more soluble than their sodium cation counterparts. In these formulations, a higher level of potassium citrate than sodium citrate can be successfully incorporated. Detergency performance is not affected by replacing the Na+ cation with K+.
Page 272
Citrate compounds are saltingout electrolytes—they may tie up water molecules in the liquid and as a result help force the formation of liquid crystals or lamellar structures. It is sometimes possible to reverse this trend by adding saltingin electrolytes, compounds with high lyotropic numbers (>9.5) that can raise the cloud point of the liquid formulation [25]. This permits increased concentration without the onset of structuring. Ethanolamines such as monoethanolamine (MEA) and triethanolamine (TEA) can also be invaluable in enhancing the solubility of the ingredients. These compounds are bifunctional in that they have characteristics common to both alcohols and amines. As a result, salts of MEA and TEA are more soluble than those prepared with Na+. Neutralizing sulfonic acid with MEA is a very effective way of freeing up additional water to allow for further concentration. In addition, any free alkanolamine that is not tied up as a salt behaves like an alcohol and can aid in solubilizing other ingredients. These compounds also provide detergency benefits by buffering the washwater. C. Nonaqueous Liquids Nonaqueous liquids may be classified as structured or unstructured depending on the level of surfactants and other components in their formulation [32]. These detergents have several advantages over aqueous formulations. Nonaqueous detergents can contain all the primary formulation components, including those that are not compatible with or are difficult in aqueous systems. The liquid matrix is a nonionic surfactant or a mixture of nonionic surfactants and a polar solvent such as glycol ether [33–36]. Builders such as phosphates, citrates, or silicates can be incorporated, although zeolites containing about 20% water are not generally recommended [37]. Phosphatefree formulations have also been reported [38]. Bleaches, such as tetraacetyl ethylenediamine (TAED) activated sodium perborate monohydrate, can be included in these formulations. Since these formulations do not contain water, enzymes may be added with minimal need for stabilizers. Softening ingredients can also be included [39,40]. Furthermore, excellent flexibility in the concentration of the detergent can be attained because only the active cleaning ingredients can be included in the formulation. The density of the finished product can be as high as 1.35 g/mL for structured liquids, requiring low dosages for equivalent cleaning. However, the two major challenges facing this technology are physical stability of the product and dispensability and solubilization in the washing machine. III. Components of HeavyDuty Liquid Detergents and Their Properties Heavyduty laundry liquid formulations vary enormously depending upon the washing habits and practices of the consumers in a given geographic region.
Page 273
The degree of complexity can range from formulations that contain minimal amounts of cleaning ingredients to highly sophisticated compositions consisting of superior surfactants, enzymes, builders, and polymers. This section describes the ingredients found in typical HDLD formulations. A. Surfactants Surfactants are the major cleaning components of HDLD formulations throughout the world. Unlike powder detergents, physical and phase stability considerations greatly limit the use of other cleaning ingredients, chiefly builders. Surfactants contribute to the stain removal process by increasing the wetting ability of the fabric surface and stains and by assisting in the dispersion and suspension of the removed soils. An HDLD formulator has a vast array of surfactants from which to choose [41]. A comprehensive listing and description of these surfactants are beyond the scope of this article. The choice and levels of surfactants used in commercial HDLD products depend not only on their performance and physical stability characteristics but also on their cost effectiveness. This section briefly describes the anionic and nonionic surfactants commonly used in commercial HDLD formulations. Cationic surfactants, though also used on a large scale, are mostly used in fabric softener products. Linear alkylbenzene sulfonates (LAS), alcohol ethoxylates, and alkyl ether sulfactes are three of the most widely used types of surfactants in liquid laundry detergents [42]. Recently, various external considerations, such as environmental pressures, have prompted manufacturers to change their surfactants mix to include newer natural types of surfactants [43–45]. 1. Linear Alkylbenzene Sulfonate (LAS) The excellent costperformance relationship of linear alkylbenzene sulfonates (LAS) makes them the dominant surfactants used in laundry detergents [46]. Recent trends in Europe and North America indicate a gradual reduction in their use in HDLDs. Nevertheless, their use in laundry liquids globally is still substantial, especially in the developing regions of the world. De Almeida et al. [47] and Matheson [48] provide a comprehensive examination of the processing, production, and use of linear alkylbenzene in the detergent industry. Linear alkylbenzene sulfonates are anionic surfactants and are prepared by sulfonating the alkylbenzene alkylate and subsequently neutralizing it with caustic soda or any other suitable base. The alkylate group is typically a linear carbon chain of length ranging from C10 to C15, with a phenyl group attached to one of the secondary carbons on the alkyl chain (Fig. 6). The alkylate portion of the molecule is hydrophobic, whereas the sulfonate group provides the water solubility and the hydrophilicity. Most commercial alkylates are mixtures of various phenyl isomers and carbon chain homologs [49]. The
Page 274
FIG. 6 Structures of typical HDLD surfactants.
position of the phenyl group depends on the manufacturing method. Systems using AlCl3 or HF catalysts are the most common. Table 3 lists a typical isomeric and homolog distribution in linear alkylbenzene produced using the HF process. The length of the carbon chain and the isomeric distribution strongly influence the formulatability and performance of the surfactant. It has been determined that the surface activity of this surfactant increases with longer carbon chain lengths [50]. A longer alkyl chain increases the hydrophobicity of the molecule, lowers its CMC, and generally provides better soil removal charac
TABLE 3 Homolog and Isomeric Distribution of Linear Alkylbenzene Prepared Using the Percent
Compound
C10
C11
C12
C13
5Phenyl decane
29.8
0.06
C10–13 ØC11.5
4Phenyl decane
26.6
0.05
3Phenyl decane
22.7
0.09
2Phenyl decane
20.1
0.2
6/5Phenyl undecane
0.4
43.1
4Phenyl undecane
0.2
21.4
3Phenyl undecane
0.2
17.6
2Phenyl undecane
0.1
14.9
6Phenyl dodecane
0.6
22.2
0.07
5Phenyl dodecane
0.6
28.0
0.06
4Phenyl dodecane
0.9
15.5
0.1
3Phenyl dodecane
0.3
12.9
0.2
2Phenyl dodecane
0.1
12.0
0.5
6/7Phenyl tridecane
0.06
33.2
5Phenyl tridecane
0.05
22.2
4Phenyl tridecane
0.02
15.3
3Phenyl tridecane
13.3
2Phenyl tridecane
9.4
2Phenyl isomer
20.2
15.2
12.0
9.9
Source: Ref. 4.
14.8
2Phenyl tridecane
9.4
2Phenyl isomer
20.2
15.2
12.0
9.9
14.8
Source: Ref. 4.
teristics [51–54]. LAS offers superior and very cost effective detergency perfor especially on particulate soils. However, due to its high sensitivity to water hardn best utilized only with an accompanying builder [55]. Figure 7 shows the increase to hardness ions for LAS with longer carbon chain lengths. Without the assistanc builders, the soil removal efficacy of LAS drops rapidly with increasing water har [4,56] (Fig. 8). The amount and type of LAS in HDLDs depend largely on the physical form of t liquid—unstructured or structured. In unstructured liquids, solubility consideration the use of shorter carbon chain lengths ( C11). The choice of cations can also en solubility. Potassium and amine cations such as MEA and TEA can be used inste sodium ions to improve stability [57]. An increase in the proportion of the 2phen the LAS can also increase solubility [58] and sometimes improve the hardness tol the surfactant [59]. In structured liquids, on the other hand, a longer alkyl chain c desirable for the formation of surfactant lamellae. The choice of
Page 276
FIG. 7 Ca2+LAS precipitation boundary diagrams. (Reproduced with permission from Ref. 55.)
FIG. 8 Soil removal data for LAS as a function of water hardness. Results are shown for surfactant with builder (STPP) and electrolyte. (Reproduced with permission from Ref. 4.)
Page 277
the counter ion can also affect stability because ions such as Na+ and K+ have different electrolytic strengths, which can also impact phase stability. A disadvantage of using LAS in HDLDs is their detrimental effect on enzymes. With the increasing use of enzymes it becomes necessary to devote a sizable portion of the formulation space and cost to enzyme stabilization. Alternative approaches using surfactants more compatible with enzymes can be employed. 2. Alcohol Ethoxylates Figure 6 shows the general structure of a nonionic alcohol ethoxylate surfactant. Its hydrophobic group is linear with the carbon chain length ranging typically from C10 to C15. The hydrophilic ethoxylate group can vary in size from an average of 5 to 7 mol of ethylene oxide [60–62]. Alcohol ethoxylates are marketed commercially under the trade names Neodol (Shell Chemical Co.), Genapol (Hoechst AG), Tergitol (Union Carbide Co.), and Alfonic (Vista Chemical Co.). The feedstocks for the alcohol can be derived from natural coconut oil sources as well as from petroleum feedstocks. These surfactants are sold in a 100% concentration and are typically in liquid form. Alcohol ethoxylate usage in HDLDs depends on the type or the physical form of the liquid detergent. Its high aqueous solubility makes it a useful ingredient in unstructured liquids. This solubility can be further enhanced by increasing the degree of ethoxylation and decreasing the carbon chain length. However, these modifications can sometimes have negative ramifications for cleaning performance. The choice of carbon chain length and the degree of ethoxylation depend on the physical stability and cleaning requirements of individual formulations. Structured liquids, on the other hand, can tolerate only a limited amount of the nonionic alcohol ethoxylate surfactant, as the stability of these liquids is dependent on the optimum distribution of the size and packing configuration of lamellar droplets. Excessive use of nonionic surfactants can disturb this somewhat delicate equilibrium and cause phase separation of the HDLD. Nonionic surfactants like alcohol ethoxylates demonstrate superior tolerance to hard water ions. This characteristic is especially useful in unstructured HDLD formulations because solubility constraints limit the amount of builder that can be incorporated. They also provide excellent cleaning benefits and are commonly used in conjunction with LAS in HDLD formulations [54,63]. Studies have shown that in LAScontaining products, alcohol ethoxylates can lower the critical micelle concentration (Fig. 9) as well as provide improvements in the detergency [63]. Superior cleaning is observed, especially on oily soils such as sebum on polyester fabrics [64]. The presence of alcohol ethoxylates in an LAScontaining formulation was found to improve detergency, especially at higher
Page 278
FIG. 9 Critical micelle concentration (CMC) as a function of nonionic surfactant content in a LAS/NI solution. (Reproduced with permission from Ref. 63.)
hardness levels (Fig. 10). Improvements have also been detected when narrow EO range surfactants (Fig. 11) are used [65]. This insensitivity to calcium ions also provides a very important benefit in the stabilization of enzymes (see Sec. III.C). It has been shown that these surfactants are not as detrimental to the preservation of enzymes in HDLDs as NaLAS. With increasing reliance on the use of enzymes in the laundry cleaning process, nonionic surfactants like alcohol ethoxylates play an important role in enhancing enzyme stability. 3. Alkyl Ether Sulfates (AEOS) Alkyl ether sulfates are also anionic surfactants that are manufactured by sulfating alcohol ethoxylate surfactants [66]. Figure 6 shows the structure of the molecule, which consists of the alcohol ethoxylate connected to a sulfate group. The EO groups typically range in size from 1 to 3 moles. These surfactants provide numerous benefits that make them an attractive option to HDLD formulators. They are commonly used in both structured and unstructured liquids. Their high water solubility makes it possible to use a wide range of levels in unstructured liquids. They can also be successfully incorporated in structured liquids. Unlike NaLAS, alcohol ether sulfates are more tolerant to hardness ions and as a result do not require an accompanying high level of builder in the formulation. Figure 12 shows the relative insensitivity of alkyl ether sulfates to hardness ions. The addition of small amounts of NaAEOS to LAS was found to improve interfacial properties. They are more friendly to enzymes, which can also reduce the cost of enzyme stabilizers in the formulation. They are also milder to the skin and as a result are used in hand dishwashing formulations. The
Page 279
FIG. 10 Detergency performance at 100°F of LAS and LAS/AE blends. Formulation also contained 25% STPP, 10% silicate, and 35% sodium sulfate. (Reproduced with permission from Ref. 63.)
superior detergency performance of this surfactant is demonstrated by its superior efficacy in most stain categories. 4. Alkyl Sulfates Alkyl sulfates are anionic surfactants (Fig. 6) that are used primarily in Europe as a substitute for LAS [43]. Environmental considerations have prompted manufacturers to use surfactants of this type, which can be derived from oleochemical sources. The carbon chain length can range from C10 to C18. Tallow alcohol sulfate is a common form used in HDLDs. It provides excellent detergency and good foaming and solubility characteristics.
Page 280
FIG. 11 Typical ethoxylate adduct distribution in narrowrange and broadrange C alcohol surfactants with similar 12–14
cloud points. (Reproduced with permission from Ref. 62.)
FIG. 12 Data showing the hardness tolerance of alkyl ether sulfate surfactants. (Reproduced with permission from Ref. 4.)
Page 281
5. Polyhydroxy Fatty Acid Amides (Glucamides) Polyhydroxy fatty acid amides (Fig. 6) are currently used in light duty and heavy duty laundry liquids. Recent advances in the technology for the manufacture of these surfactants has made their use economically feasible [67– 69]. The use of natural or renewable raw materials improves their biodegradation characteristics. Several patents have been filed for detergent formulations containing glucamides that claim superiority in cleaning efficacy for oily/ greasy and enzymesensitive stains [70–73]. Synergies with other anionic and nonionic surfactants have been reported [72,73]. Their improved skin mildness qualities can be useful in lightduty liquid applications [74]. Enzyme stabilization characteristics in glucamide formulations are also enhanced relative to LAScontaining HDLDs. 6. Methyl Ester Sulfonates Methyl ester sulfonates are anionic surfactants (Fig. 6) that are also derived from oleochemical sources and have good biodegradability characteristics. They are currently used in only a limited number of markets, primarily in Japan [44]. Their good hardness tolerance characteristics (Fig. 13) and their ability to also function as a hydrotrope makes these surfactants a good candidate for liquid detergents [74]. They have also been found to be good cosurfactants for LAScontaining formulations. They can only be used in products with low alkalinity due to the likelihood of hydrolytic cleavage of the ester linkage under high pH conditions. 7. Other Surfactants Once used as a major surfactant in detergent formulations, soap is now used only as a minor ingredient in HDLDs. Its function is primarily to provide foam
FIG. 13 Detergency as a function of water hardness in methyl ester sulfonate/LAS formulations. Conditions: 25°C, surfactant 270 ppm, Na2CO3 135 ppm, silicate 135 ppm. (Reproduced with permission from Ref. 44.)
Page 282
control in the washing machine. European liquid formulations contain higher soap levels than their counterparts in North America because of increased foaming tendencies in European machines. Soap also aids in the cleaning process. However, it can leave behind an encrustation of soap scum on fabric surfaces. A variety of other surfactants are also used, primarily for specialty applications [76]. They include amine oxides, amphoterics, and betaines. B. Builders The primary function of builders in the detergency process is to tie up the hardness ions Ca2+ and Mg2+. They also provide other valuable benefits including maintaining the alkalinity of the wash solution and functioning as antiredeposition and soildispersing agents and, in some cases, as corrosion inhibitors [77–81]. The level of builders used in liquid formulations depends largely on three main criteria: (1) the aqueous solubility of the builder, (2) the physical form of the liquid, and (3) the cost effectiveness of the ingredient. Due to inherent solubility constraints in formulating stable liquid detergents, the usage level of builders in HDLDs is significantly lower than in granulated detergents. This is especially true in the case of unstructured liquids, where the solubility limitations of the builder largely dictate its level in the formulation. In structured liquids, however, a certain amount of electrolytic builder is necessary to induce structuring, which allows the incorporation of significantly higher amounts of builder. Insoluble builders can also be added by suspending them in the liquid. Builder ingredients such as zeolites, phosphates, silicates, or carbonates can account for 20% or more of the total formulation. 1. Mechanisms Builder compounds decrease the concentration of the washwater hardness by forming either soluble or insoluble complexes with the calcium and magnesium ions. The mechanisms by which these ingredients function can be broadly grouped into three classes: (1) sequestration, (2) precipitation, and (3) ion exchange. All three methods have the ultimate effect of lowering the concentration of hardness ions that could interfere with the cleaning process by rendering the surfactants less effective. In sequestration (chelation), the hardness ions Ca2+ and Mg2+ are bound to the builder in the form of soluble complexes. Phosphates, citrates, and NTA are examples of this class of builder compound. Table 4 lists the calciumbinding capacities of various builders. Other strongly chelating compounds exist, phosphonates and EDTA for example, but they are generally not extensively used in HDLDs. The most efficient builder is sodium tripolyphosphate. Unfortunately, tripolyphosphate has been identified as a possible cause of eutrophi
TABLE 4 Sequestration Capacity of Selected Builders
Structure
Ch Sodium diphosphate
Sodium triphosphate
1Hydroxyethane1,1dip
Amino tris methyleneph
Nitrilotriacetic acid
TABLE 4 Continued
Structure
Chemical name N(2Hydroxyethyl)im
Ethylenediamine tetra
1,2,3,4Cyclopentane
(table continued on next page)
(table continued from previous page)
Structure
Chemical name Citric acid
OCarboxymethyl tartr
Carboxymethyl oxysuc
Source: Ref. 82.
Page 286
cation of lakes and rivers. It is severely controlled and even banned in several countries. As a result, most countries in North America and Europe have converted to nonphosphate formulations. Other regions are also gradually imposing restrictions on the use of phosphates. Carbonates are examples of builders that precipitate out the calcium ions in the form of calcium carbonate. Precipitation builders, however, can leave behind insoluble deposits on the clothes and washing machine parts. Aluminosilicates such as zeolites are ionexchange compounds: they remove calcium and magnesium ions and exchange them with sodium ions. Most builders also contribute significantly to detergency by providing alkalinity to the washwater. A high pH (>8) solution aids in the removal of oily soils such as sebum stains by saponifying them. Insoluble fatty acids found in oily soils are converted to soluble soap in the presence of alkalinity. 2. Builder Classes (a) Inorganic. In regions where phosphorus compounds are still permitted in detergent products, polyphosphates such as tripolyphosphates and pyrophosphates are unsurpassed in their cost effectiveness and cleaning ability. These ingredients are not only very good chelating agents but also provide a soilsuspending benefit. Stains, once removed from the fabric, can be suspended in the washwater by electrostatic repulsion, thereby preventing soils from redepositing onto the clothes. To a certain extent phosphates also buffer the washwater. The solubility of tripolyphosphates can be enhanced by using the potassium salt. This would be the more appropriate for unstructured liquids. In structured liquids, the sodium salt can be incorporated at much higher levels. Carbonate compounds offer an economical means of reducing the calcium content and also raising the alkalinity of the washwater. They lower the concentration of the calcium by precipitating it in the form of calcium carbonate. This could lead to fabric damage in the form of encrustation, which becomes especially apparent after repeated washing cycles. Fortunately, this is not a major problem in unstructured HDLDs, because the amount of carbonate used in the formulation is limited by solubility restrictions. Compounds such as sesquicarbonates and bicarbonates that are less likely to lead to the formation of calcium carbonate precipitates have better solubility characteristics and can be used to a greater extent in unstructured liquids. On the other hand, structured liquids offer the potential of incorporating much higher amounts of these compounds. Carbonates are also good washwater buffers and can provide the alkalinity needed for improved efficacy. Another class of ingredients that are effective at providing alkalinity are the sodium silicates [83]. Although they can also be good sequestrants and are used as such in powder formulations, they provide this benefit only at higher con
Page 287
centrations. Once again, the solubility restrictions prevent the incorporation of any substantial amounts in unstructured liquids. At the low levels at which they can be used, they are valuable as alkaline buffers. The use of sodium silicates in HDLDs is limited to the liquid silicates, which have SiO2/Na2O ratios from 3.2 to 1.8. Aluminosilicates [Mz (zAlO2: y SiO2)] are another type of builders, of which zeolite A is a common example [84]. Zeolite A is a sodium aluminosilicate with an Al/Si ratio of 1:1 and a formula of Na12(SiO2∙ A O2)12∙ 27H2O. It acts as a builder by exchanging sodium ions inside the lattice with calcium ions from the washwater. Zeolites are not effective in providing alkalinity and are normally used in conjunction with carbonates. They are insoluble in water and are therefore not suitable for formulating unstructured liquids. In structured liquids, zeolites are suspended as solid particles. (b) Organic. The restrictions placed on the use of phosphate compounds in detergent formulations have led to a variety of organic compounds that could function as builders but must also be readily biodegradable. Although some of these compounds do approach the sequestration level of phosphates, they are not as costeffective [85]. Various polycarboxylate compounds, those with at least three carboxylate groups, have now become widely used as replacements for phosphates as the builder component of HDLDs. In liquid detergent formulations, citrate compounds have become commonplace. Though their chelating ability is relatively low (Fig. 14), citrate compounds are used in HDLDs for a variety of reasons. Citrate's high aqueous solubility makes it useful in unstructured liquids, whereas in structured liquids its high electrolytic strength can aid in salting out and stabilizing the formulation. In addition, it is used in enzymecontaining formulations where maintenance of the pH at less than 9.0 is crucial to the stability of the enzyme. Citric acid itself has also been patented as an ingredient in protease stabilization systems [87]. Ether polycarboxylates have been determined to provide improvements over the calcium and magnesiumchelating ability of citrates. In a series of patents assigned to Procter & Gamble, it has been claimed that a combination of tartrate monosuccinates and tartrate disuccinates (Fig. 15) delivers excellent chelating performance [88–90]. Data shown in Fig. 16 indicate a high level of calciumbinding capacity. Salts of polyacetic acids, e.g., ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA) and nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA), have long been known to be very effective chelating agents [91]. The chelating ability of NTA has been found to be comparable to that of TPP. Unfortunately, questions regarding the toxicity of this compound have all but prevented any largescale use in HDLDs. Currently, NTA usage is primarily limited to a few powder formulations in Canada. The high chela
Page 288
FIG. 14 Sequestration of water hardness ions by detergent builders. ( ) Sodium polyacrylate M w = 170,000; ( ) STPP; (
) NTA; (
) EDTA; (
) sodium citrate; (
)
CMOS; ( ) sodium carbonate; ( ) zeolite A. (Reproduced with permission from Ref. 86.)
FIG. 15 Ether polycarboxylate builders.
Page 289
FIG. 16 Effect of builder level on calcium ion concentration. (From Ref. 89.) CMOS, sodium carboxymethoxysuccinate; ODS, sodium oxydisuccinate; STP, sodium tripolyphosphate; TMS, tartrate monosuccinate; TDS, tartrate disuccinate.
tion power of EDTA has been used in compositions where metal impurities of iron and copper can be detrimental to the product stability, as, for example, in peroxide bleachcontaining liquids. Polymeric polyelectrolytes have also found applications as builder ingredients [92,93]. High molecular weight polyacrylates and acrylic maleic copolymers can be very effective in tying up calcium ions in the wash (Fig. 17). However, concerns about their biodegradability and aqueous solubility have significantly limited their use in liquid formulations. These polymer systems can also aid in soil dispersion and in antiredeposition. In products containing carbonates, these polymers can disrupt calcium carbonate crystallite formation and as a result prevent encrustation on clothes. Fatty acids such as oleic and coco fatty acid (saturation level) added to HDLDs can serve a multifunctional role. Though they primarily provide a foam suppression capability, they can also precipitate out some of the calcium ions in the wash by forming calcium soap. This could, however, pose a problem because soap scum is insoluble and may impact the overall cleaning result. C. Enzymes Enzymes have become integral components of most liquid detergent compositions as they continue to play an increasingly larger role in the stain removal
Page 290
FIG. 17 Sequestration of water hardness ions by sodium polyacrylate polymers. ( ( (
) M w=2100; (
)M w=5100; )M w=20,000; ( )M w=60,000; ( )M w=170,000, ) M =240,000. (Reproduced with permission from w
Ref. 86.)
process. This has come about because of many recent advances in enzyme technology and has resulted in more efficient and effective strains. The ability of these enzymes to target specific classes of stains can provide the formulator with the flexibility to tailor the development of products for consumers with different requirements and preferences. In addition, enzymes are especially effective when the liquid detergent is used as a prespotter. There are four types of enzymes currently being used in HDLDs: protease, lipase, cellulase, and amylase [6,94]. They are all proteins and are derived from various living organisms. Their role is to catalyze the hydrolysis of large biological molecules into smaller units that are more soluble and as a result are washed away relatively easily. The optimum conditions for the functioning of these enzymes depend on individual strains or types. Generally, the rates of these enzymatic reactions rise with increasing temperatures and are usually optimum within an alkaline pH range of 9–11.
Page 291
Proteases are by far the most widely used of all detergent enzymes. Introduced in the 1960s, they have since become one of the more important components of the detergent formulation [6]. Proteases aid in the removal of many soils commonly encountered by the consumer such as food stains, blood, and grass. These enzymes hydrolyze or break up the peptide bonds found in proteins, resulting in the formation of smaller and more soluble polypeptides and amino acids. Since most enzymes have to function at high pH conditions, subtilisin, a bacterial alkaline protease, is commonly used in laundry detergents. This particular protease does not hydrolyze any specific peptide bond in the proteinaceous stain but cleaves bonds in a somewhat random manner. Amylase enzymes work on food stains of the starchy variety, like rice, spaghetti sauce, and gravy. These enzymes hydrolyze the 1–4glucosidic bonds in starch, which leads to the formation of smaller watersoluble molecules. Amylase randomly hydrolyzes the bonds in the starch polymer to form dextrin molecules. Amylase, on the other hand, cleaves the maltose units that are situated at the end of the starch polymer. The use of lipases in detergents is a relatively recent occurrence. The first commercial detergent lipase was introduced in 1988 [(6,94]. These enzymes target the oily/greasy stains that are some of the most difficult stains to remove. The major components of most oily stains encountered in households are triglycerides. Lipases catalyze the hydrolysis of mostly the C1 and C3 bonds in the triglyceride molecule, yielding soluble free fatty acids and diglyceride (Fig. 18). In practice, it has been determined that lipases work best subsequent to the first wash (Fig. 19). It is believed that the temperatures encountered in a typical drying process are needed to activate the enzyme. Though most oily stains can also be cleaned using traditional surfactant methods, the main benefit of lipases is their ability to perform at relatively low concentrations and low temperatures. With greater emphasis given to the care of the fabric, cellulase enzymes have become increasingly important in detergent products [94]. Repeated washing often leads to cotton fabrics looking faded and worn. This appearance is attributed to the damaged cellulose microfibrils on the fabric surface. Cellulase en
FIG. 18 Lipasecatalyzed conversion of insoluble oily (triglyceride) soils.
Page 292
FIG. 19 Effect of lipase enzyme (Lipolase) on lard/Sudan Red stains as a function of the number of wash cycles. Conditions: Powder detergent, temp 30°C, Tergotometer, pH 9.7. (Reproduced with permission from Ref. 6.)
zymes are able to hydrolyze the (1–4) bonds along the cellulose polymer, resulting in smaller units that are carried away in the wash (Fig. 20). The removal of these damaged microfibrils or pilling gives the clothing a less faded appearance (Fig. 21).
FIG. 20 Hydrolysis of cellulose fibers by cellulase enzyme.
Page 293
FIG. 21 Effect of cellulase on the color clarity and pilling tendency of a cotton fabric. European machine at 40°C using a new black cotton fabric. (Reproduced with permission from Ref. 6.)
1. Enzyme Stabilization Enzymes are highly susceptible to degradation in heavy duty laundry liquids. With increasing emphasis on the use of enzymes as cleaning agents, it becomes all the more important that these enzymes be protected against premature degradation or at least maintain their performance throughout the shelf life of the product. Many factors contribute to the denaturation of the enzymes in HDLDs. They include free water, alkalinity, bleaches, and calcium ion concentration. The presence of free water in the formulation is a major cause of enzyme degradation. This process is greatly accelerated at increasingly alkaline conditions. Generally, enzymecontaining commercial HDLDs are maintained within a pH range of 7–9 (Fig. 22). However, this constraint can affect the detergency, as most enzymes attain their optimum efficacy at pH ranges of 9– 11. Certain additional ingredients, especially bleaches, can also have a major detrimental effect on enzyme stability. It is believed that ingredients that are capable of depriving the enzyme's active site of calcium ions are detrimental to enzyme stability. It is hypothesized that calcium ions bind at the bends of the polypeptide chain, resulting in a stiffer and more compact molecule [96–98]. Builders and surfactants that have affinities toward calcium ions are examples of such ingredients. The degree of stability also varies greatly with the type of surfactant or builder used. Linear alkylbenzene sulfonate and alkyl sulfate surfactants have been found to be more detrimental to enzymes than alcohol ethoxylates or alkyl ether sulfates [95]. The
Page 294
FIG. 22 Effect of product pH on protease stability in an HDLD containing alcohol ethoxylate and alcohol ethoxy sulfates. (Reproduced with permission from Ref. 95.)
degree of ethoxylation also affects the status of the enzyme. In ether sulfates, improved stability is observed with increasing EO groups up to five to seven EO groups [96]. LAS is more likely to bind with the calcium ions in the product than other more hardnesstolerant surfactants such as alkyl ether sulfates or the nonionic alcohol ethoxylate surfactants. This has been considered a possible cause of faster enzyme degradation in LAScontaining HDLDs (Fig. 23). Similarly, in formulations with builders or chelants, additional calcium is sometimes added to shift the equilibrium to favor the enzyme's active sites and prevent premature deactivation. Other mechanisms for enzyme denaturation in the presence of surfactants have also been proposed. One hypothesis is that the high charge densities of the ionic surfactants increase the probability of their binding strongly onto protein sites. This causes conformational changes of the enzyme, which subsequently lead to further enzyme deactivation [95,99]. The task of stabilizing enzymes is further complicated by the fact that increasingly HDLD formulations contain more than one enzyme (e.g., protease, lipase, and cellulase) system. In such systems, not only do the enzymes have to be protected against denaturation, but also enzymes such as lipase and cellulase, which are themselves proteins, have to be shielded from the protease.
Page 295
FIG. 23 Effect of surfactant type on protease stability. AE, Alcohol ethoxylate; AE253S, Alcohol ethoxy sulfate; LAS, linear alkylbenzene sulfonate. (Reproduced with permission from Ref. 95.)
(a) ProteaseOnly HDLDs. All stabilization systems function either by binding to the active site of the enzyme or by altering the equilibria of the formulation to favor the stable active sites. The system is effective in protecting the enzyme only if the stabilizing molecule binds strongly to the enzyme while in a formulation but easily dissociates from the enzyme's active sites when it encounters the dilute conditions in the wash. Letton and Yunker [100] and Kaminsky and Christy [101] describe protease stabilization systems composed of a combination of a calcium salt and a salt of a carboxylic acid, preferably a formate. These ingredients are moderately effective in enzyme stabilization and are relatively inexpensive. Care has to be taken, however, when adding divalent ions such as calcium to HDLDs to prevent the possibility of precipitation. An improvement over this earlier system was attained with the addition of boron compounds such as boric acid or borate salts [102–104]. It has been hypothesized that boric acid and calcium form intramolecular bonds that effectively crosslink or staple an enzyme molecule together [103,104]. The use of polyols such as propylene glycol, glycerol, and sorbitol in conjunction with the boric acid salts has further enhanced the stability of these enzymes [105–107].
Page 296
The patent art contains numerous examples of enzyme stabilization systems that use borates, polyols, carboxylate salts, calcium, and ethanolamines or combinations thereof [87,108–111]. (b) Mixed Enzyme HDLDs. In HDLD formulations with additional enzymes besides protease, it becomes increasingly difficult to stabilize all the enzymes. Amylases, lipases, and cellulases are themselves proteins and hence are susceptible to attack from the protease. Various approaches to stabilizing a mixed enzyme system have been documented in the patent literature. One approach attempts to extend the stabilization techniques developed to stabilize proteaseonly formulations and apply them to mixed enzyme liquids [112– 114]. Compounds that bind even more tightly to the protease active sites and as a result inhibit this enzyme's activity in the product during shelf storage have been identified. However, this method is effective only if the enzyme inhibition can be reversed under the dilute conditions of the washwater. Various boronic acids [115–119] (e.g., arylboronic acids and amino boronic acids), peptide aldehyde [120], peptide ketone [121], and aromatic borate ester [122] compounds have been found that deliver this type of performance. It is believed that boronic acids inhibit proteolytic enzyme by attaching themselves at the active site. A boronserine covalent bond and a hydrogen bond between histidine and a hydroxyl group on the boronic acid apparently are formed [118]. The patent literature also describes methods of stabilizing the cellulase enzymes in mixed enzyme systems with hydrophobic amine compounds such as cyclohexylamine and nhexylamine [123]. Recently, alternative methods have also been developed to stabilize these complex enzyme systems. The technique of microencapsulation [124] is designed to physically prevent the protease enzyme from interacting with the other enzymes (Fig. 24). This is accomplished by a composite emulsion polymer
FIG. 24 Enzyme microencapsulation. (Reproduced with permission from Ref. 6.)
Page 297
system that has a hydrophilic portion attached to a hydrophobic core polymer. The protease is stabilized by trapping it within a network formed by the hydrophobic polymer. D. Bleaches Bleaches play a significant role in detergent formulations because they can affect cleaning efficacy, which is easily perceived by consumers. Bleaching action involves the whitening or lightening of stains by the chemical removal of color. Bleaching agents chemically destroy or modify chromophobic systems and degrade dye compounds, resulting in smaller and more watersoluble molecules that are easily removed in the wash. Typical bleachsensitive stains include food, coffee, tea, fruits, and some particulate soils. Bleaches can also aid in minimizing “dinginess,” which gives clothes a gray or yellow tint caused by a combination of fabric fiber damage and dirt buildup. There are two types of bleaches used in the laundry process: hypochlorite and peroxygen bleaches. Although hypochlorite bleaches by themselves are effective bleaches, they lead to color fading and fabric damage and are difficult to incorporate into detergent formulations. Peroxygen bleaches, on the other hand, though not as effective, can be formulated into detergents and cause minimal color fading or fabric damage. They also bleach out food stains as the chromophores found in these stains are susceptible to peroxide bleaches. Fabric dyes, however, are not as active as food dyes and are therefore not easily affected by the peroxygen compounds. Most detergents with bleach formulations are in the powder form. Unfortunately, the aqueous nature of the HDLDs does not easily permit the formulation of bleach components. This is especially true in unstructured liquids, where the stability of the peroxygen components is severely compromised. Nevertheless, attempts have been made to produce HDLDs that also contain bleaches. 1. Peroxygen Bleaches Detergent formulations containing peroxide bleach contain either hydrogen peroxide or compounds that react to form hydrogen peroxide in the wash. The most direct source for peroxide bleaching is hydrogen peroxide. Numerous attempts have been made to develop stable HDLDs containing hydrogen peroxide [125–127]. The stability of this ingredient in aqueous formulations, however, is of concern. Hydrogen peroxide is very susceptible to decomposition in aqueous environments, largely because trace impurities of metal ions such as iron, manganese, and copper can catalyze its decomposition [128]. Alkalinity also accelerates this process. For these reasons HDLDs containing hydrogen peroxide are maintained at an acidic pH and usually also contain a strong chelating agent to sequester metal ions. A free radical scavenger is also sometimes
Page 298
added to further enhance stability. Polyphosphonate compounds and butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) are examples of chelating agents and free radical scavengers, respectively, that are used in hydrogen peroxidecontaining formulations [129]. Still, the bleaching performance of these products is inadequate, especially at low temperatures. These limitations have prompted manufacturers to look to other methods to develop bleach HDLDs. Inorganic peroxygen compounds such as sodium perborate tetrahydrate or monohydrate and sodium percarbonate can also be used as sources of hydrogen peroxide. These insoluble compounds release hydrogen peroxide on contact with the washwater. The challenge is to stabilize them within an HDLD formulation. The ability of structured liquids to suspend solids between the surfactant lamellae or spherulites can be made use of in these products [130– 133]. It is possible to suspend sodium perborate in highly concentrated structured liquids. The minimization of contact with water prevents the peroxygen compounds from decomposing prematurely. It has also been found that the use of solvents further improves their stability [134]. Hydrophobic silica can enhance stability in unstructured liquids [135]. The most effective method of formulating with perborates and percarbonates is with nonaqueous liquids. The complete absence of water and a high level of solvents significantly enhance the stability of bleaches in the product. 2. Peracid and Activated Peroxygen Bleaches Peroxy carboxylic acids or peracids are far more effective bleaching compounds than peroxygen molecules, especially at low and ambient temperatures. The high reactivity and low stability of these compounds have so far prevented them from being used in commercial detergent bleach formulations. Peracids are somewhat stable in aqueous solutions of neutral pH, and they equilibrate with water in the acid pH range to form hydrogen peroxide and carboxylic acids. However, in alkaline conditions these compounds undergo accelerated decomposition. Nevertheless, attempts have been made to develop HDLDs that take advantage of the ability of structured liquids to suspend insoluble solids. Patents have been issued for liquid detergent formulations that incorporate peroxy acids such as diperoxy dodecane dioic acid [136,137] and amido and imido peroxy acids [138,139]. These product formulations are also maintained at acidic pH to reduce the premature reaction of the peracid. An alternative and more desirable method of bleaching is by forming the peracid in the washwater. This is accomplished by reacting a bleach activator compound with a source of hydrogen peroxide such as perborate, percarbonate, or hydrogen peroxide itself in an aqueous environment. In this reaction, referred to as perhydrolysis (Fig. 25), the bleach activator undergoes nucleophilic attack from a perhydroxide anion generated from hydrogen peroxide, resulting in the formation of percarboxylic acid. This formulation strategy is used effec
Page 2
FIG. 25 Bleach activator (nonanoyloxybenzene sulfonate) reactions. (Reproduced with permission from Ref. 94.)
tively in powder detergents where perborate and percarbonate compounds are used along with activators such as tetraacetyl ethylenediamine (TAED) and sodiu nonanoyl oxybenzene sulfonate (NOBS). Unfortunately, in liquid detergents the challenge is to incorporate hydrogen peroxide and an activator compound in an aqueous formulation and prevent thes two components from reacting prematurely in the product itself. A novel method uses emulsions formed by nonionic surfactants with varying HLB values to protec a soluble activator, acetyl triethyl citrate, from other ingredients, including hydrog peroxide, in the product [140–142]. An acidic pH and the addition of a strong chelating compound aid in achieving product stability. Other patents using NOBS [143], glycol and glycerin esters [144], and a lipaseanhydride combination [14 have been issued. E. Optical Brighteners It has been found that fabrics, especially cotton, begin to appear yellowish after repeated washing cycles. Virtually all modern liquid detergent formulations contai very small amounts ( G".
FIG. 8 Shear stress versus shear rate for a commercial LADD. The rheograms were recorded on a CarriMed CSL 100 stresscontrolled rheometer using a 4 cm acrylic parallel plate configuration with gap setting of 1000 m.
Page 349
Both G' and G " are related to the complex modulus G* and complex viscosity * by the following relationships:
where is the angular frequency of the oscillation. The relative magnitudes of the two moduli provide significant information regarding the strength of internal association or structure in fluids and dispersions. These moduli are measured as a function of strain, frequency, or time. For some dispersions, the magnitudes of G' and G " may remain constant as a function of either frequency or strain. Such materials are referred to as linearly viscoelastic. Plots of G' and G " versus % strain for the three major commercial gel LADDs sold in the United States are shown in Figs. 9–11. In this experiment, a strain is applied to the sample and the stress response is measured. The elasticity and viscosity of a gel are essential criteria for ease of dispensing and cup retention in the dishwasher. For example, a patent issued to Corring and Gabriel [85] claims that viscosities of 1000–20,000 cP under 51 shear, 200–to 5000 cP under 21 s1 shear, and a steadystate viscoelastic deformation compliance value of at least 0.01 are ideal for product dispensability and cup
FIG. 9 G' and G" versus % strain for a commercial LADD. The rheograms were recorded on a CarriMed CSL 100 stresscontrolled rheometer using a 4 cm acrylic parallel plate configuration with gap setting of 1000 m.
Page 350
FIG. 10 Plots of the G' and G" vs % strain for a commercial LADD. The rheograms were recorded on a CarriMed CSL 100 stresscontrolled rheometer using a 4 cm acrylic parallel plate configuration with gap setting of 1000 m.
retention (as measured on a Haake Rotovisco RV100 viscometer). A series of patents issued to Dixit and coworkers [51,52,55,67,68] emphasizes the importance of linear viscoelasticity as defined by tan as an important rheological characteristic for LADDs.
FIG. 11 Plots of the G' and G" vs % strain for a commercial LADD. The rheogran were recorded on a CarriMed CSL 100 stresscontrolled rheometer using a 4 cm acryl parallel plate configuration with gap setting of 1000 m.
Page 351
V. Evaluation of Performance Essential to the development of new LADD products is the evaluation of their performance. It is important that the test conditions closely reproduce the conditions encountered by the consumer under typical household situations; therefore, prototype formulas are usually tested in actual dishwashing machines using real food soils. Typically, performance evaluation tests are run using a variety of soiled items, because a combination of soils are typically encountered by consumers. For example, spotting and filming on standard glass tumblers are run in conjunction with plates and cutlery soiled with egg, oatmeal, spinach, tomato sauce, and various other common food soils. In addition, the ability of the ADD product to remove tough stains, such as coffee, tea, and blueberry, is assessed on a variety of substrates during these multisoil test cycles. Ideally, testing should be conducted using machines from all major manufacturers, because differences exist in detergent dosing amounts, water fill amounts, and lengths and order of cycles. It is also important that performance tests be carried out at different water hardnesses, because regional variations exist. Water hardness for testing purposes can be controlled by the addition of simple salts of calcium and magnesium to deionized water. A 2:1 mole ratio commonly is used because this is the Ca2+/Mg2+ ratio encountered in most water supplies. A. Spotting and Filming The standard method for the testing of ADD products in the area of spot or film prevention on glassware is described in ASTM D3556 [86]. The test entails the washing of glass tumblers using commercial automatic dishwashing machines. Initially the glasses are coated with whole milk, and a soil consisting of margarine and powdered, nonfat milk (40 g in an 8:2 ratio) is added before starting the cycle. The soil can be introduced by spreading on dinner plates or by adding directly to the wash. This combination of soils provides the fats and proteins generally present during typical household wash cycles. Optionally, a similar soil mixture that also contains cooked cereal can be added, providing a source of starch. For completeness, a combination of dinner plates, dessert plates, and silverware is placed in the machine for ballast. It is recommended that at least five complete cycles be run during a test, coating the glasses with milk and adding the soil at the beginning of each cycle. This is to ensure that product performance remains acceptable after repeated cycles. Detergents that are underbuilt, for example, lead to heavy filming on the glasses only after several cycles. The two test parameters that are typically varied during spot/film tests are the water temperature and hardness. To dis
Page 352
criminate between similar products, it is often useful to run the tests under stress conditions, that is, low temperature and high water hardness. In contrast, to determine how a detergent might perform under normal household conditions, higher temperatures and lower water hardnesses should be used. The ASTM procedure also describes a rating method for judging the spotting and filming on glasses. The readings are done visually using a fluorescent light box to highlight spotting and filming on the glasses being inspected. The performance of a product is rated on a 1–5 scale for both spotting and filming, as shown in Table 6. The use of photometry to rate the spotting and filming on glassware eliminates the possibility of subjective judging by humans. Several systems have been described in the literature that take advantage of this technique [87]. B. Soil Removal When testing the performance of ADD products, it is often useful to determine the ability of the detergent to remove tough food soils from items being washed. In selecting the soils to be used, the following criteria must be met. The soils must be representative of what consumers encounter in their kitchen, but they must not be removed so easily that all products are rendered equal in cleaning efficiency. The soils can be roughly divided into two classes: water soluble or dispersible and waterinsoluble. Examples of the former are sugars, starch, flour, or egg whites; the latter soils might be animal or vegetable fats. Egg yolks have proven to be an especially useful soil for performance testing of ADD products. They contain a very high protein content and thus are not saponified by the heat and alkalinity during the wash cycle as are fatty soils. Their efficient removal from dinner plates can only be accomplished by detergents that target proteinaceous soils. Often, CaCl2 is mixed into the egg mixture to make a cohesiveadhesive egg complex capable of remaining on the dishes throughout the complete cycle [88]. Otherwise, the mechanical energy from the water jets alone removes the egg from the plate. Typically, 2–3 g CaCl2/25 g egg yolk are added. This more closely stimulates typically soiled plates, which might derive a small amount of calcium from milk or salts TABLE 6 Rating Scale for Spotting and Filming of Glassware Rating
Spotting
Filming
1
No spots
None
2
Random spots
Barely perceptible
3
¼ surface covered
Slight
4
½ surface covered
Moderate
5
Virtually completely covered
Heavy
Page 353
present. A known weight of the egg soil should be spread on dinner plates. The degree of egg removal after the cycle is determined either visually or by weight difference. An added bonus of this test is that it provides a proteinaceous soil to the wash liquor, making the spotting and filming scores more realistic. Studies have shown proteinaceous soils to be a source of spotting on glasses [12]. It is important to place the egg plates consistently in the same position in the dishwasher to minimize spray arm effects. The Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers has published a set of standards for testing of the automatic dishwashing process [89]. A multisoil test is described for testing of detergents. The items to be washed are soiled as listed in Table 7. The test procedure also describes how to load the items into the dishwasher and other test parameters. Variations in the types and number of soils and items used for a multisoil test are permissible. It is desirable, though, to use a soil combination that contains the major types of soils (proteinaceous, fatty, and starchy), because some ADD products might effectively remove some soils but not others. This is especially true of formulas that contain enzymes. C. Stain Removal Besides the prevention of spots and film and the removal of food soils from items being washed, LADD products must also effectively remove stains. For TABLE 7 Recommended Multisoil Test Item
Soil
Quantity
Dinner plates
Mashed potato
1 tsp
Raspberry preserves
1 tsp
Ground beef
½tsp
Egg yolk
1 tsp
Coffee grounds
1/8 tsp
Butter plates
Cream corn
¼tsp
Oatmeal
¼ tsp
Flatware
Knives
Peanut butter
¼ tsp
Spoons
Cream corn
Coated
Forks
Egg yolk
Coated
Serving spoon
Cream corn, potato
Coated
Serving fork
Egg yolk
Coated
Coffee cups
Coffee
Coates
Saucers
Coffee
Coated
Glasses
Tomato juice
Coated
Egg yolk
Coated
Coffee cups
Coffee
Coates
Saucers
Coffee
Coated
Glasses
Tomato juice
Coated
Serving bowls
Cream corn
1 tsp
Mashed potato
1 tbsp
Serving fork
Page 354
this purpose, LADDs often employ bleaching agents that act by oxidizing the chromophore responsible for the stain color. Generally, as the oxidizing potential of the bleach increases, its effectiveness also increases. The common method employed to gauge stain removal is to allow either coffee or tea to dry in a porcelain, plastic, or glass cup. The cups are then run in a standard soil test [89]. D. Foaming The minimization of foam generated by detergent and food soils during wash cycles in the automatic dishwashing process is a prerequisite for efficient mechanical cleaning by the machine spray arms. Foam decreases the water pressure pumped through the rotors, decreasing the kinetic energy of the water jets. As stated in Sec. II, mechanical action has been estimated to be responsible for 85% of the cleaning in a machine dishwashing cycle. Lowering of the wash pressure therefore has a noticeable effect on overall cleaning. Because of this, ADD formulations, especially those containing anionic surfactants, often contain defoamers. A standard test method has been developed for the measurement of foam during an automatic dishwashing cycle. This method is described in the CSMA Compendium, Method DCC001 [90]. The test involves the measurement of the machine spray arm rotational velocity (rpm) at 1 minute intervals over a 10 minute wash cycle. The rotor rpm decreases in the presence of foam because the water pressure being pumped through the spray arm is lower. To measure the revolutions per minute, a magnetically activated “Reed” switch is used and the spray arm is fitted with a magnet. The detergent is dosed normally, and a highfoaming soil is added before the cycle begins. The recommended soil is nonfat powdered milk (10 g) or a powdered milk and egg white combination (1:1). The efficiency score for a particular detergent is obtained by taking the average of the arm speed readings and dividing by the average reading for the control. In this experiment, the control is the same experiment without the detergent or soil. As in other performance tests, it is good practice to use the same machine for all comparative experiments to eliminate variations due to the use of different machines. Different machines have slightly different motors, which produce slightly different rotor velocities. E. Fine China Overglaze Fine china is often decorated with colored patterns made from various metal salts or oxides. Two methods are commonly used: underglaze, in which the color is applied before the glaze, and overglaze, in which it is applied after the glaze. The overglaze pattern on fine china is incompatible with the high alka
Page 355
linity characteristic of ADD products. Unless the china is somehow protected from hydroxide ions during the wash, the overglaze and color are attacked and destroyed. To protect against this, LADDs are generally formulated with sodium silicate, which acts by coating the china with a protective siliceous layer, preventing the alkali from coming in contact with the overglaze itself. Silicate works in a similar manner to protect metal machine parts from corrosion. A procedure has been developed to test the effectiveness of ADD products in fine china overglaze protection. This method is described in ASTM D3565 [91]. Segments of a china plate are soaked in a 0.3% ADD solution held at 96.0–99.5°C in a steam bath. Two controls are also set up, consisting of a sodium carbonate solution and water only. The segments of the china plate are placed in supporting wire mesh to avoid contact with the bottom of the steel beakers used. The solutions are heated for 6 h, after which the china segments are removed and rubbed vigorously with a 1.5 inch square of muslin. The plate segment is then washed, dried, and visually inspected for fading. An effective detergent should prevent any sign of wear. VI. Formulation Technology The formulation of LADDs comprises a balance among performance, esthetics, and cost. For the consumer to accept the product, it must possess several attributes, listed in Table 8. In formulating LADDs, the components used must not only clean the dishware effectively but must also yield a stable, physically attractive product with specific rheological characteristics. As far as cleaning is concerned, the product must prevent spotting and filming on glass items and remove food soils encountered under typical conditions. To meet these criteria, LADDs utilize a combination of components. The bulk of food removal from soiled dishes is accomplished by two mechanisms. Fatty soils are removed by a combination of the high temperature and alkalinity present, which melts and saponifies fats. Proteinaceous and starchy soils, on the other hand, are attacked by oxidation and hydrolysis. The removal of tough stains, such as coffee or tea, can only be accomplished by strong TABLE 8 Important Attributes of LADDs
Effective cleaning
Convenient to use
Safe to dishes and tableware
Safe to dishwasher
Stable upon storage
Safe to humans
Economical to use
Page 356
bleaching agents, such as hypochlorite. Hypochlorite also has a sanitizing effect on the washed items. More effective soil removal is accomplished by the use of enzymes, which selectively and efficiently attack fats, starches, or proteins. Listed in Table 9 are relevant patents that disclose novel cleaning technologies in LADDs. Equally important when formulating LADDs is making a product that is stable and easy to handle. LADDs are concentrated suspensions that must be properly structured to prevent separation upon storage. The product must also be thickened for two reasons: to prevent it from prematurely leaking out of the machine dispenser cup and to make it easier to control when dosing. However, the product must be shear thinning so that it easily flows under an applied stress. Early LADDs were thickened by clay thickeners. More recently, the use of highmolecularweight polymeric thickeners, optionally with fatty acid or other surfactant cothickeners, has solved the separation problems. Patents in this area are listed in Table 10. Patents that disclose processing or manufacturing methods used in LADD production are listed in Table 11. Other important considerations must be taken into account when formulating LADDs. Because of the corrosiveness of typical LADDs, ingredients must be added that protect both the machine itself and fine items, such as china and silverware. Generally, silicate is added for this purpose, but its inherent alkalinity in aqueous solutions is not always desired. In Table 12, several patents are listed that describe other anticorrosion agents. As previously mentioned, a hurdle in formulating bleachcontaining LADD products is that many useful ingredients are not stable toward hypochlorite. Table 13 lists patents that claim bleachstable nonionic surfactants, and Table 14 lists patents relating to the stabilization of LADD components. VII. Auxiliary Products A. Liquid Prespotters The automatic dishwasher detergents in today's marketplace, both liquid and powder versions, deliver cleaning performance acceptable to most consumers. However, one area in which consumers would like to see product improvement is in cleaning of bakedon, cookedon, and driedon food soils. These soils are tenaciously stuck to the surfaces and are hard to remove unless strong mechanical forces are applied. To make the cleaning task of such hard toremove soils easier, special liquid formulations, often referred to as “prespotters,” have been developed. The idea of a prespotter is to spray the product onto the soiled surface and allow it to stand at ambient temperature over a period of 30–60 minutes before they are cleaned in the dishwasher. This process allows the soil to soften and debond or the adhesive forces between the soil and the substrate to loosen. The
TABLE 14 Patents Relating to Stabilization of LADD Components Patent and year
Inventor(s) and company
Technology
US 5384061 (1995) [128]
Wise (Procter & Gamble)
Chlorine bleach ingredient, phytic stabilizing agent
US 5258132 (1993) [129]
Kamel et al. (Lever Bros.)
Wax encapsulation of bleach, enz catalysts
US 5230822 (1993) [130]
Kamel et al. (Lever Bros.)
Wax encapsulation of bleach, enz catalysts
US 5225096 (1993) [131]
Ahmed et al. (Colgate Palmolive)
Alkali metal iodate
US 5185096 (1993) [132]
Ahmed (ColgatePalmolive)
Alkali metal iodate
US 5229027 (1993) [133]
Ahmed (ColgatePalmolive)
Watersoluble iodide/iodine mixtu
US 5200236 (1993) [134]
Lang et al. (Lever Bros.)
Solid core particles encapsulated
EP 533239 (1993) [135]
Tomlinson (Unilever)
Encapsulated bleach reducing age
US 5141664 (1992) [136]
Corring et al. (Lever Bros.)
Encapsulation of bleach, bleach p surfactants, or perfumes
EP 414282 (1991) [137]
Behan et al. (Quest)
Encapsulation of perfume in micr
US 4919841 (1990) [138]
Kamel et al. (Lever Bros.)
Blend of hard and soft waxes for perfumes, enzymes, or surfactant encapsulation
Page 366
conditioned soiled substrate can be easily removed by mechanical and chemical forces in the dishwasher. Several prespotter formulations are disclosed in the patent literature. Acidic compositions that contain a mixture of nonionic surfactants and hydrotropes [139], thickened alkaline products with hypohalite bleaches [140,141], and enzymecontaining formulas [142] have all been developed for use as prespotters. Although these products are effective at cleaning tough soils, no product has made it to the marketplace, possibly because of economic factors. However, LADD products can be used as prespotters by applying them directly to soiled items. B. Rinse Aids As discussed earlier, consumers judge the performance of the automatic dishwasher detergents based on overall cleaning, filming, and spotting on dishware, glasses, and utensils. Spots and film on glass surfaces are readily noticeable because of differences in the refractive indices of the glass and the deposits. It is generally recognized that deposits on glasses are predominantly water soluble minerals, such as salts of alkaline earth ions present in the water, with proteins and fats of the soil as minor components. Clearly, the condition of the final rinse cycle water largely determines the degree of spotting and filming on glasses. Laboratory assessment indicates that water hardness exceeding 200 ppm as CaCO3 results in poor performance on glasses and silverware unless the calcium ions are sequestered. To minimize the mineral deposits and surfaceactive soil components on articles cleaned in the dishwasher, special formulations called rinse aids are often used for both home and institutional dishwashers. In the United States, an estimated 40% of households use rinse aids [143]. Rheologically, the rinse aid liquids are Newtonian, with viscosities in the range of 50–200 cP. Their role is to reduce the interfacial tension between the dishware and glassware and the wash water. In this way, a uniformly draining film of wash water is acheived on the items. Otherwise, uneven wetting results in spotting and filming on the items being dried. Typically, rinse aid formulations for household dishwashers are composed of aqueous solutions containing nonionic surfactant(s), a complexing agent, such as citric acid or polyphosphate, hydrotropes (also known as coupling agents), fragrance, and color. Suitable preservatives are also added to the formulations to prevent the product from bacterial and fungal growth [144]. The pH of the formulations span from acidic to alkaline. Normally the rinse aid solution is injected during the final rinse cycle of dishwashing. A typical dosage of the product per rinse is about 0.3–1.0 g/L, depending upon the level of nonionic surfactant in the formulation. Most rinse aids contain between 20 and 40%
surfactant levels. Excessive or underdosage may have an adverse effect on the sp and filming on glasses. 1. Ingredients for Rinse Aids (a) Nonionic Surfactants. The heart of the rinse aid formulation is the surfactant, virtually all formulations contain nonionic surfactants. The primary function of the surfactant is to produce rapid sheeting action, achieving a quick and uniformly dr film that prevents the nonuniform drying of the hard water minerals on the utensil Systematic studies have shown that the nonionic surfactants must satisfy the criter rinse aid applications, the most important of which are discussed here: 1. The nonionic surfactant must be an efficient wetting agent with low foaming characteristics, because excessive foaming influences not only the cleaning but als rinsing effectiveness. 2. The foaming properties of the nonionic surfactants depend upon the temperatu because of their inverse solubility temperature relationship. Above the cloud poin are nonfoamers, and some nonionic surfactants may even function as defoamers their cloud point temperature. Therefore, the nonionic surfactant selected for rins formulations must have a cloud point below the temperature of the rinse water. 3. The aqueous surface tensions of the surfactant solutions must be low, in the ra 40 dyn/cm2. The surface tensions should be preferably measured at temperatures to rinse water temperatures. The nonionic surfactants commonly used in the rinse aid formulations along with t structures are shown in Table 15. (b) Sequestering Agents. Sequestering agents, such as polyphosphates, are add rinse formulations to condition the rinse cycle water (deactiva TABLE 15 Nonionic Surfactants for Rinse Aids Surfactant
Structure
Alkyl phenoxy polyethenoxy ethanol [145]
R(C6H4)O(CH 2CH2O)nCH2CH3
Block polymers of ethylene and propylene oxide [146– 148]
RO(CH2CH2O)n(CH2CH[CH3]O)
Alkyl phenoxy polyethenoxy benzyl ethers [149]
R(C6H4)O(CH 2CH2O)nCH2C6H5
Alkyl polyethenoxy benzyl ethers [150]
R(CH2CH2O)nCH2C6H5
Ethoxylated alcohols
R(OCH2CH2) nOH
Page 368
tion of alkaline earth metal ions) and to prevent or delay the formation of waterinsoluble compounds, such as calcium bicarbonate or carbonate. These insoluble precipitates may deposit on glasses and appear as spots or film. The addition of acidic additives, such as citric acid, is very popular in European formulations. The theory behind their use is that if sufficient acid is present in the final rinse solution, the acid converts the carbonate and bicarbonate ions into water and carbon dioxide, preventing the formation of insoluble salts. Citric acid formulations may also keep the dishwasher surfaces and nozzle of the spray arms free of limestone deposits. It is also believed that citrate may contribute to the brilliancy or shiny appearance of siliceous surfaces [151]. (c) Hydrotropes. Hydrotropes (Chap. 2) or coupling agents play an important role in formulating rinse aid products. Their main functions include increasing the solubility of the nonionic surfactant in water and thus maintaining the clarity of the formulations. Judicious selection of the hydrotropes is important since they may contribute to the foaming and potentially reduce the sheeting efficiency of the nonionic surfactant. Most effective are certain alkylnaphthalene sulfonates and sulfosuccinate esters, since they increase the solubility of the nonionic surfactants without leading to excessive foaming. Other hydrotropes utilized in the rinse aid formulations include propylene glycol, isopropanol, and urea. In general, alcohols are not effective solubilizers in rinse aid formulas [151]. 2. Typical Rinse Aids Typical examples of rinse aid formulations are shown in Table 16 [8]. Several patents describing rinse aid compositions have been issued. These are listed in Table 17. TABLE 16 Examples of Rinse Aid Formulations
Ingredients
II
(wt/wt %)
(wt/wt %)
Plurafac RA 30a
50
17.5
Plurafac RA 40a
1
17.5
Isopropanol
24
12
Citric acid, dehydrated
—
25
Deionized water
16
28
a
BASF Corporation
Source: From Ref. 8.
I
TABLE 17 Patents Relating to Rinse Aids
Patent and year
Inventor(s) and company
Technology
WO 94/07985 (1994) [152]
De Smet et al. (Procter & Gamble)
Lime soap dispersant, lipase enzym
US 5294365 (1994) [153]
Welch et al. (BASF)
Hydroxypolyethers
US 5104563 (1992) [154]
Anchor et al. (Colgate Palmolive)
Lowmolecularweight polypropyle interacts with anionic or nonionic surfactants
GB 2247025 (1992) [155]
van Dijk et al. (Unilever)
Phospholipase A1 and/or A2
EP 252708 (1988) [156]
van Dijk et al. (Unilever)
Nonplateshaped colloids, such as silica
US 4443270 (1984) [157]
Biard et al. (Procter & Gamble)
Ethoxylated nonionic, organic chel agent, watersoluble Mg, Zn, Sn, Bi salts
US 4416794 (1983) [158]
Barrat et al. (Procter & Gamble)
Ethoxylated nonionic, organic chel agent, aminosilane
Page 370
VIII. Future Trends The majority of LADDs marketed today deliver performance that is acceptable to consumers. However, economic, environmental, or regulatory pressures necessitate formulators of LADDs to continue to improve products. Several trends in LADD development appear to be evolving. A. Nonphosphate Products The low costperformance ratio of phosphates, especially alkali metal tripolyphosphates, make them the “workhorse” of detergents. Although phosphate builders are safe for human beings, they are unfortunately beneficial to algae growth. Therefore, large amounts of phosphate in waste streams lead to eutrophication of lakes and streams. For this reason there have been concerns, especially in Europe, about the heavy use of phosphates in detergent products. In certain states of the United States, the quantity of phosphates used in LADDs is regulated by the local governments. Therefore, one of the challenges to automatic dishwasher detergent manufacturers today is finding a substitute for polyphosphate. Ideally, the phosphate substitute must satisfy several criteria including the following: 1. Free of phosphorus and nitrogen 2. Soluble in water with readily biodegradable characteristics 3. Chemically stable and compatible with oxygen and/or chlorine bleach 4. Performance characteristics equal to phosphates 5. Safe to humans 6. Economically practical Although many builder systems meet most of these criteria, they provide inferior performance attributes. In particular, filming and spotting on glasses is a concern in hard water areas. This is probably the primary reason that nonphosphate liquid products have not found their way into the marketplace. The search for an alternative to phosphates will continue, as evident from the patent activity in the last 5–10 years. Many reviews have appeared that compare the characteristics of the more heavily studied alternatives [17,26,35,159–168]. Table 18 lists the recent patents on phosphatefree LADD formulations. B. NonHypochloriteContaining Products Another trend appears toward products containing no hypochlorite bleach. The reason is that the strong oxidizing nature of hypochlorite makes it incompatible with easily oxidized components, such as nonionic surfactants, fragrances, and enzymes. There is also some concern regarding the possible formation of chlorinated organics [7]. Oxygen bleaches, such as perborates or percarbonates,
TABLE 18 Patents Relating to PhosphateFree LADDs
Patent and year
Inventor(s) and company
Technology
WO 94/29428 (1994) [159]
Ambuter et al. (Procter & Gamble)
Concentrated, enzymes and stabilizi system
WO 94/05763 (1994) [160]
Rattinger et al. (Unilever)
Pyridine carboxylates
EP 561452 (1993) [169]
van Dijk et al. (Unilever)
Biodegradable polyamino acid
US 5169553 (1992) [170]
Durbut et al. (Colgate Palmolive)
Binary mixture of proteinase and am nonaqueous
WO 91/03541 (1991) [26]
Beaujean et al. (Henkel)
Aluminosilicate, stabilizing electrol and system
EP 476212 (1990) [161]
Boutique et al. (Procter & Gamble)
Citrate, C10–C16 alkylor alkenyl substituted succinic acid
DE 3832478 (1988) [171]
Dixit (ColgatePalmolive)
Aluminosilicate, polycarboxylates
Page 372
which liberate peroxide in solution, are being studied to replace chlorine bleach. Being weaker oxidizing agents than hypohalite bleaches, they are compatible with some oxidizable LADD components. However, there are two main disadvantages of peroxide bleaches. First, they display acceptable performance only at elevated temperatures. Second, they are difficult to formulate in liquid products because of chemical stability problems. The search for chlorine bleach alternatives, as well as development of technologies for stabilizing peroxide bleaches, will continue. Microencapsulation technology for formulating the LADDs containing chlorine bleaches has shown limited success [129,130,134,138]. C. Enzymatic Products Although they are incorporated into powder automatic dishwashing detergents, the use of enzymes into LADDs is a relatively unexplored area. Cleaning action by enzymes is highly selective and occurs only under specific wash conditions. Formulating LADDs with enzymes is challenging because of the chemical incompatibility of most of the enzymes in aqueous products containing chlorine bleach and caustic. Considerable progress has been made in improving the compatibility of different types of enzymes. Research will continue to develop superior enzymes that are effective and efficient, providing cleaning action under broad range of washing conditions. It is also possible that innovative packaging based on compartmentalization will be developed to overcome the chemical incompatibility of enzymes with other LADD components. D. Concentrated Products Although compact ADD powders are marketed in the United States, compact liquids have not yet been introduced. Following the trend set by other cleaning products in the marketplace, LADDs are expected also to evolve into concentrated products. For example, the patent literature reveals that concentrated LADDs can be developed using a nonaqueous solvent system [92,96–98,105,170,172]. Two nonaqueous ultraconcentrated LADDs appeared in Great Britain in the early 1990s. Two variants were marketed by Marks and Spencer, one with enzymes and one without. The recommended dosage for these products was onequarter the normal amount. Other markets have not yet followed suit. E. LowTemperature Cleaning In an average U.S. machine dishwasher cycle, water temperature ranges from 110 to 140°F; in Europe it is around 160°F. Typical wash cycles last from 5 to 20 minutes, and two wash cycles are generally incorporated into the washing process. In addition, from two to five heated rinse cycles are also gener
Page 373
ally present. Clearly, in mechanical dishwashing a good amount of energy is utilized. Energy can be conserved by lowering the temperature of the wash water. At present, technology does not exist that delivers consumeracceptable performance at lower wash temperatures. The detergent industry may be forced to develop cleaning technology at reduced wash temperatures, though, if government regulations mandate the lowering of wash temperatures. This could be a challenge and an opportunity for detergent manufacturers to develop LADDs that meet both regulatory demands and consumer satisfaction. References 1. J. Houghton, U.S. Patent No. 7,365 (1865). 2. D. A. Meeker, The Story of The Hobart Manufacturing Co., Newcomer Publications in North America, Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ, 1960. 3. D. H. Morrish, History of Dishwashers, General Electric Co., Louisville, KY, 1967. 4. D. H. Cater, M. H. Flynn, and P. F. Frank, Inform 5:1095 (1994). 5. T. Branna, HAPPI 18:56 (1990). 6. G. R. Whalley, HAPPI 23:71 (1995). 7. R. F. Lake, in Proceedings of the 3rd World Conference on Detergents: Global Perspectives, Montreaux, Switzerland, 1993. 8. H. Heitland and H. Marsen, in Surfactants in Consumer Products (J. Falbe, ed.), SpringerVerlag, Heidelberg, 1987, pp. 321–332. 9. B. Werdelmann, Soap Cosmet. Chem. Spec. 50:36 (1974). 10. W. G. Mizuno, in Surfactant Science Series, Vol. 5, Part III, Marcel Dekker, New York, 1981. 11. T. M. Oberle, Detergents in Depth, SDA, New York, 1974. 12. J. E. Shulman, HAPPI 20:130 (1992). 13. J. E. Shulman and M. S. Robertson, Soap Cosmet. Chem. Spec. 68:46 (1992). 14. F. H. Richter, E. W. Winkler, and R. H. Baur, J. Am. Oil Chem. Soc. 66:1666 (1989). 15. G. T. McGrew, HAPPI 14:66 (1986). 16. K. R. Lange, J. Am. Oil Chem. Soc. 45:487 (1968). 17. A. P. Hudson, F. E. Woodward, and G. T. McGrew, J. Am. Oil Chem. Soc. 65:1353 (1988). 18. J. R. van Wazer, in Phosphorous and its Compounds, Interscience, New York, 1958.
16. K. R. Lange, J. Am. Oil Chem. Soc. 45:487 (1968). 17. A. P. Hudson, F. E. Woodward, and G. T. McGrew, J. Am. Oil Chem. Soc. 65:1353 (1988). 18. J. R. van Wazer, in Phosphorous and its Compounds, Interscience, New York, 1958. 19. C. Y. Shen, J. Am. Oil Chem. Soc. 45:510 (1968). 20. R. K. Iyler, The Chemistry of Silica, John Wiley & Sons, New York, 1979, p. 21. 21. J. S. Falcone, (ed.), Soluble Silicates, ACS Symposium Series 194, Washington, D.C., 1982. 22. R. Coffey and T. Gudowicz, Chem. Ind. 6:169 (1990). 23. The PQ Corp., MultiFunctional Characteristics of Soluble Silicate, 17–101/1291, 1991.
Page 374
24. PQ Corp., New Dimensions in Zeolite Detergent Chemistry, VAL 100/1192, 1992. 25. M. J. Schwuger and E. J. Smulders, Surfactant Science Series 20:371 (1987). 26. H. F. Beaujean, J. Bode, S. Paasch, K. Schwadtke, E. Smulders, and E. Sung, WO Patent 91/03541 to Henkel (1991). 27. N. S. Dixit, U.S. Patent 4,971,717 to ColgatePalmolive (1990). 28. N. S. Dixit, U.S. Patent 5,229,026 to ColgatePalmolive (1993). 29. Rohm & Haas, Acusol 445 Series Detergent Polymers for Machine Dishwashing, FC131, 1993. 30. BASF Specialty Chemicals, Sokalan Polymeric Dispersing Agents, 49. 31. J. F. Schaffer and R. T. Woodhams, Tenside Det. 16:240 (1979). 32. M. Hunter, D. M. L. da Motta Marques, J. N. Lester, and R. Perry, Environ. Technol. Lett. 9:1 (1988). 33. M. Dwyer, S. Yeoman, J. N. Lester, and R. Perry, Environ. Technol. 11:263 (1990). 34. M. P. Grilli and A. Capucci, Toxicol. Lett. 25:137 (1985). 35. M. M. Crutchfield, J. Am. Oil Chem. Soc. 55:58 (1978). 36. M. J. Rosen and Z. H. Zhu, J. Am. Oil Chem. Soc. 69:667 (1992). 37. Dow Chemicals, Dowfax Anionic Surfactants for HighPerformance Products, 1994. 38. M. Scardera and R. N. Scott, U.S. Patent 4,070,298 to Olin (1978). 39. R. Jeschke, K. Schmidt, F. Lange, and K. Koren, WO Patent 92/20768 to Henkel (1992). 40. M. Dahanayake and M. Hashem, Soap Cosmet. Chem. Spec. 65:39 (1989). 41. A. Surutzidis and A. A. Fisk, European Patent 593841 A1 to Procter & Gamble (1994). 42. C. Kurzendörfer, W. Seiter, H. Beaujean, C. Block, and T. Holderbaum, WO Patent 94/12603 to Henkel (1994). 43. D. M. Coons, J. Am. Oil Chem. Soc. 55:104 (1978). 44. J. A. Church, Ind. Eng. Chem. Res. 33:239 (1994). 45. L. H. Dalgaard, D. Kochavi, and M. Thellersen, Inform 2:532 (1991). 46. A. Farooq, A. Mehreteab, G. Broze, N. Dixit, and D. Hsu, J. Am. Oil Chem. Soc. 72:843 (1995).
44. J. A. Church, Ind. Eng. Chem. Res. 33:239 (1994). 45. L. H. Dalgaard, D. Kochavi, and M. Thellersen, Inform 2:532 (1991). 46. A. Farooq, A. Mehreteab, G. Broze, N. Dixit, and D. Hsu, J. Am. Oil Chem. Soc. 72:843 (1995). 47. S. L. Baxter, U.S. Patent 4,950,416 to Vista Chemical (1990). 48. R. M. Wise, U.S. Patent 4,941,988 to Procter & Gamble (1990). 49. J. Drapier, C. Gallant, L. Laitem, M. Delsignore, M. Shevade, R. Rounds, D. Kenkare, T. Davan, and N. S. Dixit, U.S. Patent 5,427,707 to Colgate Palmolive (1995). 50. J. Drapier and N. S. Dixit, U.S. Patent 5,413,727 to ColgatePalmolive (1995). 51. N. S. Dixit, M. Shevade, R. Rounds, and M. Delsignore, U.S. Patent 5,252,241 to ColgatePalmolive (1993). 52. M. Shevade, M. Delsignore, N.S. Dixit, and D. Kenkare, U.S. Patent 5,252,242 to ColgatePalmolive (1993). 53. N. S. Dixit, A. Farooq, R. S. Rhounds, and M. Shevade, U.S. Patent 5,232,621 to ColgatePalmolive (1993).
Page 375
54. M. Prencipe, E. F. McCandlish, and F. J. Loprest, U.S. Patent 5188752 to ColgatePalmolive (1993). 55. N. S. Dixit and T. Davan, U.S. Patent 5, 098,590 to ColgatePalmolive (1992). 56. J. Drapier, C. Gallant, F. Wouters, and L. Laitem, U.S. Patent 5,057,237 to ColgatePalmolive (1991). 57. N. S. Dixit, U.S. Patent 4,836,946 to ColgatePalmolive (1989). 58. G. Chazard, J. Drapier, C. Gallant, and D. van De Gaer, U.S. Patent 4,801,395 to ColgatePalmolive (1989). 59. J. Drapier, C. Gallant, D. van De Gaer, and J. Delvenne, U.S. Patent 4,752,409 to ColgatePalmolive (1988). 60. R. M. Wise, U.S. Patent 5,169,552 to Procter & Gamble (1992). 61. D. L. Elliot and R. M. Sisco, U.S. Patent 5,135,675 to Lever Brothers (1992). 62. M. J. Prince and T. H. Glassco, U.S. Patent 5,130,043 to Procter & Gamble (1992). 63. C. B. Donker, WO Patent 89/04359 to Unilever (1989). 64. M. Julemont and M. Marchal, U.S. Patent 4,740,327 to Colgate Palmolive (1988). 65. F. A. Taraschi, UK Patent GB 2168377 A to Procter & Gamble (1986). 66. E. R. Kolodny and E. Liebowitz, WO Patent 83/03621 to American Home Products (1983). 67. N. S. Dixit, U.S. Patent 5,368,766 to ColgatePalmolive (1994). 68. N. S. Dixit, U.S. Patent 5,298,180 to ColgatePalmolive (1994). 69. N. S. Dixit, U.S. Patent 5,205,953 to ColgatePalmolive (1993). 70. B. J. Roselle, U.S. Patent 4,824,590 to Procter & Gamble (1989). 71. R. Y. Lockhead, C. E. Sauer, and M. K. Nagarajan, Hypochlorite Tolerant Polymeric Rheology Modifiers, presented to the Am. Oil Chem. Soc., Baltimore, MD, 1990. 72. D. Laba (ed.), Cosmetic Science and Technology Series, Vol. 13, Marcel Dekker, New York, 1993. 73. J. D. Ferry, in Viscoelastic Properties of Polymers, 3rd ed., John Wiley & Sons, New York, 1980, pp. 40–42. 74. P. Sherman, in Industrial Rheology, Academic Press, London, 1970. 75. K. Walters, in Rheometry: Industrial Applications, Wiley, New York, 1980.
73. J. D. Ferry, in Viscoelastic Properties of Polymers, 3rd ed., John Wiley & Sons, New York, 1980, pp. 40–42. 74. P. Sherman, in Industrial Rheology, Academic Press, London, 1970. 75. K. Walters, in Rheometry: Industrial Applications, Wiley, New York, 1980. 76. T. F. Tadros, Colloids Surfaces 18:137, 1986. 77. W. B. Russell, J. Rheol. 24:287 (1980). 78. J. W. Goodwin, in Surfactants (T. F. Tadros, ed.), Academic Press, New York, 1984. 79. N. Heywood, Chem. Eng. (Rugby, England) 415:16 (1985). 80. N. Q. Dzwy and D. V. Boger, HaakeBuchler Instruments, Inc., Technical Bulletin PB856. 81. R. L. Bowles et. al., Modern Plastics 32:142 (1955). 82. N. Casson, in Rheology of Dispersed Systems (C. C. Miles, ed.), Pergamon Press, New York, 1959. 83. A. W. Asbeek, Official Digest 33:65 (1961). 84. S. M. Gabriel and J. Roselle, U.S. Patent 4,859,358 to Procter & Gamble (1989).
Page 376
85. R. Corring and R. Gabriel, U.S. Patent 5,141,664 to Lever Brothers (1992). 86. ASTM Method D 355685 (reapproved 1989), 357. 87. M. Mausner and M. Schlageter, Household and Personal Products Industry Jan. 1982, 59. 88. M. V. K. Peart, Ph.D. Thesis, Purdue University, 1969. 89. Assoc. of Home Appliance Manuf. ANSI/AHAM DW11992. 90. Chemical Specialties Manufacturers Associations, Inc., Detergents Division Test Methods Compendium, 1985. 91. ASTM Method D 356589, p. 362. 92. S. Krishnan, U.S. Patent 5,318,715 to ColgatePalmolive (1994). 93. E. S. Sadlowski, WO Patent 94/25557 to Procter & Gamble (1994). 94. W. R. van Dijk and E. Khoshdel, WO Patent 94/17170 to Unilever (1994). 95. D. E. Adler, T. F. McCallum, J. E. Shulman, and B. Weinstein, U.S. Patent 5,308,532 to Rhom & Haas (1994). 96. F. U. Ahmed, P. Durbut, and J. Drapier, U.S. Patent 5,240,633 to ColgatePalmolive (1993). 97. F. U. Ahmed and K. Bochis, U.S. Patent 5,164,106 to ColgatePalmolive (1992). 98. F. U. Ahmed, C. E. Buck, and G. Jakubicki, U.S. Patent 5,094,771 to ColgatePalmolive (1992). 99. F. U. Ahmed and K. Bochis, U.S. Patent 5,076,952 to ColgatePalmolive (1991). 100. F. U. Ahmed and C. E. Buck, U.S. Patent 4,970,016 to Colgate Palmolive (1990). 101. F. U. Ahmed and C. E. Buck, U.S. Patent 4,968,446 to Colgate Palmolive (1990). 102. F. U. Ahmed and C. E. Buck, U.S. Patent 4,968,445 to Colgate Palmolive (1990). 103. H. Frankena, U.S. Patent 4,931,217 to Lever Brothers (1990). 104. W. R. van Dijk, European Patent 271155 A2 to Unilever (1988). 105. L. Laitem, M. Delvaux, G. Broze, and D. Bastin, U.S. Patent 4,753,748 to ColgatePalmolive (1988). 106. M. Goedhart, F. H. Gortemaker, H. C. Kemper, and H. S. Kielman, U.S. Patent 4,597,886 to Lever Brothers (1986).
104. W. R. van Dijk, European Patent 271155 A2 to Unilever (1988). 105. L. Laitem, M. Delvaux, G. Broze, and D. Bastin, U.S. Patent 4,753,748 to ColgatePalmolive (1988). 106. M. Goedhart, F. H. Gortemaker, H. C. Kemper, and H. S. Kielman, U.S. Patent 4,597,886 to Lever Brothers (1986). 107. J. J. M. de Ridder, M. W. Hollingsworth, and I. D. Robb, U.S. Patent 4,539,144 to Lever Brothers (1985). 108. T. M. Kaneko, U.S. Patent 4,306,987 to BASF Wyandotte (1981). 109. W. S. Bahary and M. P. Hogan, U.S. Patent 5,336,430 to Lever Brothers (1994). 110. P. H. Kreischer, European Patent 304328 A2 to Unilever (1989). 111. D. J. Fox, D. van Blarcom, and F. K. Rubin, U.S. Patent 4,260,528 to Lever Brothers (1981). 112. W. G. Bush and V. D. Braun, U.S. Patent 4,226,736 to Drackett (1980). 113. R. Corring, U.S. Patent 5,366,653 to Lever Brothers (1994). 114. R. Broadwell, M. Shevade, and D. Kenkare, U.S. Patent 5,246,615 to ColgatePalmolive (1993). 115. S. M. Gabriel, T. H. Glassco, H. Ambuter, and E. P. Fitch, WO Patent 93/21298 to Procter & Gamble (1993).
Page 377
116. N. S. Dixit and T. Davan, U.S. Patent 5,075,027 to ColgatePalmolive (1991). 117. R. J. Colarusso, U.S. Patent 4,927,555 to ColgatePalmolive (1990). 118. P. A. Angevaare and R. G. Gary, U.S. Patent 5,374,369 to Lever Brothers (1994). 119. M. J. Dolan and F. P. Jakse, U.S. Patent 4,992,195 to Monsanto (1991). 120. W. A. Cilley and R. M. Wise, U.S. Patent 4,933,101 to Procter & Gamble (1991). 121. S. M. Gabriel and B. J. Roselle, U.S. Patent 4,859,358 to Procter & Gamble (1989). 122. H. S. Bunch, T. Groom, F. R. Grosser, M. Scardera, T. S. Targos, and A. R. Vanover, WO Patent 94/22800 to Olin (1994). 123. G. C. Kinstedt and S. L. Myers, U.S. Patent 4,988,452 to Procter & Gamble (1991). 124. R. Gabriel, M. P. Aronson, and P. L. Steyn, European Patent 337760 A2 to Unilever (1989). 125. J. G. Otten, E. J. Parker, and M. G. Kinnaird, U.S. Patent 5,073,286 to BASF (1989). 126. R. J. Scott, U.S. Patent 4,438,014 to Union Carbide (1984). 127. R. J. Scott, U.S. Patent 4,436,642 to Union Carbide (1984). 128. R. M. Wise, U.S. Patent 5,384,061 to Procter & Gamble (1995). 129. A. A. Kamel, D. J. Lang, P. A. Hanna, R. Gabriel, R. Theiler, and A. S. Goldman, U.S. Patent 5,258,132 to Lever Brothers (1993). 130. A. A. Kamel, D. J. Lang, P. A. Hanna, R. Gabriel, R. Theiler, U.S. Patent 5,230,822 to Lever Brothers (1993). 131. F. U. Ahmed and M. Shevade, U.S. Patent 5,225,096 to Colgate Palmolive (1993). 132. F. U. Ahmed, U.S. Patent 5,185,096 to ColgatePalmolive (1993). 133. F. U. Ahmed, U.S. Patent 5,229,027 to ColgatePalmolive (1993). 134. D. J. Lang, A. A. Kamel, P. A. Hanna, R. Gabriel, and R. Theiler, U.S. Patent 5,200,236 to Lever Brothers (1993). 135. A. D. Tomlinson, European Patent 533239 A2 to Unilever (1993). 136. R. Corring and R. Gabriel, U.S. Patent 5,141,664 to Lever Brothers (1992). 137. J. M. Behan, R. A. Birch, and K. D. Perring, European Patent 414282
Patent 5,200,236 to Lever Brothers (1993). 135. A. D. Tomlinson, European Patent 533239 A2 to Unilever (1993). 136. R. Corring and R. Gabriel, U.S. Patent 5,141,664 to Lever Brothers (1992). 137. J. M. Behan, R. A. Birch, and K. D. Perring, European Patent 414282 A1 to Quest International (1991). 138. A. Kamel, L. C. Hurckes, and M. M. Morelli, U.S. Patent 4,919,841 to Lever Brothers (1990). 139. T. Altenschoepfer, P. Jeschke, and K. Wisotzki, U.S. Patent 4,818,427 to Henkel (1989). 140. L. A. Rupe, L. B. Tuthill, and J. W. Leikhim, U.S. Patent 4,116,851 to Procter & Gamble (1978). 141. J. W. Leikhim, U.S. Patent 4,116,849 to Procter & Gamble (1978). 142. E. McCandlish, Canadian Patent 2,093,783 to ColgatePalmolive (1993). 143. G. Roberts and M. C. Welch, Soap Cosmet. Chem. Spec. 71:58 (1995). 144. H. Stache, in TensidTaschenbuch (H. Stache, ed.), Hanser, Munchen Wien, 1981, p. 484.
Page 378
145. J. L. Wilson, W. G. Mizuno, and S. B. Crecelius, Soap Cosmet. Chem. Spec. 34:48 (1958). 146. Wyandotte Chemical Pluronic Grid, Bulletin 18961. 147. H. E. Reich, J. T. Patton, and C. V. Francis, Soap Cosmet. Chem. Spec. 37:55 (1961). 148. W. K. Fischer, in Fatty Alcohols, Henkel KGaA, Dusseldorf, 1982, p. 187. 149. W. D. Niederhauser and E. J. Smialkowski, U.S. Patent 2,856,434 to Rohm & Haas (1958). 150. L. M. Rue, T. E. Brunnelle, and W. G. Mizuno, U.S. Patent 3,444,242 to Economics Laboratory (1969). 151. E. J. Parker and K. F. Schoene, HAPPI 25:83 (1988). 152. B. L. A. De Smet, J. G. L. Pluyter, and L. A. Jones, WO Patent 94/07985 to Procter & Gamble (1994). 153. M. C. Welch, J. G. Otten, and G. R. Schenk, U.S. Patent 5,294,365 to BASF (1994). 154. M. J. Anchor and R. R. Roelofs, U.S. Patent 5,104,563 to Colgate Palmolive (1992). 155. W. van Dijk, A. Gerardus, and T. M. Bastein, British Patent GB 2247025 to Unilever (1992). 156. J. van Dijk, H. S. Kielman, L. Los, and R. C. S. Verheul, European Patent 252708 A2 to Unilever (1988). 157. D. Biard and R. Lodewick, U.S. Patent 4,443,270 to Procter & Gamble (1984). 158. C. R. Barrat, J. R. Walker, and J. Wevers, U.S. Patent 4,416,794 to Procter & Gamble (1983). 159. H. Ambuter and T. S. Alwart, WO Patent 94/29428 to Procter & Gamble (1994). 160. G. B. Rattinger, B. Cotter, and M. J. Fair, WO Patent 94/05763 to Unilever (1994). 161. J. Boutique and K. J. M. Depoot, European Patent 476212A1 to Procter & Gamble (1992). 162. E. A. Matzner, M. M. Crutchfield, R. P. Langguth, and R. D. Swisher Tenside Det. 10:239 (1973). 163. M. S. Niewenhuizen, A. P. G. Kieboom, and H. van Bekkum, J. Am. Oil Chem. Soc. 60:120 (1983). 164. H. C. Kemper, R. J. Martens, J. R. Nooi, and C. E. Stubbs, Tenside Det. 12:47 (1975).
162. E. A. Matzner, M. M. Crutchfield, R. P. Langguth, and R. D. Swisher Tenside Det. 10:239 (1973). 163. M. S. Niewenhuizen, A. P. G. Kieboom, and H. van Bekkum, J. Am. Oil Chem. Soc. 60:120 (1983). 164. H. C. Kemper, R. J. Martens, J. R. Nooi, and C. E. Stubbs, Tenside Det. 12:47 (1975). 165. S. Santhanagopalan, H. Raman, and S. K. Suri J. Am. Oil Chem. Soc. 61:1267 (1984). 166. R. E. Madden, T. G. Edwards, C. B. Kaiser, and R. G. Jaglowski, Soap Cosmet. Chem. Spec. 50:38 (1974). 167. F. Trulli and E. Santacesaria, Chimoggi 8:13 (1993). 168. F. Gauthier, Commun. J. Com. Esp. Det. 24:109 (1993). 169. W. R. van Dijk, A. P. A. F. Rocourt, and R. W. P. van Drunen, European Patent 561452 A1 to Unilever (1993).
Page 379
170. P. Durbut, F. Ahmed, and J. Drapier, U.S. Patent 5,169,553 to Colgate Palmolive (1992). 171. N. S. Dixit, German Patent DE 3832478 A1 to ColgatePalmolive (1988). 172. P. Durbut, D. Kenkare, and N. S. Dixit, European Patent 611206 A2 to ColgatePalmolive (1994).
10 Shampoos and Conditioners CLARENCE R. ROBBINS Research and Development, Global Technology, ColgatePalmolive Company, P New Jersey I. Introduction II. General Formulas III. Structures of Ingredients A. Structures of shampoo ingredients B. Structures of hair conditioner ingredients IV. Safety Concerns and Considerations, Including Hair Damage A. General safety considerations B. Damage to hair from shampoos, grooming, and weathering V. Different Types of Shampoos and Conditioners VI. Cleaning Hair A. Types of hair soils B. Soils from hair preparations C. Environmental soils D. Detergency mechanisms E. Transport of hair lipid F. Methods of evaluating hair cleaning G. Cleaning efficiency of shampoos VII. Adsorption onto Hair A. General characteristics B. Kinetics of ionic reactions with keratin fibers
VII. Adsorption onto Hair A. General characteristics B. Kinetics of ionic reactions with keratin fibers C. Binding of ionic ingredients to hair D. Reactions of neutral materials with human hair
VIII. Shampoo Lather IX. Viscosity Control in Shampoos and Conditioners References
1. Introduction According to legend, the word shampoo is derived from a Hindustani word mea squeeze.” Shampoos have a long and varied history. However, hair conditioners widely used until the midtwentieth century following the introduction of “cold” pe types of products that created combing problems and damaged hair. The primary function of shampoos is to clean both the hair and the scalp of soils primary function of hair conditioner products was and is to make the hair easier t Nevertheless, shampoos and conditioners have important secondary functions, su control, extra mildness, static control, conditioning in a shampoo, and even fragra satisfaction, that have either created new market segments or have become prima purchase. The two principal actions of shampoos and hairconditioning products involve cle varied types from the hair and the sorption or binding of conditioning ingredients t most important for both these products are interactions that occur at or near the f near the first few cuticle layers (see Fig. 1).
FIG. 1 Structure of a human hair fiber.
Page 383
The first section of this chapter describes general shampoo and hair conditioner formulations. The second part is concerned with chemical structures of the main types of ingredients used in shampoos and hair conditioners. A brief discussion of some safety concerns and considerations for these types of products including damaging effects to hair caused by shampooing and by the actions of combing and brushing follows. Cleaning of hair and the different types of soil found on hair, including their origin and the ease or difficulty in their removal and methods to evaluate hair cleaning, are then described. The next section is concerned with deposition or the attachment and the affinity of conditioning ingredients to hair, including both wholefiber and surface binding. Foam properties and their measurement and viscosity control and evaluation are also described. II. General Formulas Shampoos consist of several types of ingredients that usually include many of the following types of components: Primary surfactant for cleaning and foaming Secondary surfactant for foam and/or viscosity enhancement Viscosity builders: gums, salt, amide Solvents to clarify or lower the cloud point Conditioning agents Opacifier for visual effects Acid or alkali for pH adjustment Colors (D&C or FD&C colors) for visual effects Fragrance Preservative UV (ultraviolet) absorber, usually for products in a clear package Specialty active ingredients, such as antidandruff agents and conditioning agents Hair conditioners, on the other hand, are very different compositionally from shampoos. These are usually composed of many of the following types of ingredients: Oily and/or waxy substances, including mineral oil, longchain alcohols, and/or triglycerides or other esters, including true oils and waxes, silicones, and/or fatty acids Cationic substances: monofunctional quaternary ammonium compounds or amines or polymeric quaternary ammonium compounds or amines Viscosity builders, usually gums Acid or alkali for pH adjustment
Cationic substances: monofunctional quaternary ammonium compounds or amines or polymeric quaternary ammonium compounds or amines Viscosity builders, usually gums Acid or alkali for pH adjustment Colors Preservatives
Page 384
III. Structures of Ingredients A. Structures of Shampoo Ingredients The principal primary surfactant used in the United States for shampoos is ammonium lauryl sulfate; in many other countries, sodium or ammonium laureth sulfate (with an average of 2 or 3 mol ethylene oxide) is the current leader. These two surfactants are used alone or blended together for shampoos because of their ability to clean sebaceous oil and because of their excellent lathering properties.
Olefin sulfonate has been used to a limited extent in lower priced shampoos. This surfactant is represented by the following structures:
Olefin sulfonate consists of a mixture of these four surfactants in about equal quantities. The commercial shampoo material is 14–16 carbon atoms in chain length; therefore, R = 10–12 carbon atoms. Generally a carbon chain length of 12–14 carbon atoms or a cocotype distribution, which is approximately 50% C12, is used for the primary surfactant in shampoos. This chain length is preferred because of the excellent foam character of C12 systems. Longer or shorter chain length surfactants are used only in specialty systems. Secondary surfactants are used for foam modifiers, for added cleaning, or even for viscosity enhancement. The principal secondary surfactants used in shampoos are amides, such as cocodiethanolamide, lauric diethanolamide, or cocomonoethanolamide. Betaines are excellent foam modifiers. They are becoming more popular, and cocoamidopropylbetaine is the most widely used betaine in shampoos today. Baby shampoos and some light conditioning shampoos employ nonionic surfactants, such as PEG80 sorbitan laurate, and amphoteric surfactants, such as cocoamphocarboxyglycinate or cocoamphopropylsulfonate, to improve the
Page 385
mildness of anionic surfactants through surfactant association and at the same time to provide cleaning and improved lather characteristics.
Conditioning agents for shampoos are varied and may generally be classified as follows: Lipid type Soap type or salts of carboxylic acids Cationic type including cationic polymers Silicone type, including dimethicone or amodimethicones (see structures later) Opacifiers, such as ethylene glycol distearate, or soaptype opacifiers are often used for visual effects and to provide the perception that something is deposited onto the hair to condition it. The pH is usually adjusted with a common acid, such as citric acid or even mineral acid or ordinary inexpensive alkaline materials. For additional details on product compositions, consult Refs. 1–3, product ingredient labels, and the books by Hunting [4,5]. B. Structures of Hair Conditioner Ingredients Cream rinses, on the other hand, are basically compositions containing cationic surfactant in combination with longchain fatty alcohol or other lipid components. Distearyl dimethylammonium chloride and cetyl trimethylammonium chloride are typical cationic surfactants used in many of today's hairconditioning products. Amines like dimethyl stearamine or stearamidopropyl dimethylamine are other functional cationics used in these products. Hype compounds, such as proteins, placenta extract, and vitamins, which are usually nonfunctional, are also used.
Page 386
Typical lipids used in these products are cetyl alcohol and/or stearyl alcohol, glycol distearate, or even silicones like dimethicone or amodimethicones.
For additional details on product compositions, consult Refs. 1–3, product ingredient labels, and the books by Hunting [4,5]. IV. Safety Concerns and Considerations, Including Hair Damage A. General Safety Considerations Shampoos and conditioners are among the safest consumer products, if used for their intended purpose and according to the directions on the package label. Cautionary eye warning labels appear on most medicated products and on some cosmetic brands because many of these products can cause eye irritation if product accidentally flows into the eyes. Warnings against internal consumption also appear on many shampoo labels and on a few cream rinses or hair conditioners. Many conditioners contain no cautionary warnings because they are so mild and of such low toxicity, primarily because they are formulated at such low concentration (generally less than 2% by weight of surfactant). Bergfeld [6] has reviewed the most frequent adverse effects of hair products from patients at the Cleveland Clinic Dermatology Department over a 10 year period and has found relatively few adverse effects from shampoos; the majority of these are a result of sensitization, an immunological reaction, rather than irritation or hair breakage. Furthermore, Bergfeld attributes these few adverse effects either to preservatives or medicated ingredients of these products rather than to the surfactant active ingredients. Ishihara [7] surveyed five large hospitals in Japan for contact dermatitis in 1970. Only 0.2% of the cases of the total number of outpatients at all derma
Page 387
tologic clinics were caused by adverse reactions to all hair preparations. Only 0.008% of these adverse reactions were caused by shampoos, and these few cases involved contact dermatitis. From these results, Ishihara concluded that most cases of contact dermatitis from shampoos are not serious enough to be treated in a hospital. B. Damage to Hair from Shampoos, Grooming, and Weathering Chemical and physical damage to hair results from shampooing, combing and brushing, and normal exposure of scalp hair to sunlight, and the changes that are ultimately detected in hair can be detected at the morphological level by electron microscopy. These effects may be viewed as aging of hair (not the person) or of weathering damage. Weathering effects include damage to hair by environmental factors, such as sunlight, air pollutants, wind, seawater, or even chlorine in pool water. Damage by hair grooming is produced by combing and brushing or even blow drying, the use of curling irons, and other physical processes that are used in grooming hair. Sunlight, pool water, and cosmetic products, such as permanent waves, bleaches, hair straighteners, and even some hair dyes, chemically alter or damage the hair. These chemical modifications generally increase hair's propensity to physical damage manifested by progressive cuticle erosion and fiber splitting resulting from the combination of chemical action and the abrasive effects of hair grooming aids and the procedures described earlier [8]. A detailed description of hair damage from rubbing actions is described by Robbins [9]. Virtually every time a person shampoos or conditions the hair, he or she combs or brushes it or uses grooming aids and procedures. Therefore, combing and brushing of air is a fundamental part of the shampoo and hairconditioning processes. Furthermore, Okumura [10] has suggested that a large amount of cuticle damage occurs in the lathering step during the actual shampooing of hair. Kelly and Robinson [11] have concluded that shampooing and towel drying of hair damage hair. However, these scientists conclude that combing and brushing damages hair more than the lathering step of shampooing, and furthermore, brushing is more damaging than combing. Garcia et al. [12] have developed a mathematical model to predict cuticle wear, and these scientists conclude that cuticle erosion from grooming accelerates as one moves closer to the tip end of the hair. Gould and Sneath [13] examined root and tip end sections of scalp hair by transmission electron microscopy and observed holes or vacancies in the thin cross sections. These holes were greater (more frequent and larger) in tip ends
Page 388
than in root ends. These scientists attribute these holes to damaging effects by shampooing. It is becoming increasingly clear that shampooing and combing or brushing of hair over time actually produces cuticle erosion, and ultimately normal cleaning and grooming practices contribute to cortical damage as evidence by fiber splitting [9]. In addition, sunlight [14] and cosmetic damaging treatments, such as bleaches, permanent waves, and some hair dyes or even chlorinated water, can accelerate these physical damaging effects to hair. V. Different Types of Shampoos and Conditioners Shampoos can be classified in many different ways; for compositional considerations, however, perhaps the best classification is according to the following four types: 1. Cleaning shampoos 2. Conditioning, including two in one shampoos 3. Baby or mild shampoos 4. Medicated shampoos Cleaning shampoos generally consist of one or more detergents along with an amide or amphoteric type of foam booster combined with a polymeric thickening agent and salt to control the viscosity. Obviously, other additives, such as color additives, fragrance, and preservative, are generally also used, although there is a movement in many environmentally conscious countries to make product without the addition of preservatives. Nevertheless, preservatives are still an important component of shampoos and conditioners and are added to prevent microbial contamination and degradation. Conditioning shampoos usually consist of similar ingredients: as indicated earlier, however, soaptype conditioners, cationic ingredients, or neutral ingredients like silicones are usually a part of these products. Baby shampoos generally contain milder surfactants, such as nonionics, and they also contain less anionic detergent along with amphoterics that associate with anionics to moderate the potential irritation of the anionic surfactants. Medicated shampoos, such as antidandruff products, usually contain zinc pyrithione, selenium sulfide, or even salicylic acid or coal tar (see Table 1). The OTC monograph on dandruff recommends three classes of potential antidandruff ingredients [15]: Category I. Active ingredients considered safe and effective for use for dandruff, seborrheic dermatitis, and psoriasis. Category II. Ingredients not recognized as safe and effective or misbranded. Category III. More data are required.
Actually, at this time only two categories are recognized: category I, as defined h category II. All other ingredients are not recognized as safe and/or effective in thi recent classification. Five ingredients are currently recognized as safe and effective for use against dan United States, and these are listed in Table 1. The OTC monograph recommend ingredient at specific concentration levels for specified purposes (products and a as listed in Table 1. Other ingredients either reported or shown to be effective against dandruff and d the OTC monograph, the published literature, or the patent literature include alkyl isoquinolinium bromide, allantoin, benzethonium chloride, magnesium omadine, cli [1imidazopyl1(p chlorophenoxy)3,3dimethylbutan2one], octopirox [1hy methyl6(2,4,4trimethylpentyl)2(1H)pyridine], ethanolamine, and ketoconazol last ingredients have not been described in category I by the OTC monograph. Conditioners may be classified as cream rinses, deep conditioners, and other typ include combination products, such as conditioning mousses or setting lotions. Th products contain gums or resins in addition to conditioner additives. Cream rinse conditioners generally consist of monofunctional cationic ingredients, described previously, along with such lipids as longchain alcohols and other fatty ingredients, such as mineral oil, longchain esters, amides, or even waxes. Deep c may be similar compositionally; however, these tend to be formulated at a higher and contain more fatty or waxy substances. Silicone or amodimethicones are also three types of conditioner products. VI. Cleaning Hair Cleaning hair and requirements for a shampoo arise from the fact that dirty huma contains different soils, although the predominant soil is lipid, primarily sebaceous Hair contains both internal and external lipid; however, we have demonstrated th and dirty hair contain the same TABLE 1 Active Ingredients for Antidandruff Products Ingredient
Use spec
Coal tar preparations
0.5–5.0
Shampoos
Salicylic acid
1.8–3.0
Body and scalp
Selenium sulfide
Concentration specified (%)
1
Topical use
Sulfur
2.0–5.0
Topical use
Zinc pyrithione
1.0–2.0
Shampoos
0.1–0.25
Hair groomers
Page 390
quantity of internal lipid; therefore, the hair soils are located at or near the fiber surface, and cleaning of hair involves removing soils at or near the fiber surface. Cleaning ingredients must be safe, requiring low toxicity, low sensitization potential, and low skin and eye irritation potential. Low temperatures (35–45° C) are used to shampoo hair, and short cleaning or reaction times (minutes) are employed in the shampoo process. Low substantivity of the detergent for hair is generally preferred, except in conditioning, for which adsorption is necessary (see later). Essentially no degradation of the hair substrate by the cleansing system is desirable, and the cleansing system should be capable of removing a variety of different soils without complicating interactions between shampoo ingredients and the soils. The most common test criteria used to assess the cleaning efficiency of shampoo products relate to the amount of soil left on the hair surface. However, the rheological and other physical properties of the soil have recently been shown to be important, too. Specific properties of hair fibers versus assemblies, attributes of the product (fragrance, later, and viscosity), and the rate of resoiling are also relevant to haircleaning efficacy. The next section is concerned primarily with the different types of soil found on hair, their origin, and their removal by existing surfactant systems. A. Types of Hair Soils Hair soils may be classified as one of four types: 1. Lipid soils are the primary hair soil and are principally sebaceous matter. For a more complete description of the chemical composition of sebaceous soil, see Table 2. 2. Soils from hair preparations represent another important group consisting of a variety of different cationic ingredients, polymers, and lipophilic ingredients. Lipid soils are either sebaceous in origin or from hair products. They may exist on hair surfaces either as neutral lipid (oils, waxes, and silicones) or as calciumbridged fatty acids or neutralized or free fatty acids. 3. Protein soils are from the skin but probably in most cases do not constitute a serious soil removal problem. 4. Environmental soils vary and consist of particulate matter from air (hydrocarbons and soot) and minerals from the water supply. B. Soils from Hair Preparations A variety of different soils from hair products may be found on hair surfaces, and it is essential for a good shampoo to remove these soils without complicating interactions between the surfactant and the soil. Hair products provide
Page 391 TABLE 2 (Spangler) Synthetic Sebum with Essential Components of Natural Sebum Lipid ingredient
%
Olive oil (TG)
20
Coconut oil (TG)
15
Palmitic acid (FFA)
10
Stearic acid (FFA)
5
Oleic acid (FFA)
15
Paraffin wax (P)
10
Squalene (S) Spermaceti (WE) Cholesterol (C)
5 15 5
lipid soils, cationic soils, polymeric soils, silicone soils, and metallic ions or fatty acids that can bridge metallic ions to hair. Neutral lipids are found in many different types of hair products, including some conditioners, pomades, and men's hair dressings. As indicated earlier, monofunctional cationic ingredients, such as stearalkonium chloride and cetyl trimethylammonium chloride, are the primary active ingredients of creme rinses and other hairconditioning products, and the increased usage of such products over the last decade makes this soil type even more common. Cationic polymers, such as polymer JR (polyquaternium10), a quaternized cellulosic material [16], Merquat polymers (polyquaternium6 and 7), copolymers of dimethyl diallyl ammonium chloride and acrylamide [17], and Gafquat polymers (polyquaternium11), a copolymer of polyvinyl pyrrolidone and dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate) [18], have all been used and are currently being used in conditioning shampoos, setting lotions, or mousses. Neutral and acidic polymers, such as polyvinyl pyrrolidone, copolymers of polyvinyl pyrrolidone, and vinyl acetate and copolymers of methyl vinyl ether and halfesters of maleic anhydride, are all used in hairstyling and hairsetting products. Fatty acids, such as lauric, myristic, or palmitic, have in the past been commonly used conditioning ingredients in conditioning shampoos. Fatty acids interact with calcium and magnesium ions in the water supply and deposit on the hair. It is believed that at least part of this type of conditioning agent binds to the hair through metal ion bridges [19]. The “harder” the water, the greater is the amount of deposition of fatty acid conditioner on the hair [20]. Thus the primary sources of calciumbridged fatty acids on hair are conditioning shampoos and soap bar products that react with metal ions in the water supply. In
Page 392
moderate to high hard water areas, fatty acids from sebum may also be a source of metal ionbridged fatty acid on the hair fiber surface. C. Environmental Soils Hair is an excellent ionexchange system. Therefore, other metallic ions, such as copper (2+) [21], can adsorb to hair, especially after frequent exposure to swimming pool water. It has been suggested that metallic ions, such as chromium, nickel, and cobalt, may also sorb to hair from swimming pool water [22]. Sorption of metallic ions, such as calcium or magnesium, occurs even from low concentrations in the water supply. However, fatty acids present in hair products enhance the adsorption of most of these metallic ions to the hair surface, as described earlier. Heavy metals, such as lead and cadmium, have been shown to collect in hair from air pollution [23], and other metals, such as zinc, are available from antidandruff products. Other soils that shampoos must remove are proteinaceous matter arising from the stratum corneum, sweat, and other environmental sources. We have already described metallic ion contamination from the water supply, from swimming pools, and from sweat. In addition, particulate soils from the environment include hydrocarbons, soot, and metal oxide particles, which should also be removed by shampoos [21]. D. Detergency Mechanisms Although mechanical action is involved in shampooing or cleaning hair, it may be assumed to be constant for any given person. Therefore, detergency mechanisms are the main approach in producing differences in hair cleaning, that is, in removing soils at or near the fiber surface. Detergency mechanisms include emulsification, solubilization, and rollup [24] and generally consider soils as either oily (liquid soils) or particulate (solid soils). The removal of oily soils involves diffusion of water to the soil/fiber interface and rollup of the soil, which generally determines the rate of soil removal, although solubilization, emulsification, and soil penetration are also involved. Rollup of oil on a fiber surface is caused by interfacial tensions of (oil on fiber) fo, and (water on fiber) fw, and between (oil and water) ow, and the oily soil rolls up when the combination of these interfacial tensions R is positive in the expression, where is the contact angle of the oil droplet on the fabric or substrate: R = fo
+
fw
cos
ow
In other words, to clean oily soils from hair involves emulsification, solubilization, and rollup of the oily soil. This includes emulsification and solubili
Page 393
zation of the lipids of Table 2 and oil soil rollup. To maximize rollup, the detergent must make the fiber surface more hydrophilic [24]. Thus, the removal of lipid soil from hair is controlled by the hydrophilicity of the fiber surface, and anything that can be done to make the fiber surface more hydrophilic, such as bleaching or washing with anionic surfactants in water, should facilitate oily soil removal. This is one of the reasons that damaged hair, which is generally more hydrophilic at the surface, is so sensitive to oil removal. On the other hand, the removal of particulate soils is not controlled by the hydrophilicity of the fiber surface. Particulate soil removal depends on the bonding of the particle to the surface and the location of the particle [24]. When the soil particle consists of nonpolar components, its adhesion depends mainly on van der Waals forces, for example waxes or polymeric resins or even some cationic polymer deposits. The removal of these soils is easier for noncationic polymers because adhesive binding for cationics can include a combination of ionic and van der Waals forces. Some soils (e.g., conditioners containing cationic surfactant plus oily substances or some plasticized resins) are intermediate in classification, and their removal may involve a more complicated cleaning mechanism. E. Transport of Hair Lipid After shampooing, the surface of hair is relatively free of lipid, or at least its concentration is considerably reduced. Sebum (produced by the sebaceous glands) and epidermal lipid (produced by the cells of the horny layer of the scalp) are transferred to the hair because of its greater surface area and absorptive capacity. Creeping of sebum along the hair has also been suggested [25], although Eberhardt [26] has shown that creeping does not occur along single hair fibers. Eberhardt suggests that transport occurs primarily by mechanical means, that is, by contact of hair with scalp (pillows and hats), rubbing (combing and brushing), and haironhair contact. Distribution of sebum along the fibers by combing and brushing is very important, and wicking as occurs in textile assemblies might also be involved [27,28]. The net result is that the rate of accumulation of lipid is fastest for oily hair; after the lipid accumulates beyond a given level, it interferes with the appearance and overall esthetics of the hair, causing fibers to clump or to adhere together. The composition of the lipid itself may influence its transport, because ingredients that either lower the surface tension of the sebum or increase its fluid nature (make it less viscous) can facilitate transport and even increase the perception of oiliness. In addition, other ingredients left behind on the hair surface, such as conditioning agents, may exacerbate oiliness in an analogous manner.
Page 394
Hair characteristics, such as fineness, degree of curvature, and length, are also relevant to the transport of lipid and to the influence of lipid on hair assembly properties. For example, fine, straight mediumlength hair provides optimum characteristics for the transport of sebum. This type of hair provides the maximum amount of hair clumping by a given amount of lipid. On the other hand, curly, coarse, long hair tends to inhibit transport and also minimizes the influence of tress compacting. Among all hair properties, increasing fiber curvature provides the greatest influence against the cohesive forces of hair lipid and the resultant compacting of tresses [29]. F. Methods of Evaluating Hair Cleaning Several methods have been described to evaluate the ability of different shampoos or detergents to clean soil from the hair [11,21,22,30–37]. Most of these methods have been developed to evaluate the removal of lipid soil from the hair [21,31,32,38]. Some of these methods are soil specific [31] or are more sensitive with specific soil types [21,34]; others work for most soils [33]. Haircleaning methods may be classified according to the following categories: chemical and physical properties, microscopic methods, or subjective or sensory evaluation procedures. Chemical or physical methods may involve either direct analysis of the hair itself [21,34] or analysis of hair extracts [30,31]. For direct analysis of hair, chemical methods, such as ESCA [35] or infrared spectroscopy, may be used. Physical methods, such as fiber friction [34] or light scattering [33] or examination of interfiber spacings [21], on the other hand, are less soil specific than chemical methods and offer the ability to look at a variety of soil types, but sometimes these methods are less distinguishing in so doing. Microscopic methods have also been used to evaluate hair cleanliness [30]. However, sensory evaluation of hair greasiness on hair swatches [36] and subjective assessments from halfhead and consumer tests are also useful. The latter evaluations are in a sense the final word in the estimation of cleanliness by shampoos. Most procedures involve evaluation of either single soils (primarily hair lipid) or shortterm effects of different products. One area of concern that has received relatively little attention is longterm effects that might result from gradual buildup or from gradual interactions between different hair products or between hair lipid and different hair products. This is an important area for future research for shampoos. G. Cleaning Efficiency of Shampoos To evaluate shampoo efficiency, one must consider the different soil types separately and then together and also attempt to distinguish between cleaning
Page 395
soil from hair and the deposition of ingredients from the shampoo formulation itself. 1. Cleaning Lipid Soil For efficiency in removing lipid soil from hair, the literature does not provide a consensus. For example, Shaw [30] concludes that a onestep application of anionic shampoo removes essentially all the hair surface lipids and that differences in cleaning efficiencies cited (for different surfactants [30]) reflect differences in the amount of internal hair lipid removed. To support this conclusion, Shaw cites results from scanning electron micrographs (SEM) of hair washed with anionic surfactant (monoethanolamine lauryl sulfate) compared with SEM photographs of hair washed with ether. In addition, Shaw cites in vitro studies showing that various shampoos remove 99% of an artificial lipid mixture deposited on the hair. Robbins [39] independently arrived at a similar conclusion, suggesting that shampoo surfactants in a normal twostep shampoo operation are very effective in removing “surface” lipid; although because of their limited penetration into hair, they are less effective in removing internal lipid. Table 3 offers some evidence for the effectiveness of current shampoos for removing a sebaceous soil from wool fabric in moderately soft water (80 ppm hardness). These data show that a cocomonoglyceride sulfate (CMGS) shampoo at only 5% concentration (5% shampoo, when diluted provides only 1% AI) under these laboratory conditions nearly approaches the efficiency of boiling TABLE 3 Shampoo Versus Chloroform Extraction of Animal Hair: % Synthetic Sebum Removeda % Shampoo concentration
CMGS formula
Soap CTG formula
0.5
63
18
2.0
86
53
5.0
91
77
a
Percentage values were obtained by extracting the same wool swatches in boiling chloroform for 4 h in a Soxhlet after shampooing and comparing the residue weight versus total soil deposited. For practical purposes, boiling chloroform for 4 h is 100% sebum removal. Test procedure: Preweighed wool swatches were soiled with synthetic sebum and reweighed to determine the amount of soil deposited. These swatches were washed in a tergitometer with CMGS and soapcontaining (conditioning) shampoos at varying concentrations. The swatches contained approximately 10% sebum, an exceptionally large amount of soil. The temperature was 105–110°F, time 30 s, and a 200:1 solution to wool ratio and 2–30 s water rinsings were used.
Page 396
chloroform in a 4 h Soxhlet extraction for removing lipid soil from wool swatches. On the other hand, the soapcontaining shampoo of Table 3 is not very effective in removing this lipid from hair. The normal usage concentration of shampoos is 20–25%. The solutionhair ratio in normal usage is lower than in this experiment; however, this probably does not make a substantive difference. Wool swatches were used in this experiment instead of hair, because most shampoos are too effective to provide distinctions in removing sebum from hair under these conditions. There are recent publications [40,41] showing that fatty acids, paraffin waxes, and certain triglyceride components of sebum are more difficult to remove from hair than the other components, although a detergent like sodium laureth2 sulfate is highly effective in removing virtually all sebaceous components. There are only limited published data with regard to the removal of other nonsebaceous types of soils by shampoos. However, there are data showing incomplete removal of monofunctional cationics by anionic detergents [42], and although limited data are available, the removal of polycationic soil should be even more difficult. 2. Cleaning Other Soils The original hair spray lacquers of the 1950s were more difficult to remove from hair than the anionic and neutral polymers of today's hairsetting products. However, no systematic study of the ease or difficulty in removing these ingredients from hair could be found. Gloor [41] has examined the influence of hair spray on reoiling; however, no systematic study of the effects of hair spray on the ease of removal of hair lipid has been reported. Calciumbridged fatty acid may be deposited onto hair even in shampoos containing anionic surfactant. It is also well known that acid rinses may be used to remove calciumbridged fatty acid from hair, and anionic sulfate surfactants appear to remove fatty acid deposits from hair. However, copper (cupric ion) adsorbs strongly to hair and is reported to be resistant to removal by anionic surfactant [22]. Published literature regarding the efficacy of anionic surfactant systems for removing particulate soils, such as soot and hydrocarbons, could not be found. One may speculate that two important variables with this kind of soil are particle size and the type of chemical bonding between the particle and the hair. As particle size decreases below the region of about 1 m, the resistance to removal should increase. However, when van der Waals attractive forces are the primary adhesive forces, removal probably occurs. When hydrogen bonding and/or ionic bonding are involved, the particle is more resistant to removal.
Page 397
VII. Adsorption Onto Hair A. General Characteristics The binding of ingredients to hair fibers is fundamental to the action of conditioning agents whether from a shampoo or a conditioner medium. The amount of sorption or uptake of an ingredient by hair from an aqueous solution is governed by its attraction or binding interactions to the keratin, its hydrophilicity or binding interactions to the aqueous phase, and the diffusability of the ingredient into the hair. It is useful to consider deposition onto hair as represented by two distinct driving forces. The first involves chargecharge interactions, which cationic ingredients are attracted to a negatively charged hair fiber surface. This mechanism has been studied to the greatest extent. The second important driving force for deposition onto human hair involves hydrophobic interactions, which a neutral hydrophobic material, like a silicone polymer, is driven from an aqueous medium onto a hair fiber surface primarily by entropy. The binding interactions to keratin are influenced by the charge of the ingredient, its molecular size, the isoelectric point of hair, the pH of the surrounding medium, other salts or components in the formulation, and ingredients that are attached to the fiber surface. The attraction to the aqueous phase is governed primarily by the charge of the ingredient and the ratio of polar to nonpolar substituent groups. Penetration into the fibers or diffusion rates are governed primarily by molecular size, the condition of the hair, pH, and reaction temperature. Because the isoelectric point of hair is so low, approximately 3.67, its surface bears a net negative charge near neutral pH, at which most shampoos are formulated. Although anionic surfactants bind to the hair surface, the number of sites is comparatively small, relative to sites for cationic ingredients. Lauryl and laureth sulfate salts and salts of olefin sulfonate are also moderately hydrophilic. They appear to rinse well (but not completely) from hair and therefore serve as good cleaning agents. More anionic surfactant binds to hair with decreasing pH, suggesting that low pH shampoo formulations leave more anionic surfactant behind after shampooing than neutral pH shampoos. The diffusion of anionic surfactants into hair is slow, and it takes days for an averagesized surfactant to completely penetrate cosmetically unaltered hair. Although some penetration of surfactant can and does occur, the major interactions and effects of the active ingredients of shampoos and conditioners occur at or near the fiber surface, that is, near the first few micrometers of the periphery of the hair.
Page 398
One objective of highcleaning shampoos is to minimize sorption and/or deposition of its ingredients. On the other hand, the effects caused by conditioning shampoos and creme rinses are primarily a result of adsorption of ingredients at or near the fiber surface, and so the objective with conditioning is to maximize the deposition of the conditioning agents. Soaps and surfactants, lipids, cationic ingredients, and even polymers or polymer association complexes have been used as conditioning ingredients in shampoos and/or conditioning products. Soaps deposit their hydrophobic salts on the hair or bind by metal bridging. Cationic surfactants and polymers attach substantively to hair by ionic bonds enhanced by van der Waals attractive forces. On the other hand, the substantivity of most polymer association complexes or silicones is probably a result of their hydrophobic nature, enhanced by van der Waals forces and possibly by ionic bonds and entropy. Cream rinses are analogous to conditioning shampoos in causing hair effects chiefly by the adsorption of ingredients to hair. Above its isoelectric point (pH 3.67 for undamaged hair), more cationic than anionic surfactant binds to the hair surface, and cationics are difficult to remove by rinsing. As a result, cationic surfactants are said to be substantive to hair. Similar to anionic surfactants, diffusion of cationic surfactants into hair is slow. The more important interactions occur at or near the fiber surface (first few micrometers of the fiber periphery), accounting for the low surface friction and the ability of creme rinses to make hair comb more easily. More modern cream rinse conditioners contain a high concentration of a fatty alcohol, such as cetyl alcohol, or a similar fatty material in addition to a cationic surfactant. Dye binding studies suggest that conditioning alcohols binds to hair along with cationic ingredient (absorption maximum shifts), resulting in easier combing and more effective conditioning than by the cationic surfactant alone. The condition of the hair also affects the uptake and the diffusion of cream rinse and shampoo ingredients. Diffusion is faster into altered or damaged hair than into unaltered hair. Bleaching (oxidation) also lowers both the isoelectric and the isoionic points of hair, thereby attracting more cationic surfactant to the hair. Thus, although diffusion occurs more easily into cosmetically altered hair, the more important hair effects are produced by conditioner and conditioning shampoo ingredients binding at or near the fiber surface. Only in severely damaged tip ends might internal binding be more important, and even here the distinction may be essentially semantic. B. Kinetics of Ionic Reactions with Keratin Fibers 1. Summary Reactions of hair fibers with solute in solution may be considered a multistep process:
Page 399
1. Diffusion through solution 2. Adsorption or interaction at the fiber surface 3. Diffusion or transport into the fibers 4. Reaction at internal sites in the fibers Whenever diffusion through solution is rate determining, reactant concentrations are generally low, the rate is dependent on agitation, and the reaction is usually characterized by low activation energies (3–5 kcal/degree mol). Fiber surface adsorption is generally rapid for ionic ingredients, and the surface becomes filled (with respect to solute) during the first few minutes of reaction. Diffusion into the fibers is generally the ratedetermining step of most hair fiber reactions and is usually characterized by higher activation energies (10–30 kcal/degree mol). Because ionic reactions are generally more rapid than diffusion, they are usually not rate determining. However, reactions that involve breaking and formation of covalent bonds can sometimes be slower than diffusion into the fibers and therefore can be rate determining, for example, reduction of the disulfide bond by mercaptans at acidic pH. Penetration into the fibers is governed by the following factors: Reaction temperature Molecular size Crosslink density of fibers Fiber swelling Reaction time The rate of penetration generally increases with increasing temperature and fiber swelling, whereas it decreases with increasing crosslink density and molecular size of the penetrating species. Obviously, the extent of penetration increases with time. Liquid water at room temperature penetrates across the entire fiber in less than 15 minutes and in less than 5 minutes at 92°F [43], whereas more than 6 h is required for single fibers to equilibrate in a humid atmosphere, and even longer for a fiber assembly. Such dyes as methylene blue (molecular weight 320) and orange II (molecular weight 350) generally require over an hour to penetrate through the cuticle layers to the cortex. Similar penetration times are expected for the typical anionic and cationic surfactants used in shampoos and hair conditioners. 2. Transcellular and Intercellular Diffusion Two pathways have been described for diffusion into human hair [45]: (1) transcellular diffusion and (2) intercellular diffusion. The transcellular route involves diffusion across cuticle cells through both high and low crosslinked
hair conditioners. 2. Transcellular and Intercellular Diffusion Two pathways have been described for diffusion into human hair [45]: (1) transcellular diffusion and (2) intercellular diffusion. The transcellular route involves diffusion across cuticle cells through both high and low crosslinked proteins. Intercellular diffusion involves penetration between cuticle cells
Page 400
through the intercellular cement and other proteins low in cystine content (low crosslinked density regions). Transcellular diffusion is the generally accepted route because of the much greater amount of surface area available for this type of penetration. Intercellular diffusion was first proposed as far back as 1937 by Hall [46] and was recently demonstrated clearly by Leeder et al. [47] for metal complex dyes; a large cationic dye (rhodamine B, 479 daltons); triphenyl pyrazine, a neutral molecule (311 daltons); and for the highmolecularweight anionic oligomeric Synthappret BAP (>3000 daltons). For shampoos and conditioners, both diffusion routes probably occur in most circumstances. The intercellular route, is probably preferred for larger molecules, however, because the lowsulfur, nonkeratinous proteins are more easily swollen than the highly crosslinked regions. With decreasing molecular size, the transcellular route probably becomes increasingly important because of the much greater surface available for this type of diffusion. C. Binding of Ionic Ingredients to Hair The interactions of ionic ingredients (i.e., acids, alkalies, and neutral salts) with keratin fibers are of major importance to shampoos, cream rinses, ionic conditioners, and the group of hair dyes referred to as rinses. In this section, we consider the acidcombining capacity, which relates to the total number of basic groups in the fibers and defines the capacity for the fiber to bind anionic detergent ionically, and the basic binding capacity, which defines the capacity for the fiber to bind cationic detergent ionically. Unexpectedly, the surface of the fiber is essentially negatively charged and has a greater capacity for cationic binding than the fiber interior, as reflected in the isoelectric point near pH 3.67 and the isoionic point of about 6.5–7. 1. Maximum AcidCombining Capacity The acidcombining capacity provides indirect information about the combination of highmolecularweight organic anions with whole or total hair fibers, and organic anions are the primary ingredient of shampoos. The maximum acidcombining capacity of human hair fibers, from reaction with simple acids, such as hydrochloric, phosphoric, or ethyl sulfuric acids, is approximately 0.75 mmol/g for unaltered human hair and about 0.82 mmol/g for wool fiber [48]. This value approximates this number of dibasic amino acid residues in the fibers [49], that is, the combined amounts of arginine, lysine, and histidine. The primary sites for interaction with acid (protons) are probably the carboxylate groups of aspartic and glutamic acids (ionized by interaction with the dibasic amino acid residues) and the dibasic amino acid groups themselves. This acidbase reaction involves protonation of a basic site on or in the fiber, forming a positive charge on the fiber that attracts a negative ion to it.
Page 401
Steinhardt and Harris [48] have shown that the uptake of chloride ion by wool corresponds to the uptake of hydrogen ions during reaction with hydrochloric acid, and we in our laboratories have shown the same to be true of human hair. Maclaren [50] has taken advantage of this counterion effect and has developed a test for the acidcombining capacity of keratin fibers by measuring the uptake of the anion of orange II dye (p hydroxy1naphthyl azobenzenesulfonic acid) from formic acid solution. We have used this test to study the variation in the acidcombining capacity of hair among individuals, by cosmetic treatments, and from environmental effects (next section). 2. Variation in the AcidCombining Capacity of Unaltered Hair Hair samples were collected from 20 female Whites ages 10–30 who had never bleached, dyed, or permanentwaved their hair. These hair samples were analyzed by Maclaren's method for the acidcombining capacity. The average uptake was 0.70 mmol/g. Analysis of variance indicated significant differences among these hair samples beyond the = 0.01 level. This tells us that there are differences in the ability of undamaged human hair to take up anionic surfactants from shampoos. 3. Variation in the AcidCombining Capacity of Altered Hair Bleaching decreases the acidcombining capacity of both human hair [51] and wool fibers [52]. Analysis of hair samples bleached to different extents shows that the acidcombining capacity decreases with increased bleaching (see Table 4). This result shows that bleached hair takes up less anionic surfactant from shampoos than nonbleached hair and that there is a continued decrease in the ability of hair to adsorb anionic surfactant with increased bleaching. On the other hand, bleached hair should pick up more cationic surfactant, and the adsorption of this type of species should increase with increased bleaching. Amino acid analysis of these same hair samples shows no change in the basic amino acid residues. Therefore, the decrease in acid combination (anionic sur TABLE 4 AcidCombining Capacity of Bleached Hair Acidcombining capacitya (mmol/g hair)
Cysteic acid (mmol/g hair)
Control (unbleached)
0.67
0.03
One bleach
0.60
Two bleaches
0.52
Three bleaches
0.48
Four bleaches
0.43
Frosted hair
0.30
.066
Sample description
a
By the method of Maclaren [50].
Page 402
factant combination) must be a result the formation of cysteic acid in the fibers, which forms a strong ionic bond with the basic amino acid residues and inhibits their interaction with weaker acids, such as formic acid, thus decreasing the uptake of orange II dye or anions of high affinity, such as lauryl sulfate. Because the exocuticle and its A layer are highly crosslinked with cystine [53] and are near the fiber surface, one would expect a large increase in cysteic acid in the cuticle and in all probability a decrease in the isoelectric point of hair. This should produce a decrease in aciddye combination and an increase in the combination of cationic conditioning agents at or near the fiber surface with increased bleaching or oxidative weathering. In our laboratories, we have shown that the acidcombining capacity of human hair decreases with weathering [54], although only to a small extent, and this change results in a decrease in the ability of hair to take up anionic surfactant from shampoos. This study involved a comparison of root and tip ends of five samples of long hair (longer than 18 inches) that was visually lighter in the tip ends than the root ends. The acidcombining capacity varied from approximately 3 to 13% less in the tip ends. The most severely affected sample was hydrolyzed and analyzed for amino acids and found to contain significantly less lysine and histidine and a larger amount of cysteic acid in the hydrolyzates of the tip ends. This result is presumably from reaction with the elements. Such hair reacts more strongly with cationic conditioning agents than nonweathered hair, so that weathered hair should show more reaction with cationic surfactants in the tip ends than the root ends, and it does. In addition, weathered hair also shows more reaction with anionic detergents because of the increased penetration rate from the degradation reactions of the oxidizing agent. 4. Reaction with Hydrogen Ions and Cationic Surfactants In neutral dyeing or surfactanthair interactions, competition of cations with hydrogen ions plays a role. When the concentration of hydrogen ions is low and cations of low affinity are present, the adsorption of anion is influenced by the concentration and affinity of cations for hair. If the cation affinity is high enough that it is adsorbed, a counterion must accompany it to maintain electrical neutrality. In the presence of lowaffinity cations, such as sodium or potassium hydrogen ions can be taken up until quite high pH values are reached [55]. However, competition between hydrogen ions and other cations occurs at high concentrations or when cations of high affinity are employed. 5. Base Binding Capacity and Cationic Binding The base binding capacity of human hair is approximately 0.4 mmol/g or about onehalf the acidcombining capacity of human hair. This demonstrates the difference between the whole fiber and the fiber surface with regard to the ratio
Page 403
of acidic to basic amino acid side chains and is an index of the relative reaction of the whole fiber to cationic surfactants that occurs via ionic bonding. Longchain quaternary ammonium compounds, such as surfactants or conditioner additives, have a high affinity for human hair, and they compete quite effectively with hydrogen ions for sites on hair, even at acid pH in many cream rinse formulations. Furthermore, greater binding of cationic surfactants occurs to hair with increasing pH, because of the increased ionization of carboxyl side chain groups that occurs with increasing pH, creating additional sites for ionic binding with the cationic surfactant. 6. Influence of Cations on the Combination of Hydroxide Ions with Keratin Fibers Quantiative cation affinities have not been determined for human hair; however, Steinhardt and Zeiser [56] have shown that for a series of quaternary ammonium halides, as with anions, the affinity for keratin increases with increasing molecular weight. Organic ions of small size (below 150 daltons) differ very little in affinity and are similar to inorganic alkali metal cations, but above 150 daltons, the affinity of organic cations increases rapidly. The high affinity of hexadecyl trimethylammonium and larger cations (conditionertype actives) is a result of the ionic bond, van der Waals attractive forces, and the relatively low hydrophilic nature of the molecule. Scott et al. [57] have shown a similar phenomenon for human hair by comparing the sorption behavior of hexadecyl and dodecyl trimethylammonium bromides. These scientists found that under similar conditions of adsorption and desorption, greater amounts of the larger hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide combined with hair, attesting to its greater affinity. This is probably an entropyrelated phenomenon (see later). Cations of low affinity, at high concentrations, increase the interaction of hydroxide ion with keratin. This has been described by Steinhardt and Zeiser [56] as an effect of salt on the base binding behavior of keratin. Cations of high affinity also produce a greater effect in increasing the interaction of hydroxide ion with keratin [56]. 7. LowMolecularWeight Organic Bases Similar to the interactions of lowmolecularweight carboxylic acids with hair, the interactions of lowmolecularweight organic bases involve more than simply the backtitration of conjugate acids. Barnett [58] has described the interaction of mono, di, and triethanolamines at 25% concentration and higher with human hair. The reactions of these species with hair involve extensive swelling and ultimately lead to decomposition and disintegration of the hair.
Page 404
8. Interactions of Salts Near Neutrality and Effect on Surfactant Interactions The interactions of surfactants and ionic dyes with keratin fibers, near neutral pH (5–8), have not been studied as thoroughly as acid and basic dyeing. However, Vickerstaff [59] suggests that the mechanisms for neutral dyeing is analogous to the action of surfaceactive agents at an air/water interface, where they orient with the hydrophobic tail extending into the air and the hydrophilic group in the water. Another analogy is the electrophoresis of proteins in sodium dodecyl sulfate, where the hydrophobic portion of the surfactant binds to the protein and the charged group projects toward the solvent or gel. Thus, a mechanism for neutral interactions of surfactants with keratin fibers depicts the surfactant attaching to the fiber by its hydrophobic tail and the hydrophilic group (e.g., the sulfonate group) projecting toward the solution [60]. Evidence for a change in mechanism for the binding of surfactants to human hair as the pH of the system changes from acid to neutral has been provided by Robbins and Fernee [61]. A “leading ion mechanism” has also been proposed by Peters [55] for interactions near neutrality. For this mechanism, the fiber surface bears a net negative charge because of its low isoelectric point (pH 3.7). Positively charged ions are attracted to the negatively charged surface, thus helping it to overcome the electrical barrier for anions. This view elevates the importance of the counterions (cations in particular) in neutral dyeing or surfactant binding to hair near neutral pH. The effect of salt addition on dye uptake is consistent with this mechanism, because the addition of electrolyte near neutral pH increases the amount of dye [62] or surfactant [63] that combines with keratin fibers. Most surfactant interactions with hair are above the critical micelle concentration, and aggregation introduces complexities to the mechanisms. However, because sorption of sodium lauryl sulfate continues to increase above the critical micelle concentration [64], higher concentrations of aggregate near the fiber surface may be capable of providing higher concentrations of monomer for diffusion into the fiber, because it is probably monomer rather than aggregate that diffuses into the fiber. D. Reactions of Neutral Materials with Human Hair Reactions of neutral materials with human hair have been studied to a lesser extent than ionic ingredients. However, the deposition of waterinsoluble dispersed silicones as occurs from modern two in one shampoos onto human hair is most likely driven by a hydrophobic mechanism rather than by an ionic mechanism. This is therefore an entropydriven process which greater randomness in the products versus reactants favoring the deposition onto the hair as opposed to a highly structured alignment to keep the waterinsoluble particles
Page 405
dispersed. This phenomenon is largely responsible for the greater binding of anionic and cationic surfactants to hair with increasing molecular weight. Interestingly, nonionic surfactant has been shown to decrease the sorption of sodium lauryl sulfate, probably by decreasing the concentration of monomer available at the surface. Ethoxylation to sodium lauryl sulfate decreases the sorption, too, although it is not clear at this time whether this action is simply an effect on diffusion rate or on the anion affinity or both these parameters. VIII. Shampoo Lather Shampoo lather does not directly influence the physical behavior of hair fibers. However, shampoo lather can influence the consumer's perception of hair characteristics. Lather is so important to consumers preferences that it is a fundamental property of shampoos. The most useful work leading to the present understanding of shampoo lather was described by Neu [65] and by Hart and colleagues [66–68]. Neu pointed out that the traditional RossMiles [69] shampoo foam evaluation using an active concentration of about 0.1–0.2% is unrealistic and does not simulate consumer preferences for shampoo lather. He suggested lather testing at an order of magnitude greater in active surfactant concentration than used in the RossMiles test. Neu used a kitchen food mixer to generate shampoo lather for laboratory evaluation. Lather produced from this type of apparatus is more similar to that obtained on hair under shampooing conditions than provided by cylinder shake test methods, as in RossMiles. Hart and DeGeorge [66], following the lead of Neu, used a Waring blender to generate shampoo lather and measured drainage rates to provide an index of lather viscosity. Hart and DeGeorge [66] distinguished between foam and lather for shampoo evaluation, pointing out that “foam” is a broad generic term consisting of “any mass of gas bubbles in a liquid film matrix,” whereas lather is a special type of foam formed during shampooing and other processes and “consists of small bubbles that are densely packed,” thus resisting flow. It has been shown that the foam drainage test produces results that relate better to actual inuse salon testing [70]. Conclusions from Hart's work are as follows. A synthetic sebum load lowers lather quality. This is consistent with the known observation that the second shampoo application lathers better than the first shampoo application because more sebaceous soil is encountered in the first application. Hart also demonstrated that the traditionally known “foam booster” additives, such as lauramid DEA or cocamidopropyl betaine, should more correctly be called lather modifiers (amides modify lather feel and tend to make a thicker, creamier lather) but these additives do not boost lather; they tend to suppress shampoo
Page 406
lather. These foam modifiers actually associate with surfactant to strengthen the film structure of the lather. Other structuring agents not typically thought of as foam modifiers are polymeric gums, such as methylcellulose or hydroxyethylcellulose, that have been traditionally added to thicken shampoos. Such a polymer at a level as low as 0.2% can often create a nice thick creamy lather from a loose largebubble foam, presumably by enhancing the film strength of the lather. It is hoped that this summary provides a useful beginning to a better understanding of shampoo lather and lather testing. However, it should be understood that lather drainage rates are only one of the important parameters of shampoo lather. Lather feel and the rate of lather generation are two other important components of shampoo lather, for which reliable quantitative predictive methods are not yet available. IX. Viscosity Control in Shampoos and Conditioners To control the viscosity of many shampoos, salt is added to the surfactant system, and the interaction between salt and the longchain surfactants tend to form a lamellar or liquid crystalline structure that helps to stabilize or control the consistency of the shampoo. If one plots the salt concentration versus the viscosity in such a system, one typically finds an optimum above which additional salt decreases the viscosity. In developing such a system in which viscosity is controlled by salt addition, it is recommended that one select the appropriate salt concentration on the ascending part of the viscositysalt concentration curve. The selection of surfactant, amide, and other components are critical to the viscositysalt concentration control in such a system. Furthermore, impurities, such as salt contaminants in surfactants, must be carefully controlled to obtain the appropriate viscosity when salt control of viscosity is employed. Polymeric gums, such as methylcellulose or hydroxyethylcellulose, have also been used in shampoos to help control viscosity. In such systems, the salt concentration is also critical to viscosity control. Solvents, such as propylene glycol, glycerine, carbitols, or other alcohols, are sometimes used in shampoos to help solubilize, to clarify product, or to lower cloudclear points. Such ingredients often tend to lower product viscosity, presumably by interfering with surfactant association. References 1. D. Powers, Cosmetics, Science and Technology. Chap. 17 (Sagarin (ed.), Interscience, New York, 1957. 2. T. Gerstein, Cosmet, Perfumery 90, 35 (March 1975).
Page 407
3. C. Radar and W. Tolgyesi, Cosmet. Perfumery 90, 29 (March 1975). 4. A. L. L. Hunting, Encyclopedia of Shampoo Ingredients, Micelle Press, Cranford, NJ, 1983. 5. A. L. L. Hunting, Encyclopedia of Conditioning Rinse Ingredients, Micelle Press, Cranford, NJ, 1987. 6. W. F. Bergfeld, in Hair Research (Orfanos, Montagna, and Stuttgen, eds.), SpringerVerlag, Berlin, 1981, p. 507. 7. M. Ishihara, in Hair Research (Orfanos, Montagna, and Stuttgen, eds.), SpringerVerlag, Berlin, 1981, p. 536. 8. J. A. Swift and A. C. Bews, J. Soc. Cosmet. Chem. 23, 695 (1972). 9. C. Robbins, in Chemical and Physical Behavior of Human Hair, 3rd ed., SpringerVerlag, 1994, pp. 211–226. 10. T. Okumura, 4th Int. Hair Sci. Symp., Syburg, Germany, November 1984. 11. S. C. Kelly and V. N. E. Robinson, J. Soc. Cosmet. Chem. 33, 203 (1982). 12. M. L. Garcia, et al., J. Soc. Cosmet. Chem. 29, 155 (1977). 13. J. G. Gould and R. L. Sneath, J. Soc. Cosmet. Chem. 36, 53 (1985). 14. E. Tolgyesi, Cosmet. Toiletries 98, 29 (October 1983). 15. Federal Register 47FR54646 (December 3, 1982). 16. J. A. Faucher and E. Goddard, J. Colloid and Interfac. Sci. 55, 313 (1976). 17. A. R. Sykes and P. A. Hammes, Drug Cosmet. Ind. 62 (February 1980). 18. B. Idson and W. Lee, Cosmet. Toiletries 98, 41 (October 1983). 19. J. Koch et al., J. Soc. Cosmet. Chem. 33, 317 (1982) 20. F. Schebece, Private communication. 21. M. Breuer, J. Soc. Cosmet. Chem. 32, 437 (1981). 22. G. Ramachandran Bhat et al., J. Soc. Cosmet. Chem. 30, 1 (1979). 23. M. Milosevic et al., Arh Hig. Rad. Toksikol. 31(3), 209 (1980). 24. E. Kissa, Textile Res. J. 51, 508 (1981). 25. M. Gloor, Dermatol. Monatsschr. 160, 730 (1974). 26. H. Eberhardt, J. Soc. Cosmet. Chem. 27, 235 (1976). 27. M. Gloor, in Cosmetic Science (Breuer, ed.), Vol. 1, Academic Press, New York, 1987, p. 218.
24. E. Kissa, Textile Res. J. 51, 508 (1981). 25. M. Gloor, Dermatol. Monatsschr. 160, 730 (1974). 26. H. Eberhardt, J. Soc. Cosmet. Chem. 27, 235 (1976). 27. M. Gloor, in Cosmetic Science (Breuer, ed.), Vol. 1, Academic Press, New York, 1987, p. 218. 28. F. Minor et al., Textile Res. J. 29, 931 (1959). 29. C. Robbins and C. Reich, 4th Int. Hair Sci. Symp., Syburg, Germany (November 1984). 30. D. A. Shaw, Int. J. Cosmet. Sci. 1, 317 (1979). 31. D. Thompson et al., J. Soc. Cosmet. Chem. 36, 271 (1988). 32. M. Ludec et al., Proc. 10th IFSCC Congr., Australia, 1978, p. 693. 33. R. Stamm, et al., J. Soc. Cosmet. Chem. 28, 571 (1977). 34. G. V. Scott and C. R. Robbins, J. Soc. Cosmet. Chem. 31, 179 (1980). 35. C. R. Robbins and M. K. Bahl, J. Soc. Cosmet. Chem. 35, 379 (1984). 36. G. C. Dobinson and P. J. Petter, J. Soc. Cosmet. Chem. 27, 3 (1976). 37. C. R. Robbins and R. Crawford, J. Soc. Cosmet. Chem. 35, 369 (1984). 38. C. A. Knott et al., Int. J. Cosmet. Sci. 5, 77 (1983). 39. C. R. Robbins, in Chemical and Physical Behavior of Human Hair, Van NostrandReinhold, New York, 1979, p. 107.
Page 408
40. J. Clarke et al., J. Soc. Cosmet. Chem. 40, 309–320 (1989). 41. D. Thompson et al. J. Soc. Cosmet. Chem. 36, 271–286 (1985). 42. C. Robbins, J. Soc. Cosmet. Chem 205–214 (1989). 43. V. Wilkerson, J. Biol. Chem. 112, 329 (1935–1936). 44. H. Eberhardt, Res. Rep. No. 1868 (1961). 45. J. D. Leeder and J. A. Rippon, J. Soc. Dyers Col. 99, 64 (1983). 46. R. O. Hall, J. Soc. Dyers Col. 53, 341 (1937). 47. J. D. Leeder et al. Tokyo Wool Res. Conf. (1985). 48. J. Steinhardt and M. Harris, J. Res. Natl. Bur. Stand. 24, 335 (1940). 49. C. R. Robbins and C. Kelly, Textile Res. J. 40, 891 (1970). 50. J. Maclaren, Arch. Biochem. Biophys. 86, 175 (1960). 51. C. R. Robbins et al., Textile Res. J. 38, 1130 (1968). 52. J. Sagal, Textile Res. J. 35, 672 (1965). 53. A. Smith and M. Harris, J. Res. Nat. Bur. Stand. 19, 81 (1937). 54. J. Swift and B. Bews, J. Soc. Cosmet. Chem. 27, 289 (1976). 55. R. H. Peters, Ciba Rev. 2 (1964). 56. J. Steinhardt and E. Zeiser, J. Res. Natl. Bur. Stand. 789 (1949). 57. G. V. Scott et al., J. Soc. Cosmet. Chem. 20, 135 (1969). 58. G. Barnett, M.S. Thesis, Polytechnic Institute of Brooklyn, Brooklyn, New York, 1952. 59. T. Vickerstaff, The Physical Chemistry of Dyeing, Interscience, New York, 1954, p. 413. 60. M. J. Rosen, J. Am. Oil Chem. Soc. 49, 293 (1971). 61. C. R. Robbins and K. M. Fernee, J. Soc. Cosmet. Chem. 34, 21 (1983). 62. T. Vickerstaff, The Physical Chemistry of Dyeing, Interscience, New York, 1954, p. 397. 63. J. Faucher and E. Goddard, Soc. Cosmet. Chem. Sem., May 1977. 64. E. Goddard and R. B. Hannah, J. Colloid Interfac. Sci. 55, 73 (1976). 65. G. E. Neu, J. Soc. Cosmet. Chem. 11, 390 (1960). 66. J. R. Hart and M. T. DeGeorge, J. Soc. Cosmet. Chem. 31, 223 (1980). 67. J. R. Hart and M. T. DeGeorge, Drug Cosmet. Indust. 134, 46 (1984).
64. E. Goddard and R. B. Hannah, J. Colloid Interfac. Sci. 55, 73 (1976). 65. G. E. Neu, J. Soc. Cosmet. Chem. 11, 390 (1960). 66. J. R. Hart and M. T. DeGeorge, J. Soc. Cosmet. Chem. 31, 223 (1980). 67. J. R. Hart and M. T. DeGeorge, Drug Cosmet. Indust. 134, 46 (1984). 68. J. R. Hart and E. F. Levy, Soap Cosmet. Chem. Spec. 53(8), 31 (1977). 69. J. Ross and G. D. Miles, Oil and Soap 18, 99 (1941). 70. F. J. DomingoCampos and R. M. Druguet Toutina, Cosmet. Toiletries 98 (9), 121 (1983).
11 Liquid Soaps RICHARD E. REEVER Richard Reever and Associates, Inc., Minnetonka, Minnesota I. Introduction II. Formula Market Trends A. Formulation systems B. Market size and dynamics III. Anatomy of Liquid Soap Formulas A. Skincleaning agents B. Skinconditioning agents C. Product physical property regulators D. Preservative systems E. Product esthetic regulators F. Special additives IV. Antibacterial Liquid Soaps V. Mildness A. Sensitive skin products B. Mildness testing VI. Future Category Trends for BodyCleansing Products References
Page 410
I. Introduction The mass market liquid soap personal cleansing category in the United States has evolved from rather simple beginnings. In the 1960s and early 1970s, “liquid soap” cleansing products consisted of institutional and hospital health care handwash products—many based on medicated formulas, some using simple liquid fatty acid coco soaps and some using the forerunners of today's blended detergent formulations. In Europe the liquid cleansing category for personal cleansing was continuing to grow and become accepted as a popular choice especially in the shower area. Some smaller companies would stimulate this new category in the United States responding to different set of consumer trends. In 1982, Frank wrote an early overview of the formulation technology and the market trends that accompanied the beginning of this new market category [1]. In 1992, Lundmark added a very complete update on the technology as well as the market growth that accompanied the now substantial category [2]. It is interesting that both authors were key individuals in small companies thought to be responsible for stimulating growth in the new liquid soap category: Frank in 1982 with Jovan, Inc. and Lundmark in 1982 with Minnetonka, Inc. These were two of the small companies known at the time as innovators and astute readers of new consumer trends. In 1977, Minnetonka, Inc. developed a liquid soap product to be sold through specialty department stores called the Incredible Soap Machine, an artistically decorated liquid pump dispenser containing a rich pearly sodium lauryl sulfate, cationic, and glycerin conditioning skin cleanser formula. At a retail price of $4.95 for a 16 ounce container, this single item became the largest single sales growth item in the company. During 1978 and 1979, Minnetonka reworked the specialty product with a revised decorate package (improved formula) and in 1980 nationally launched Softsoap brand liquid soap. The product entered the market with a 10.5 fluid ounce package at a retail price of $1.59 and achieved first year reported sales of $35 million [3]. The primary consumer drivers for the success of this products were as follows: Decorator package designs A “no soap bar mess” advertising campaign An inexpensive highquality formula II. Formula Market Trends To describe product formulas it is first important that the category of liquid soaps be technically defined. In fact, most early products were not and are not
Page 411
today technically “soaps.” In the early 1980s there was correspondence between industry and the FDA that aided in clarifying the acceptance of using the term “soap” in a statement of identity for a liquid skin cleaning product that contained primarily synthetic detergent ingredients. Because a soap for the purposes of the FD&C act was considered to be comprised primarily of alkali salts of fatty acids and soaps were exempt from certain cosmetic labeling requirements and were instead regulated by the Consumer Product Safety Commission, the FDA allowed these synthetic detergentbased products to be labeled as liquid soaps as long as they were “properly qualified as cosmetics.” It became the custom of the industry that “properly qualified” meant using proper ingredient labeling disclosure and using the FDAapproved colors [4]. The trade and probably more importantly the consumer seemed to accept that liquid soaps became any liquid formulas used to clean skin and generally dispensed from pump dispensers. A. Formulation Systems Initially, all liquid soap products marketed from 1980 to 1985 had to meet only very simple requirements: Attractive packaging Pleasant aesthetic qualities: fragrance, color, feel on the skin Good cleaning: good lather, cleaned well, gentle to skin Ease of use: pump dispenser Good value: priced in line with bar soaps Many of the early liquid formulas were based upon shampoo technologies. The raw materials were in abundant supply, and methods of manufacture allow small batch processes with simple turbine mixers in a wide variety of acceptable mixing vessels. Many companies rapidly entered the market. It was estimated in 1982 that over 50 different products entered the market [1]. Many of these included established large companies with longstanding brand names but also included many lowprice regional and private label brands; many of these were shortlived. B. Market Size and Dynamics The Softsoap brand continued to hold the lead market share, primarily because of its highquality formula and decorator design image. As the segment evolved, competitors focused on adding product benefits and, when possible, leveraging these benefits with the wellestablished “equity” of their brand names. Procter & Gamble entered the market with Ivory, one of the only fatty acid soapbased formulas with the same Ivory Clean position as the well established
Page 412
bar soap. Jergens added a lotionenriched formula based on the skin lotion equity of the company. In 1988, Dial entered the market with its own special germkilling equity, to be discussed shortly. The financial size of the market had grown to an estimated “stagnated” $115 million by 1988, primarily driven by product formulations and claim positions that offered only basic simple cleaning and skinconditioning properties [5]. By the end of 1993, with the successful boost from the antibacterial germkilling claim, the market grew to over $289 million, exceeding 10% of the total soap market, and included market shares as follows: ColgatePalmolive Softsoap (28%), Dial liquid (21%), liquid Neutrogena (10%), Jergens (8%), and Liquid Dove by Lever (7%), with new or reformulated entries from Ivory (Procter & Gamble), liquid Safeguard (Procter & Gamble), and liquid Lever 2000 (Lever) [6,7]. By mid1993, all major liquid soap producers were beginning to emphasize new formula technologies with emphasis on special consumer skin care needs as well as a new packaging response to an ever increasing environmental and cost and valueaware consumer. All major brands started to offer a larger package or series of larger sizes, with better cost value to the consumer and a major emphasis on refilling the pump container. General estimates proposed that sales of refill packages were estimated to become nearly 50% of the total sales for some of the liquid soap brands. III. Anatomy of Liquid Soap Formulas Many good references exist that provide detailed starting formulas for a wide variety of liquid soaps. A good overview of starting formulas for a wide variety of liquid soap compositions appears in the text by Flick [8]. The most concise way to simplify the structural parts of these compositions from the formulator's point of view is as follows: Skincleaning agents (surfactants) Skinconditioning agents Product physical property regulators (pH, viscosity) Preservative systems Product esthetic regulators (color, fragrance) Special additives (antibacterial additives; see Tables 1–7) A. SkinCleaning Agents As illustrated by Flick, the skincleaning portion of the formulas is most usually comprised of mixtures of surfactants, with a primary “deepcleaning” surfactant, usually anionic, blended with lower levels of nonionic and ampho
TABLE 1 ColgatePalmolive Regular Liquid Soaps: Key Ingredients and Functions Ingredients
Softsoap original (aloe) [67]
Surfactants (cleansing agents/emulsifiers)
Sodium C14–16 olefin sulfonate (AOS) Sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) Sodium lauriminodipropionate Sodium cocoamphodiacetate Lauramide DEA
Humectants (conditioning agents)
Glycerin Polyquaternium7 Quaternium22 Silk peptide hydrolyzed Silk protein (aloe vera extract)
Pearlescent agents
Glycol stearate
Preservative system
DMDH hydantoin
Color system
FD&C Green No. 3 D&C Yellow No. 10
pH adjuster
Citric acid
Viscosity adjuster
Sodium chloride
TABLE 2 ColgatePalmolive Antibacterial Soaps: Key Ingredients and Functions Ingredients
Softsoap regular [69]
Surfactants (cleaning agents/emulsifiers)
Sodium C14–16 olefin sulfonate (AOS) Cocamidopropyl betaine Lauramide DEA
Humectants (conditioning agents)
Glycerin Polyquaternium7 Aloe vera gel Silk peptide hydrolyzed Silk protein
Pearlescent agents
Preservative system
DMDM hydantoin Tetrasodium EDTA
Color system
FD&C Yellow No. 5 D&C Red No. 33 FD&C Red No. 40
Antibacterial active ingredient
Triclosan
pH adjuster
Citric acid
Viscosity adjuster
Sodium chloride
TABLE 3 Dial Antibacterial Soaps: Key Ingredients and Functions Ingredients
Dial Regular [70]
Surfactants (cleaning agents/emulsifiers)
Ammonium lauryl sulfate (ALS) SLES Lauramide DEA
AL SLE Lau
Humectants (conditioning agents)
Glycerin
PE
Isostearamidopropyl morpholine lactate
Iso La Gly PEG Vita Gua chl
Pearlescent agents
Gly
Preservative system
DMDM hydantoin Tetrasodium EDTA
DM Tetr
Color system
FD&C Yellow No. 5 FD&C Red No. 5
FD FD
Antibacterial active ingredient
Triclosan
Tric
pH adjuster
Citric acid
Citri
Viscosity adjuster
Sod
TABLE 4 Lever Regular Liquid Soaps and Antibacterial Liquid Soaps: Key Ingredients an Dove Beauty Wash (face and hands Ingredients Surfactants (cleansing agents/emulsifiers)
Sodium cocoyl isethionate Sodium Isethionate SLES Sodium alkyl benzene sulfonate Sodium tallowate Sodium cocoate
Disodium cocamido MEA sulfosuc Disodium oleamido MEA sulfosuc
Humectants (conditioning agents)
Propylene glycol Stearic acid
Pearlescent agent
Stearic acid
Preservative system
Quaternium15 Trisodium EDTA Methylparaben Propylparaben
Antibacterial active ingredient
Viscosity adjuster
Sodium chloride Hectorite
TABLE 5 Kao/Jergens Regular Liquid Soaps and Antibacterial Liquid Soaps: Key Ingredie Ingredients
Jergens Antibacterial Plus [18]
Jergens
Surfactants (cleansing agents/emulsifiers)
ALS AOS Cocamidopropyl betaine Cocamide DEA Sodium stearate
AOS ALS Cocamid Cocamid Sodium
Humectants (conditioning agents)
Polyquaternium7 (plus Jergens Lotion)
Polyqua Lotion)
Pearlescent agents
Glycol distearate
Glycol di
Preservative system
DMDM hydantoin Tetrasodium EDTA
DMDM Tetrasod
Color system
Antibacterial active ingredient
Triclosan
Viscosity adjuster
Sodium chloride
Sodium
teric materials. The most common early liquid soap formulas used true fatty acid anionic. Extensive research was presented in a number of patents, most often by larger soap marketers. Some representative patents of this work can be seen in e ColgatePalmolive and a superfatted saturated and unsaturated potassium soap s Stiros of Procter & Gamble [9,10]. For a company with TABLE 6 Procter & Gamble Regular Liquid Soaps: Key Ingredients and Functions Ingredients
IVORY Skin LiquiG
IVORY Regular [72]
Surfactants (cleansing agents/emulsifiers)
SLES SLS Cocamidopropyl betaine Lauramide DEA Octoxynol9
SLES SLS Lauramide DE Cocamidoprop
Humectants (conditioning agents)
Pearlescent agents
Styrene/acrylate copolymer
Preservative system
DMDM hydantoin Tetrasodium EDTA
DMDM hydan Tetrasodium E
Color system
pH adjuster
Citric acid
Citric acid
Viscosity adjuster
Sodium chloride
Sodium chlori
TABLE 7 Procter & Gamble Antibacterial Liquid Soaps: Key Ingredients and Functions Ingredients
Safeguard Regular [73]
Safegu
Surfactants (cleansing agents/emulsifiers)
SLS SLES Cocamidopropyl betaine Lauramide DEA
SLS SLES Cocamidopr Lauramide
Humectants (conditioning agents)
Guar hydro chloride
Pearlescent agents
Glycol diste
Preservative system
DMDM hydantoin Tetrasodium EDTA
DMDM hy Tetrasodiu
Color system
FD&C Red No. 4 FD&C Yellow No. 5
FD&C Red FD&C Yello
Antibacterial active ingredient
Triclosan
Triclosan
pH adjuster
Citric acid
Citric acid
Viscosity adjuster
Sodium sulfate
Sodium sulf
extensive raw material and manufacturing emphasis in the soap area, these formul economies of scale. They suffered from certain chemical and physical deficiencies synthetic detergent systems, most notably in pH, flash foam in hard water, and, in fragrancing with a wide latitude of light fragrances. Procter & Gamble and Neutr few major companies to launch “true soap” formulas, and in later years Procter formula for liquid Ivory from a potassium soap system to a sodium lauryl sulfate, sulfate system (Table 6). In the following analysis of general classes of liquid soap ingredients, the form of ingredient names as listed in the most recent edition of the International Cosmet Dictionary [11]. Some of the most widely used anionic surfactants are the alkyl and alkyl ether sul sulfate (SLS), sodium laureth sulfate (SLES), and the various other anionic salts triethanolamine, and magnesium—all offered ease of formulation, ease of manufa for value if purchased in large quantities. Sodium lauryl sulfate is typically supplie solution and can be easily blended with simple manufacturing equipment and at m when blended properly, can allow systems that provide excellent cleaning, copio rinsing. Many formulas use a blended surfactant system to allow optimizing performance, manufacturing ease. AOS ( olefin sulfonates), such as the ingredient sold with t sodium C14–16 olefin sulfonate, or
Page 419
a trade name example, Witconate AOS (Witco Corporation), is one of these coanionics that is widely used. Typically supplied in a cost effective 40% solids solution, the material has been reputed to have interesting cleaning and mildness properties while offering a reduction in cost of formula per anionic active ingredient level [12]. The types of anionic surfactants listed here generally create a type of lather with an “open structured frothy” foam. Nonionic surfactants in the alkanolamide class, such as the CTFA names lauramide DEA or cocamide DEA, are usually included at a lower ratio concentration of active anionic for the functions of viscosity builders, flash foam enhancers, and foam stabilizers. Examples of amphoteric surfactants that are also commonly coblended with the aforementioned anionic and nonionics are such compounds as cocamidopropyl betaine (Mackam 35, Mcintyre Group, Ltd.) to reduce skin irritation and at carefully controlled ratios to increase the “creamy character” of the lather. Ideal liquid soap formula ranges for optimizing foam building, rinsing, mildness, and viscosity building (with a lower requirement for inorganic salts) can be obtained with AOS anionics, lauric alkanolamides, and cocamidopropyl betaine at solids ratios of 9:1:1 [12]. The first performance evaluation the consumer makes in using a liquid soap is the degree of flash foam, initial development of foam volume. The next is generally foam volume, followed by a creamy or silky character depending on the desired claim or product position. A typical liquid soap formula, such as the original SoftSoap brand formula as listed in Table 1, is generally comprised of a mixture of these different types of cleaning agents to achieve the desired performance. Typical laboratory tests have been designed to measure the level of flash foam and foam volume and are usually calibrated to a laboratory individual's personal means of testing. Such methods as the carefully repeated shaking of a fixed concentration of product in a graduated cylinder, with a resultant measurement of foam rate, volume, and stability, can be quick and reliable. A long standing laboratory method for foam volume is the method detailed by Ross and Miles [13]. Possibly the most reliable consumer data come from actual use of the product under home use conditions or in controlled clinical settings. B. SkinConditioning Agents As the cleaning process continues, the user begins to focus on the feel of the product on the skin. Generally it is desirable to have a feeling of lubricity and smoothness during the cleaning and rinsing process but not an excessive feeling of a sticky feeling or a feeling of residual material on the skin after rinsing. The degree of a clean skin feeling to a soft or smooth skin feeling is balanced toward the product positioning or claim and is adjusted by the use of skin conditioning ingredients. Classes of ingredients used for skin feel include
Page 420
humectants, such as glycerin, proteins, and skin refatting agents, such as PEG 7 glyceryl cocoate. Another widely used class of materials that imparts skin feel is the class of watersoluble anioniccompatible cationic salts and polymeric compounds. Much of the research experience for these materials comes from many years of application research in the hair care area. Many researchers have studied the similarity of substantivity of these materials to skin and hair proteins from both a theoretical and an experimental basis [14,15]. Examples of this class are such materials as the polyquaternium7 series (Merquat 550, Calgon Corporation). Numerous formulas in Tables 1, 2, 3, and 5 show the wide use of this material. One of the key benefits of this material appears to be the high degree of skin feel provided at a very low formula concentration used. This is particularly useful to produce a smooth skin feel without a sticky negative afterfeel on product rinsing. Other classes of cationic salts compatible with high levels of anionics are represented by the research of Gesslein et al. in a U.S. patent issued to the Inolex Chemical Company covering alkyl or alkylamido dimethyl 2, 3dihydroxypropyl ammonium salts sold under the trade name Lexquat series [16]. For all these materials care must be used to select concentrations of additives that balance the skin feel desired with the possible suppression of lather. C. Product Physical Property Regulators Liquid soaps are typically dispensed from pump dispensers directly onto wet skin. In this use they must possess a thickness or viscosity sufficient not to appear “runny” to the user or not to slip through the fingers but at the same time must have the ability to disperse quickly into foam with only a minimum amount of rubbing. This rheology is well known to those skilled in the art of formulation and is very dependent on selection and blending of the surfactant portions of the formula with auxiliary additives, such as polymers, nonionics, cationics, and electrolytes. Typically an electrolyte viscosity response titration curve is conducted on the finished base formula with the electrolyte of choice, commonly sodium chloride, and a safe margin is determined that allows normal process adjustments without the product becoming too stringy (too low in viscosity). Great care in final formula selection is critical because this relationship can be highly sensitive to seemingly minor ingredients, such as product pH, fragrance types and levels, conditioning additives, natural extracts based on glycols, and of course the key cleaning surfactants and their manufacture. The product pH requires a separate study to ascertain not only the desired range and limits (per the previous reference) but also a study to ascertain the product pH stability with age, raw material variations, and interdependence of such items as finished product color over a range of product pH.
Page 421
D. Preservative Systems General laboratory testing by this writer has established that typical liquid soap formulas for use in handwashing will be in the range of 75–85% water. The remaining solids are organic materials that are sensitive to microbiological contamination: generally the lower the level of solids the higher the potential for possible contamination. To fortify the product against contamination during manufacture and extended age in use, it is necessary to add antimicrobial preservatives. Formaldehyde, once widely used as very effective preservative, has been largely discontinued as a pure additive, but various formaldehyde donor materials, such as DMDM hydantoin, are now commonly used [17]. Other additives that enhance preservative effectiveness, such as tetrasodium EDTA, are also found. Care must be taken with proper selection of ingredient and concentrations because some known consumer skin sensitivities exist. Also, proper care on selection, age, and challenge testing is a standard procedure. E. Product Esthetic Regulators As with most toiletries, the esthetics of the product fragrance, color, clarity, or pearly appearance can be as important to consumer perception as the base formula chemistry. The fragrance of a product must be carefully developed to enhance the overall product position. In the author's opinion, this element should be treated as a critical development step and researched thoroughly. The fragrance must be selected with emphasis that the ultimate consumer will attempt to smell the product in the bottle (at the point of purchase), then of course as it is used, will likely want or not want it to have residual fragrance on the skin (depending on the product claims or concept), and finally will make an evaluation as he or she leaves the washing area on how much or little is “fragrancing the air” around the washing area. In kitchen use the fragrance must be clean, fresh, and not in conflict with the food preparation process. For a moisturizing product the fragrance must emphasize skin softness and not be in conflict with this concept. A very interesting range of fragrances is represented by the currently marketed products and ranges from very light subtle floral of the SoftSoap family to the fruity green almond floral of the Jergens lotion product to the woody, lavender herbal floral of liquid Dial. Colors are also an important part of product positioning and have become almost a part of functionality, with the color family of gold and amber representing germ killing (see Tables 2, 3, and 7) to a complete freedom of color representing the ultramild sensitive skin formulas (see Tables 1, 3, and 6).
Page 422
The addition of glycol stearate to provide an opaque and “pearled” look has been an established part of certain marketed formulas, for example, the original SoftSoap formula in Table 1. In early testing before the initial market decision, formulations with this pearled appearance were actually rated superior in skin conditioning to an otherwise equivalent formula series in consumer testing. Certain currently marketed liquid soaps with strong skin conditioning product positions use a pearled or opaque appearance to fortify this position. F. Special Additives Each product formulation contains a number of special additives to fortify certain product or advertising claim positions or appeal to certain consumer preferences. One interesting claim was made on the package and in advertising by Jergens Liquid Antibacterial Plus in 1991 [18]. The claim was that the product not only kills germs on hands but also “eliminates odors that linger on your hands, like onions, diapers and cleaning products” (see Table 5). From general consumer work done in the fragrance and product concept area, it was well known that in food preparation areas, such as kitchen use of liquid soaps, a product that had a fragrance that was too sweet or strongly floral could be in conflict with the intended use. Apparently, to overcome this possible objection of the original sweet floral almond fragrance of the original Jergens liquid lotion soap, a change in fragrance was made to a cleaner, more neutral “malodor counteractant” scent, along with a strong claim that would appeal to kitchen users. Chemical components of the fragrance of a liquid soap capable of counteracting kitchen malodors can be comprised of certain aromatic compounds, such as the acetic and propionic acid compounds represented in the patent work of Schleppnik [19,20]. IV. Antibacterial Liquid Soaps As previously mentioned, the antibacterial ingredients and claims have been the most important new additives responsible for a significant boost in sales of the category since 1990. At the time of this writing, there are extensive discussions taking place between U.S. manufacturers and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration that could have a significant impact on the category. This chapter does not deal in detail with these issues: interested readers are directed to the historical and pending record of industry and FDA Federal Register references for the proposal to establish a Monograph for overthecounter antimicrobial products (1974 and 1978–1994 [21–23]. The current pending discussions in summary relate to the following issues:
Page 423
All leading liquid hand soap products use for the active ingredient (2,4,4' trichloro2'hydroxydiphenyl ether) (Triclosan in the United States; Irgasan DP300, Ciba Geigy Corporation; see Tables 2–5 and 7). The FDA has expressed some concerns regarding the need for more information on the safety and effectiveness of this material for these intended products and has listed this ingredient as category III [23]. The FDA has expressed to industry that the category term “antimicrobial soaps” or “antibacterial soaps” not be included in the tentative final monograph (TFM), in obvious conflict with the fact that this is the consumer category that has been established by the industry since these products were introduced in 1989, instead, FDA proposed “antiseptic handwash” for this category [23]. The FDA in their current TFM has used professionally directed soaps, such as health care personnel handwash and surgical scrub products, to establish the types of effectiveness tests for the category. Currently it has been reported that a joint industry task force has been established with the Soap and Detergent Association (SDA) and Cosmetic Toiletry and Fragrance Association (CTFA), and feedback meetings are being held with FDA to try to resolve many of these issues surrounding the OTC topical antiseptic TFM and the existing antimicrobial soap category [24]. Extensive discussions covering such topics as methods for testing the efficacy of these products seem to be opening up the opportunity to have different methods of testing established for the different product types—mass market everyday use soaps versus health care professional handwash and surgical scrub products—and such tests as the following are being indicated for the mass “handwashes”: the cup scrub test, the “agar patch test,” the modified CADE technique, and modified forms of the general health care handwash test [24]. The comment period for the currently pending June 1994 TFM has been extended to June 1995, with the deadline for any new data currently extended to December 15, 1995 at the time of this writing [24]. A number of good reference publications have demonstrated in vivo tests that are helpful to researchers both in the rapid evaluation of the effectiveness of antimicrobial formulas, including handwash products, as well as part of the final clinical efficacy documentation [25–28]. In 1992, Lever Brothers Company positioned Liquid Lever 2000 Antibacterial Soap with package claims that stated for the Triclosan formula “…not only kills germs but actually keeps them from coming back—all day” (Table 4) [29]. An interesting new crosscategory approach to antibacterial liquid soaps occurred in 1994, when both the ColgatePalmolive Company through the Palmolive brand and the Dial Corporation through the Dial brand introduced
Page 424
a combined dishwashing liquid and antibacterial handsoap in one formula, both using Triclosan as the active ingredient and labeled as OTC drugs [30]. V. Mildness The addition of antibacterial ingredients and germkilling claims created significant growth in the category, but probably the most significant formulation trend to cross over the entire category in the 1990s has been the trend toward improved skin mildness. In a recent review of current population trends, it was stated that as the nation's elderly population grows, so will the demand for much milder cosmetics, softer colors, and treatment and care for aging skin [31]. Much of the direction from cosmetic raw material supplier formularies as well as the patent art in this area of liquid skin cleansing is directed at more skincaring materials and compositions. The Lever Brothers Company has long incorporated a blended isethionate chemistry with fatty acid tallowate/cocoate soap chemistry to achieved improved mildness to skin; a simple representation of this chemistry is reviewed in a 1987 patent [32]. Much of the Lever patent art is aimed at varying ratios of fatty acid soaps and sodium isethionate/sodium cocoyl isethionate to provide clinically verified reductions in irritation. A number of these patents speak to compositions that create physical products from solids to liquid cream to transparent gel structures, and many are aimed at emphasizing their mildness benefits toward consumer facial cleansing [33–36]. In 1991, Lever Brothers entered the U.S. bodycleansing category with Liquid Dove Beauty Wash for face and hands with a creamy liquid dispenser formula based on sodium cocoyl isethionate/sodium isethionate chemistry blended with sodium laureth sulfate and disodium sulfosuccinates and low levels of sodium tallowate and sodium cocoate fatty acid soaps (Table 4). The primary new package claim for this product in 1991 was that Liquid Dove “doesn't dry like soap” and was “milder than any liquid soap on the market” [37]. In 1992, Lever introduced similar isethionate/sodium laureth sulfate chemistry but eliminated the fatty acid soaps and used polyquaternium10 (a polymeric cationic) and cyclomethicone for skin conditioning (Table 4). One of the package claims emphasized the skin mildness of the formula as “won't dry your skin like the leading antibacterial liquid” [29]. In 1994, the Lever 2000 Antibacterial formula package was revised to showed some modification in label claim to “unique formula includes special skin care ingredients so it's better for your skin.” The formula also reflected revisions to replace sodium laureth sulfate and ammonium laureth sulfate and the replacement of cyclomethicone/polyquaternium10 skin conditioners with polyquaternium39 and guar hydroxypropyltrimonium chloride [38]. To reinforce skin mildness, many of the early
Page 425
leading formulas in the liquid soap category, especially those that added antibacterial formulations, added at least two distinct antibacterial formula variations, generally a “regular” and an “extra conditioning formula.” Colgate with SoftSoap, Dial, and Procter & Gamble with the Safeguard brand introduced a second moisturizing or extra conditioning formula that usually contained the same basic surfactant system but then used a pearlescent agent, usually from the family of glycol stearates, along with an increased concentration of skin substantive conditioners from the higher molecular weight polymeric cationics (Tables 2, 3, and 7). Most of the technology for these formula variations were previously publicly disclosed through previously marketed similar conditioning hair shampoo formulas or was widely disclosed publicly by formularies of raw material suppliers but two interesting Procter & Gamble patents illustrate the dual benefit of materials like the cationic guar series to skincleansing products [39,40]. U.S. Patent 4,812,253 by Small et al. discusses the benefit of mild surfactants and polymeric skin feel ingredients like cationic guar in both clinically verified skin mildness and panelisttested improvements in smooth skin feel [39]. General claims of these extra conditioning antibacterial formulas are as follows: Extra softeners for dry skin [41] With moisturizer, helps protect against dry skin [42] Kills germs and moisturizes, a combination of moisturizers and naturally derived skin conditioners that leave hands feeling soft and smooth [43]. A. Sensitive Skin Products One of the most recent trends in formula liquid soap formulations between 1992 and 1995 was the addition of clear, waterwhite colorless formulas positioned as ultramild for people with sensitive skin (Tables 1, 3, and 6). Colgate's Softsoap brand launched a product in 1992 with claims that the formula was “free of colors, soaps and other harsh ingredients that can irritate sensitive skin” [44]. This formula uses a gentle cleansing surfactant blend of anionic and a new category of nonionic (alkyl polyglucoside) material that has the capability for good, is gentle in skin cleansing, and has a good viscosity build and easy rinse properties (Table 1) [68]. A survey article by Salka et al. provides a good overview of the chemical and physical and positive dermatological properties of these materials [45]. The naturally sourced origin (positive for environmental concerns), along with their mildness and high activity of supply, gives these materials a high opportunity for growth across household and personal care categories [30].
Page 426
IvoryProcter & Gamble launched a waterwhite variant in 1994 based upon its previous SLES/SLS formula, with general claims that it was “so gentle you could use it on your face” (Table 6) [46]. Dial Corporation in 1995 has extended its antibacterial liquid soap line with a waterwhite formula based on SLES/cocamidopropyl betaine and decyl polyglucose, claiming the following: Free of dyes Free of harsh perfumes Dermatologist approved Hypoallergenic (Table 3) [47] B. Mildness Testing In his review of Sensitive Skin, Simion points out that although consumer surveys indicate that 50% or more female consumers believe they have sensitive skin, cosmetic researchers and dermatologists and consumers are not always in agreement as to what constitutes sensitive skin [48]. Simion goes on to describe some very good strategies as guidance for the formulator of sensitive skin products, emphasizing two important key directives: (1) the avoidance of known irritants and allergens and (2) the product should be subjected to a series of tests including “inuse” testing to confirm acceptance to a sensitive skin population [48]. In describing hypoallergenic claim support, Jackson et al. also reinforced that although no legal or regulatory definition exists for “hypoallergenic” products, it is imperative for the formulator to provide products by composition and a carefully designed battery of tests that produces a “lower than typical rate of allergic contact dermatitis” [49]. It is therefore imperative that the product development team be continually updated on published dermatological profiles on all formula raw materials as well as the current status on all testing methods both in vitro and in vivo for all similar products in the desired category. It is wise to continue to review the published experience of even commonly used materials. A common ingredient in most of the leading liquid soaps is the amphoteric cocamidopropyl betaine. Several recent references are listed here that voice different opinions but possibly leave some questions about the complete safety of this ingredient in sensitive skin formulas [50,51]. Much of the original comparison data for irritancy testing of skincleansing products continue to use certain benchmark tests, such as the Frosh and Kligman soap chamber test [52]. However, the articles by Simion and Jackson along with the following represent good overview publications for additional perspectives [53–56].
Pa
VI. Future Category Trends for BodyCleansing Products The most significant growth of the liquid soap category could be in the near future trends of the growth of the body cleansing or shower gel segment if the U.S. consumer will adopt their use. Advertising Age has listed the category growth at $158 million in sales (mid1995) up from just over $50 million in 1994, with And Jergens spending over $50 million in advertising to launch Jergens Body Shampo 1994 [57,58]. Recent articles listed the major entries of Procter & Gamble, Unil and Coty in addition to Dial and Colgate's Softsoap, one of the early U.S. entran [57,49]. As another potential measure of growth, Zimmerman states that in some countries liquid body cleansers account for up to 86% of the liquid soap category [58]. As yet another perspective on the potential usage levels of the products and how may relate to the potential size of the segment, many of the currently marketed products have label directions that state that containers have of the order of 5 ml use, or 5–6 showers per fluid ounce. This would create 40–50 showers per 8 ou container or usage that would be comparable to hair shampoos, a market size tha could become two to three times the current liquid handwash market (Tables 8– and product label directions). The currently marketed products have a total solids level (measured as ovendried nonvolatiles) in the range of 26–50%, nearly twice that of the liquid handwash products [60]. It is believed that this higher active level is needed to develop satisfactory foaming levels in use. In addition, all the newest entries include either sponge or polymer/foam applicator or “pouf” to increase the foaming performanc The major claim positions of the products are summarized in Table 12. Clearly, a these products emphasize skin care claims. With the high level of solids and the hi portion of surfactants to create lather, much of the empha TABLE 8 Key Ingredients and Functionsa Function
Ingredient
Surfactants (cleansing agents)
Cocamidopropyl betaine Sodium cocoyl isethionate Sodium laureth sulfate Ammonium laureth sulfate
Conditioning agents
Dimethicone Guar hydroxypropyltrimonium chloride
a
Category: Body. Product: Caress Moisturizing Body Wash by Lever Bros. Co., Dove Moisurizing Body Wash. Source: From Ref. 74.
P TABLE 9 Key Ingredients and Functionsa Function
Ingredient
Surfactants (cleansing agents)
Sodium magnesium laureth sulfate Sodium lauroamphoacetate
Conditioning agents
Soybean oil PEG6 caprylic/capric glycerides Glycerin Maleated soybean oil Polyquaternium10
a
Category: Body. Product: Oil of Olay Moisturizing Body Wash by Procter & Gamble.
Source: From Ref. 75.
TABLE 10 Key Ingredients and Functionsa Function
Ingredient
Surfactants (cleansing agents)
Conditioning agents
Potassium C9–15 alkyl phosphate (MAP) Sodium laureth sulfate Sodium cocoamphoacetate Polyquaternium 10 Sucrose octaacetate Propylene glycol
a
Category: Body. Product: Jergens Body Shampoo, Andrew Jergens Company.
Source: From Ref. 76.
TABLE 11 Key Ingredients and Functionsa Function
Ingredient
Surfactants (cleansing agents)
Lauramide DEA Sodium laureth sulfate Sodium cocoamphoacetate Sodium myreth sulfate
Conditioning agents
PEG7 glycery cocoate Glycerin Isostearamidopropyl morpholine lactate Linoleamidopropyl PGdimonium chloride Phosphate
Special additives
Triclocarban (active ingredient)
a
Category: Body. Product: Dial Plus Moisturizing Antibacterial Body Wash, Dial Corp.
Source: From Ref. 77.
TABLE 12 Body Cleansing Products: Key Product Claims Product
Key claim
Caress Moisturizing Body Wash
Moisturizes as you shower Leaves skin silky soft, smooth
Dove Moisturizing Body Wash
Adds moisture, leaves skin feeling soft
Oil Of Olay Moisturizing Body Wash
Leaves skin feeling soft and moisturized in one step may not need a body lotion
Jergens Body Shampoo
pH balanced, enables your skin to retain more of its moisture
Dial Plus Moisturizing Body Wash
Incredible softening of skin, trusted antibacterial protection
sis in the formulas is on the mildness of the surfactant blends selected as well as a skinconditioning chemistry. Fox, in a 1995 patent survey article, lists a number o covering the mild surfactant and skinconditioning systems and references the pas on mildtoskin monoalkyl phosphate surfactants, also illustrated in their currently Body Shampoo product (Table 10) [61]. Kao has a number of research activitie cleansing arena, covering various types of blended surfactant systems represente patents, including alkyl saccharide surfactants with cationic polymers [62], alkyls and silicone additives [63], and nonionic saccharide surfactants with enhanced an skin and hair cleansing [64]. Dove and Caress brand moisturizing body wash products use a 1992 patented c a mild surfactant blend in combination with a cationic guar derivative and an insol emulsified silicone (dimethicone) [65]. Dial Corporation currently has the only marketed body wash with an antibacterial and a shower claim position for “antibacterial protection” (Tables 8–12). Clearly, important consumer claim and if regulatory action is quiet in this area, others may to enter this arena. Abamba in a 1993 article may have also projected some addi European concepts that, if this new category is well received in the United States, new innovative products [66]. If one looks at the true market age of the liquid soap market, (a little over 15 yea category with other established categories, such as hair care, at over twice that a wash market, still in its U.S. infancy, one can only envision many exciting years of product activity ahead.
Page 430
Acknowledgment The author thanks Mr. Joseph Mabee, Technical Service Manager, Colgate Palmolive Company for his assistance in providing thoughtful and stimulating discussions as well as a creative outline for some of the key tables in this chapter. References 1. E. M. Frank, Cosmet. Toil. 97(7), 49–54 (1982). 2. L. Lundmark, Cosmet. Toil. 107(12), 49–53 (1992). 3. Business Week, 1/12/81. 4. CTFA Labeling Manual, 5th ed., Cosmetic Toiletry and Fragrance Association, Washington, D.C., 1990, pp. 8, 147, 166. 5. Soap and Cosmet. Chem. Spec. 6, 22 (1989). 6. S. J. Ilgenfritz, Wall Street Journal (B8) 8/26/93. 7. C. Canning, HAPPI 30(12), 38–46 (1993). 8. E. Flick, Cosmetic and Toiletry Formulations, 2nd ed., Noyes Publications, Park Ridge, NJ, 1989. 9. Straw, US 4,387,040 to Colgate Palmolive (1983). 10. Stiros, US 4,310,433 to Procter and Gamble (1982). 11. International Cosmetic Ingredient Dictionary, 5th ed. Vol. 1 (J. Wenninger and G. N. McEwen, eds.), CTFA, Washington, D.C., 1993. 12. R. Reever, presented at Am. Oil. Chem. Soc. Spring Meeting, Philadelphia, PA, May 1985. 13. J. Ross and G. D. Miles, Oil Soap, 18, 99 (1941). 14. G. V. Scott et al., J. Soc. Cosmet. Chem. 20, 135–152 (1969). 15. G. D. Goddard et al., J. Soc. Cosmet. Chem. 26, 539–550 (1975). 16. B. Gesslein, J. Guth, et al., US 4,978,526 to Inolex Chemical Company (1990). 17. Cosmet. Toil. 108(10), 88 (1993). 18. Commercial package label, Jergens Antibacterial Plus Liquid Soap, 1991, AndrewJergens Company. 19. A. Schleppnik, US 4,187,251 (1980). 20. A. Schleppnik, US 4,310,512 to Bush, Boake and Allen, Inc. (1982). 21. Food and Drug Administration, OTC topical antimicrobial products, Fed. Reg. 39(179), 33103–33141 (1974).
AndrewJergens Company. 19. A. Schleppnik, US 4,187,251 (1980). 20. A. Schleppnik, US 4,310,512 to Bush, Boake and Allen, Inc. (1982). 21. Food and Drug Administration, OTC topical antimicrobial products, Fed. Reg. 39(179), 33103–33141 (1974). 22. Fed. Reg. 43(4), 1243–1244 (1978). 23. Fed. Reg. 59(116), 31402–31452 (1994). 24. FDC Reports—The Rose Sheet 16(14), 1–3 (1995). 25. M. Casewell, and N. Desai, J. Hosp. Infect. 4, 350–360 (1983). 26. S. Selwyn, J. Hosp. Infect. 6(Suppl.), 37–43 (1985). 27. M. Finkey, H. Maibach, et al., J. Soc. Cosmet. Chem. 35, 351–355 (1984). 28. F. Yackovich and J. Heinze, J. Soc. Cosmet. Chem. 36, 231–236 (1985). 29. Commercial package label, Lever 2000 Antibacterial Liquid Soap, 1992 Lever Bros. Co.
Page 431
30. Chemical Week 156(3), 40–44 (1995). 31. U.S. Industrial Outlook 1994, U.S. Dept. CommerceInternational Trade Association, Chap. 33, Cleaning Preparations and Cosmetics, 1994. 32. M. Caswell et al., US 4,695,395 to Lever Brothers Company (1987). 33. D. Rosser et al., US 4,975,218 to Lever Bros. Co. (1990). 34. A. Greene et al., US 5,132,037 to Lever Bros. Co. (1992). 35. A. Greene et al., US 5,234,619 to Lever Bros. Co. (1993). 36. A. Greene et al., US 5,290,471 to Lever Bros. Co. (1994). 37. Commercial package label, Liquid Dove Beauty Wash, 1991, Lever Bros. Co. 38. Commerical package label, Liquid Lever 2000 Antibacterial Soap, 1994, Lever Bros. Co. 39. L. Small et al., US 4,812,253 to Procter and Gamble (1989). 40. R. Metcalf et al., US 4,820,447 to Procter and Gamble (1989). 41. Commercial package label, Softsoap Extra Conditioning Antibacterial Soap, 1992, SoftSoap Enterprises, Inc. 42. Commercial package label, Safeguard Antibacterial Liquid Soap, 1992, Procter and Gamble. 43. Commercial package label, Liquid Dial Plus Moisturizing Antibacterial Soap, 1995, Dial Corp. 44. L. Kintish, Soap Cosmet. Chem. Spec. 68(12), 34–36 (1992). 45. T. Forster, H. Hensen, B. Salka, et al., Cosmet. Toil. 110(4), 23–28 (1995). 46. Commercial package label, Ivory Skin Cleansing LiquiGel, 1994, Procter & Gamble. 47. Commercial package label, Dial Sensitive Skin Antibacterial Liquid Soap, 1995, Dial Corp. 48. F. A. Simion and A. H. Rau, Cosmet. Toil. 109(2), 43–50 (1994). 49. E. M. Jackson, T. J. Stephens, and L. A. Rhein, Cosmet. Toil. 109(7), 83–85 (1994). 50. P. D. Pagetto et al., Am. J. Contact Derm. 5(1), 13–16 (1995). 51. J. E. Hunter and K. L. Hintze, presented at 51st Scientific Conference CTFA, San Francisco, CA, October 1994. 52. P. J. Kauffman and M. J. Rappaport, in Cosmetic Safety (J. Whittam, ed.), Marcel Dekker, New York, 1987, pp. 179–204.
50. P. D. Pagetto et al., Am. J. Contact Derm. 5(1), 13–16 (1995). 51. J. E. Hunter and K. L. Hintze, presented at 51st Scientific Conference CTFA, San Francisco, CA, October 1994. 52. P. J. Kauffman and M. J. Rappaport, in Cosmetic Safety (J. Whittam, ed.), Marcel Dekker, New York, 1987, pp. 179–204. 53. B. H. Keswick, K. D. Ertel, and M. O. Visscher, J. Soc. Cosmet. Chem. 43(4), 187–193 (1992). 54. J. L. Lichtin and K. L. Gabriel, J. Soc. Cosmet. Chem. 43(6), 313–330 (1992). 55. M. Paye et al., Skin Res. Technol. 1(1), 30–35 (1995). 56. M. Reiger, Cosmet. Toil. 110(4), 31–50 (1995). 57. P. Sloan, Advertising Age 65(6), 48 (1994). 58. T. Zimmerman, Advertising Age (special supplement S6), June 26, 1995. 59. T. Branna, HAPPI 32(6), 91–92 (1995). 60. Private communication testing laboratory data, Minnetonka Research Institute, Inc., 1995. 61. C. Fox, Cosmet. Toil. 110(4), 59–73 (1995). 62. J. Kamegai et al., US 5,057,311 to Kao Corp (1991).
Page 432
63. H. Takamura, J. Kamegai, and H. Hirota, US 5,035,832 to Kao Corp. (1991). 64. J. Kamegai et al., US 5,234,618 to Kao Corp. (1993). 65. E. Reid and A. Murray, US 5,085,857 to ChesebroughPond USA Co. (1992). 66. G. Abamba, Cosmet. Toil. 108(11), 83–89 (1993). 67. Commercial package label, Softsoap Original Aloe, 1995, Colgate Palmolive Co. 68. Commercial package label, Softsoap Sensitive Skin, 1992, Colgate Palmolive Co. 69. Commercial package label, Softsoap Regular Antibacterial Liquid, 1995, ColgatePalmolive Co. 70. Commercial package label, Dial Regular Antibacterial Liquid, 1995, Dial Corp. 71. Commercial package label, Jergens Lotion Enriched, 1991, Andrew Jergens Co. 72. Commercial package label, Ivory Regular Liquid, 1993, Procter & Gamble. 73. Commercial package label, Safeguard Regular Antibacterial Liquid Soap, 1991, Procter & Gamble. 74. Commercial package label, Caress and Dove brands Moisturizing Body Wash, 1994, Lever Bros. Co. 75. Commercial package label, Oil of Olay Moisturizing Body Wash, 1994, Procter & Gamble. 76. Commercial package label, Jergens Refreshing Body Shampoo, 1995, Andrew Jergens Co. 77. Commercial package label, Dial Plus Moisturizing Antibacterial Body Wash, 1995, Dial Corp.
12 Fabric Softeners ALAIN JACQUES Fabric Care, ColgatePalmolive Research and Development, Inc., Milmort, Belgi CHARLES J. SCHRAMM, JR. Research and Development, Global Technology, ColgatePalmolive Company, P New Jersey I. Introduction II. Commercial Applications A. Business aspects B. Product types III. Mechanism of Softening A. Softness B. Substantivity IV. Softening Compounds A. Organics B. Inorganics V. Aspects of Formulation and Industrial Manufacture A. Chemical factors B. Mechanical factors C. Case study VI. Environmental and Regulatory Aspects VII. Future Trends References
Page 434
I. Introduction Fabric softeners for domestic use are primarily designed to give a pleasant feel to garments, to impart freshness or another pleasant smell, and to control the static electricity that impairs the comfort of handling and wearing clothes when ambient humidity is low. The need for fabric softeners was prompted by the move from soaps to synthetic detergents and by the utilization of automatic washing machines. In the predetergent age, clothes were washed only with soap. The fibers were then covered with a thin film of insoluble calcium and magnesium soap formed from the water hardness. This film gave enough lubrication of the fibers to maintain an acceptable feel. The introduction of automatic washing machines together with more powerful synthetic detergents has changed the washing conditions for users and also for the clothes. The original feel and handle of fabrics is altered by the following: Higher mechanical friction in the washing machine High washing temperatures The ability of the detergents to remove original textile finishes, not only greasy stains The mineral incrustations formed from water hardness or from inorganic salts present in detergents The industry realized very quickly that cationic fatty materials can maintain or restore the original feel of fabrics. As a result, it was not long before domestic products appeared on the market [1–6]. Fabric softeners were introduced first on the U.S. market around 1955 and about 10 years later in Europe. This type of product is also widespread in Japan and is still expanding and growing worldwide. The data of worldwide rinse cycle fabric softeners growth shown in Table 1 exemplify the important growth of this category. They are an estimate based on United Nations published information. TABLE 1 Fabric Softener Worldwide Volume Growth Year
Worldwide volume (ton)
1966
160,000
1985
2,060,000
1991
3,700,000
Source: United Nations published data.
Page 435
II. Commercial Applications A. Business Aspects 1. Textile Market Treatment of fabrics and fibers with softeners and lubricants was standard practice in textile processing before becoming a part of the home laundering regimen. Softening imparts lubricity and flexibility, which minimizes damage during the processing of fabrics and fibers. Softening also provides a pleasant feel to enhance consumer acceptance of an item at the point of purchase. Some softener materials, cationic softeners, utilized in textile processing have also found application in the home. Application methods and desired end benefits of textile processing allow for the use of a much wider range of softener actives. In textile processing, concentrated softener suspensions or solutions can be sprayed or padded directly onto the cloth. Fabric treated in this manner eliminates the need for materials that exhibit high rates of exhaustion and substantivity. Thus, such anionics as soaps and fatty alcohol sulfates and nonionics, such as waxes, ethoxylated fatty alcohols, and ethoxylated fatty acids, are effective textile softeners. Although these materials have limited durability to home laundering, they are quite satisfactory for textile processing. 2. Home Market For fabrics of high synthetic fiber content, the buildup of static cling is a problem in areas of low humidity or where automatic clothes dryers are frequently used. Cationic softener materials with a wide range of structures have been used to meet the needs of the home market. Cationic softeners exhibit a high degree of fabric substantivity and high exhaustion rates from dilute solution. Effective softener materials have the general structure of one or two long hydrocarbon chains attached to a cationic hydrophilic group. Two longchain hydrocarbon groups each with 16–18 carbon atoms are preferred. Acceptable levels of softening may be achieved when deposition reaches 0.1– 0.2% by weight of fabric [5]. The most effective softener materials are virtually deposited quantitatively from the rinse solution. Thus, softening is quite economical, requiring roughly 3–6 g active softener per rinse. Consumer perception of fragrance is important. In the bottle, fragrance must be pleasant and not overwhelming. Fragrance must be sufficiently substantive to be perceived on wet and dry fabric. A pleasant fragrance to some extent makes up for reduced levels of fabric softening. Fragrance in the rinse is important where automatic dosing machines are not prevalent (such as the United States) because consumer perception of a pleasant fragrance is the first indication that the product is efficacious.
Page 436
3. Industrial and Institutional Market The industrial and institutional market utilizes many of the same materials used in the home market. Lowcost actives are more frequently utilized. Less emphasis is also placed in product esthetics, such as fragrance, color, and packaging. Softening efficacy, static reduction, and ease of handling are looked on as the primary benefits. B. Product Types The primary consumer benefits of fabric softeners are obviously softness and freshness. Table 2 lists some of the additional positive benefits delivered by fabric softeners. Static control is important to consumers utilizing electrical dryers or living in areas with a dry climate. Other benefits, such as ease of ironing and wrinkle reduction, are of less significance to consumers. Some misuse conditions can cause drawbacks. Fabric staining can result if the softener is placed directly onto a garment. Greasy feel may occur if they are strongly overdosed. Continued use of certain types of softener formulations may cause reduced water absorption and/or yellowing. Fabric softeners are available to consumers in many forms. 1. Rinse Cycle Liquid fabric softeners are typically added to the rinse water at the last rinse cycle after the main wash. This product form is the form most used by consumers. These products are offered to consumers in a wide range of concentration from regular strength to up to 10 times concentrated. Some products are intended for direct use; others (such as a 10 times concentrated product) require predilution before use. In the early 1980s, the concentrates were introduced primarily for cost and convenience reasons. Subsequently, they have been sold in socalled ecopacks to help to reduce packaging waste. This trend has occurred TABLE 2 Fabric Softener Effects on Fabrics Positive effects
Side effects
Softness, fluffiness
Occasional fabric staining
Fragrance
Reduced water absorption
Static control
Yellowing
Ease of ironing
Greasy feel
Fiber protection
Bacteriostat
Reduced drying time
Page 437
in both Europe and the United States. Rinse cycle softener products constitute the fabric softener form that delivers the greatest level of perceived softening efficacy. 2. Dryer Cycle Dryer sheets are added to the tumble dryer along with the damp laundry before drying. Where electrical dryers use is very high, such as the United States, dryer sheets are a very important segment. Dryer sheets are convenient and deliver effective antistatic properties with a low level of active ingredient. 3. Wash Cycle Wash cycle softeners are added to the main wash along with the detergent. These products are a compromise between convenience and efficacy. Products that would not be prohibitively expensive generally deliver a lower level of softening than rinse softeners or antistatic properties than dryer softeners. The products may be either a wash cycle additive fabric softener (WCFS) or softergent (detergent softener combination). Commercial WCFS products intended for use with the consumer's choice of detergent were not widespread. In the United States, a product called Rain Barrel by S. C. Johnson & Son, Inc. was marketed during the mid1980s as a WCFS. This product contained a low level of distearyldimethylammonium chloride softener. Interaction of softener with surfactants in detergent systems would be expected to have limited the efficacy of this type of WCFS. As indicated by Puchta et al. [7], a product for effective delivery of softening and antistatic benefits with a broad range of detergent systems would require a high use level of softener. The high cost associated with delivering perceptible consumer benefits may be the reason for the limited availability of this product form. Detergent systems incorporating a fabric softener material were quite popular in the United States between roughly 1981 and 1989. The combination product allowed controlled balancing of softening and detergency. These products delivered consumerperceptible softening and antistatic benefits while maintaining acceptable detergency. In the 1990s, the softergent product form has become a significantly lesser part of the U.S. market. This trend was the result of the industry increasing the softening efficacy of rinseadded softeners and increasing the detergency of detergent products. Softergents progressively became a less acceptable compromise between softening and detergency. Fabric softeners are probably the most cosmetic of the laundry products. This is why the right choice of color, fragrance, and even texture to fit the product concept is very important. In recent years, fabric softeners have become extraordinarily diversified in terms of colors and perfumes.
Page 438
III. Mechanism of Softening A. Softness There are many causes for the hardening of fabrics, as discussed earlier. Softeners counteract this harshening in several ways. One way to counteract the alteration of fabrics by the washing process is to coat the fibers with a protective film of a fatty material acting as a lubricant. Figure 1 shows the state of the fibers of a cotton bath towel after 12 cumulative wash cycles with and without using a fabric softener. The fabric treated with fabric softener shows fibers with a smooth surface and little surface residue. Fibers from fabric without softener treatment show significant surface residue that appears to connect adjacent fibers. The less damaged state of the fibers of the sample treated with fabric softeners leads to a more pleasant feel of the fabric. The use of a fatty lubricant material that reduces surface friction explains the ease of fabric ironing. Reduction of interfiber friction reduces some of the tendency for static electricity generation from the rubbing together of dissimilar materials when fabrics are tumbled in an automatic dryer. Another role of this fatty material is as a vehicle to carry perfume to the clothes.
FIG. 1 These electron micrographs show how the protective film left by fabric softeners prevented residue build up on fibers (a) with fabric softener and (b) without fabric softener.
Page 439
In hard water areas, the same type of lime scale buildup results on fibers as occurs on the heating element of European washing machines. To counteract this, it has been the usual practice of some consumers to add vinegar to the rinse water. In fact, the use of organic acids has received very little attention from the formulators of fabric softeners. Fabric softener use alone can to some extent counter the negative feel caused by lime scale buildup. Another approach to improve the feel of fabrics is to increase the flexibility of the fibers [1]. The simplest material that plasticizes the fibers is water. This is the basis for incorporating waterbinding materials, such as polyglycols, in softening compositions. To be effective, these components must be sufficiently small molecules to penetrate the fibers. In practice, the use of such materials has been of less importance than the use of organic fatty materials, which constitute the bulk of fabric softeners and which bind more readily to fabrics. As a result, the primary mechanism through which fabric softeners act is fiber lubrication. As far as dryeradded fabric softener is concerned, the transfer of the lubricating materials from the softener sheet onto the clothes results from the combination of temperature, humidity, and friction occurring in the dryer. B. Substantivity Several factors alter the deposition of rinseadded softeners onto the fabrics. Details are available from several papers by Bücking et al. [8], Hughes and Koch [9], Okumura et al. [10], Smith et al. [11], Hughes et al. [12,13], and Linfield et al. [14]. There is an agreement on the very high exhaustion rate of the rinse liquor and on the important uniform deposition of the softener on the fabrics. For instance, Linfield et al. [14] showed that softener exhaustion increases with pH increasing from 5 to 8 and with temperature increasing from 21 to 32°C. Higher levels of water hardness seems to improve the deposition. The presence of ethoxylated fatty alcohols [6,15] and of an excess of anionic surfactants [10,11] impairs deposition. Also, Okumura et al. [10] showed that reducing the particle size of the dispersion improves the deposition of the softener. Laughlin [16] analyzed the existing results to clarify the mechanism of the cationic softener deposition. He suggests an ionexchange reaction between the carboxylate groups of cotton (and the associated counterions) and the cationic salts coupled with physical adsorption. This is in agreement with the nonstoichiometric deposition of cationic softener versus the number of carboxylic groups [17] and deposition on more neutral fibers [7]. Recently, Crutzen has described a mechanism in which the driving force of deposition of ditallowdimethylammonium chloride onto cellulose is purely hydrophobic [18]. The hydrophobicity of the softener forces the softener out of
Page 440
the rinse water and causes it to deposit onto available surfaces. The softener binds to the fabric by weak London dispersion forces. The high level of deposition of softener onto cellulose relative to other fabric types results from the large specific surface area of cellulose. IV. Softening Compounds Softening materials used by the detergent industry fall into three classes: organics; inorganics; and silicones. Organic fabric softeners are the most frequently utilized form and are found in wash, rinse, and dryer products. Montmorillonite clays are the principle type of inorganic softener and are used in washcycle detergent products. Silicone softeners are used in small quantities and generally as a minor component in combination with organic softeners. A. Organics The preferred materials used in domestic fabric softeners are predominantly fatty quaternary ammonium cationic salts. A very large number of materials have been patented [19], but only a few of these have been of practical importance. Early fabric softener formulas were based on simple aqueous dispersions of di hard tallow dimethylammonium chloride (DHTDMAC), shown in Fig. 2, or of imidazolinium methosulfate (DHTIMS), shown in Fig. 3, at a level of around 5%. Hughes and Koch [1] have studied DHTDMAC deposition based on colorimetric and radiometric techniques, finding that better than 90% deposition onto cotton occurred over a wide range of pH and temperature. Early use of the DHTDMAC, DHTIMS, and other softener actives in textile manufacturing, for the control of friction during processing and improvement of final fabric feel, is discussed by Evans [2]. Foley [3] broadly reviewed early developments in fabric softener technology indicating that DHTDMAC and DHTIMS represented 95% of the cationic softeners in use and that these softeners are effective at a level of 0.1–0.2% by weight of the fabric treated. Fuller and Ackerman [4a]
FIG. 2 Dihydrogenated tallow dimethylammonium chloride.
Page 441
FIG. 3 Ditallow imidazolinium.
and Ackerman [4b] discussed factors for choosing which softener type was the appropriate choice under the different use conditions of wash, rinse, and dry. Milwidsky [5] reviewed recommendations for processing DHTDMAC and DHTIMS dispersions and the importance of controlling dispersion pH. He also discussed product esthetics, such as perfume, color, and the potential need to include fluorescent whitening agents. Egan [6] and Billenstein and Blaschke [20] report on synthetic procedures for the manufacture of DHTDMAC, DHTIMS, and other aminebased fabricsoftening materials. Puchta [19] has discussed the use of DHTDMAC and DHTIMS in dryer products, rinse cycle products, wash cycle products, and softenerdetergent combined products. His discussion demonstrates the wide application of these two softener actives. Laughlin also discusses DHTDMAC and DHTIMS at length in his review of fabric softeners [16]. He indicates that the importance of these two materials is based on the existence of straightforward manufacturing techniques for their preparation, as well as their softening effectiveness. The 1970s saw the commercial development of improved softening systems still based on the same quaternaries but used in synergistic combinations with other fatty materials. There are two groups of synergistic combinations, the cationicanionic systems and the cationicnonionic systems. Typical examples of the first group are the systems based on DHTDMAC and on fatty alcohols, ether sulfates, or alkyl sulfonates [21]. The second group is illustrated by compositions based on combinations of DHTDMAC with various cosofteners: glyceryl monostearate [22]; stearic acid [23,24]; tallow alcohol [25]; and lanolin derivatives [26]. In all these compositions, the weight ratio of DHTDMAC to the cosoftener was always higher than 1. Some compositions with lower levels of DHTDMAC, or even free of it have been commercialized. U.S. Patent 4,806,255 [27] describes mixtures of cyclic amines with a lower content of DHTDMAC. Patents U.S. 4,933,096 [28] and
Page 442
FIG. 4 Structure of one type of esterquat.
4,844,823 [29] refer respectively to ester cyclic amines and to mixtures of socalled esterquat with various cosofteners. These cationic materials with ester bonds allow the softener molecule to biodegrade more quickly than other cationic softeners. Figure 4 shows one form of esterquat and Fig. 5 the structure of ditallow ester imidazoline. B. Inorganics 1. Clays Clay fabric softening agents have been utilized principally in detergent fabric softener combination products. These softergent products combine a standard heavyduty built anionic detergent system with clay softeners. Commercial products include the heavyduty powders, such as Australian Fab [30] and U.S. Bold [31]. Clays of the smectite type are utilized in fabricsoftening systems. Sodium and calcium montmorillonite clays are the most frequently utilized smectite clays. Patents [32,33] have also included such forms of clay as hectorites and saponites and have claimed additional antistatic benefits for these clays. Mont
FIG. 5 Structure of ditallow ester imidazoline.
Page 443
morillonite clays are unique in their structure compared with typical soil clays. Montmorillonite clays, particularly the sodium forms, are highly dispersible to extremely small platelike particles with sizes in the range of a few hundredths of a micrometer to several micrometers. Each platelike particle is composed of several clay unit layers like a deck of cards. The clay particles have been shown by electrokinetic studies [34,35] to have a net negative surface potential. As a result, potential interaction between anionic surfactant and clay softener would be minimal, making the clay ideally suited for inclusion into anionicbased detergent systems. Extensive fundamental studies are available [36–38] involving sodium montmorillonite deposition onto and removal from cellulose. These studies demonstrated that low levels of sodium montmorillonite clay (0.04% by weight) were rapidly and irreversibly deposited onto cellulose at extremely low clay concentrations. Typical claycontaining softergents utilize high levels of clay softener, up to or exceeding 20% of the product. That high levels of clay are generally employed suggests that fabric softening by clay requires high levels of deposition (all the clay is depositing) or that deposition of clay is concentration dependent (only a fraction of clay employed deposits). High clay use levels are possible because the cost of most montmorillonites utilized as softeners are generally of the order of the sodium sulfate filler. Nonionic surfactants must be avoided in the formulation of effective clay softergents. Fundamental studies by Schott [39] indicated that ethoxylated alcohol surfactants were the most effective in removal of montmorillonite clays from cellulose. Even more critical was the observation by Schott [39] that the presence of the nonionic surfactants prevented the deposition of sodium montmorillonite onto cellulose. Lowcost clays utilized as softeners are colored by impurities, generally light brown or gray. This has not been reported to contribute to discoloration of the fabrics upon which they deposit. Colored, powdered clay intimately mixed with other detergent components before or after spray drying discolors the detergent powder, leading to an unesthetic product. For this reason, users of clay softeners have developed methods for agglomeration of clay powder into detergentsized aggregates. The agglomerates are added later to the detergent powder. They do not harm product esthetics, appearing as a few dark speckles in a mostly white powder. Softergents containing clay as the sole softening agent deliver lower softening levels than the combination detergent plus separate rinse cycle softeners. A limitation with clays is that they do not deliver antistatic benefits, particularly necessary in areas of high dryer use, such as the United States. The patent literature [40–46] contains numerous examples that address these deficiencies. These softergents combine separate clay softener and organic softening agents. This presents the added complication of potential interaction between organic softener and both clay softener and anionic detergent compo
Page 444
nents. One combination softergent minimizes the potential interaction between organic softener and other components by utilizing a neutral amine softener [44–46]. Another approach has been the preparation of a selfcontained cationic softener agglomerate [40–43]. The agglomerate contained agents that inhibit dispersal in the wash water. This prevents interaction of cationic softener with clay and detergent components both in the wash and in the product itself. Clay softeners are effective softening agents ideally suited for use in those areas of the world where antistatic benefits are of low importance and low cost of the active softener is critical. In the wash cycle, clay softenerorganic softener combinations are unique in their ability to approach the softening efficacy of the combination detergent plus separate rinse cycle softener. 2. Silicones Silicone softeners include both polydimethylsiloxane polymers as well as a wide range of organomodified polydimethylsiloxanes. The silicones were first utilized by the textile industry primarily as lubricants in fiber and fabric manufacture [47]. Silicone softeners are also applied with permanent press finishes to improve garment wear life and permanent press finish durability [48,49]. Organomodified polydimethylsiloxanes, particularly epoxy modified, were found to offer a significant improvement over conventional unreactive silicones [49,50]. The improvement was in terms of both a greater degree of softening and good durability of polymer to laundering. Aminofunctional polydimethylsiloxanes softeners were found to have the same advantages as reactive silicones [51,52]. Two additional benefits were found with aminofunctional silicone softeners. Knit fabrics became more elastic, with better stretch recovery. The softener also additionally delivered antistatic benefits and wrinkling resistance [53]. These two benefits and the fact that the amino functional silicone are readily adsorbed from dilute solution onto cotton fabrics in conjunction with traditional cationic organic softeners led to their use in rinse cycle softeners in the middle to late 1980s [54,55]. Although their use level was never high (0.1–1.0% by weight) as a result of their high cost, amine silicones did bring a consumerperceptible new dimension to rinse cycle fabric softeners. Changing market forces have resulted in the removal of silicone softeners from most consumer fabric softener products. V. Aspects of Formulation and Industrial Manufacture An important aspect of the formulation of liquid rinse cycle softener is control of the viscosity. It is desirable to deliver a product that displays some consistency. For the consumer this makes the dosage operation easier and acts as a signal of efficacy. It is equally desirable to stabilize the viscosity at a reason
Page 445
able level to avoid clogging troubles in the dispensers of the automatic washing machines. The complexity of this problem increases as the concentration of the softener increases. This section discusses the critical parameters governing the viscosity of concentrated liquid softeners and the involved structural changes in the product when a viscosity increase occurs. The major drawback to the preparation of concentrated aqueous dispersions of DHTDMAC is the sharp viscosity increase with concentration as reported by Hein [56] and shown in Fig. 6. Before discussing the formulation aspect, it is worth describing the structure of the DHTDMAC in aqueous dispersions. The dispersion phase of DHTDMAC consists of hydrated particles with a structure similar to that of multilayered liposomes, which are called vesicles. The DHTDMAC molecules form concentric bimolecular lamellar layers with entrapped water. According to Okumura et al. [10], the DHTDMAC vesicles range in size from below 1–10 m. The bimolecular layer has a width of 50 Å, and the intralamellar spacing is 100–400 Å. Okumura et al. [10] calculated that the water of hydration is around 7 mol H2O/mol DHTDMAC. Such results can vary with the conditions of the preparation of the dispersion. Controlling the viscosity of aqueous dispersions of DHTDMAC is possible by applying the principles of emulsification from the chemical and mechanical standpoints. The DHTDMAC aqueous dispersion is contemplated as an oilin water emulsion.
FIG. 6 Viscosity of an aqueous dispersion of DTDMAC according to Hein [56].
Page 446
A. Chemical Factors It is widely known that emulsifiers form an interfacial film around the droplets of the dispersed phase and protect the droplets against coalescence, provided the emulsifers are well located at the interface. The selection of the right emulsifier can be made according to the HLB system. ICI has published a list of applications and some suggested emulsifier blends and their HLB values [57]. Table 3 and Fig. 7 demonstrate the influence of the emulsifier HLB on the stability of DHTDMAC dispersion. Table 3 shows the dependence of the emulsifier viscosity on the HLB value of the emulsifier. In this specific case, two emulsifiers were used (SPAN and Tween). The required HLB value is around 16. Figure 7 shows the effect of the emulsifier concentration on the emulsion stability when using an optimized surfactant. In this specific case, nonylphenol ethoxylated 10:1 was used. Two concentrations of emulsifier lead to stable dispersions. The highest is preferred because it allows a higher formula flexibility. Another approach to producing stable dispersions of DHTDMAC vesicles is to take advantage of the vesicle structure itself. James and Ogden [58] suggested that the DHTDMAC bilayers of the vesicles work as a semipermeable membrane and that osmotic transfers are possible when electrolytes are used. Addition of electrolytes in the continuous phase (water) causes an osmotic transfer of water from inside the vesicles to the continuous phase. The net result is a reduction of the vesicle size, that is, the dispersed phase volume, and an increase in the continuous phase volume. This osmotic effect tends to “dilute” the dispersion, which decreases the viscosity and stabilizes the dispersion to separation. According to the DLVO theory [59], the use of electrolytes can decrease the emulsion stability by decreasing particle surface charge and thus reducing interparticle repulsion. Because of the two adversary effects of electrolytes, the TABLE 3 Determination of the Required HLB
Emulsifier mixture 3% by weight
Calculated HLB
SPAN 80 (%)
Tween 20 (%)
Viscosity after 24 h (cP)
14
22
78
Gel
15
14
86
670
16
6
94
230
17
100
280
18
4
96
Gel
Page 447
FIG. 7 Determination of the optimum emulsifier content. Viscosity of the fabric softener versus the content of emulsifier.
Curve of DHTDMAC dispersion stability versus electrolyte content exhibits a maximum of stability at finite electrolyte levels. Additional slight stability improvements can also be obtained by limiting the solvent content in the raw materials and by using hydrophilic polymers, such as polyethylene glycols (steric hindrance), to prevent coalescence. B. Mechanical Factors In addition to the osmotic phenomenon, particle size also drastically affects the stability and the rheological behavior of the emulsions. For concentrated fabric softeners, the influence is so strong that, with exactly the same composition, either thin liquids or nonpourable gels can be obtained by changing the particle size distribution. Mixing conditions are a key factor in setting the particle size of the product. The mixing conditions can be carefully optimized when defining the manufacturing procedure by scaleup experimentation. The mechanical energy imparted to the dispersion by the propeller can be split into shear and flow. The shear magnitude is related to the impeller head given by the equation H = K1N2D2 where H is the head developed by the impeller, K1 is a proportionality constant that varies with the shape of the impeller and of the mixing vessel, N is the
Page 448
speed of rotation, and D is the diameter of the impeller. The flow rate is defined by the equation Q = K1ND3 where Q is the flow rate, K1 is a constant determined by the shape of the impeller and of the mixing vessel, N is the rotation speed of the agitator, and D is the diameter of the impeller. The reader interested in more details about the mixing principles and their application to emulsification and to scaleup experimentation should refer to the books dedicated to this subject [60,61]. C. Case Study The magnitude of the flow and of the shear alters the particle size of the emulsion and consequently phase stability and rheological behavior. Table 4 lists the composition of a concentrated DHTDMAC emulsion stabilized with an emulsifier and with CaCl2 electrolyte. This formulation is used to illustrate the influence of mixing parameters on product stability. All experiments were performed in 200 kg size batch, using different types of impellers with different flow and impeller head values. The resulting particle size distributions were recorded with Coulter N4 (photon correlation spectroscopy) and particle concentration with a Coulter Counter. Rheology measurements were made by Rheomat 30, Rheometrics System 4 (oscillatory response), and Brookfield RVT. This emulsion, when prepared with the correct process parameters, exhibits excellent stability over aging (initial viscosity = 80 ± 20 cP; less than 200 cP after 6 week aging in the range of 4–43°C). The typical particle size distribution is bimodal, the first peak is around 0.2–0.3 m; the second is at TABLE 4 Fabric Softener Formulation Used for Case Study Material
% wt/wt
DHTDMAC
13.2
Tallow amine 15:1 EO
1.91
Stearic acid
0.59
Perfume
0.30 0.7–0.9
Calcium chloride (2H2O) Dyes
0.005 (0.25% of a 2% stock)
Preservative
0.05
Water Source: Ref. 54.
Balance
Page 449
1.0–2.0 m. The particle size distribution, as shown graphically in Fig. 8, is described by the mean diameter resulting in both populations and by the percentage of population of the small particles (around the first mode), both populations together being 100%. Under some conditions, this emulsion can exhibit two typical instability forms, thickening or clearing over aging. Of course, these product alterations are a result of a structural change. 1. Thickening The thickening phenomenon was observed for the samples prepared with highshear mixing devices. It is demonstrated here that the smaller particles induce flocculation of the emulsion. Therefore, the interaction between closely packed particles leads to higher viscosity of the emulsion. (The average distance between particles was estimated at 60% of the average particle diameter.) This was calculated according to the equation
where A m = average distance between particles; Dm = average diameter of particles; max = maximum ratio of phase volume = 0.74 for spheres; and = actual ratio of phase volume = 0.184 (assuming no water inside the vesicles).
FIG. 8 Typical DTDMAC aqueous dispersion particle size distribution containing two subpopulations.
Page 4 TABLE 5 Particle Size Distribution Versus Impeller Head Impeller head (M)
Average diameter ''Small particle'' (%) ( m)
0.11
1.24
31
0.21
0.80
36
0.36
0.77
48
0.77
0.73
50
1.18
0.69
51
1.82
0.68
65
3.24
0.48
58
5.05
0.30
67
As indicated in Table 5, the particle size is decreased with the increasing shear of the mixing device measured by the impeller head. The decrease in particle size does not significantly change the viscosity of the fres emulsions, as shown in Table 6, but allows the particles to draw nearer each othe and to interact upon aging. Table 7 reports the viscosity changes after accelerate aging (16 cycles from 0 to 50°C, 1°C/minute) versus initial particle size. More than a simple viscosity measurement is needed to describe the rheological changes in the samples. Measurements of shear stress versus shear rate (Rheoma 30) were made and the results are reported according to the power (OstwaldD Waele model) and Casson laws. TABLE 6 Viscosity of Liquid Softener After Making Versus Particle Size Distribution Average diameter ( m)
“Small particle” (%)
Viscosity (cP)
1.24
31
56
1.13
38
58
1.10
33
68
0.80
36
68
0.77
48
66
0.73
50
76
0.69
51
70
0.68
65
84
0.48
58
86
0.30
68
236
Page 451 TABLE 7 Dependence of Emulsion Stability of Viscosity on Initial Particle Size Distribution Averaged diameter ( m)
"Small" particles (%)
Viscosity after 16 cycles (cP)
1.24
31
216
1.13
38
156
1.10
33
308
0.80
36
708
0.77
48
860
0.73
50
490
0.69
51
558
0.68
65
Above 800
0.48
58
Above 800
0.30
68
Above 800
2. Power Law The measurements of shear stress versus shear rate, plotted on logarithmic scales, are represented by a linear expression over a limited range of shear rate (7–158 s1). The equation that represents this behavior is called the power law or the OstwaldDe Waele model: = m
n
where = shear stress; = shear rate; m = consistency; and n = flow index. For pseudoplastic (shear thinning) materials, n is less than 1. Obviously, for n = 1, the model reduces to the Newtonian. If the shear rate = 1 s1, then the consistency magnitude will represent the value of the apparent viscosity. Table 8 gives the values of the consistency and of the flow index after aging for different samples produced with various particle sizes. The results show TABLE 8 Power Law: Consistency and Flow Index Versus Particle Sizea M (poise)
N Flow index
1.24
0.32
0.73
0.89
0.60
0.68
0.69
0.90
0.58
0.48
2.20
0.46
0.30
3.30
0.41
Mean diameter ( m)
a
Shear rate 7158 s1.
Page 452
that the flow index n of aged samples decreases and that the consistency increases as the particle size decreases. The samples depart from Newtonian behavior upon aging, as the particle size decreases. This means that particles more strongly interact upon aging. This stronger interaction is responsible for the “thicker” aspect of the emulsion. 3. Casson Law Many materials which exhibit an apparent yield stress and which do not exhibit a linear shearstress rate relationship can be described by the Casson model. The representation of this flow behavior is 1/2
=
1/2c + c
for >
c
and = 0 for