# US 11,292,993 B2 · Systems and processes for treating textiles with an antimicrobial agent > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 11,292,993 B2 - Document ID: US11292993B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 16/458,997 - Filed: 2019-07-01 - Published: 2020-04-09 - Granted: 2022-04-05 - Earliest claimed: 2015-08-21 - Assignees: Applied Silver, Inc. - Applicants: Applied Silver, Inc. - Inventors: Thomas Brezoczky; Sean Morham; William Morris; David Brown; Keith Copenhagen - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US11292993B2 ## CPC - C11D 3/48: Medical, disinfecting agents, disinfecting, antibacterial, germicidal or antimicrobial compositions - A61L 2/18: Liquid substances - C11D 7/10: Salts - D06F 35/006: {for washing or rinsing only} - D06M 16/00: Biochemical treatment of fibres, threads, yarns, fabrics, or fibrous goods made from such materials, e.g. enzymatic - C02F 2103/02: Non-contaminated water, e.g. for industrial water supply - C11D 2111/12: Soft surfaces, e.g. textile - C11D 2111/44: Multi-step processes - D06F 31/005: {consisting of one or more rotating drums through which the laundry passes in a continuous flow} - D10B 2509/00: Medical; Hygiene - C11D: DETERGENT COMPOSITIONS; USE OF SINGLE SUBSTANCES AS DETERGENTS; SOAP OR SOAP-MAKING; RESIN SOAPS; RECOVERY OF GLYCEROL - A61L: METHODS OR APPARATUS FOR STERILISING MATERIALS OR OBJECTS IN GENERAL; DISINFECTION, STERILISATION OR DEODORISATION OF AIR; CHEMICAL ASPECTS OF BANDAGES, DRESSINGS, ABSORBENT PADS OR SURGICAL ARTICLES; MATERIALS FOR BANDAGES, DRESSINGS, ABSORBENT PADS OR SURGICAL ARTICLES (preservation of bodies or disinfecting characterised by the agents employed A01N; preserving, e.g. sterilising, food or foodstuffs A23; preparations for medical, dental or toiletry purposes A61K) - D06F: LAUNDERING, DRYING, IRONING, PRESSING OR FOLDING TEXTILE ARTICLES - D06M: TREATMENT, NOT PROVIDED FOR ELSEWHERE IN CLASS D06, OF FIBRES, THREADS, YARNS, FABRICS, FEATHERS OR FIBROUS GOODS MADE FROM SUCH MATERIALS - C02F: TREATMENT OF WATER, WASTE WATER, SEWAGE, OR SLUDGE (separation in general B01D; special arrangements on waterborne vessels of installations for treating water, waste water or sewage, e.g. for producing fresh water, B63J; adding materials to water to prevent corrosion C23F; treating radioactively-contaminated liquids G21F9/04; regeneration of reactants for recirculation into processes, see the relevant places for the processes) - D10B: INDEXING SCHEME ASSOCIATED WITH SUBLASSES OF SECTION D, RELATING TO TEXTILES ## Abstract According to an aspect of the present disclosure, a method of treating a textile with an antimicrobial agent over a plurality of laundry cycles each including a wash cycle and a treatment cycle is described. The method includes (a) receiving a textile in a wash system for a first laundry cycle, (b) initiating a wash cycle comprising a detergent, (c) initiating a post-detergent treatment cycle comprising dosing the textile with a solution having a predetermined concentration of an antimicrobial agent that comprises a metallic ion, and (c) repeating steps (a)-(c) for each of a plurality of additional laundry cycles. The predetermined concentration is insufficient to achieve a predetermined antimicrobial efficacy for the textile due to the first laundry cycle alone but sufficient to achieve the predetermined antimicrobial efficacy for the textile due to a combination of the first laundry cycle and one or more of the plurality of additional laundry cycles. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A method of reducing a microbial load in an inventory of textiles comprising a plurality of pieces from a healthcare facility, the method comprising: (a) receiving a first portion comprising a portion of the plurality of pieces of the inventory; (b) measuring a quality of water for use in a treatment cycle for treating the inventory, wherein the measured water quality is used to make a determination in connection with an antimicrobial agent used in the treatment cycle, wherein the determination comprises determining whether a predetermined amount of the plurality of pieces of the inventory have achieved a predetermined antimicrobial efficacy and determining whether to proceed with the treatment cycle; (c) initiating the treatment cycle, wherein the treatment cycle comprises a solution having a predetermined concentration of the antimicrobial agent, and wherein the antimicrobial agent comprises silver chloride or silver nitrate; and (d) receiving a subsequent portion of the inventory and repeating step (c) in a subsequent treatment cycle for the subsequent portion, thereby reducing the antimicrobial load of the inventory. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein a single treatment cycle is insufficient to achieve a predetermined antimicrobial efficacy. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the subsequent portion includes a plurality of pieces from the first portion. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, further comprising repeating step (d) until a predetermined amount of the pieces of the inventory have achieved a predetermined antimicrobial efficacy, and wherein the predetermined amount of the pieces comprises at least 50% of the inventory. ### Claim 5 (depends on 4) The method of claim 4, wherein the predetermined antimicrobial efficacy is achieved when the textile is infused with at least approximately 1 mg of metallic ion per kg of textile. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the solution comprises water treated by deionization or reverse osmosis. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, further comprising, prior to or after any one or more of steps (a)-(d), detecting a presence of silver in a textile, the method comprising: (a) dispensing a first solution and a second solution onto separate areas of the textile, wherein the first solution comprises Cadion 2B, a buffer sufficient to maintain a pH in a range of from about 8 to about 10, and a surfactant, and the second solution comprises Cadion 2B, a buffer sufficient to maintain a pH in the range of from about 8 to about 10, a surfactant, and a complexing agent, wherein formation of a complex of the complexing agent and silver is more favorable than formation a complex of Cadion B and silver; and (b) comparing a color of the dispensed first solution and the dispensed second solution. ### Claim 8 (depends on 7) The method according to claim 7, wherein at least one of the first solution and the second solution further comprise a masking agent. ### Claim 9 (depends on 8) The method according to claim 8, wherein the masking agent is ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) or cyclohexanediaminetetraacetic acid (CDTA). ### Claim 10 (depends on 7) The method according to claim 7, wherein at least one of the first solution and the second solution further comprise a water-miscible organic solvent. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The method according to claim 10, wherein the water-miscible organic solvent is 1-methyl-2-pyrrolidinone. ### Claim 12 (depends on 7) The method according to claim 7, wherein the complexing agent is sodium thiosulfate. ### Claim 13 (depends on 7) The method according to claim 7, wherein the buffer comprises one or more of potassium tetraborate, citric acid, and sodium citrate. ### Claim 14 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein measuring a quality of water comprises measuring water hardness of water for use in the treatment cycle. ### Claim 15 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein measuring a quality of water comprises measuring at least one of calcium concentration or magnesium concentration of water for use in the treatment cycle. ### Claim 16 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein measuring a quality of water comprises measuring pH of water for use in the treatment cycle. ### Claim 17 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein measuring a quality of water comprises measuring total dissolved solids (TDS) concentration of water for use in the treatment cycle. ### Claim 18 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the method further comprises generating a Relative Water Quality (RWQ) number, wherein the RWQ number is based on at least the measured quality of water for use in the treatment cycle. ### Claim 19 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the determination further comprises determining whether to initiate the treatment cycle. ### Claim 20 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the determination further comprises determining whether to treat the plurality of pieces with the antimicrobial agent in the treatment cycle. ### Claim 21 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the determination further comprises determining an updated concentration of the antimicrobial agent in the treatment cycle. ### Claim 22 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the determination further comprises: based on the measured quality of water for use in a treatment cycle, determining that the predetermined antimicrobial efficacy of the plurality of pieces of the inventory has not been achieved; and based on the determining, transmitting a signal. ### Claim 23 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the antimicrobial agent further comprises one or more of the following: silver acetate, silver carbonate, silver oxide, and silver sulfate.