Back to results
US 4,308,024 AGranted
Fabric softening composition
AssigneeLever Brothers Company
InventorMartin A. Wells
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Loading patent…
Loading patent…
AssigneeLever Brothers Company
InventorMartin A. Wells
Estimating the term…
The invention relates to the field of fabric softening. It provides for fabric softening compositions comprising a relatively water-insoluble cationic detergent surfactant and a free C.sub.8 -C.sub.24 alkyl- or alkenylmonocarboxylic acid. These compositions are significantly more storage stable than compositions, wherein the monocarboxylic is present as a soap. Further inclusion of a relatively water-soluble cationic detergent surfactant or cationic polymer significantly increases the softening performance.
A fabric softening composition consisting essentially of an aqueous liquid containing from 20-95 mole % of a relatively water-insoluble cationic detergent surfactant having two C.sub.12 -C.sub.22 alkyl-or alkenyl groups, and from 5-80 mole % of a free C.sub.8 -C.sub.24 alkyl-or alkenylmonocarboxylic acid, the total amount of cationic detergent surfactant plus alkyl- or alkenylmonocarboxylic acid being from 2-20% by weight of the aqueous liquid, the composition having a pH of 5 or less.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.
Cationic compounds: quaternary ammonium compounds
Softening compositions: liquid
Natural or synthetic polysaccharides, e.g. cellulose, starch, gum, alginic acid or cyclodextrin: with nitrogen-containing groups
Compounds containing quaternary nitrogen atoms: derived from monoamines
Term ended 31 Oct 1999 (estimated)
USPTO file history isn’t available for this patent, so only indexed dates are shown.
The present invention relates to a fabric softening composition and a process for preparing it.
Fabric softening compositions are compositions that are used in the textile and detergent industry to impart a softness or soft feel to textile fabrics, as well as a certain antistatic effect.
In particular in the household laundering operations, fabrics, when washed and dried, may tend to give a certain harsh feel to the skin, and in order to restore or improve the softness of the laundered fabric it has become common usage to treat the laundered fabrics, prior to drying, e.g. in a rinse bath, with so-called fabric softeners, which impart, through different mechanisms, a certain soft feel to the fabrics.
The invention will further be illustrated by the following Examples.
Samples 1-10 were made using the following raw materials:
______________________________________ di(hardened tallow) dimethyl ammonium- (A) 75.5% active chloride C.sub.18 -trimethyl ammoniumchloride (B) 45.0% active fatty acids mixture, from hardened tallow (C) 100% active ______________________________________