Process for preparing thixotropic liquid detergent compositions

A process for preparing a viscoelastic, thixotropic, liquid, polymer-containing detergent composition consisting essentially of:

• (a) forming a slurry of from about 0.01% to about 40%, by weight of said slurry, of a polymeric, thixotropic thickener selected from the group consisting of cross-linked polycarboxylate polymers with a molecular weight between 750,000 and about 4,000,000, natural gums, cellulosic material and mixtures thereof in a liquid medium;
• (b) separately mixing to form a premix composition comprising detergency builder, pH adjusting agent, fatty acid, rheology stabilizing agent, organic dispersant, detergent surfactant, suds suppressor, enzyme stabilizing system, oxidizing agents, water, and mixtures thereof;
• (c) simultaneously adding and mixing under moderate to high shear said slurry of step (a) with said premix of step (b) for a sufficient period of time to neutralize and disperse said polymer to form a composition with a viscosity of at least about 250 centipoise;
• and
• (d) deaerating by mixing and sequentially adding from about 0.01% to about 40%, by weight, of organic solvents, oils, suds suppressors, solid detergent material and mixtures thereof, at low to moderate shear rate, to said composition of step (c) to form a final product with a specific gravity of about 1.0 to about 2.0.