Litter for animals

Abstract

To provide a litter for animals capable of sufficiently inhibiting occurrence of bad odor.SOLUTION: A litter (3) for animals according to the present invention comprises a plurality of granular objects, each of the plurality of granular objects containing an inorganic porous material and a solidifying agent, and further containing silica gel in an amount of 0.0 mass% or more and 2.5 mass% or less. The litter (3) for animals according to the present invention is characterized in that: the area of water droplet marks on each of the plurality of granular objects after a colored water drop test is less than 12.6 mm2, or the pH of ion exchanged water from the plurality of granular objects after a liquid passage test is lower than 7.62, or the litter has water repellency and an uneven structure having a plurality of projecting portions.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to animal toilet sand used as a bedding material for toilets for animals such as cats and dogs.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, as a toilet for animals such as cats and dogs kept indoors, there is known one including a box-shaped toilet container with an open top and toilet sand composed of a plurality of granular materials accommodated in the toilet container. Further, as a type of animal toilet, there is known an animal system toilet including an upper container having a liquid-permeable bottom surface and a lower container disposed below the upper container and accommodating a liquid-absorbing member. Toilet sand is accommodated in the upper container of such an animal system toilet, and urine of the animal passes through between the granular materials of the toilet sand accommodated in the upper container and is absorbed by the liquid-absorbing member in the lower container.

[0003] The toilet sand accommodated in the upper container of the animal system toilet has a predetermined liquid permeability for quickly transferring the urine of the animal to the lower container. At the same time, the toilet sand has a predetermined liquid-absorbing property for absorbing the urine remaining on the surface of the granular materials in order to suppress the generation of a bad odor due to the urine remaining on the surface of the granular materials.

[0004] As described above, the toilet sand used for the animal system toilet is required to have both liquid permeability and liquid absorbency, and from such a viewpoint, various toilet sands have been proposed. For example, Patent Document 1 proposes an animal toilet sand including a plurality of granular materials, wherein each of the plurality of granular materials includes a particle group made of an inorganic porous material, silica gel, and an inorganic binder for integrally fixing the particle group and the silica gel.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0005]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0006] Conventional animal toilet sand using an inorganic porous material as the main raw material uses a solidifying agent such as cement as a binder. However, since the solidifying agent such as cement produces calcium hydroxide by a hardening reaction, the pH becomes high. As a result, when the animal toilet sand comes into contact with urine, the decomposition of urea contained in the urine is promoted, and there is a risk of generating ammonia, which causes an unpleasant odor. Therefore, in the animal toilet sand as disclosed in Patent Document 1, silica gel was mixed with the granular material in order to suppress the increase in the pH of the granular material.

[0007] However, even in the animal toilet sand as disclosed in Patent Document 1, silica gel may adsorb odor substances in the surrounding environment before the use of the animal toilet sand, and the adsorbed odor substances may be gradually released, resulting in the generation of an unpleasant odor. In addition to the odor substances that can exist in the space of the breeding environment, odor substances that can exist in the space of the manufacturing environment of silica gel and animal toilet sand are considered as odor substances. Furthermore, even after silica gel adsorbs odor substances generated from excreta such as urine, the adsorbed odor substances may be gradually released, resulting in the generation of an unpleasant odor.

[0008] In addition to the unpleasant odor caused by the odor substances adsorbed by such silica gel, there are still cases where unpleasant odors are generated in conventional animal toilet sand for various reasons, and further improvement regarding odor suppression is required.

[0009] The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object thereof is to provide an animal toilet sand capable of sufficiently suppressing the generation of unpleasant odors.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0010] The present invention includes the following aspects.

[0011] (Aspect 1) Animal toilet sand containing a plurality of granular materials, each of the plurality of granular materials containing an inorganic porous material and a solidifying agent, further containing silica gel in a content of 0.0 mass% or more and 2.5 mass% or less, and the area of the water droplet mark after the colored water droplet test being 12.6 mm 2 less, characterized in that it is animal toilet sand.

[0012] The animal toilet sand of this Aspect 1 either does not contain silica gel at all or contains it in a low content of 2.5 mass% or less. Since there is no odor substance adsorbed by the silica gel or the amount of the odor substance adsorbed by the silica gel is small, as a result, the emission amount of the odor substance adsorbed by the silica gel can be reduced. Thereby, the animal toilet sand of this Aspect 1 can suppress the generation of malodor caused by the emission of the odor substance adsorbed by the silica gel.

[0013] Also, in conventional animal toilet sand, after a plurality of granular materials adsorb odor substances generated from excrement such as urine, there is a risk of generating an unpleasant malodor due to the gradually released adsorbed odor substances. Furthermore, in conventional animal toilet sand, there is also a risk of generating an unpleasant malodor of ammonia caused by the evaporation of urine remaining on the surface of the granular materials. On the other hand, in the animal toilet sand of this Aspect 1, the area of the water droplet mark after the colored water droplet test is 12.6 mm 2 less, and since the absorption area of the granular materials is small, urine easily passes between the granular materials without being absorbed by the granular materials. Thereby, in the animal toilet sand of this Aspect 1, urine hardly remains on the surface of the granular materials, and ammonia generated by the decomposition of urea contained in the urine is hardly generated.

[0014] As described above, the animal toilet sand of this Aspect 1 can suppress the generation of malodor caused by the odor substances adsorbed by the silica gel and the granular materials, the malodor caused by the urine remaining on the surface of the granular materials, and the malodor caused by ammonia, and can exhibit an excellent malodor suppression effect.

[0015] (Aspect 2) An animal toilet sand containing a plurality of granular materials, wherein each of the plurality of granular materials contains an inorganic porous material and a solidifying agent, and further contains silica gel in a content of 0.0% by mass or more and 2.5% by mass or less, and the plurality of granular materials is characterized in that the pH of ion-exchanged water after a liquid passing test is less than 7.62.

[0016] The animal toilet sand of this second embodiment also either does not contain silica gel at all or contains silica gel in a low content of 2.5% by mass or less. Since there is no odor substance adsorbed on the silica gel or the amount of the odor substance adsorbed on the silica gel is small, the emission amount of the odor substance adsorbed on the silica gel can be reduced as a result. Thereby, the animal toilet sand of this second embodiment can also suppress the generation of malodor caused by the emission of the odor substance adsorbed on the silica gel.

[0017] In addition, in the conventional animal toilet sand, even if it contains silica gel, the pH of the plurality of granular materials may not be controlled within an appropriate range, and there is a possibility that ammonia, which causes malodor, may be generated. On the other hand, in the animal toilet sand of this second embodiment, since the pH of the ion-exchanged water after the liquid passing test of the plurality of granular materials is less than 7.62, ammonia, which causes malodor, is less likely to be generated even when in contact with urine. Thereby, the animal toilet sand of this second embodiment can suppress the generation of malodor caused by ammonia.

[0018] As described above, the animal toilet sand of this second embodiment can suppress the generation of malodor caused by the odor substance adsorbed on the silica gel and the malodor caused by ammonia, and can exhibit an excellent malodor suppressing effect.

[0019] (Aspect 3) An animal toilet sand containing a plurality of granular materials, each of the plurality of granular materials contains an inorganic porous material and a solidifying agent, and has water repellency, Each of the plurality of granular materials further contains silica gel in a content of 0.0 mass% or more and 2.5 mass% or less, and has an uneven structure composed of a plurality of convex portions, and is characterized as animal toilet sand.

[0020] The animal toilet sand of this Embodiment 3 also either does not contain silica gel at all or contains silica gel even if it does, in a low content of 2.5 mass% or less. Since there is no odor substance adsorbed to the silica gel or the amount of the odor substance adsorbed to the silica gel is small, as a result, the emission amount of the odor substance adsorbed to the silica gel can be reduced. Thereby, the animal toilet sand of this Embodiment 3 can also suppress the generation of a bad odor caused by the emission of the odor substance adsorbed to the silica gel.

[0021] Also, in conventional animal toilet sand, after a plurality of granular materials adsorb odor substances generated from excreta such as urine, there is a risk that the adsorbed odor substances are gradually released, generating an unpleasant bad odor. Furthermore, in conventional animal toilet sand, there is also a risk of generating an unpleasant bad odor of ammonia caused by the evaporation of urine remaining on the surface of the granular materials. On the other hand, in the animal toilet sand of this Embodiment 3, each of the plurality of granular materials has water repellency and an uneven structure, so that urine is more likely to pass between the granular materials without being absorbed by the granular materials as compared with those having water repellency but no uneven structure. Thereby, in the animal toilet sand of this Embodiment 3, it is difficult for urine to remain on the surface of the granular materials, and it is difficult for ammonia generated by the decomposition of urea contained in the urine to be generated.

[0022] As described above, the animal toilet sand of this Embodiment 3 can suppress the generation of a bad odor caused by the odor substance adsorbed to the silica gel and the granular materials, the bad odor caused by the urine remaining on the surface of the granular materials, and the bad odor caused by ammonia, and can exhibit an excellent bad odor suppressing effect.

[0023] (Embodiment 4) The animal toilet sand according to any one of the above Embodiments 1 to 3, wherein the surface of each of the plurality of granular materials is coated with a water repellent.

[0024] In the cat litter of this Embodiment 4, since the surface of the granular material is coated with a water repellent, urine easily passes between the granular materials without being absorbed by the granular materials, urine hardly contacts the inside of the granular materials, and ammonia generated by the decomposition of urea in the urine hardly occurs. As described above, the cat litter of this Embodiment 4 can more reliably suppress the generation of bad odors caused by odor substances adsorbed on the granular materials, bad odors caused by urine remaining on the surface of the granular materials, and bad odors caused by ammonia, and can exhibit a more excellent bad odor suppressing effect.

[0025] (Embodiment 5) The cat litter according to any one of the above Embodiments 1 to 3, wherein each of the plurality of granular materials has a surface coated with an ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer.

[0026] In the cat litter of this Embodiment 5, since the surface of the granular material is coated with an ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer (EVA), urine hardly contacts the inside of the granular material, and ammonia generated by the decomposition of urea in the urine hardly occurs. As described above, the cat litter of this Embodiment 5 can more reliably suppress the generation of bad odors caused by ammonia and bad odors caused by urine remaining on the surface of the granular materials, and can exhibit a more excellent bad odor suppressing effect.

[0027] (Embodiment 6) The cat litter according to any one of the above Embodiments 1 to 3, wherein each of the plurality of granular materials has a surface coated with a mixture of a water repellent and an ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer.

[0028] In the cat litter of this Embodiment 6, since the surface of the granular material is coated with a mixture of a water repellent and EVA, urine easily passes between the plurality of granular materials without being absorbed by the granular materials, urine hardly contacts the inside of the granular material, and ammonia generated by the decomposition of urea in the urine hardly occurs. As described above, the animal toilet sand of this embodiment 6 can further suppress the generation of malodors caused by odor substances adsorbed on the granular material, malodors caused by urine remaining on the surface of the granular material, and malodors caused by ammonia, and can exhibit a more excellent malodor suppression effect.

[0029] (Embodiment 7) The animal toilet sand according to any one of the above embodiments 1 to 6, wherein each of the plurality of granular materials contains water-repellent particles at least on its surface.

[0030] In the animal toilet sand of this embodiment 7, since the granular material contains water-repellent particles at least on its surface, urine is less likely to be absorbed by the granular material and easily passes between the granular materials. Also, urine is less likely to come into contact with the inside of the granular material, and ammonia generated by the decomposition of urea in the urine is less likely to be generated. As described above, the animal toilet sand of this embodiment 7 can more reliably suppress the generation of malodors caused by odor substances adsorbed on the granular material, malodors caused by urine remaining on the surface of the granular material, and malodors caused by ammonia, and can exhibit a more excellent malodor suppression effect.

[0031] (Embodiment 8) The animal toilet sand according to any one of the above embodiments 1 to 7, wherein each of the plurality of granular materials has a Ra (arithmetic mean roughness) of 0.26 μm or more and 0.95 μm or less.

[0032] In the animal toilet sand of this embodiment 8, since the granular material has a Ra (arithmetic mean roughness) within a predetermined range, urine is less likely to be absorbed by the granular material and easily passes between the granular materials. Also, urine is less likely to come into contact with the inside of the granular material, and ammonia generated by the decomposition of urea in the urine is less likely to be generated. As described above, the animal toilet sand of this embodiment 8 can more reliably suppress the generation of malodors caused by odor substances adsorbed on the granular material, malodors caused by urine remaining on the surface of the granular material, and malodors caused by ammonia, and can exhibit a more excellent malodor suppression effect.

[0033] (Embodiment 9) Each of the plurality of granular materials is characterized in that the Rsm (average uneven interval) is 20 μm or more and 25 μm or less, and the animal toilet sand according to any one of the above aspects 1 to 8.

[0034] In the animal toilet sand of this aspect 9, since the granular material has an Rsm (average uneven interval) within a predetermined range, urine easily passes between the granular materials without being absorbed by the granular materials, and it is difficult for urine to come into contact with the inside of the granular materials, and ammonia generated by the decomposition of urea in urine is less likely to be generated. From the above, the animal toilet sand of this aspect 9 can more reliably suppress the generation of bad odors caused by odor substances adsorbed on the granular materials, bad odors caused by urine remaining on the surface of the granular materials, and bad odors caused by ammonia, and can exhibit a more excellent bad odor suppressing effect.

[0035] (Aspect 10) The animal toilet sand according to the above aspect 3, wherein the uneven structure includes particles constituting the animal toilet sand.

[0036] In the animal toilet sand of this aspect 10, since the uneven structure of the granular material includes granular material constituent particles that are difficult to plastically deform, there is little deformation of the uneven structure even during the use of the animal toilet sand, urine easily passes between the granular materials without being absorbed by the granular materials, and it is difficult for urine to come into contact with the inside of the granular materials, and the action effect that ammonia generated by the decomposition of urea in urine is less likely to be generated can be sustained. From the above, the animal toilet sand of this aspect 10 can more reliably suppress the generation of bad odors caused by odor substances adsorbed on the granular materials, bad odors caused by urine remaining on the surface of the granular materials, and bad odors caused by ammonia, and can exhibit a more excellent bad odor suppressing effect.

Effects of the Invention

[0037] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an animal toilet sand that can sufficiently suppress the generation of bad odors.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0038]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0039] Hereinafter, a preferred embodiment of the animal toilet sand according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In this specification, various numerical ranges mean ranges including their upper and lower limit values unless otherwise specified.

[0040] In order to achieve the above object, the present inventors focused on the causes of malodor generation and conducted intensive studies. As a result, it was found that the generation of a plurality of types of malodors with different causes can be suppressed by the following various methods. Specifically, the present inventors reduced the silica gel content of the particulate matter constituting the animal toilet sand and reduced the absorption area of the particulate matter, and reduced the silica gel content of the particulate matter constituting the animal toilet sand and controlled the pH after liquid passage of a plurality of particulate matters within an appropriate range. It was found that the generation of a plurality of types of malodors with different causes can be suppressed by at least one of these methods. The present invention has been completed based on such findings and includes the following embodiments.

[0041] <First Embodiment> First, the animal toilet sand 3 of the first embodiment, which is one embodiment of the present invention, will be described in detail with reference to FIG. 1.

[0042] FIG. 1 is a perspective view schematically showing the configuration of the system toilet 1 using the animal toilet sand 3 of the first embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the system toilet 1 includes a cover 2, the animal toilet sand 3 of the first embodiment of the present invention, a toilet sand storage container 4, a disposable excrement treatment sheet 5, and an excrement treatment sheet storage container 6.

[0043] Note that the cover 2 is a member that forms an outer wall that limits the entrance and exit of animals such as cats and serves as an enclosure to prevent the scattering of excrement and the animal toilet sand 3. The toilet sand storage container 4 is a container for storing the animal toilet sand 3 and is a container having a bottom surface portion (for example, a lattice) having a structure (for example, a porous structure or a mesh structure) that allows urine excreted from an animal to pass through. Further, the excrement treatment sheet 5 is a disposable liquid-absorbing sheet that is disposed below the bottom surface portion of the toilet sand storage container 4 and absorbs and holds the urine that has passed through the animal toilet sand 3 and the bottom surface portion. The excrement treatment sheet storage container 6 is a container for storing the excrement treatment sheet 5 and is a container that is removably incorporated below the toilet sand storage container 4.

[0044] The system toilet 1 shown in FIG. 1 is configured such that when an animal excretes urine inside the cover 2, the urine passes through the animal toilet sand 3 and is absorbed and held by the excrement treatment sheet 5 located below the animal toilet sand 3. Note that when the urine passes through the animal toilet sand 3, the urine passes through while being gradually absorbed by a plurality of granular materials constituting the animal toilet sand 3 and flowing downward through the spaces between the granular materials.

[0045] The system toilet 1 is configured to be able to suppress the diffusion of malodors generated from urine by having urine absorbed and retained inside the animal toilet sand 3 and the excrement treatment sheet 5, and by having the animal toilet sand 3 cover the internal space of the excrement treatment sheet storage container 6 including the excrement treatment sheet 5 from above. Therefore, in the system toilet 1, the animal toilet sand 3 has a predetermined liquid permeability and liquid absorbency, and also has a predetermined adsorbency capable of adsorbing odor substances generated from excrement.

[0046] The animal toilet sand 3 of the present embodiment is an animal toilet sand containing a plurality of granular materials, and each of the plurality of granular materials contains an inorganic porous material and a solidifying agent. And in the present embodiment, each of the plurality of granular materials further contains silica gel in a content of 0.0 mass% or more and 2.5 mass% or less, and the area of the water droplet mark after the colored water droplet test is 12.6 mm 2 less than.

[0047] Here, in this specification, "further containing silica gel in a content of 0.0 mass% or more and 2.5 mass% or less" means that it does not contain silica gel at all, or even if it contains silica gel, it contains it in a content of 2.5 mass% or less.

[0048] The animal toilet sand 3 of the present embodiment either does not contain silica gel at all, or contains it in a low content of 2.5 mass% or less even if it contains silica gel. Since there is no odor substance adsorbed to the silica gel or the amount of the odor substance adsorbed to the silica gel is small, as a result, the release amount of the odor substance adsorbed to the silica gel can be reduced. Thereby, the animal toilet sand 3 of the present embodiment can suppress the generation of malodors caused by the release of the odor substance adsorbed to the silica gel.

[0049] In addition, as described above, in conventional animal toilet sand, after the granular material adsorbs odor substances generated from excrement such as urine, there is a risk of generating unpleasant bad odors due to the gradually released adsorbed odor substances. Furthermore, in conventional animal toilet sand, there is also a risk of generating an unpleasant bad odor of ammonia caused by the evaporation of urine remaining on the surface of the granular material. On the other hand, in the animal toilet sand 3 of the present embodiment, the area of the water droplet trace after the colored water droplet test is less than 12.6 mm 2 and since the absorption area of the granular material is small, urine easily passes between the granular materials without being absorbed by the granular materials. As a result, in the animal toilet sand 3 of the present embodiment, ammonia generated by the decomposition of urea contained in urine is less likely to be generated.

[0050] As described above, the animal toilet sand 3 of the present embodiment can suppress the generation of bad odors caused by odor substances adsorbed on the silica gel and the granular material, bad odors caused by urine remaining on the surface of the granular material, and bad odors caused by ammonia, and can exhibit an excellent bad odor suppressing effect.

[0051] In the present embodiment, the means for making the area of the water droplet trace after the colored water droplet test of the granular material less than 12.6 mm 2 is not particularly limited, and known water absorption adjusting means in the art can be employed. Specific examples include adjusting the composition of the components constituting the granular material and / or coating the surface of the granular material with a surface treatment agent such as a water repellent and adjusting the amount and coating form thereof.

[0052] (Method for measuring the area of the water droplet trace after the colored water droplet test) The area of the water droplet trace after the colored water droplet test can be measured as follows. (1) First, using a micropipette, 5 μL of water colored blue is measured and dropped onto a sample of the granular material to be measured. (2) Next, the water droplet on the granular material is absorbed using filter paper manufactured by ADVANTEC. (3) Measure the size of the water droplet marks remaining on the surface of the granular material. At this time, consider the water droplet marks as elliptical and measure the lengths of the corresponding positions of the major axis (mm) and minor axis (mm) respectively. (4) Then, calculate the area of the water droplet marks (mm 2 ) according to the following formula. Area of water droplet marks = (major axis / 2) × (minor axis / 2) × 3.14

[0053] Hereinafter, the granular material constituting the animal toilet sand 3 of the present embodiment will be described in detail.

[0054] (Constituent components of the granular material) In the present embodiment, the granular material constituting the animal toilet sand 3 contains an inorganic porous material and a solidifying agent, and further contains no silica gel at all, or contains silica gel even if it does, with a low content of 2.5% by mass or less. Hereinafter, these constituent components will be described.

[0055] (Inorganic porous material) The inorganic porous material, which is one of the constituent components of the granular material, is not particularly limited as long as it does not inhibit the effects of the present invention, and any inorganic porous material that can be used as a constituent component of animal toilet sand can be used. Examples of such inorganic porous materials include zeolite, sepiolite, attapulgite, diatomaceous earth, diatomaceous shale, and the like.

[0056] Note that the particle size of the inorganic porous material is not particularly limited, but is, for example, 400 μm or less, preferably 300 μm or less, and more preferably 200 μm or less.

[0057] In addition, the content of the inorganic porous material in the granular material is not particularly limited as long as the effects of the present invention are not inhibited, and any content can be adopted according to the desired malodor suppression effect, strength, etc. Such contents include, for example, a content of 50 to 98% by mass. The content of the inorganic porous material in the granular material is preferably 50 to 95% by mass, and more preferably 60 to 90% by mass. Note that the content of the inorganic porous material in the granular material means the ratio of the mass of the inorganic porous material contained per particle of the granular material.

[0058] (Hardening agent) The hardening agent, which is a constituent component of the granular material, is not particularly limited as long as the effects of the present invention are not inhibited, and any hardening agent that can be used as a constituent component of the animal toilet sand can be used. Such hardening agents include, for example, cement-based hardening agents, non-cement-based hardening agents, and the like. Note that the cement-based hardening agent and the non-cement-based hardening agent may be used alone or in combination.

[0059] The cement-based hardening agent is a hardening agent composed of cement, mainly composed of calcium silicate, and is a hardening agent that reacts (hydrates) with water and hardens. Examples of the cement include Portland cement, white cement, and the like. By using such cement as a hardening agent, the strength of the granular material constituting the animal toilet sand can be increased.

[0060] In addition, a low-alkali cement may be used as the cement-based hardening agent. The low-alkali cement is a low-alkali cement with a pH of about 11 in which the alkali metals (Na, K) contained in the cement are adjusted to a predetermined content or less. By using the low-alkali cement as a hardening agent, the pH of the granular material constituting the animal toilet sand can be lowered. When the pH of the granular material is lowered in this way, ammonia, which causes malodor when the granular material comes into contact with urine, is less likely to be generated, so the generation of malodor caused by ammonia can be further suppressed.

[0061] On the one hand, a non-cement-based solidifying agent is a solidifying agent other than a cement-based solidifying agent and is a solidifying agent that does not have calcium silicate as the main component. Examples of non-cement-based solidifying agents include dolomite, calcium oxide, calcium sulfate, magnesium oxide, and the like. In particular, when a mixture of a cement-based solidifying agent and a non-cement-based solidifying agent is used as the solidifying agent, the strength of the granular material can be increased while lowering the pH, and the generation of malodors caused by ammonia can be more reliably suppressed.

[0062] As the non-cement-based solidifying agent, a water-curable solidifying agent mainly composed of calcium sulfate and magnesium oxide may be used. Such a water-curable solidifying agent exhibits substantially neutral properties. Furthermore, magnesium hydroxide generated during the curing of the solidifying agent exhibits weak basicity. Therefore, when such a water-curable solidifying agent is used as the non-cement-based solidifying agent, the pH of the granular material can be lowered, and the generation of malodors caused by ammonia can be more reliably suppressed.

[0063] In addition, in the water-curable solidifying agent mainly composed of calcium sulfate and magnesium oxide, the content of calcium sulfate is preferably 50 to 95% by mass, and the content of magnesium oxide is preferably 5 to 50% by mass. Here, the content of calcium sulfate is the content in terms of anhydride.

[0064] The content of the solidifying agent in the granular material is not particularly limited as long as the effects of the present invention are not inhibited, and any content corresponding to the desired malodor suppression effect, strength, etc. can be adopted. Examples of such a content include a content of 5 to 30% by mass. From the viewpoints of malodor suppression effect, strength, etc., the content of the solidifying agent in the granular material is preferably 10 to 25% by mass.

[0065] (Silica gel) As described above, in the present embodiment, the granular material constituting the animal toilet sand 3 contains no silica gel at all, or even if it contains silica gel, the content is as low as 2.5% by mass or less. That is, silica gel is an optional constituent component of the granular material constituting the animal toilet sand 3.

[0066] In the present embodiment, as long as the content of silica gel used as a constituent component of the granular material is 0.0% by mass or more and 2.5% by mass or less, the type, structure, etc. thereof are not particularly limited, and any silica gel that can be used as a constituent component of the animal toilet sand can be used. Examples of such silica gels include commercially available silica gels such as type A silica gel, type B silica gel, and type C silica gel.

[0067] The content of silica gel in the granular material is 0.0% by mass or more and 2.5% by mass or less as described above. When the content of silica gel in the granular material is within such a range, there is no odor substance adsorbed by the silica gel, or the amount of odor substance adsorbed by the silica gel is small. As a result, the emission amount of the odor substance adsorbed by the silica gel can be reduced. Thereby, the animal toilet sand 3 of the present embodiment can suppress the generation of malodor caused by the emission of the odor substance adsorbed by the silica gel.

[0068] (Other components) In the present embodiment, the granular material constituting the animal toilet sand 3 may further contain an inorganic porous material, a solidifying agent, and any additional component other than silica gel. Such additional components are not particularly limited, and examples include various functional components such as fragrance components, antibacterial components, test reagent components, hydrophilic components, hydrophobic components, other deodorant components, preservative components, bactericidal components, antifungal components, and coloring components. These functional components may be used alone or in combination of two or more.

[0069] The fragrance component is not particularly limited as long as it contains a compound having aromaticity. For example, alcohols such as geraniol, citronellol, citral, eugenol, phenethyl alcohol, thymol, linalool, leaf alcohol, menthol, benzyl alcohol; aldehydes such as hexyl cinnamaldehyde; oils and the like can be mentioned. Further, the fragrance component may further contain a dispersant for dispersing the compound having aromaticity in water. Examples of the dispersant include glycols and their polymers which are liquid at normal temperature (25°C).

[0070] The antibacterial component is not particularly limited as long as it can suppress the growth of bacteria and the like. For example, any antibacterial agent such as organic, inorganic metal-based, photocatalyst-based, natural-based can be used. Among them, from the viewpoint that it can suppress the growth of bacteria and the like even after the particulate matter absorbs excreta such as urine, it is preferable to use an organic surfactant-type antibacterial agent.

[0071] The test reagent component is not particularly limited as long as it can detect the health state of animals. For example, reagents that change color according to the components of urine such as pH test reagents, protein test reagents, glucose test reagents, occult blood test reagents, urobilinogen test reagents can be used.

[0072] The hydrophilic component is not particularly limited as long as it can hydrophilize the particulate matter. For example, surfactants and the like can be used. Further, the hydrophobic component is not particularly limited as long as it can hydrophobize the particulate matter. For example, aliphatic hydrocarbons, silicone resins, fatty acids and their metal salts, polyglycols, fatty acid esters, waxes, low molecular weight polyolefins, fluorine-based resins and the like can be used.

[0073] Other deodorizing components are not particularly limited as long as they are components other than the above-mentioned inorganic porous materials and silica gel and have a deodorizing effect. For example, those that neutralize ammonia odor such as citric acid and sodium bicarbonate can be mentioned.

[0074] In addition, the granular material constituting the animal toilet sand 3 may contain activated carbon instead of the silica gel described above. That is, the granular material may contain activated carbon in addition to the inorganic porous material and the solidifying agent described above. When the granular material contains such activated carbon, the activated carbon can also adsorb odor substances, and as the activated carbon is gradually oxidized, the pH of the granular material can be reduced, so that ammonia, which is the cause of malodor, can be less likely to be generated.

[0075] (Surface coating) Also, in the present embodiment, the granular material constituting the animal toilet sand 3 may have its surface coated with an optional surface treatment agent such as a water repellent or an ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer.

[0076] Among them, it is preferable that the granular material constituting the animal toilet sand 3 of the present embodiment has its surface coated with a water repellent. When the surface of the granular material is coated with a water repellent, urine can easily pass between the granular materials without being absorbed by the granular materials, and it is difficult for urine to come into contact with the inside of the granular materials, making it difficult for ammonia generated by the decomposition of urea in the urine to be generated. Therefore, the animal toilet sand 3 composed of such granular materials can more reliably suppress the generation of malodors caused by odor substances adsorbed by the granular materials, malodors caused by urine remaining on the surface of the granular materials, and malodors caused by ammonia, and can exhibit a more excellent malodor suppression effect.

[0077] The water repellent that can be used for the animal toilet sand 3 of the present embodiment is not particularly limited, and any water repellent that can be used for animal toilet sand can be used. Examples of such water repellents include waxes such as paraffin wax, silicone resins, and fluororesins.

[0078] In addition, the granular material constituting the animal toilet sand 3 of the present embodiment may have its surface coated with an ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer (EVA). When the surface of the granular material is coated with EVA, it is difficult for urine to come into contact with the inside of the granular material, and it is difficult for ammonia generated by the decomposition of urea in the urine to be generated. Therefore, the animal toilet sand 3 composed of such granular materials can more reliably suppress the generation of malodors caused by ammonia and malodors caused by urine remaining on the surface of the granular materials, and can exhibit a more excellent malodor suppressing effect.

[0079] In addition, the granular material constituting the animal toilet sand 3 of the present embodiment may have its surface coated with a mixture of the above-described water repellent and an ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer (EVA). When the surface of the granular material is coated with a mixture of the water repellent and EVA, urine easily passes between the granular materials without being absorbed by the plurality of granular materials, it is difficult for urine to come into contact with the inside of the granular materials, and it is difficult for ammonia generated by the decomposition of urea contained in the urine to be generated. Therefore, the animal toilet sand 3 composed of such granular materials can further suppress the generation of malodors caused by odor substances adsorbed on the granular materials, malodors caused by urine remaining on the surface of the granular materials, and malodors caused by ammonia.

[0080] Figs. 2 to 4 are SEM (scanning electron microscope) images of the surfaces of the granular materials constituting the animal toilet sand 3 of the present embodiment surface-treated with a water repellent, an ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer, and a mixture of a water repellent and an ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer, respectively, and Fig. 5 is an SEM image of the surface of the granular material constituting the animal toilet sand 3 of the present embodiment that has not been surface-treated. Compared with the surface of the granular material shown in Fig. 5, the surfaces of the granular materials shown in Figs. 2 to 4 are rough, and in particular, a remarkable uneven structure is observed in the granular material surface-treated with the mixture of the water repellent and the ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer in Fig. 4, and it can be seen that the presence or absence of surface treatment affects the uneven state of the surface of the granular material.

[0081] In addition to the above-mentioned water repellents and EVA, the surface treatment agent used for coating the surface of the granular material may further contain any inorganic powder and additive components. Examples of such inorganic powders include talc, mica, kaolin, calcium carbonate, aluminum oxide, and the like. On the other hand, the additive components are not particularly limited, but for example, functional components similar to those of the above-mentioned granular materials, that is, various functional components such as fragrance components, antibacterial components, test reagent components, hydrophilic components, hydrophobic components, deodorant components, preservative components, bactericidal components, antifungal components, and coloring components can be mentioned. These functional components may be used alone or in combination of two or more kinds.

[0082] The means for coating the surface of the granular material with the above-mentioned surface treatment agent is not particularly limited, and any coating means can be adopted. Examples of such coating means include means for spray-coating the surface treatment agent on the surface of the granular material, means for immersing the granular material in the surface treatment liquid, and the like.

[0083] When coating the surface of the granular material with the above-mentioned surface treatment agent, the coating amount is not particularly limited as long as the effects of the present invention are not inhibited, and any coating amount corresponding to the desired malodor suppression effect, strength, etc. can be adopted. Such coating amounts include, for example, 0.01 to 5.00% by mass, preferably 0.05 to 3.00% by mass, and more preferably 0.10 to 1.00% by mass based on the mass of the granular material.

[0084] In addition, the individual coating forms of the plurality of granular materials are not particularly limited as long as the effects of the present invention are not inhibited. The entire surface of each individual granular material may be coated with the surface treatment agent, or only a part of the surface of each individual granular material may be coated with the surface treatment agent. Also, for the plurality of granular materials, the surfaces of all the granular materials may be coated with the surface treatment agent, or only the surfaces of some of the granular materials may be coated with the surface treatment agent.

[0085] The plurality of granular materials that make up the animal toilet sand of this embodiment each have a substantially cylindrical outer shape, but the shape of the granular materials is not limited to such a shape. The shape of the granular materials can adopt any outer shape such as, for example, a substantially spherical shape, an irregular granular shape, etc. However, from the point of reducing the scattering of the granular materials when using the animal toilet sand, the shape of the granular materials is preferably substantially cylindrical.

[0086] Also, the size of the granular materials is not particularly limited as long as it does not inhibit the effects of the present invention, and any size corresponding to the desired malodor suppression effect, strength, etc. can be adopted. Examples of such sizes of the granular materials include a particle diameter in the range of 3.0 to 8.0 mm.

[0087] The particle diameter of the granular materials is preferably in the range of 3.5 to 6.0 mm. When the particle diameter of the granular materials is within such a range, it is easy to form gaps between the granular materials, and urine can easily pass between the plurality of granular materials. Therefore, the animal toilet sand composed of granular materials with such a particle diameter can more reliably suppress the generation of malodors caused by odor substances adsorbed on the granular materials and malodors caused by urine remaining on the surface of the granular materials. In addition, the particle diameter within the above specific range is a size that is not easily pinched by the paw pads of animals such as cats. Therefore, even if an animal standing on the animal toilet sand walks around the room, it is unlikely that the granular materials will be scattered in the room, and there is an advantage that the diffusion of the malodor associated with such granular materials can also be suppressed.

[0088] The particle size of the granular material is the size of the granular material determined by the sieving method, that is, the opening of the sieve. Specifically, the particle size of the granular material means the mass median obtained from the particle size distribution obtained by the sieving method, that is, the particle size (mm) of the granular material corresponding to 50% by mass. The particle size distribution can be obtained by using a vibrating sieve machine (for example, "AS-200 type" manufactured by Retsch) equipped with a plurality of sieves with different mesh openings, sieving a predetermined mass (for example, 150 g) of the granular material for a predetermined time (for example, 3 minutes), and calculating the mass percentage (%) from the mass (g) of the granular material remaining on each sieve.

[0089] The plurality of granular materials constituting the animal toilet sand of the present invention can be obtained by granulating the constituent components of the granular material containing the above-mentioned inorganic porous material and solidifying agent using an arbitrary granulator. The granulator used for granulating the granular material is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include compression granulators such as disk pelletizers, briquette machines, and tableting machines, and extrusion granulators. When coating the surface of the granulated granular material with the above-mentioned surface treatment agent, the surface treatment agent may be adhered to the surface of the granulated granular material using any coating means.

[0090] <Second Embodiment> Hereinafter, another embodiment of the present invention, that is, the second embodiment of the present invention, which is different only in the pH characteristics after liquid passage from the above-mentioned first embodiment, will be described. Since the points other than the pH characteristics after liquid passage, which are different from the above-mentioned first embodiment, are basically the same as those of the above-mentioned first embodiment, the description will be omitted.

[0091] The animal toilet sand of the second embodiment of the present invention is also animal toilet sand containing a plurality of granular materials. Each of the plurality of granular materials contains an inorganic porous material and a solidifying agent, and further contains silica gel in a content of 0.0% by mass or more and 2.5% by mass or less. And in this embodiment, the pH of the ion-exchanged water after the liquid passage test of the plurality of granular materials is less than 7.62.

[0092] The animal toilet sand of the present embodiment either does not contain silica gel or contains silica gel in a low content of 2.5% by mass or less. Since there is no odor substance adsorbed by the silica gel or the amount of the odor substance adsorbed by the silica gel is small, the amount of the odor substance released and adsorbed by the silica gel can be reduced as a result. Thereby, the animal toilet sand of the present embodiment can also suppress the generation of a bad odor caused by the release of the odor substance adsorbed by the silica gel.

[0093] Also, as described above, in the conventional animal toilet sand, even if it contains silica gel, there are cases where the pH of a plurality of particulate matters cannot be controlled within an appropriate range, and there is a risk of generating ammonia that causes a bad odor. On the other hand, in the animal toilet sand of the present embodiment, since the pH of the ion-exchanged water after the liquid passing test of a plurality of particulate matters is less than 7.62, ammonia that causes a bad odor is unlikely to be generated even when it comes into contact with urine. Thereby, the animal toilet sand of the present embodiment can suppress the generation of a bad odor caused by ammonia.

[0094] As described above, the animal toilet sand of the present embodiment can suppress the generation of a bad odor caused by the odor substance adsorbed by the silica gel and the bad odor caused by ammonia, and can exhibit an excellent bad odor suppressing effect.

[0095] In the present embodiment, the means for making the pH of the ion-exchanged water after the liquid passing test of the particulate matter less than 7.62 is not particularly limited. For example, adjusting the composition of the components constituting the above-mentioned particulate matter and / or coating the surface of the particulate matter with the above-mentioned surface treatment agent and adjusting the amount and coating form thereof can be mentioned.

[0096] (Method for measuring the pH of ion-exchanged water after the liquid passing test) The pH of the ion-exchanged water after the liquid permeation test of the particulate matter can be measured as follows. (1) First, fill the inside of a cylinder with an inner diameter of 84 mm and a depth of 30 mm with a particulate matter sample to be measured. (2) Next, about 20 g of ion-exchanged water whose mass (g) has been measured in advance is dropped from a height of 2 cm above the granular material sample in the cylinder. (3) Then, the ion-exchanged water that has passed through the cylinder and flowed out from below the cylinder is collected, and its mass (g) is measured. (4) The liquid permeability (%) of the granular material is calculated by dividing the mass of the ion-exchanged water after passing through the cylinder by the mass of the ion-exchanged water before dropping and multiplying by 100. (5) Further, the pH of the ion-exchanged water after passing through the cylinder is measured using an arbitrary pH meter (for example, "LAQUAtwin pH-22", a compact pH meter manufactured by HORIBA). The measured value of the pH thus obtained is taken as the pH of the ion-exchanged water after the liquid permeability test of the granular material.

[0097] Also, the cat litter of the present invention may be a cat litter in a form combining the above-described first embodiment and second embodiment. That is, the cat litter in this combined form is a cat litter containing a plurality of granular materials, each of the plurality of granular materials contains an inorganic porous material and a solidifying agent, and further contains silica gel in a content of 0% by mass or more and 2.5% by mass or less. And in the present embodiment, each of the plurality of granular materials has an area of the water droplet trace after the colored water droplet test of less than 12.6 mm 2 Furthermore, for the plurality of granular materials, the pH of the ion-exchanged water after the liquid passage test is less than 7.62.

[0098] The cat litter of the present embodiment can exhibit the effects of both the above-described first embodiment and second embodiment. That is, the cat litter of the present embodiment can suppress the generation of bad odors caused by odor substances adsorbed to the silica gel and the granular materials, bad odors caused by urine remaining on the surface of the granular materials, and bad odors caused by ammonia.

[0099] <Third Embodiment> Hereinafter, another embodiment of the present invention, that is, the third embodiment of the present invention, which is different from the above-described first embodiment only in that the granular material has water repellency and has an uneven structure, will be described. Note that points other than water repellency and the uneven structure, which are different from the above-described first embodiment, are basically the same as those of the above-described first embodiment, and thus the description thereof will be omitted.

[0100] The animal toilet sand of the third embodiment of the present invention is also animal toilet sand containing a plurality of granular materials. Each of the plurality of granular materials contains an inorganic porous material and a solidifying agent, and further contains silica gel in a content of 0.0 mass% or more and 2.5 mass% or less. And in this embodiment, the plurality of granular materials have water repellency and have an uneven structure composed of a plurality of convex portions. In this specification, that the granular material has an uneven structure means a case where the Ra (arithmetic mean roughness) measured according to the description of this specification is 0.20 μm or more and the Rsm (average uneven interval) is 20 μm or more.

[0101] The animal toilet sand of this embodiment either does not contain silica gel or contains silica gel in a low content of 2.5 mass% or less. Since there is no odor substance adsorbed on the silica gel or the amount of the odor substance adsorbed on the silica gel is small, the emission amount of the odor substance adsorbed on the silica gel can be reduced as a result. Thereby, the animal toilet sand of this embodiment can also suppress the generation of a bad odor caused by the emission of the odor substance adsorbed on the silica gel.

[0102] In the animal toilet sand of this embodiment, each of the granular materials has water repellency. In this specification, that the granular material has water repellency means that the water contact angle of the surface of the granular material is 90° or more. The means for making each of the granular materials have water repellency is not particularly limited, and a water repellency adjusting means known in the art can be adopted. Specific examples include adjusting the composition of the components constituting the granular material and / or coating the surface of the granular material with a surface treatment agent such as a water repellent agent and adjusting the amount and coating form thereof.

[0103] The water contact angle of the surface of the granular material can be measured as follows. (1) Prepare an aluminum ring (outer diameter: 430 mm, inner diameter: 400 mm, height: 50 mm) and granular material dried at 120°C for 60 minutes in a thermo-hygrostat chamber at a temperature of 20 ± 5°C and a humidity of 65 ± 5% RH, and leave it standing for 24 hours. (2) Fill one granular material evenly in the aluminum ring, and compress the granular material together with the aluminum ring for 1 minute at a pressure of 3 Mpa using a press with a smooth bottom surface to smooth the surface of the granular material. (3) Measure the water contact angle of the compressed granular material in accordance with the sessile drop method in 6. of the "Test Method for Wettability of Substrate Glass Surface" of JIS R 3257:1999. Examples of the contact angle measuring device include the automatic contact angle meter CA-V type manufactured by Kyowa Interface Science Co., Ltd. The above water contact angle means the value 200 ms after dropping deionized water. (4) Measure the water contact angle in 20 different samples and adopt their average value.

[0104] As a means for each of the granular materials to have water repellency, when adjusting the composition of the components constituting the granular material, it is preferable that the granular material contains water-repellent particles at least on its surface. The water-repellent particles may be mixed into the raw material of the granular material, or may be sprinkled on its surface during the formation process of the granular material.

[0105] The water-repellent particles are not particularly limited, and examples thereof include tetrafluoroethylene resin (hereinafter referred to as "PTFE"), fluorinated pitch, fluorinated graphite, silicone powder, methyl silicone powder, PTFE solvent dispersion, and the like. The water-repellent particles are preferably particulate fluororesin, and among the particulate fluororesins, PTFE is particularly preferable. Further, as the water-repellent resin, as long as it has water repellency, particles of those listed as the preferable thermoplastic resins described later may also be used.

[0106] When PTFE is adopted as the water-repellent particles, the adjustment method is not particularly limited. However, since PTFE has a high water-repellent effect and is preferably mixed with a solidifying agent, those having a low molecular weight, specifically those having an average molecular weight ranging from 500 to 5000, are preferred.

[0107] The average primary particle diameter of the water-repellent particles is preferably 0.05 μm to 60 μm, more preferably 0.05 μm to 30 μm.

[0108] In the animal toilet sand of the present embodiment, when the granular material contains water-repellent particles at least on its surface, urine is less likely to be absorbed by the granular material and easily passes between the granular materials. In addition, urine is less likely to come into contact with the inside of the granular material, and ammonia generated by the decomposition of urea in urine is less likely to be generated. From the above, in the animal toilet sand of the present embodiment, when the granular material contains water-repellent particles, the generation of bad odors caused by odor substances adsorbed on the granular material, bad odors caused by urine remaining on the surface of the granular material, and bad odors caused by ammonia can be more reliably suppressed, and a more excellent bad odor suppressing effect can be exhibited.

[0109] As a means for each of the granular materials to have water repellency, when performing surface treatment of the granular material, it is preferable to coat the surface of the granular material with a surface treatment agent such as a water repellent. As long as the water contact angle of the surface of the granular material can be 90° or more, the means for adjusting the amount and coating form can adopt those described in the above "(surface coating)".

[0110] In the animal toilet sand of the present embodiment, each of the granular materials has an uneven structure composed of a plurality of convex portions. The method for forming the uneven structure on the granular material is not particularly limited. For example, after filling the raw material of the granular material into a mold having an uneven structure inside and heating and solidifying it, or after heating and solidifying the raw material of the granular material, physical impact is applied to the granular material to shake off a part of the particles constituting the animal toilet sand to form a plurality of concave portions in the granular material, and a plurality of convex portions can be generated in portions other than the plurality of concave portions.

[0111] As described above, in the conventional animal toilet sand, after a plurality of granular materials adsorb odor substances generated from excreta such as urine, there is a risk of generating an unpleasant bad odor due to the gradually released adsorbed odor substances. Furthermore, in the conventional animal toilet sand, there is also a risk of generating an unpleasant bad odor of ammonia caused by the evaporation of urine remaining on the surface of the granular materials. On the other hand, in the animal toilet sand of the present embodiment, each of the plurality of granular materials has water repellency and an uneven structure, so that urine is more likely to pass between the granular materials without being absorbed by the granular materials as compared with those having no uneven structure while having water repellency. Thereby, in the animal toilet sand of the present embodiment, it is difficult for urine to remain on the surface of the granular materials, and it is possible to make it difficult for ammonia generated by the decomposition of urea contained in the urine to be generated.

[0112] As described above, the animal toilet sand of the present embodiment can suppress the generation of bad odors caused by silica gel, odor substances adsorbed on the granular materials, bad odors caused by urine remaining on the surface of the granular materials, and bad odors caused by ammonia, and can exhibit an excellent bad odor suppressing effect.

[0113] Also, as described in the above-described first embodiment, an uneven structure can also be formed on the surface of the granular material by surface treatment of the granular material. In particular, a remarkable uneven structure is observed in the granular material surface-treated with a mixture of a water repellent and an ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer because the ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer is a thermoplastic resin. When the raw material of the granular material is molded and then heated and solidified while being stirred, it is considered that the particles shaken off by colliding with other granular materials are easily re-adhered.

[0114] From the perspective of facilitating the formation of an uneven structure on the surface of the granular material, the granular material constituting the animal toilet sand may further contain a thermoplastic resin in addition to the inorganic porous material, the solidifying agent, and the silica gel. The thermoplastic resin is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include low-density polyethylene, medium-density polyethylene, high-density polyethylene, ethylene-α-olefin copolymer, homopolymer, block, or random polypropylene, propylene-α-olefin copolymer, ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer, and the like. For example, in the case of an ethylene-α-olefin copolymer, it can be a block copolymer or a random copolymer of propylene and α-olefin. Examples of the α-olefin component include ethylene, 1-butene, 1-pentene, 1-hexene, 1-heptene, 1-octene, 4-methyl-1-pentene, and the like. The melting point of the thermoplastic resin is, for example, 50 to 135°C, preferably 60 to 120°C, from the viewpoints of the ease of molding the animal toilet sand of the present embodiment, the ease of exhibiting water repellency, and the malodor suppression effect.

[0115] The Ra (arithmetic mean roughness) of the granular material constituting the animal toilet sand of the present embodiment is 0.20 μm or more, preferably 1.0 μm or less, and more preferably 0.26 μm or more and 0.95 μm or less, from the viewpoint of facilitating the passage of urine between the granular materials without being absorbed by the granular materials.

[0116] Since the animal toilet sand of the present embodiment has a granular material with a Ra (arithmetic mean roughness) within a predetermined range, urine can easily pass between the granular materials without being absorbed by the granular materials, urine is less likely to come into contact with the inside of the granular materials, and ammonia generated by the decomposition of urea in urine is less likely to be generated. From the above, the animal toilet sand of the present embodiment can more reliably suppress the generation of malodors caused by odor substances adsorbed on the granular materials, malodors caused by urine remaining on the surface of the granular materials, and malodors caused by ammonia, and can exhibit a more excellent malodor suppression effect.

[0117] The Rsm (average uneven interval) of the granular material constituting the animal toilet sand of the present embodiment is 20 μm or more, preferably 30 μm or less, and more preferably 20 μm or more and 25 μm or less from the viewpoint of facilitating the passage of urine between the granular materials without being absorbed by the granular materials.

[0118] Since the animal toilet sand of the present embodiment has a granular material with an Rsm (average uneven interval) within a predetermined range, urine can easily pass between the granular materials without being absorbed by the granular materials, urine is less likely to come into contact with the inside of the granular materials, and ammonia generated by the decomposition of urea in urine is less likely to be generated. From the above, the animal toilet sand of the present embodiment can more reliably suppress the generation of offensive odors caused by odor substances adsorbed on the granular materials, offensive odors caused by urine remaining on the surface of the granular materials, and offensive odors caused by ammonia, and can exhibit a more excellent offensive odor suppression effect.

[0119] In this specification, when measuring the Ra (calculated average roughness) and Rsm (average uneven interval) of the granular material, a laser displacement meter (model: KS-1000) manufactured by Keyence Corporation was used, and the surface roughness in the longitudinal direction of the granular material was measured at 10 different locations under the following measurement conditions, and the average value was adopted. Measurement range: X-axis 500 μm, Y-axis 5000 μm Measurement pitch: X-axis 10 μm, Y-axis 10 μm Moving speed: 500 μm / s

[0120] In the animal toilet sand of the present embodiment, it is preferable that the uneven structure of the granular material includes particles constituting the animal toilet sand. As described above, the particles constituting the animal toilet sand mean an inorganic porous material, a solidifying agent, silica gel, and any additive components.

[0121] The animal toilet sand of this embodiment contains particulate constituent particles with an uneven structure that is difficult to plastically deform. Therefore, even during the use of the animal toilet sand, the uneven structure is less deformed, urine easily passes between the particulate matter without being absorbed by the particulate matter, and urine hardly comes into contact with the inside of the particulate matter, so that the effect of hardly generating ammonia generated by the decomposition of urea in urine can be sustained. From the above, the animal toilet sand of this embodiment can more reliably suppress the generation of bad odors caused by odor substances adsorbed on the particulate matter, bad odors caused by urine remaining on the surface of the particulate matter, and bad odors caused by ammonia, and can exhibit a more excellent bad odor suppressing effect.

[0122] Further, the animal toilet sand of the present invention may be an animal toilet sand in a form that combines the above-described third embodiment and the above-described first embodiment or second embodiment. That is, the animal toilet sand in this combined form is an animal toilet sand containing a plurality of particulate matters, each of the plurality of particulate matters contains an inorganic porous material and a solidifying agent, and further contains silica gel in a content of 0% by mass or more and 2.5% by mass or less, has water repellency, and has an uneven structure composed of a plurality of convex portions. And in this embodiment, each of the plurality of particulate matters has an area of the water droplet trace after the colored water droplet test of less than 12.6 mm 2 or the pH of the ion-exchanged water after the liquid passing test of the plurality of particulate matters is less than 7.62.

[0123] The animal toilet sand of this embodiment can exhibit the effects of both the above-described third embodiment and the first embodiment or the second embodiment. That is, the animal toilet sand of this embodiment can suppress the generation of bad odors caused by silica gel and odor substances adsorbed on the particulate matter, bad odors caused by urine remaining on the surface of the particulate matter, and bad odors caused by ammonia.

[0124] The animal toilet sand of the present invention is not limited to each of the above-described embodiments and the examples described below, and combinations, substitutions, changes, etc. can be appropriately made within the scope not departing from the object and gist of the present invention. In this specification, ordinal numbers such as "first" and "second" are for distinguishing the matters to which the ordinal numbers are attached, and do not mean the order, priority, importance, etc. of each matter.

Example

[0125] Hereinafter, the present invention will be described more specifically by way of examples and comparative examples, but the present invention is not construed as being limited only to such examples.

[0126] (Production of animal toilet sand) 80% by mass of zeolite powder (produced in Aiko, Miyagi Prefecture, 60 mesh pass product, average particle size 150 μm, moisture 7% or less) and 20% by mass of white cement (manufactured by Taiheiyo Cement Corporation) were stirred and mixed using a Lodige mixer. The obtained mixture was compression granulated using a disk pelletizer (manufactured by Dalton Co., Ltd.). The outlet opening size of the disk was 5.5 mm in diameter, the disk thickness was 35 mm, and the effective length was 12 mm.

[0127] A plurality of the thus obtained granulated products were left at room temperature of 20 ° C for 72 hours to allow the solidification reaction of the cement to proceed. Next, the plurality of granular materials were dried using a rotary kiln dryer until the finished moisture content became 10% or less.

[0128] A surface treatment agent composed of a mixture of 50% by mass of a wax-based resin (TH-44, manufactured by Nihon Kayaku Co., Ltd.), which is a water repellent, and 50% by mass of an ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer (EVA) was applied to the plurality of dried granular materials in an amount of 1.00% by mass based on the mass of the granular materials. At the time of application, while stirring and mixing the plurality of dried granular materials, the above-described surface treatment agent was sprayed by a spray.

[0129] Next, a plurality of granular materials whose surfaces were coated with the above-described surface treatment agent were sieved using a sieve with a mesh size of 10 mm × 10 mm, and the granular materials larger than a predetermined size were removed. Thereafter, the granular materials were sieved again using a sieve with a mesh size of 5 mm × 10 mm to remove the granular materials and powdery materials smaller than a predetermined size, thereby obtaining a plurality of granular materials having a size within a predetermined range. In this way, the cat litter of Example 1 was obtained.

[0130] Except that the composition of the granular material and the surface coating (type of the surface treatment agent) were changed to those shown in Table 1 below, the cat litters of Examples 2 to 6 and Comparative Examples 1 to 10 were obtained in the same manner as in Example 1. Note that commercially available Type C silica gel (produced in Qingdao, China) was used as the silica gel.

[0131] Regarding the obtained cat litters of Examples 1 to 6 and Comparative Examples 1 to 10, the area of the water droplet trace after the above-described colored water droplet test, the liquid permeability, and the pH of the ion-exchanged water after the liquid permeability test were measured, respectively. In addition, regarding the cat litters of each Example and Comparative Example, the above-described surface roughness (Ra (arithmetic mean roughness) and Rsm (average spacing of unevenness)) was measured, respectively, and the presence or absence of water repellency and the presence or absence of an uneven structure were confirmed. Furthermore, according to the following <olfactory evaluation method for urine odor>, an olfactory evaluation was performed on the malodor suppression effect of the cat litters of each Example and Comparative Example against urine. The measurement results and olfactory evaluation results are shown in Table 1 below. Note that for the presence or absence of water repellency and the presence or absence of an uneven structure, a circle (〇) indicates the presence, and a cross (×) indicates the absence.

[0132] <Olfactory evaluation method for urine odor> (1) The inside of a cylinder with an inner diameter of 84 mm and a depth of 30 mm installed on a litter box is filled with a sample of the cat litter to be evaluated. (2) 20 mL of actual urine (urine of an actual cat) is dropped three times from above the sample of the cat litter filled in the cylinder. Note that the total dropping amount is 60 mL. (3) The sample after dropping the actual urine is placed in a sealable container with a capacity of 700 mL. (4) Smell the sample in the container and evaluate it based on the following evaluation criteria for urine odor intensity and comfort level. When evaluating, the average value of the evaluation scores for 20 times is adopted.

[0133] (Evaluation criteria for urine odor intensity) 1: Odor that can just be perceived or no odor 2: Odor of a weak intensity where one can tell what the odor is 3: Odor that can be easily perceived 4: Strong odor 5: Extremely strong odor

[0134] (Evaluation criteria for comfort level) 1: Extremely comfortable 2: Comfortable 3: Neither comfortable nor uncomfortable 4: Uncomfortable 5: Extremely uncomfortable

[0135]

Table 1

[0136] As shown in Table 1, it was found that the toilet sands for animals in Examples 1 to 6 of the present invention all had low evaluation scores for urine odor intensity and comfort level, and could sufficiently suppress the generation of malodors. On the other hand, it was found that all the toilet sands for animals in Comparative Examples 1 to 10 had high evaluation scores for at least one of urine odor intensity and comfort level, and could not sufficiently suppress the generation of malodors.

Explanation of symbols

[0137] 1 System toilet 2 Cover 3 Toilet sand for animals 4 Toilet sand storage container 5 Excrement treatment sheet 6 Excrement treatment sheet storage container

Claims

1. Animal toilet sand containing a plurality of granular materials, wherein each of the plurality of granular materials contains an inorganic porous material and a solidifying agent. Further containing silica gel in a content of 0.0 mass% or more and 2.5 mass% or less, and the area of the water droplet trace after the colored water droplet test is less than 12.6 mm ２ A toilet sand for animals, characterized in that it is less than that.

2. Animal toilet sand containing a plurality of granular materials, wherein each of the plurality of granular materials contains an inorganic porous material and a solidifying agent, and further contains silica gel in a content of 0.0% by mass or more and 2.5% by mass or less. The plurality of granular materials are characterized in that the pH of ion-exchanged water after a liquid passing test is 7.62 or less. Animal toilet sand.

3. Animal toilet sand containing a plurality of granular materials, wherein each of the plurality of granular materials contains an inorganic porous material and a solidifying agent, and has water repellency. Each of the plurality of granular materials further contains silica gel in a content of 0.0% by mass or more and 2.5% by mass or less, and has an uneven structure composed of a plurality of convex portions. Animal toilet sand.

4. The animal toilet sand according to any one of Claims 1 to 3, wherein the surface of each of the plurality of granular materials is coated with a water repellent.

5. The animal toilet sand according to any one of Claims 1 to 3, wherein the surface of each of the plurality of granular materials is coated with an ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer.

6. The animal toilet sand according to any one of Claims 1 to 3, wherein the surface of each of the plurality of granular materials is coated with a mixture of a water repellent and an ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer.

7. The animal toilet sand according to any one of Claims 1 to 6, wherein each of the plurality of granular materials contains water repellent particles at least on its surface.

8. The animal toilet sand according to any one of Claims 1 to 7, wherein each of the plurality of granular materials has a Ra (arithmetic mean roughness) of 0.26 μm or more and 0.95 μm or less.

9. The animal toilet sand according to any one of Claims 1 to 8, wherein each of the plurality of granular materials has an Rsm (average uneven interval) of 20 μm or more and 25 μm or less.

10. The animal toilet sand according to Claim 3, wherein the uneven structure includes the particles constituting the animal toilet sand.

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