Branched Nonionic Surfactant Detergent Stability
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional liquid hand dishwashing detergents with natural, renewable surfactants have low suds endurance and stability at low temperatures, failing to provide effective grease cleaning and long-lasting suds.
Innovation Solution
A liquid hand dishwashing detergent composition combining ethoxylated anionic surfactants with little or no branching and branched alkoxylated nonionic surfactants, which maintains stability and enhances suds longevity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If natural renewable surfactants are used to reduce crude oil content, then environmental sustainability is improved, but suds endurance deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines renewable anionic surfactants (linear or lightly branched) with branched nonionic surfactants to create a composite surfactant system. This composite approach allows the formulation to maintain environmental sustainability through renewable content while the branched nonionic component provides the necessary suds endurance that natural surfactants alone cannot achieve.
2Reliability
If linear anionic surfactants from renewable sources are used, then renewable content is improved, but low temperature stability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a composite surfactant system combining linear anionic surfactants (providing renewable content) with branched nonionic surfactants (providing low temperature stability). The synergistic interaction between these different surfactant types allows the formulation to achieve both high renewable content and excellent low temperature stability, overcoming the limitations of using linear surfactants alone.
3Reliability
If high levels of linear anionic surfactants are used, then renewable surfactant content is improved, but suds production deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the structural parameters of the surfactant system by introducing branched nonionic surfactants with specific alkoxylate chains. This parameter change in molecular structure and composition enables the formulation to produce adequate suds while maintaining high levels of renewable anionic surfactants, as the branched structure provides the necessary sudsing properties that linear structures lack.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The composition achieves excellent grease cleaning and long-lasting suds while maintaining stability at low temperatures, addressing the limitations of conventional detergents.
Implementation Method 1
liquid hand dishwashing detergent compositions containing higher levels of surfactants derived from renewable sources
Data Source
AI summary
The need for a liquid hand dishwashing detergent composition, having excellent low temperature stability and delivering good cleaning and long-lasting suds, is met by incorporating a branched, alkoxylated nonionic surfactant, in combination with ethoxylated anionic surfactants having little or no branching, into the composition. Surprisingly, such a combination also provides an excellent sudsing profile during direct application dishwashing methods.