Citric Acid Laundry Powder Processing for Flow and Stability
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Solution Overview
Problem
Incorporating high levels of citric acid into laundry detergent powders to achieve a low pH profile results in poor flowability and stability issues, which are not adequately addressed by existing formulation processes.
Innovation Solution
A process that controls relative humidity during the production of laundry detergent powder by contacting citric acid particles with a detergent base powder, transferring the mixture to a storage vessel, and then to a package, ensuring the citric acid particles have specific size ranges and the process is conducted at an equilibrium relative humidity of 30% or less.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If high levels of citric acid are incorporated into laundry detergent powder to achieve low pH profile, then hygiene and freshness benefits are improved, but powder flowability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent controls the particle size parameter of citric acid to be within 100-450 μm, and controls the relative humidity parameter during mixing and storage to be 30% or less. These parameter changes enable the powder to maintain both low pH (hygiene benefits) and good flowability by preventing citric acid particles from absorbing moisture and clumping together.
2Reliability
If high levels of citric acid are incorporated into laundry detergent powder to achieve low pH profile, then hygiene and freshness benefits are improved, but storage stability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent controls the relative humidity parameter during storage to be 30% or less, and controls the particle size parameter of citric acid to be within 100-450 μm. These parameter changes prevent moisture absorption and chemical degradation, enabling the powder to maintain both low pH (hygiene benefits) and storage stability.
3Manufacturing precision
If citric acid particle size is reduced to improve mixing uniformity, then formulation precision is improved, but powder flowability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent optimizes the citric acid particle size parameter to a specific range of 100-450 μm. This parameter change achieves a balance where particles are small enough for uniform mixing (improving formulation precision) but large enough to maintain good powder flowability and prevent clumping.
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 process produces a packaged laundry detergent powder with high citric acid content, achieving the desired low pH for hygiene and freshness while maintaining good flowability and storage stability.
Implementation Method 1
The process of the present invention provides a packaged laundry detergent powder, and controls the process conditions, especially the relative humidity, of a number of key process steps during the production of the packaged laundry detergent powder
Implementation Method 2
contacting citric acid particles to a detergent base powder in a mixer to form a laundry detergent powder
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention relates to a process for making a packaged laundry detergent powder, wherein the process comprises the steps of: (a) obtaining a laundry detergent base powder comprising detersive surfactant; (b) contacting citric acid particles to a detergent base powder in a mixer to form a laundry detergent powder, wherein the citric acid particles have a weight average particle size of from 100µm to less than 450µm, and wherein at least 99wt% of the citric acid particles have a particle size of from 100µm to less than 650µm, wherein the laundry detergent powder, upon dilution in deionized water at 20°C to a concentration of 1g/l has a pH in the range of from 2.0 to 4.0, and wherein the laundry detergent powder comprises: (i) from 1wt% to 60wt% detersive surfactant; and (ii) from 40wt% to 80wt% citric acid; (c) transferring the laundry detergent powder from the mixer to a storage vessel; and (d) transferring the laundry detergent powder from the storage vessel to a package to form a packaged laundry detergent powder, wherein steps (b), (c) and (d) are carried out at an equilibrium relative humidity (eRH) of 45% or less.