Coated Lenticular Detergent Particles for Staining Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Colored solid detergent products often result in unacceptable staining, and existing methods for manufacturing detergent particles do not effectively address the issue of photostability and brightness of dyes during storage.
Innovation Solution
The development of large coated detergent particles with a core comprising 40-90% surfactant and 0.0001-0.1% dye, where the surfactant and dye are present in the core and the inorganic salts are in the coating, reducing staining and enhancing photostability, and allowing for a concentrated formulation that balances between liquid and granular formats.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Illumination intensity
If colored solid detergent products are used to provide bright color, then the dye appears brighter, but unacceptable colored staining occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The detergent product is divided into two distinct segments: a core containing the dye and surfactant, and a coating layer containing inorganic salts. This segmentation isolates the dye within the core, preventing direct contact with fabrics and reducing staining while maintaining brightness.
Solution Approach 2:
The coating layer acts as an intermediary barrier between the colored core and the fabric. The inorganic salts in the coating prevent the dye from directly staining fabrics while allowing the color to remain visible, thus mediating between brightness and staining prevention.
2Stability of the object's composition
If conventional granular powder formulation is used to maintain stability, then photostability is improved, but surfactant concentration is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
Different regions of the detergent particle have different compositions optimized for their specific functions: the core contains high surfactant concentration and dye for cleaning power and color, while the coating contains inorganic salts for stability and anti-caking properties. This local quality differentiation allows both high surfactant concentration and photostability.
3Quantity of substance
If liquid formulation is used to increase surfactant concentration, then cleaning power is improved, but anti-caking properties are lost
Solution Approach 1:
The detergent product is a composite material combining organic surfactant and dye in the core with inorganic salt coating. This composite structure allows the inner core to maintain high surfactant concentration for cleaning power while the outer inorganic coating provides anti-caking properties, achieving both high concentration and stability.
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention provides a coated lenticular or disc detergent particle having maximum perpendicular dimensions x, y and z, wherein x is from 1 to 2 mm, y is from 2 to 8 mm, and z is from 2 to 8 mm, wherein the particle comprises: (i) from 40 to 90 wt % surfactant selected from: anionic surfactant; and, non-ionic surfactant; (ii) from 1 to 40 wt % water soluble inorganic salts; and, (iii) from 0. 0001 to 0.1 wt % dye, wherein the dye is selected from: anionic dyes; and non-ionic dyes, wherein the inorganic salts are present on the detergent particle as a coating and the surfactant and the dye are present as a core.