Protease Cleaning Agent for Automatic Dosing on Dried-On Residues
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Solution Overview
Problem
Consumers face challenges with temperature-sensitive cleaning agents in automatic dishwashers, particularly when dealing with stubborn food residues like dried-on minced meat and egg yolk, and frequent rinsing is required due to prolonged loading times between wash cycles, leading to inefficiency and increased water usage.
Innovation Solution
A liquid cleaning agent preparation comprising proteases, such as subtilisins, with specific amino acid substitutions, is developed to maintain cleaning effectiveness under varying dishwasher temperatures, allowing for automatic dosing and reducing the need for frequent rinsing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Duration of action of stationary object
If conventional cleaning agents are used in automatic dishwashers, then the cleaning agents can be stored for multiple dosing cycles, but the cleaning performance deteriorates on stubborn dried-on food residues when there are several days between wash cycles
Solution Approach 1:
The patent modifies the molecular structure of the protease enzyme through specific amino acid substitutions (e.g., positions 212, 12, 43, 122, 127, 154, 156, 160, 211, or 222) to enhance its thermal stability and activity. This parameter change at the molecular level allows the enzyme to maintain effective cleaning performance on dried-on residues even after prolonged storage in the dishwasher over multiple days between wash cycles.
2Reliability
If cleaning agents are formulated for high cleaning performance on tough residues, then the cleaning effectiveness improves, but the agents become more sensitive to temperature variations in the dishwasher
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces specific amino acid substitutions at defined positions in the protease sequence to fundamentally alter the enzyme's thermal stability parameters. These molecular modifications enable the cleaning agent to maintain high effectiveness on tough residues like dried-on minced meat and egg yolk while simultaneously resisting deactivation from temperature fluctuations during dishwasher cycles, including prolonged loading times.
3Reliability
If frequent rinsing is performed to remove stubborn residues, then the cleaning completeness improves, but the water consumption and time required increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a pre-modified protease enzyme with enhanced stability and activity that works effectively during the initial wash cycle even when dishes have been standing for several days. This preliminary action by the optimized enzyme breaks down stubborn dried-on residues during the first wash, eliminating the need for frequent additional rinsing cycles and thereby reducing water consumption and time requirements.
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 protease-enhanced cleaning agent maintains high cleaning performance on tough residues, reducing the frequency of wash cycles and conserving water, while being phosphate-free for environmental friendliness.
Implementation Method 1
comprises at least one protease, preferably a protease derived from subtilisin
Implementation Method 2
protease-enhanced cleaning agent maintains high cleaning performance on tough residues
Data Source
AI summary
A liquid cleaning agent composition may include at least one suitable protease and water in an amount of at least 30 wt. % and less, preferably 25 wt. % and less, in particular 15 wt. % or less based on the total composition.