Surface Treatment Composition for Stable Coacervate Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional surface treatment compositions with cationic polymers and anionic surfactants often experience phase separation and product thickening due to coacervate formation, limiting the use of higher polymer levels and resulting in variable benefit profiles, especially when cationic polymers without hydrophilic co-monomers are difficult to formulate effectively.
Innovation Solution
Incorporating shielding salts and Hydrophobic Association Disruptors into the composition, along with cationic polymers that do not contain hydrophilic co-monomers, to prevent coacervate formation during storage while allowing coacervate formation upon dilution, thereby maintaining higher levels of cationic polymer and anionic surfactant for enhanced surface treatment benefits.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If higher levels of cationic polymer are included in the composition, then surface treatment benefits are improved, but phase separation and product thickening occur due to coacervate formation
Solution Approach 1:
A nonionic surfactant is introduced as an intermediary component between the cationic polymer and anionic surfactant. This nonionic surfactant acts as a mediator that prevents direct coacervate formation between the charged components while still allowing beneficial interactions to occur, thereby enabling higher polymer levels without phase separation
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the chemical parameters of the composition by incorporating a nonionic surfactant with specific HLB values (8-18) and molecular weights (200-5000). This parameter change modifies the interaction dynamics between components, preventing coacervate formation while maintaining surface treatment efficacy
2Stability of the object's composition
If the amount of cationic polymer is reduced to minimize coacervate formation, then composition stability is improved, but surface treatment benefits are reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The nonionic surfactant serves as a protective intermediary that allows higher concentrations of cationic polymer to be incorporated without direct coacervate formation. This mediator enables the system to maintain both stability and high polymer content for enhanced surface treatment
3Reliability
If coacervate forms during storage, then the product becomes thick and difficult to dispense, but coacervate formation is needed for surface treatment benefits
Solution Approach 1:
The nonionic surfactant is incorporated preliminarily into the composition to prevent coacervate formation during storage and handling. This preliminary protective action ensures the product remains pumpable and dispensable, while still enabling coacervate formation to occur at the point of use for surface treatment benefits
Solution Approach 2:
The invention creates a dynamic system where the nonionic surfactant suppresses coacervate formation under storage conditions (concentrated state) but allows it to occur under use conditions (diluted state). This dynamic behavior enables the product to maintain both dispensability and surface treatment efficacy
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
This approach stabilizes the composition by preventing coacervate formation in storage, allowing for effective coacervate formation at use, thus maintaining the benefits of higher polymer levels without product thickening, ensuring consistent and improved surface treatment efficacy.
Implementation Method 1
shielding salts as a method of electrostatically screening surfactant and polymer from each other
Implementation Method 2
complexing certain cationic polymers with anionic surfactant to form a precipitate complex, which is known as a coacervate
Data Source
AI summary
Surface treatment compositions comprising certain cationic polymer(s), anionic surfactant, one or more shielding salts and hydrophobic association disruptor. The surface treatment compositions comprise at least about 6% by weight of cationic polymer, at least about 6% by weight anionic surfactant, and at least about 4% by weight of the shielding salt. The weight ratio of anionic surfactant to cationic polymer is between about 0.5:1 and about 4:1. The composition may also have a weight ratio of shielding salt to cationic polymer of between about 0.3:1 and about 3:1.