Lever Brothers Company, Division of Conopco, Inc.

Lever Brothers Company

Unilever Home and Personal Care Usa, Division of Conopco, Inc.

Unilever Patent Holdings B.v.

Thomas J. Lipton, Inc.

Unilever Home & Personal Care USA

Jelles Vincent Boskamp

Edwin Leo Lempers

Christophe Michel Joyeux

Marcel Van Der Kraan

Henning Wagner

Peter Willem Appel

Mark P Houghton

Peter William Appel

Paulus Jacobus Loomans

Andrew P Chapple

Peter C Knight

James William Gordon

Marten R Van Vliet

Theo J Osinga

Cornelis B Donker

Gilbert Martin Verschelling

Anshu Mali Gupta

Willem M Mohlmann

Ronaldus Wilhelmus Westerhout

Cornelis E Van Lare

Carolyn Angela Lanceley

Pauline Farnworth

Antonius Johannes Segeren

Christophe Michel Joueux

Paul A Chapple

Petra Zuidgeest

Carolyn A Rowe

Fredericus Cornelis Dobbe

Theodorus Johannes Arts

Atze Jan Van Der Goot

Timothy Richard Bundy

Marilena Coruzzi

Leandre Naddeo

Alistair Richard Sanderson

Detergent tablets for use in fabric washing are made by mixing: (i) particles which contain non-soap organic surfactant and other materials, especially detergency builder, with (ii) material which is other than soap or organic surfactant and which has a solubility in water of at least 10 gm/liter at 20&deg; C., followed by compacting the mixture into a tablet or a region of a tablet using an applied pressure in a range from 3.0 to 35 MPa. Such a pressure, used with the specified mixture, leads to tablets with good strength which also disintegrates with satisfactory speed.

Process for the manufacture of tablet detergent compositions

Detergent compositions

Cleaning compositions

A tablet of compacted particulate detergent composition including surfactant and detergency builder, suitable for fabric washing, is sub-divided into a plurality of discrete regions with differing compositions. At least one region of the tablet contains a water-swellable polymer serving to promote disintegration of this region. The polymer is present in this region in a concentration greater than in at least one other region of the tablet so as to cause disintegration of the region at a greater speed than disintegration of another region of the tablet.

A detergent tablet having at least two discrete regions each compacted from particulate composition, wherein a first said region consists of a compacted particulate composition containing swelling disintegrant such that the region increases in volume on contact with water, and in at least one direction through said region is flanked on both sides by one or more other regions which swell to a lesser extent on contact with water than said first region.

A detergent tablet for fabric washing is compacted from particulate detergent composition(s) with a fabric conditioning agent present in one zone (,) of the tablet at a greater concentration than in another zone (,). The conditioning agent may be a softening agent in a zone or region which disintegrates later than another zone or region of the tablet.

A detergent tablet of compacted particulate composition which has a pair of opposite faces spaced apart from each other and joined by a peripheral surface of the tablet, wherein the tablet has a first region which provides a first part of a said face and a second region which provides an adjoining part of the face with a discontinuity at the junction of the said parts of the face; and apparatus adapted to make such a tablet.

A tablet of compacted particulate cleaning composition containing at least one cleaning ingredient which is an organic surfactant, a water softening agent or a bleach, wherein the tablet or a discrete region of the tablet contains water-insoluble, water-swellable disintegration-promoting particles which are cellulosic material from a plant source other than timber. The invention also provides a tablet of compacted particulate cleaning composition containing at least one cleaning ingredient which is an organic surfactant, a water softening agent or a bleach, wherein the tablet or a discrete region of the tablet contains disintegration-promoting particles of coconut husk material. A process to produce the tablets is also provide which comprises mixing the water-insoluble, water-swellable disintegration-promoting materials with other particulate ingredients so as to form a particulate cleaning composition and compacting a quantity of the particulate composition in a mould so that it forms a tablet or a region of a tablet. The tablets provide disintegration characteristics combined with satisfactory strength.

Cleaning compositions in the form of tablets containing surfactant and detergency builder, especially for use in fabric washing, also contain a water-insoluble, water-swellable polymeric material which has an average particle dimension of at least 400 micrometers. Such material may be cellulosic in nature and promotes disintegration of the tablets in water at the time of use.

In order to enhance the stability of sodium percarbonate bleach in particulate detergent compositions, crystalline aluminosilicate and a water-soluble alkali metal silicate in an amount of from 1-20% by weight based on the aluminosilicate are included in the non-spray dried base powder. In order to obtain the stabilizing effect, the crystalline aluminosilicate comprises zeolite MAP or the alkali metal silicate is homogeneously dispersed with respect to the aluminosilicate.

Particulate aluminosilicate-built detergent compositions comprising

In order to provide a particulate zero-phosphate laundry detergent composition with reduced tendency to agglomeration, the composition comprises:

Particulate zero-phosphate aluminosilicate-built detergent compositions

Particulate high bulk density non-spray-dried detergent compositions containing organic non-soap surfactant, zeolite builder and fatty acid soap as powder structurant, prepared by non-tower mixing and granulation processes involving in-situ neutralization of fatty acid to soap with aqueous sodium hydroxide, can suffer from localized particle yellowing on storage when perfume and/or fluorescer are present, due to the presence of areas of high alkalinity. Yellowing is reduced without loss of powder structuring if a defined, less than stoichiometric amount of sodium hydroxide is used for the fatty acid neutralization. Surprisingly, in bleaching powders improved bleach stability is also observed. The resulting powder can be defined in terms of a low 'basic sodium' content.

Detergent compositions and process for preparing them

A particulate detergent composition having a bulk density of at least 650 g/l which is not the product of a spray-drying process consists of a substantially homogeneous granular base and optional postdosed ingredients. The composition comprises a surfactant system, alkali metal aluminosilicate builder, and a water-soluble salt of citric acid, preferably sodium citrate, and optionally other ingredients. The delivery and dissolution characteristics of the composition in the wash are improved if citrate of Rosin Rammler particle size less than 800 .mu.m is incorporated within the granular base. The composition may also contain postdosed citrate of unrestricted particle size.

A particulate bleaching detergent composition, preferably having a bulk density of at least 700 g/l, comprises an organic surfactant system, a zeolite builder and a bleach system. The bleach system includes a peroxy bleach compound, and a transitional metal catalyst which comprises a source of Mn and/or Fe ions and a defined macrocyclic organic ligand. The zeolite is zeolite P having a silicon to aluminum ratio not exceeding 1.33 (zeolite MAP). The compositions show improved stability of the bleach catalyst against discoloration on storage, as compared with similar compositions containing conventional zeolite A.

Particulate bleaching detergent compositions containing zeolite map and

The invention pertains to a process for preparing a neutral or low alkaline silica containing aqueous liquid detergent composition comprising the step of introducing particulate alkalimetal silicate into the aqueous base at a temperature of below 50.degree. C. Compositions accordingly prepared show excellent anti-corrosive behavior towards metal and enamel surfaces.

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Vlaardingen, Netherlands

Jelles Vincent Boskamp