Zwitterionic polyamines and process for their production

Abstract

A zwitterionic polyamine comprising a linear or branched hydrophobic polyamine backbone having 2 to 10 tertiary amino nitrogen atoms and a spacer between two tertiary nitrogen atoms wherein the spacer is, for example selected from C -C -alkylene, C -C -cyloalkylene, wherein in formula (IV) R═C - to C -alkyl or C -C -aralkyl and n=3 to 6, at least one tertiary amine end group of the polyamine backbone contains two groups having formula (V) or (VI), wherein A means an ethylene oxide unit, a propylene oxide unit, a unit of butylene oxides and a tetrahydrofuran unit, n is a number of from 1 to 50, X is an anionic group such as —SO M, with the proviso that in formula (VI) one X may also be hydrogen and M is hydrogen, alkai metal or ammonium, or contains one group of formula (V) or (VI) and one group selected from radicals consisting of formula (VII), C - to C -alkyl and C -C -aralkyl the meaning of A and n is the same as in formula (V) or (VI), said zwitterionic polyetherpolyamine having a molecular weight up to 9000 and optionally containing up to 100% of the nitrogen atoms quaternize, and a process for the production of zwitterionic polyamines by alkoxylating said polyamines, introducing anionic groups into the alkoxylated polyamines and optionally quaternizing them before or after the introduction of anionic groups. The zwitterionic polyamines are used in detergents.