HK40012501A - Ambient moisture-activated surface treatment powder - Google Patents

Description

Ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powders

Priority

The present application claims priority from U.S. provisional patent application serial No. 62/409,497 entitled composition for Ambient Moisture activated Percarbonate Based Powder disinfectant filed on 18/10/2016, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein.

Technical Field

Disclosed herein are ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powders and methods of using the same to treat surfaces. The ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder may comprise a persalt (persalt), a positively charged phase transfer agent, and an alkaline buffer salt.

Background

Surface treatment compositions for use on non-food contacting and food contacting surfaces are known. Effective surface treatment compositions having bactericidal (disinfecting) and/or disinfectant (sanitise) surface capabilities in addition to or instead of for cleaning surfaces are particularly suitable for use in food and dairy processing, which are susceptible to microbial contamination problems due to the ubiquitous presence of microbial food sources. Most surface treatment compositions are in the form of concentrated liquids that need to be diluted prior to use, or in the form of ready-to-use liquids.

Surface treatment compositions in powder form are also known in the industry, but are less common than liquid surface treatment compositions that can be more easily diluted and/or applied. Some known surface treatment powders require dilution in water before application to the surface to be treated. Other known surface treatment powders are applied dry and allowed to remain on the surface to be treated for a period of time. In order to effectively treat the surface to which such surface treatment powders have been applied, the active ingredient in the powder must be in contact with a liquid, which happens accidentally (e.g. by spillage), and/or which occurs purposefully by adding a liquid to the surface treatment powder and/or to the surface on which it is placed. Indeed, to the best of the inventors' knowledge, all surface treatment powders currently registered as "disinfectants" at the united states environmental protection agency ("u.s.epa") require manual addition of liquid to activate the product and provide efficacy at disinfectant levels.

A common use of surface treatment powders is to clean, disinfect and/or disinfect floors in facilities associated with the food industry (including bakeries), animal health, human health, farms and dairy. In these installations, the surface treatment powder may be laid on the floor and the active ingredients in the powder are eventually activated by liquid spilled on the floor and/or by liquid intentionally delivered to the powder and/or the floor during operation. In these environments, the surface treatment powder may impart additional benefits by providing improved traction, as the presence of the granular material may increase friction on a damp floor or a floor on which organic matter has leaked. The presence of the surface treatment powder on the floor may give the further benefit of visually indicating that treatment is occurring in a particular area. However, most, if not all, commercially available surface treatment powders are white or off-white in color due to the lack of stability of the colorant added thereto, and thus they may be easily confused with other substances used in facilities, such as facilities in which powder processing components and/or food ingredients (e.g., flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, etc.) are present.

While various surface treatment powders have been made and used, it is believed that no one prior to the inventors has made or used the invention described in the appended claims which eliminates the need to accidentally or purposefully add liquids to the surface treatment powder and/or the surface to be treated to activate the powder.

Disclosure of Invention

The ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder according to the present disclosure shows many improvements over prior art powder compositions, including but not limited to the following.

Known surface treatment powders require the addition of a liquid to activate the product. The ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powders of the present disclosure do not require the addition of a liquid to be activated. Instead, the ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder is activated by ambient moisture. In some exemplary embodiments, the ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder can reduce microbial growth on a surface to which the ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder has been applied without the need for purposeful or incidental: adding a liquid (including water) to the powder, adding the powder to a liquid (including water), adding a liquid (including water) to the surface to which the powder is then applied, and/or adding the powder to a wet surface. Thus, ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powders have particular utility when compared to powder compositions known in industrial environments where drying conditions are preferred or required and the presence of liquids (e.g., water) can have adverse effects (e.g., on machinery and/or on manufactured goods).

As with known surface treatment powders, the presence of the ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder of the present invention on a surface can serve as a visual signal that the surface is being treated. However, unlike known surface treatment powders, such as the white or off-white surface treatment powders described in U.S. patent publication No. 2016/0066580(Stevenson et al), the ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powders of the present invention may contain colorants that retain sufficient stability to impart color to them during use. Thus, the presence of the ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder of the present invention on a surface can be readily distinguished from other powder materials, a property which may be particularly advantageous in certain environments. For example, in food and dairy environments, ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powders comprising colorants can be readily distinguished from powder processing components, food ingredients, and/or food products (e.g., salt, flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, etc.) that are otherwise present therein.

Some known surface treatment powders comprise beads. These surface treatments can cause slip and fall hazards when applied to the surface on which the foot rests (e.g., in a foot plate) or on which foot movement occurs (e.g., on a floor). The ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder of the present invention may comprise non-spherical particles. Thus, when applied to surfaces where foot movement occurs, the ambient moisture-activated surface treatment powder may advantageously eliminate the slip risk of competitive bead-like products and, in some cases, increase traction.

Known surface treatment powders contain irritants which may become airborne when removed from their container. It has been found that a binder such as polyethylene glycol can be used to bind solid particles of an ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder without causing tackiness while providing a free flowing product. Unlike some powder surface treatment compositions that do not contain a binder, particularly polyethylene glycol, ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powders are less prone to air transmission when the powder is removed from its container, as are any irritants contained therein.

Known surface treatment powders may contain high levels of flammable and/or irritating components. For example, the antimicrobial surface treatment described in U.S. patent publication No. 2016/0066580(Stevenson et al) contains dichloroisocyanurate and/or 50 wt.% or more of a per-acid salt, such as percarbonate, perphosphate, persulfate, peroxide, or perborate. These components are known to be corrosive oxidizers and their use, particularly at high concentrations, can increase the risk of fire. Further, the higher the level of persalt in the surface treatment powder, the greater the likelihood of persalt becoming an air irritant when the surface treatment powder is removed from the container. The ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powders of the present invention advantageously comprise less than 50 weight percent of one or a combination of persalts (based on the weight of the surface treatment powder), thereby reducing the hazards associated with their use. Further, in some exemplary embodiments, the ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder may be substantially free of chlorine-containing compounds. In any event, unlike known antimicrobial surface treatment agents (e.g., those described in U.S. patent publication No. 2016/0066580(Stevenson et al)), ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powders do not require the addition of a liquid to be activated.

Known surface treatment powders may require bleach activators to be effective. For example, the antimicrobial surface treatment described in U.S. patent publication No. 2016/0066580(Stevenson et al) discloses bleach activators as the desired components. Advantageously, the ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powders of the present invention may be substantially free of bleach activators while still being capable of effectively treating surfaces. Moreover, unlike the antimicrobial surface treatment described in U.S. patent publication No. 2016/0066580(Stevenson et al), ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powders do not require the addition of a liquid to be activated.

An exemplary ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder may comprise less than 50% by weight of the surface treatment powder of a persalt, a positively charged phase transfer agent, and a basic pH buffering salt. Additional exemplary ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powders are substantially free of bleach activators and/or chlorine.

Some exemplary ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powders may consist essentially of, in weight percent of the surface treatment powder: less than 50% percarbonate, from about 0.5% to about 30% quaternary ammonium salt, from about 15% to about 90% monocationic carbonate, from about 0.5% to about 15% chelating agent, from about 0.1% to about 10% glycol and colorant.

An exemplary method of treating a surface can include applying to the surface an ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder comprising, in weight percent of the surface treatment powder, less than 50% of a persalt (based on the weight of the surface treatment powder), a positively charged phase transfer agent, and a basic pH buffering salt. Some exemplary methods further comprise a step selected from: cleaning a surface, disinfecting a surface, sterilizing a surface (sterize), disrupting a biofilm on a surface, removing a biofilm from a surface, and combinations thereof. These and other exemplary methods may exclude steps selected from: the method may include the steps of adding a liquid to the ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder, adding a liquid to the surface prior to applying the ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder to the surface, adding a liquid to the surface after applying the ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder to the surface, and combinations thereof.

Drawings

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of the specification, illustrate various aspects of the invention and together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention.

The FIGURE is a size distribution plot in an exemplary ambient moisture-activated surface treatment powder.

Detailed Description

The following description of certain embodiments of the present invention should not be used to limit the scope of the present invention. Other examples, features, aspects, embodiments, and advantages of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following description, which is one of the best modes contemplated for carrying out the invention. As will be realized, the invention is capable of other different and obvious aspects, all without departing from the invention. Accordingly, the drawings and description are to be regarded as illustrative in nature, and not as restrictive.

All percentages, parts and ratios used herein are by weight of the total composition of the ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder, unless otherwise specified. All such weights as they pertain to listed ingredients are based on the active level and, therefore, do not include solvents or by-products that may be included in commercially available materials, unless otherwise specified.

As used herein, a numerical range is intended to include each and every number and subset of numbers within the range, whether or not specifically disclosed. Furthermore, these numerical ranges should be construed to provide support for claims directed to any number or subset of numbers within the range. For example, a disclosure of 1 to 10 should be interpreted to support a range of 2 to 8, 3 to 7, 5 to 6, 1 to 9, 3.6 to 4.6, 3.5 to 9.9, and so forth.

All references to a single feature or limitation of the disclosure are intended to include the corresponding plural feature or limitation, and vice versa, unless the context of the reference otherwise dictates or expressly implies otherwise.

All combinations of method or process steps as used herein can be performed in any order, unless the context in which the combination is recited otherwise indicates or clearly implies otherwise.

As used herein, "ambient moisture" refers to liquid vapor, such as water vapor, that is present in the environment. Ambient moisture may be described in terms of the relative humidity in the environment.

As used herein, "ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder" refers to a powder that "effectively treats" a surface without the purposeful or incidental need for: adding a liquid (including water) to the powder, adding the powder to a liquid (including water), adding a liquid (including water) to the surface where the powder is then applied, and/or adding the powder to a wet surface. As used herein, "effective treatment" refers to a reduction in microbial growth on a surface to which an ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder is applied as compared to microbial growth on a comparable control surface to which no ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder is applied. Surface treatment may include cleaning, disinfecting and/or sanitizing the surface. The "ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder" is activated by ambient moisture in the environment.

As used herein, "biofilm" refers to a complex microbial community characterized by cells attached to a surface, interface, or each other and embedded in a matrix of Extracellular Polymeric Substances (EPS) of microbial origin.

"bleach activator" as used herein has the meaning described in U.S. patent publication No. 20160066580(Stevenson et al), which is incorporated herein by reference. Bleach activators include any compound that reacts with hydrogen peroxide to form a peracid. Thus, bleach activators are sometimes referred to as peracid precursors. Various bleach activators are known in the art. Examples of bleach activators include Tetraacetylethylenediamine (TAED), Ethylenediamine (EDA), sodium Nonanoyloxybenzenesulfonate (NOBS), decanoic acid, sodium 2- [ [ (4-sulfophenoxy ] carbonyl ] oxy ] ethyl ester sodium salt (DECOBS), and mixtures thereof in one embodiment, the bleach activator comprises, consists essentially of, or consists of Tetraacetylethylenediamine (TAED).

As used herein, "disinfectant" refers to a substance or mixture of substances (including a solution) that destroys or irreversibly inactivates bacteria, fungi, and viruses, but not necessarily bacterial spores, in an inanimate environment or on a surface (e.g., in or on a substrate).

As used herein, "foot plate" refers to a container for handling footwear. Foot plates include plates, pads, floors, and any other receptacle for containing a surface treatment powder (e.g., a cleaning, sanitizing, and/or disinfecting agent).

As used herein, "disinfectant" refers to a substance or mixture of substances (including a solution) that reduces a population of bacteria in an inanimate environment (e.g., a substrate) by a significant amount (e.g., 3log10 reduction) or more, but does not destroy or eliminate all of the bacteria.

It should be noted that the ambient moisture activatable powder as described herein may act as a bactericide and disinfectant to destroy or irreversibly inactivate, respectively, certain bacteria, fungi and/or viruses present on a surface and to reduce the population of certain other bacteria present on the same surface.

It should also be noted that the ambient moisture activatable powder as described herein may, in addition to or in lieu of acting as a bactericide and/or disinfectant, also remove and/or disrupt biofilm from various surfaces.

As used herein, "substantially free" means no effective amount, or about 1 wt% or less, about 0.1 wt% or less, or even about 0.01 wt% or less or 0% (i.e., completely free).

The ambient moisture activatable compositions and methods of use described herein may be characterized as having a wide range of utility, including but not limited to utility in the food industry (e.g., bakeries), farms, dairy, and animal and human healthcare environments. In these and other environments, the ambient moisture activatable composition may be used on a floor, dispensed into a foot pan, used for access to a building, and/or used as an intervention between rooms or between a warehouse space and a treatment space.

Exemplary ambient moisture activatable powders may be activated at any relative humidity sufficient to chemically interact (e.g., dissolve) at least a portion of the powder. Exemplary ambient moisture activatable powders may be activated at a relative humidity of at least about 5%. Some exemplary ambient moisture activatable powders may be activated at a relative humidity of from about 5% to about 100%.

An exemplary ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder comprises a persalt, a positively charged phase transfer agent, and an alkaline pH buffering salt. Additional exemplary ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powders comprise a component selected from the group consisting of: chelating agents, dedusting additives, colorants, and combinations thereof. The foregoing constituents are discussed in further detail below.

One or more persalts may be present in the ambient moisture activated surface treatment powder. Persalts used in ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powders include, but are not limited to, those described in U.S. patent nos. 4,941,989 and 5,320,805, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference. Persalts are basic water-soluble salts that have crystalline hydrogen peroxide or form peroxide upon dissociation (e.g., crystalline sodium carbonate-hydrogen peroxide). Peroxide ions are released when the peracid salt dissolves in water. Useful persalts may be selected from the following: percarbonate, perborate, perphosphate, persulfate, persilicate, peroxide salt, peracetate, and combinations thereof. The persalt may be associated with a cation which will produce a basic water soluble peroxygen salt. Exemplary cations may include alkali metals. In some exemplary compositions, the persalt is "sodium percarbonate" having empirical formula 2 (Na)₂CO₃)--nH₂O₂Where n ═ 1, 2 or 3, "sodium percarbonate" has crystalline hydrogen peroxide.

The persalt may be present in the ambient moisture-activated surface treatment powder in any useful amount according to one skilled in the art. Some exemplary ambient moisture-activated surface treatment powders include less than 50% by weight of persalt. Some exemplary ambient moisture-activated surface treatment powders comprise from about 5% to about 49%, from about 10% to about 40%, or from about 15% to about 35% by weight of one or more persalts.

One or more positively charged phase transfer agents may be present in the ambient moisture activated surface treatment powder. Positively charged phase transfer agents for use in ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powders include, but are not limited to, those positively charged phase transfer agents described in U.S. patent nos. 4,941,999 and 5,320,805, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference. The positively charged phase transfer agent comprises a positively charged ion and a counter anion. Exemplary positively charged phase transfer agents may be selected from: quaternary ammonium salts, such as didecyldimethylammonium chloride (DDDM), and/or tetradecyldimethylbenzylammonium chloride, phosphonium salts, such as tert-butylphosphonium iodide, sulfonium salts, such as tributylsulfonium chloride, and combinations thereof. The hydrocarbyl group attached to the nitrogen phosphorus or sulfur in the positively charged phase transfer agent may contain a total number of carbons that render the compound water soluble, but sufficiently lipophilic to allow it to pass through the aqueous phase into the non-polar oil (or organic) phase. Also, the ion pair formed between the positively and negatively charged ions may be a compact ion pair that does not dissociate in solution. Phase transfer agents can become disinfectant and biocidal in that they become lipophilic and can therefore be used to clean, permeate and/or destroy biofilms and microbial cells.

In some exemplary ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powders, the positively charged phase transfer agent may be selected from quaternary ammonium salts having a carbon atom length of the carbon atom chain on the quaternary nitrogen of from 4 to 30, from 6 to 30, or from 8 to 25. It may be desirable for the quaternary ammonium salt not only to be water soluble, but also to have sufficient lipophilic character to pass through the aqueous phase into the oil (or organic) phase when forming an ionic pair with the peroxide ion. As described above, when an alkaline salt containing crystalline hydrogen peroxide is dissolved in an aqueous solution of positively charged ions, such as a quaternary ammonium salt, the alkaline salt can extract protons from the hydrogen peroxide, leaving negatively charged hydroperoxide ions. The hydroperoxide ion can then be tightly associated with the quaternary ammonium ion such that its negative charge is effectively neutralized as follows:

wherein R is alkyl or aryl.

The resulting lipophilic quaternary ammonium hydroperoxide ion pair can then pass from the aqueous phase into the oil or organic phase, where the hydroperoxide ion can exert its detersive disinfecting and bactericidal effects. Without wishing to be bound by theory, it is believed that when a quaternary ammonium salt is combined with one or more peracid salts, the detersive and disinfecting properties of the quaternary ammonium salt synergistically enhance to form a disinfectant.

Another aspect of the present disclosure is that the phase transfer ion pair may be soluble in water and lipids, imparting ion pair characteristics that are not present in the individual components.

The quaternary ammonium salts useful in the present disclosure may be in liquid or solid (e.g., powder) form. If the quaternary ammonium salts are in liquid form, they may be converted to solid form prior to combining with the other components of the ambient moisture-activated powder, or applied to the other components of the ambient moisture-activated powder in liquid form and dried (e.g., spray dried).

Exemplary quaternary ammonium salts generally have the formula R₁R₂R₃R₄N⁺X^-Wherein: r₁R₂R₃R₄R is selected from: alkyl groups, aryl groups, and combinations thereof, and X is an anion present in the salt. Antimicrobial QACs are generally classified as monoalkyltrimethylammonium compounds, monoalkyldimethylbenzylammonium salts, dialkyldimethylammonium salts, heteroaromatic ammonium salts, polysubstituted quaternary ammonium salts, diquaternary ammonium salts, or polymeric ammonium salts depending on the nature of the R group, the anion, and the number of quaternary nitrogen atoms present. Examples of monoalkyl trimethyl ammonium salts include Cetyl Trimethyl Ammonium Bromide (CTAB); alkyl trimethyl ammonium chloride; alkyl aryl trimethyl ammonium chloride; cetyl dimethylethyl ammonium bromide. Examples of monoalkyldimethylbenzylammonium salts include alkyldimethylbenzylammonium chloride; dodecyl dimethyl 3,4 dichlorobenzyl ammonium chloride; and a mixture of alkyldimethylbenzyl and alkyldimethyl-substituted benzyl (ethylbenzyl) ammonium chloride. Examples of dialkyl dimethyl ammonium salts include didecyl dimethyl ammonium halide and octyl dodecyl dimethyl ammonium chloride. Examples of heteroaromatic ammonium salts include cetylpyridinium halide (CPC); 1- [ 3-Chloroallyl group]-3,5, 7-triaza-1-azoniaadamantane; alkylisoquinolinium bromide and alkyldimethylnaphthylmethylammonium chloride. Examples of polysubstituted quaternary ammonium compounds include alkyldimethylbenzylsaccharinate and alkyldimethylethylbenzylcyclohexylsulfamate. Examples of the bis-quaternary ammonium salts include 1, 10-bis (2-methyl-4-aminoquinolinium chloride) -decane;b1, 6-bis [ 1-methyl-3- (2,2, 6-trimethylcyclohexyl) -propyldimethylammonium chloride]Hexane.

The dialkyl dimethyl ammonium chloride used may include didecyl dimethyl ammonium chloride; dioctyl dimethyl ammonium chloride; didecyl dimethyl ammonium chloride and octyl dodecyl dimethyl ammonium chloride.

The positively charged phase transfer agent can be present in the ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder in any useful amount according to one skilled in the art. Some exemplary ambient moisture-activated surface treatment powders comprise from about 0.5% to about 30%, from about 0.75% to about 20%, or from about 1% to about 10%, by weight, of one or more positively charged phase transfer agents.

One or more alkaline pH buffering salts may be present in the ambient moisture activated surface treatment powder. When a surface treatment powder is used, the alkaline pH buffering salt used in the ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder can maintain the alkaline pH of the powder. Any alkaline pH buffering salt suitable for use in ambient moisture activated powder compositions may be used. Some pH buffering salts may also be used as stability enhancers, solid diluents, and/or flow enhancers.

Suitable basic pH buffering salts may be selected from the group consisting of monocationic carbonates, bicarbonates, and combinations thereof. Exemplary monocationic carbonates may be selected from: sodium carbonate, potassium carbonate, lithium carbonate, ammonium carbonate, and combinations thereof. Exemplary bicarbonate salts may be selected from: sodium bicarbonate, potassium bicarbonate, lithium bicarbonate, ammonium bicarbonate, and combinations thereof. The alkaline pH buffering salt may be used in an amount sufficient to establish a pH of about 8 or greater, about 9 or greater, about 9.5 or greater, about 10 or greater, about 10.5 or greater, or about 10.75 or greater when the powder composition is exposed to ambient moisture. Exemplary ambient moisture-activated surface treatment powders comprise from about 15% to about 90%, from about 25% to about 85%, or from about 50% to about 80%, by weight, of one or more alkaline pH buffering salts. Some exemplary ambient moisture-activated surface treatment powders comprise from about 1% to about 50%, from about 2% to about 25%, or from about 5% to about 10% by weight sodium carbonate.

One or more chelating agents may be present in the ambient moisture activated surface treatment powder. The chelating agent may be used as a chelating agent for metal ions in the ambient moisture activated surface treatment powder and may be used as a stability enhancer. Useful chelating agents will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Exemplary ambient moisture-activated surface treatment powders may comprise a chelating agent selected from the group consisting of: ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid ("EDTA"), EDTA derivatives, 8-hydroxyquinoline, 1 hydroxyethylidene-1, 1-diphosphonic acid ("HEDP"), HEDP derivatives, glutamic diacetic acid ("GLDA"), GLDA derivatives, diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid ("DTPA"), DPTA derivatives, N- (2-hydroxyethyl) ethylenediaminetriacetic acid ("HEDTA"), ethanoldiglycine ("EDG"), glucoheptonate, sodium pyrophosphate, potassium hypophosphite, sodium tripolyphosphate, citric acid, and combinations thereof.

Exemplary ambient moisture-activated surface treatment powders comprise any suitable amount of a chelating agent. For example, the one or more chelating agents may be present at about 0.5 wt.% to about 15 wt.%, about 1 wt.% to about 10 wt.%, or about 2 wt.% to about 5 wt.% of the ambient moisture-activated surface treatment powder.

Known surface treatment powders contain irritants which may become airborne when removed from their container. It has been found that the presence of one or more dust-reducing additives can be used to bind the solid particles of the ambient moisture-activated surface treatment powder without dissolving the powder or causing tackiness and while providing a free-flowing product. Binders, such as polyethylene glycol, are used as dust-reducing additives without adversely affecting the efficacy of the disinfectant level. Thus, unlike known powder surface treatment compositions that do not contain a binder, particularly polyethylene glycol, ambient moisture-activated surface treatment powders are less prone to become airborne when removed from their containers.

One or more binders may be present in the ambient moisture-activated surface treatment powder. Exemplary binders for use may be selected from the group consisting of polyols, glycols, ethoxylated alcohols, block copolymers of Ethylene Oxide (EO) and Propylene Oxide (PO), ethoxyenes (ethoxyylenes), and combinations thereof. Some exemplary ambient moisture-activated surface treatment powders may comprise polyethylene glycol. In some exemplary ambient moisture-activated surface treatment powders, the polyethylene glycol may be present in the ambient moisture-activated surface treatment powder from about 0.1% to about 10%, from about 0.5% to about 5%, or from about 1% to about 4% by weight.

To the best of the inventors' knowledge, all commercial surface treatment powders are white or off-white. When used, known surface treatment powders may be easily confused with other powders present. For example, in food (e.g., bakeries) and dairy processing environments, known surface treatment powders may be easily confused with other substances used and/or manufactured in facilities, such as facilities in which powdered food ingredients (e.g., flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, etc.) are present. For this reason, it is desirable to add a colorant to the known surface-treated powders, however, the colorant tends to be unstable in the known surface-treated powders. Without wishing to be bound by theory, it is believed that relatively high levels of corrosive oxidants, such as persalts present in known surface treatment powders at 50% or more by weight of the powder, and/or other corrosive substances may destabilize the colorant.

Exemplary ambient moisture-activated surface treatment powders according to the present disclosure may include colorants that retain their color during the service life of the ambient moisture-activated surface treatment powder. The one or more colorants can be present in any amount suitable to impart a color other than white or off-white to the ambient moisture-activated surface treatment powder. Without wishing to be bound by theory, it is believed that the colorant is more stable in the ambient moisture activated surface treatment powder of the present invention than in the known surface treatment powders for the following reasons. First, the ambient moisture-activated surface treatment powders of the present invention contain relatively low levels of corrosive oxidizing agents that destabilize the colorant, such as less than 50% per-acid salts. Second, it is believed that the presence of the chelating agent can stabilize the colorant present in the ambient moisture activated surface treatment powder.

Surface treatment that can be present in ambient moisture activationThe type and amount of colorant in the powder can be selected by one skilled in the art. Exemplary ambient moisture-activated surface treatment powders having a blue hue or a red hue may comprise a colorant selected from the group consisting of: from Milliken Chemical (Spartanburg, SC)Blue HP, D from Dewolf (Warwick, RI)&C Red #28 from Pylam Dyes^TMPylaklor DarkBlue LX-9442 of (Tempe, AZ) and combinations thereof. These exemplary ambient moisture-activated surface treatment powders may comprise from about 0.0005% to about 1%, from about 0.01% to about 0.1%, or from about 0.005% to about 0.1% by weight of a colorant.

Ambient moisture activated surface treatment powders may be prepared using conventional techniques. An exemplary method of making an ambient moisture activated surface treatment powder is set forth in the examples section below. The resulting powder may be characterized as having a relatively larger average particle size than known surface treated powders. For example, will come fromUltraStep of (Hunt Valley, Md.)^TM(which is an exemplary ambient moisture activated powder according to the present disclosure) and also fromUltra Powder of^TMThe average particle size of the liquid activated powder surface treatment of (a) was compared. The two powder products were subjected to a sieve analysis to determine the particle size distribution of the particles contained in each powder. The results of the sieving analysis are presented in the figure, which shows UltraStep^TMContaining particles ranging in size from about 50 microns to about 1,000 microns, more than about 65% of the particles having a size from about 125 microns to about 250 microns (Ultra Step)^TMHas a bulk density of about 1.16cm³And about 1.20g/cm³In between). Although Ultra Powder^TMAlso contained are particles ranging in size from about 50 microns to about 1,000 microns, but with a much higher percentageLess than about 125 microns; it is believed that this is due to the distribution of sodium carbonate and quaternary ammonium salt, both of which are in Ultra Powder^TMAre present in much higher concentrations. Ultra Powder was observed when each Powder was removed from its respective container^TMRatio of Ultra Step^TMIs more dusty. Thus, among other reasons, UltraStep is believed to be^TMThe particle size distribution in (1) is more desirable. As noted above, the ambient moisture activatable compositions and methods of use described herein may be characterized as having broad utility and may be used in any environment for treating surfaces (e.g., hard surfaces). An exemplary method of treating a surface includes applying an ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder to the surface. The treatment of the hard surface may include one or more of the following steps: cleaning a surface, disinfecting a surface, sterilizing a surface, disrupting a biofilm on a surface, removing a biofilm from a surface, and combinations thereof. Since the ambient moisture activatable powder does not require the addition of a liquid to be activated, an exemplary method may include applying the ambient moisture activatable powder to a dry surface. Some exemplary methods exclude a step selected from: the method may include the steps of adding a liquid to the ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder, adding a liquid to the surface prior to applying the ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder to the surface, adding a liquid to the surface after applying the ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder to the surface, and combinations thereof. Some exemplary methods may further include increasing foot traction on the surface.

Some exemplary methods include applying an ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder comprising a colorant to a surface. These methods are particularly useful in environments where white powders may already be present, for example, in food processing facilities and/or dairy plants where powdered food ingredients or products (e.g., flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, etc.) may be present.

Known surface treatment powders may be used to treat footwear by dispensing the footwear into a foot plate. Tragenic c.o.p. footlet powder from paragon specialty Products (Rainsville, AL) is an example of a commercially available surface treatment powder containing chlorine as an active ingredient. Traffic c.o.p. can be dispensed into the foot plate at a powder level of 1/2 inches or more (if needed) according to its instructions and must be replaced completely every two weeks to maintain the desired cleaning and odor control benefits.

As with known surface treatment powders, the ambient moisture activatable powders of the present invention may be used to treat footwear. These methods can be used in particular in dairy, poultry or pig farms. An exemplary method includes dispensing the ambient moisture activatable powder of the present invention into the foot dish at any desired level (e.g., a level of about 1/2 inches or more). Exemplary methods include changing the foot powder from about every 4 weeks to about every 12 weeks, or from about every 6 weeks to about every 10 weeks, to maintain a benefit selected from: cleaning, odor control, sterilization, disinfection, and combinations thereof. The ambient moisture activatable powder of the present invention does not need to be replaced as frequently (e.g., every two weeks) as known chlorine-containing surface treatment powders. This is believed to be due to the relatively greater instability (i.e., volatility) of chlorine when compared to the active ingredients in the ambient moisture-activated surface treatment powders of the present invention.

Examples and data

An exemplary ambient moisture-activated powder comprising the components set forth in table 1 in total weight percent of the powder:

TABLE 1

Exemplary ambient moisture activatable powders were prepared as follows. A premix of the colorant and the liquid binder is prepared. The dry ingredients of the formulation, the persalt, the alkaline pH buffering salt, the quaternary ammonium compound and the chelating agent are mixed in a suitable blending tank (which may be a paddle blender, a ribbon blender or similar unit). The premix is applied to the mixture while mixing the dry ingredients. The resulting blend was further mixed until a homogeneous powder was obtained.

Recommended disinfectant work for inanimate non-food contact surfaces Using a modified version of the ASTM E1153 protocolEffective Test Method (Test Method for effectiveness of the preparation of Test organisms by growth in liquid medium containing 5% fetal bovine serum as artificial soil load.) sterilized slide carriers were inoculated with the Test cultures in an area of 1 inch × 1 inches and in an amount sufficient to provide at least 7.5 × 10 per carrier⁵Individual colony forming units. The support was completely dried in an incubator at 36 ℃ +/-2 ℃ for 1 hour. The test carrier was treated with two different dose rates: an equivalent weight of 78 ounces per 100 square feet for approximately a single ply and 780 ounces per 100 square feet for multiple plies. Test carriers were incubated for 8, 12 and 24 hours of contact time and at 35%, 50% and 70% relative humidity. Control vectors treated with buffered saline solution were incubated with test vectors in parallel. After treatment contact time, the test and control vehicles were chemically neutralized with 20mL of Dey Engley neutralization medium supplemented with 0.1% catalase. Growth of the neutralized test substance was evaluated to determine the microorganisms that survived at the respective dose rates, contact times and relative humidity. The counting plates were incubated aerobically at 36 ℃ +/-1 ℃ for 24-48 hours. Counts on the test substance treated carriers were subtracted from counts on control carriers incubated at the same relative humidity and contact time to determine the log reduction of microorganisms. The treatment effect of the surface treatment powder activated with exemplary ambient moisture was tested in triplicate (n-3) and the log reduction results are listed in table 2 below:

TABLE 2

Limit of detection of the study was 10 CFU/vector.

Values observed below the detection limit were expressed as <1.00E + 01.

CFU is a colony forming unit. "ND" means not performed.

Based on this data, the following can be presumed. The ambient moisture activated surface treatment powder can be activated by ambient moisture from various relative humidities and can effectively reduce staphylococcus aureus without the need for purposeful or incidental liquid addition. In addition, as the relative humidity increases, effective treatment may be achieved by shorter exposure times of the surface treatment powder with the surface activated to ambient moisture.

In addition to the first embodiment described above, other embodiments are as follows:

example 2

An ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder comprising:

(a) less than 50% by weight of the surface treatment powder of a persalt;

(b) a positively charged phase transfer agent; and

(c) alkaline pH buffer salts.

Example 3

The ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder according to any of embodiments 2 or 4-14 wherein the persalt is selected from the group consisting of: percarbonate, perborate, perphosphate, persulfate, persilicate, peroxide salt, peracetate, and combinations thereof.

Example 4

The ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder according to any of embodiments 2, 3 or 5-14 wherein the positively charged phase transfer agent is selected from the group consisting of: quaternary ammonium salts, phosphonium salts, sulfonium salts, and combinations thereof.

Example 5

The ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder according to any of embodiments 2 to 4 or 6 to 14 wherein the alkaline pH buffering salt comprises one or more mono-cationic salts.

Example 6

The ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder according to any of embodiments 2 to 5 or 7 to 14 wherein the monocationic carbonate salt is selected from the group consisting of: sodium carbonate, potassium carbonate, lithium carbonate, ammonium carbonate, and combinations thereof.

Example 7

The ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder according to any of embodiments 2 to 6 or 8 to 14 comprising from about 5% to about 49% by weight of the surface treatment powder of a persalt.

Example 8

The ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder according to any of embodiments 2 to 7 or 9 to 14 comprising from about 0.5% to about 30% by weight of the positively charged phase transfer agent, wherein the positively charged phase transfer agent comprises a quaternary ammonium compound.

Example 9

The ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder according to any of embodiments 2 to 8 or 10 to 14 further comprising a chelating agent selected from the group consisting of: ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid ("EDTA"), EDTA derivatives, 8-hydroxyquinoline, 1 hydroxyethylidene-1, 1-diphosphonic acid ("HEDP"), HEDP derivatives, glutamic diacetic acid ("GLDA"), GLDA derivatives, diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid ("DTPA"), DPTA derivatives, N- (2-hydroxyethyl) ethylenediaminetriacetic acid ("HEDTA"), ethanoldiglycine ("EDG"), glucoheptonate, sodium pyrophosphate, potassium hypophosphite, sodium tripolyphosphate, citric acid, and combinations thereof.

Example 10

The ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder according to any of embodiments 2 through 9 or 11 through 14 wherein the chelating agent is EDTA present at about 0.5% to about 15% by weight of the surface treatment powder.

Example 11

The ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder according to any of embodiments 2 to 9 or 12 to 14 wherein the powder is substantially free of bleach activator.

Example 12

The ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder according to any of embodiments 2-11, 13 or 14 further comprising a binder selected from the group consisting of: polyols, glycols, ethoxylated alcohols, block copolymers of Ethylene Oxide (EO) and Propylene Oxide (PO), ethoxyenes, and combinations thereof.

Example 13

The ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder according to any of embodiments 2 to 11, 14 or 15 further comprising from about 0.1% to about 10% by weight of the surface treatment powder of polyethylene glycol.

Example 14

The ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder according to any of embodiments 2 to 13 or 15 further comprising a colorant.

Example 15

The ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder according to any of embodiments 2-14, wherein the ambient moisture is at least about 5% relative humidity.

Example 16

An ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder consisting essentially of, in weight percent of the surface treatment powder:

(a) less than 50% percarbonate;

(b) from about 0.5% to about 30% of a quaternary ammonium salt;

(c) about 15% to less than about 90% monocationic carbonate;

(d) from about 0.5% to about 15% of a chelating agent;

(e) from about 0.1% to about 10% of a glycol; and

(f) a colorant.

Example 17

A method of treating a surface, the method comprising applying to the surface an ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder comprising:

(a) less than about 50 wt% per acid salt, based on the weight of the surface treatment powder;

(b) a positively charged phase transfer agent; and

(c) a monocationic carbonate.

Example 18

The method of treating a surface according to any one of embodiments 17, 19-24, 26 or 27, further comprising a step selected from the group consisting of: cleaning the surface, disinfecting the surface, sterilizing the surface, disrupting a biofilm on the surface, removing a biofilm from the surface, and combinations thereof.

Example 19

The method of treating a surface according to any one of embodiments 17, 18, 20-24, 26 or 27, wherein the persalt is selected from the group consisting of: percarbonate, perborate, perphosphate, persulfate, persilicate, peroxide salt, peracetate, and combinations thereof.

Example 20

The method of treating a surface according to any one of embodiments 16-19, 21-24, 26, or 27, wherein the positively charged phase transfer agent is selected from the group consisting of: quaternary ammonium salts, phosphonium salts, sulfonium salts, and combinations thereof.

Example 21

The method of treating a surface according to any one of embodiments 16 to 20, 22, 23, 24, 26 or 27, wherein the ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder is substantially free of bleach activator.

Example 22

The method of treating a surface according to any one of embodiments 16 to 21, 23, 24, 26 or 27, which does not include a step selected from the group consisting of: adding a liquid to the ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder, adding a liquid to the surface prior to applying the ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder to the surface, adding a liquid to the surface after applying the ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder to the surface, and combinations thereof.

Example 23

The method of treating a surface according to any one of embodiments 16 to 22, 24, 26 or 27, wherein the surface is located in a food processing facility, an animal or human health care facility, a dairy, a poultry facility or a pig farm.

Example 24

The method of treating a surface of any one of embodiments 16 to 23, 26 or 27, wherein the ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder further comprises a colorant.

Example 25

A method of treating a surface wherein an ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder consists essentially of, in weight percent of said surface treatment powder:

(a) less than about 50% percarbonate;

(b) from about 0.5% to about 30% of a quaternary ammonium salt;

(c) about 15% to less than about 90% monocationic carbonate;

(d) from about 0.5% to about 15% of a chelating agent;

(e) from about 0.1% to about 10% of a glycol; and

(f) a colorant.

Example 26

The method of treating a surface according to any one of embodiments 16 to 24 or 27, wherein the surface to be treated is footwear, the method further comprising placing the ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder in a foot disc.

Example 27

The method of treating a surface of any one of embodiments 16 to 24 or 26, wherein the ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder is substantially chlorine free, the method comprising replacing the powder in the pan about every 4 weeks to about every 12 weeks.

It should be understood that any one or more of the teachings, expressions, embodiments, examples, etc. described herein may be combined with any one or more of the other teachings, expressions, embodiments, examples, etc. described herein. Accordingly, the above teachings, expressions, embodiments, examples, etc. should not be viewed in isolation with respect to each other. Various suitable ways in which the teachings herein may be combined will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art in view of the teachings herein. Such modifications and variations are intended to be included within the scope of the claims.

It should be understood that any patent, publication, or other disclosure material, in whole or in part, that is said to be incorporated by reference herein is incorporated herein only to the extent that the incorporated material does not conflict with existing definitions, statements, or other disclosure material set forth in this disclosure. Thus, where necessary, the disclosure as explicitly set forth herein supersedes any conflicting material incorporated herein by reference. Any material, or portion thereof, that is said to be incorporated by reference herein, but which conflicts with existing definitions, statements, or other disclosure material set forth herein is only incorporated to the extent that no conflict arises between that incorporated material and the existing disclosure material.

While various embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, further modifications of the methods and systems described herein can be accomplished by appropriate modifications by one of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the scope of the invention. Several such potential modifications have been mentioned, and others will be apparent to those skilled in the art. For example, the examples, embodiments, geometries, materials, dimensions, ratios, steps, etc., discussed above are illustrative and not required. The scope of the invention should, therefore, be considered in terms of the following claims and is understood not to be limited to the details of structure and operation shown and described in the specification and drawings.

Claims (20)

1. An ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder consisting essentially of, in weight percent of the surface treatment powder:

(a) 5% to 10% sodium carbonate;

(b) sodium bicarbonate such that the total amount of sodium carbonate and sodium bicarbonate is 15% to 90%;

(c) 10% to 40% sodium percarbonate;

(b) 1% to 10% of a quaternary ammonium salt;

(c) 2% to 5% EDTA; and

(e) 0.1% to 4% polyethylene glycol.

2. The ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder of claim 1, wherein said powder comprises 1% by weight or less of a bleach activator.

3. The ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder of claim 1 further comprising a colorant.

4. The ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder of claim 1, wherein said ambient moisture is at least 5% relative humidity.

5. A method of treating a hard surface, said method comprising applying an ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder to said hard surface, said ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder consisting essentially of, in weight percent of said surface treatment powder:

(a) 5% to 49% percarbonate;

(b) 0.5% to 30% of a quaternary ammonium salt;

(c) 15% to less than 90% monocationic carbonate;

(d) 0.5% to 15% of a chelating agent;

(e) 0.1% to 10% of a glycol; and

(f) a colorant.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising the step of cleaning the surface.

7. The method of claim 5, further comprising a step selected from the group consisting of: disinfecting the surface, sterilizing the surface, disrupting biofilm on the surface, removing biofilm from the surface, and combinations thereof.

8. The method of claim 5, which does not include the step of adding a liquid to the ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder.

9. The method of claim 5, which does not include a step selected from the group consisting of: adding a liquid to the surface prior to applying the ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder to the surface, adding a liquid to the surface after applying the ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder to the surface, and combinations thereof.

10. The method of claim 5, wherein the surface is located in a food processing facility, an animal or human health care facility, a dairy, a poultry facility, or a pig farm.

11. The method of claim 5, wherein the surface to be treated is footwear, the method further comprising placing the ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder in a foot plate, wherein the foot plate is a container for treating footwear.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising replacing powder in the foot plate every 4 weeks to every 12 weeks.

13. A method of treating a hard surface, the method comprising applying an ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder to the hard surface, the ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder comprising, in weight percent of the surface treatment powder:

(a) 5% to 10% sodium carbonate;

(b) sodium bicarbonate such that the total amount of sodium carbonate and sodium bicarbonate is 15% to 90%;

(c) 10% to 40% sodium percarbonate;

(b) 1% to 10% of a quaternary ammonium salt;

(c) 2% to 5% EDTA; and

(e) 0.1% to 4% polyethylene glycol.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising the step of cleaning the surface.

15. The method of claim 13, further comprising a step selected from the group consisting of: disinfecting the surface, sterilizing the surface, disrupting biofilm on the surface, removing biofilm from the surface, and combinations thereof.

16. The method of claim 13, which does not include the step of adding a liquid to the ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder.

17. The method of claim 13, which does not include a step selected from the group consisting of: adding a liquid to the surface prior to applying the ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder to the surface, adding a liquid to the surface after applying the ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder to the surface, and combinations thereof.

18. The method of claim 13, wherein the surface is located in a food processing facility, an animal or human health care facility, a dairy, a poultry facility, or a pig farm.

19. The method of claim 13, wherein the surface to be treated is footwear, the method further comprising placing the ambient moisture activatable surface treatment powder in a foot plate, wherein the foot plate is a container for treating footwear.

20. The method of claim 19, further comprising replacing powder in the foot plate every 4 weeks to every 12 weeks.