CA1086906A - Fabric treating product - Google Patents

Abstract

ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE

A product for the treatment, eg softening, of fabric in a tumble drier is formed of at least one piece of resiliently flexible substrate impregnated with a conditioning agent, wherein the piece or pieces of substrate are secured in multiple layers.
Preferably from about 2 to 12 pieces of substrate such as plastic foam sheet: are secured together to have an overall ball-like shape.

Description

~8~0~ cc . 770 This invention relates to a product for the treatrnen-t of fab~ics with conditioning agen-ts. The products are particularly adap-ted for use in tumble drying machines, tha-t is to say machines in which damp fabrics are tumbled whilst warm air i9 - 5 passed around them so as to remove the moisture.
~ he practice of washing clothes and fabrics has been found to have a harshening effect on the feel of the fabrics during subsequent wear or usage, especially in the case of cotton fabrics such as -towelling. It has therefore been proposed -to soften the fabrics by treating them with fabric sof-tening agents in tumble driers. For example, it has been proposed to spray a fabric softening agent on the inside of the drum of a tumble drier before putting the fabrics into the tumble drier, so that the fabric softening agent is rubbed off the drum onto the fabrics during the tumble drying; but this can lead to the build-up of a sticky residue on the drum. It has also been proposed to impregnate a piece of fabric with a softening agent and then to add it to the tumble drier with the clothes to be softened, so that the softening agent is -transferred from the fabric to the clothes during tumble drying; but this is inconvenient as a new impregnated fabric piece usually needs to be used each time and it is relatively expensive.
According to the present invention, we have devised an improved product for the treatment of fabric in tumble driers.
In its broadest aspect, the present inven-tion provides a product adapted for treating fabric in a tumble drier, which product is - formed of at least one piece of resilien-tly flexible substrate .

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~, '`' . . ' ' , . .~ ,. , : , ', ~ 869~ cC.770 impregnated with a fabric conditionirlg agen-t, wherein the piece or pieces are secured in multiple laycrs. Construction of the ,products in this manner facilitates the progressive application of the conditioning agents to the fabric during use of the products. It is also possib]e to use in this way rela-tively cheap substrate materials, whils-t avoiding the problem oi the substrate s-ticking to the sides of the tumble drier or blocking the tumble drier outlet as can readily happen with single impregnated sheets.
By using a product of the inven-tion it is possible to ob-tain substantially uniform distribution of the fabric conditioning agent over the fabrics to be treated, and by adjustment of the amount of the fabric conditioning agent in the products it is possible to use them for more than one tu~lble drying operation.
Products according to the present invention may take a variety of physical forms, though eaoh still embodies the essential feature of being formed of at least one piece of resiliently flexible substrate. The preferred substrate is foamed plastic or rubber sheet or strips, which are preferably highly porous and very flexible. Suitable foam is of the open-cell type, as closed-cell foams are not sufficiently porous, preferably with a density of about 20-30 kg/m3 and a pore count (cells per inch) of about 30-70 (ie 10-30 cells per cm).
Such foam sheet or strips preferably have a thickness of not greater than about 1 inch (about 2.5 cm), for e~ample from about inch to about ~ inch (about 0.25 cm to about 2 cms).

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Alternatively3 the substrate may be a fabric, of either woven or non-woven cons"ruction, but such fabric should be treated in order to make it resiliently flexible, for example by coating or laminating with a rubber or like material. If nor~al fabric, ie with no tendency to retain i-ts shape, is employed the products tend to "ball-up" in the tumble drying process and be relatively ineffective. Also, if only single open sheets of such substrates are used for fabric treatment, they can more easily get caught between the rotating drum and the body of the tumble drier or block the hot-air outlet from the tumble drier in use.

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~ 69~6 cC.770 The product as a whole should have some three dimensional shape so as to facili-tate contact oE its outer surfaces with the fabrics during the -tumble drying process, and hence to improve the uniform applica-tion of the fabric conditioning agent -to the fabrics. Specific forms of the product which may be mentioned by way of example, include thos.e formed from single sheets oE
substrate which are folded or wrapped and then tied in a particular multiple layered form, especially in the region of the tying. If desired the sheets may be cut before or after they are tied. Specific product forms from single sheets are folded fan shapes and rolled cylindrical shapes. Instead of being tied, the sheets may be otherwise secured, for example by adhesive or thermal treatment, but in this case this is better done before impregnating the substrate wi-th conditioning agent.
Alternatively, the product may be made of more than one sheet or strip of substrate which may again be folded or wrapped together and then tied or otherwise secured into a bundle or bunch, the overall shape of which depends on the shape of each piece and how they are tied together. For example strips of flexible substrate may be tied at their ends to form an octopus-like shape-with from two to about twelve or even more "arms".
Alternatively, bundles of the s-trips may be tied in the middle to give a two-ended mop-head type construction. Instead of strips which may be o:E rectangular, round or other cross-section, the sheets of flexible substrate may be tied together in a variety of ways, a particularly preferred form being to tie a number of for example about two -to twelve pieces of foam sbeet - 5 ~
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~ ~8~9~i together in such a way as to presen-t an overall ball-like appearance. For exan1ple oval-shaped pieces of foam shee-t can be used to form "leaves" or "petals" of the substrate projectin~
from a coll~mon centre, if desired with the appearance of a flower, such as a rose.
Various forms of the product of the invention are described in more detail below with refe:rence to the accompanying drawings.
The preferred forms are those which are suitable for lree-tumbling with fabrics in -twllble driers, but it is also possible to a-ttach products to the interior surfaces of the tumble driers, either by pressure sensitive adhesives or by other means, for example mateable woven hook and loop fastenings, eg of the "Velcro"
(trademark) type or by tapes or hooks. The products may also carry loops or tapes for convenien-tly carrying the products or for hanging them between their use.
. It will be appreciated that -the products of the invention may be coloured or they may carry patterns or writing~ for example instructions on how to use the product. Furthermore, the products lend themselves to attractive packaging, for example i 20 in transparent boxes, or by shrinkwrapping so that the bulky .~i .
nature of the products is conveniently controlled for transport and storage. The products may also be designed for alternative use after they have been used for fabric trea-tment, for example as a bath sponge, upholstery-cleaning or car-washing sponge.
As described above, the product contains a fabric conditioning agent which is impregnated into the flexible substrate, either before or after the sheets or strips of : , .
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~ 8~9~ cC.770 substrate are formed in-to the final product. Preferably the conditioning agent is solid a-t room temperature but melts or softens at a temperature reached during the treatment of the fabric, usually in the region of abou-t 3~C -to about 80C in normal tumble drying operations. The conditioning agent can then be more readily transferred to the fabric during use, and progressive migration of the conditioning agent from the inner parts of the product to its outer surface is facilitated.
Alternatively, the conditioning agent may be a viscous liquid or pasty material, but this is not desirable due to the sticlsy nature of the product and the relatively low levels of the conditioning agent which can consequently be used.
:- As described above, $he product of the invention is employed ; to treat fabric with conditioning agents during tumble drying.
The preferred conditioning agents are so-called softening agents ~hich make the treated fabrics feel softer to the touch. Many fabric softening agents are quaternary ammonium compounds, having the general formula:
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lN(R1R2R3R~ ) n~ X- (I) wherein N1 is a C16 to C22 alkyl group, R2 is a C1 to C~ alkyl group and R3 and R4 are the same as R1 or R2, and any of R1, R2, R3 and R~ may be saturated or unsaturated, linear or brancbed chain alkyl groups, or they may con-tain substituent groups, eg hydroxy groups or R1, R2, R3 and R~ may be connected to the nitrogen atom wi-th linking groups, eg amide, ester or ether linkages, or 2 or 3 of ~ 3 and R4 may be conjoined with the N
atom to form a heterocyclic ring such as a morpholinyl ring, X

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8~ 6 cc 770 is an anion and n is the valency of X. Suitable anions (X ) are Cl , HSO~ , SO~ , C2EI5S04 , CX3SO~ , HCOO , CH3COO , Br , I and H2PO~ , of which the chloride, sulphate, bromide and acetate ions are preferred. Typical con~ercial produc-ts of this type are di-tallow-dime-thyl ammonium chloride, dicoco-dimethyl ammonium chloride, di-(s-tearoyloxyethyl)dime-thyl ammonium chloride and 3-behenoyloxy-2-hydroxypropyl trime-thyl ammonium chloride.
Other preferred softening agents are the reac-tion products of about 2 moles of a fatty acid of the formula ~COOII and a hydroxyalkyldiamine of the formula:

N~2 5 6 (II) wherein R~ is a C15 to C1g alkyl group, R5 is a C1 to C3 divalent hydrocarbon group and R6 is a hydroxyalkyl group containing 1 to i5 3 carbon atoms. ~ typical commercial product of this type is , the reaction product of 2 moles of stearic acid with 1 mole of ¦ hydroxyethyl ethylene diamine, which has a mixed chemical ¦ structure because of the mul-tifunctional nature of the diamine.
Similar products include the quaternised products of about 2 moles ¦ 20 of oleic acid reacted with 1 mole of hydroxyethyl e-thylene '~
7 . diamine and the product of about 2 moles of a mixture of oleic and stearic acids reacted with 1 mole of hydro~yethyl ethylene -- diamine. The softening agents are preferably used in admixture with a nonionic surfactant.
Other types of fabric softening agents which may be used ; in the present in~ention are known in the art and described in the literature, for example in ~Proceedings of the American j - - 8 ,, ,: . . . .. . . . .
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' cC,770 Association o~ 're~tile Chemists an~ Coloris-ts~, AIDerican Dyes-t ~-- Repor-ter, pages P~2 and P~3, January 28, 1957.
Other Iabric condi-tioning agents which can be employed in the products of the invention, either alone or in admixture, ~ 5 especially in admixture wi-th fabric softening agents as i described above include:
(1) Optical brighteners, ie fluorescent brightening agents such as substituted disulphonated diaminos-tilbene compounds for example as disclosed in United States Patent iO No.2,612,501, and triazole compounds of -the -type disclosed in ' United Sta-tes Paten-t No.2,78~ 3.
I (2) Essential oils and fragrances.
¦ (3) Antistatic agents, which in many cases are compounds of the same general structures discussed above ~ith respec-t to fabric softening compounds. Specific antistatic agents which may be mentioned by way of example are ethoxylated compounds such as ethoxylated amines, ethoxylated quaternary amulonium compounds, ethoxyla-ted aliphatic alcohols and alkyl phenols, ethoxylated carbohydrates such as sorbitol ethoxylates, ethoxylated aliphatic mono- and di-carboxylic acids, and amides or esters thereof, and polye-thylene glycols. The antistatic properties of the preferred quaternary ammonium compounds as , well as other fabric softening agents may be enhanced in ! particular by combining -these materials wi-th ethoxyla-ted amides such as tallow ethanolamides or ethoxylated aliphatic alcohols.
, (~) Germicides, such as the halogenated salicylanilides~
eg tribromosalicylanilide, hexachlorophene, neomycin sulpha~e, benzalkonium quaternary compounds, and the lil~e.

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cC.770 (5) Bodying agents, such as carboxymethylcellulose, hydroxye-thylcellulose, starch, polyvinyl acetate and the like.
Polyvinyl acetate is also effective to improve ease of ironing and may be employed for that purpose.
(6) Soil release agents, such as the polyacrylic polyvinyl alcohol compositions described, for example, in United States Patent No.3,377,2~9, and fluorocarbons, or copolymers of ethylene glycol with -terephthalic acid which are useful for treating polyester fabrics for this purpose.
(7) Ironing aids, for example silicones such as dime-thyl silicone.
~8) Surface active agents, used in admixture with o-ther conditioning agents, for example nonionic surfactan-ts used wi-th quaternary ammonium fabric softening agents. In this case it i5 is preferred to have a ratio of the cationic quaternary ammonium compound to the nonionic compound of about 2:1 to about 20:1, especially about 3:1 -to about 10:1, parts by weight.
It will be appreciated that several of the conditioning agents described above are normally solid non-meltable ma-terials, ie at elevated as well as at room temperatures, in which case they should be employed either in aqueous solution or dispersion, or with other conditioning agents which are liquid or meltable - solids. When the condi-tioning agen-ts are impregna-ted into the substrate they should be in liquid form, either due to melting or due to the presence of a solvent which can subsequently be evapora-ted.

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The amoull-t of the fabric conditioning agent used in a product of the invention depends of course on the type of -the agent and the type of produc-t, esp0cially if multiple use of -the product is intended, and the optimum levels can readily be determined. For example, in the case of a fabric soitening agent, i-t is normally preferrecl to have about 1 gram to about 5 grams, preferably about 2 to ~ grams, of softening agent available for application to a typical domes-tic fabric load in a tumble drier. Products intended for mul-tiple use should contain proportionately more fabric condi-tioning agen-t. As al]
of the fabric conditioning agent is not discharged from the product, it is generally preferred to have a to-tal amount of abou-t 25 grams to about ~0 grams of fabric conditioner in the product intended for multiple use, usually over about 5 to 10 dryer cycles. In general an amount of about 0.1 gram of fabric conditioner per cm3 of plastic foam is found to be suitable for optimum discharge from the product.
It is possible to use more than one product at a time in a tumble drying machine so as to secure sequential release of fabric conditioning agents during the drying cycle, for example by using softening agents which melt at different temperatures, or for the simultaneous treatment of different types of fabrics.
It may for example be particularly advantageous to secure the release towards the end of the fabric treatment of cer-tain conditioning agents such as germicides or perfumes, especially if they interfere with or are inhibited by other fabric conditioning agen-ts.

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Figure 1 is a perspective view of a generally ball-shaped product;
~igure 2 is a perspective view of a produc-t in flower for~
Figure 3 is a perspective ~iew of a further produc-t taking the form of a tied bundle of subs-trate strips;
Figure ~ is a plan vicw of a further generally ball-shapecl product;
Figure S is an elevation of the produc-t of Figure ~; and Figure 6 is a perspective view of an alternative ball-shaped product.
3 Referring to Figure 1, twelve pieces of soft open-cell polyurethane foam, each having a thicl~ness of about 3/16 inch ~ i5 (about 0.5 cm), and each being of generally oval shape with a ; maximum length of about S inches ~12.5 cm) and a minimum wid-th ¦ of about 4 inches (10 cms), were impregnated with an alcoholic solution of a mixture of a quaternary ammonium fabric softening agent, namely di-hardened tallow-alkyl dimethyl ammonium chloride 3 20 recrystallised from acetone, and a nonionic e-thylene oxide-propylene oxide condensate ob~ained as Ethylan PB (trademark), in the ratio o~ gO:10, and a perfume. 'rhe mixed conditioning ~ agents became fluid at about ~3C and the total amount deposited 33 on the sheets made into each product was about 20 grams. 'rhe 25 impregnated pieces 1 ~ere dried and then tied together by nylon ¦ cord passed around the middles of the pieces, ie perpendicular to and about mid-way along the maximum dimensions, in such a manner that the whole product 2 takes a ball-like appearance I
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~ g ~ cC.770 with the edges O:e the pieces 1 protrwding from a more clensely packed closely folded centre 3. It should be appreciated tha-t the pieces of foa~n can be impregnated with -the fabric softening agent in sheet form before being cut into shape if desired, or after being tied in fin~l product form. All -the pieces 1 may be tied in-to a single bundle if desired, bu-t it is preferred to tie them into two bundles of six each, with a generally hemi~
spherical shape, which bunc~les themselves are then tied together bacl~ to back to give a better final product shape.
In a practical test, -the product shown in Figure 1 was compared for its fabric sof-tening and antistatic proper-ties with a conventional commercially available liquid fabric softening product of the type which is added manually to the final rinse water in a spin dryer after washing the fabric normally, and 1~ with a commercially available fabric softening product of the impregnated non-woven fabric type for tumble drier use. In the test the conventional rinse cycle product and the other commercially available fabric softening product were used under the recommended conditions in a domesti.c washillg machine with a

2~ spin dryer, and in a domestic tumble drier, respectively. ~he product of the invention was used in the same domestic -tumble drier for ~5 minutes, with the outlet temperature being fron1 2~C to 78C at the end of the drying cycle, for trea-ting both cotton towelling and.nylon garments. It was found that the 2~ product of the invention discharged 2.7 grams of -the fabric softening agent in the first tumble drying operation and progressively smaller amounts of the softening agent in subsequent tests until the product was no longer sufficien-tly .
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cC 770 1~18~9~

- effective after about 5 cycles of use. The other -two products had to ~e changed each time ot` use.
~ he fabric softening properties were evaluated by a panel of experienced fabric feel assessors, and the antista-tic properties by a standard antistatic cling test, in which a 6 KV
static electricity charge was applied to treated fabric and the time in which it then takes to fall away from an earthed metal place is measured.
In these tes-ts, the softening and an-tistatic proper-ties of iO the product according to -the invention were Iound to be about equal to those of -the conventional rinse cycle product, wi-th marked benefits over untreated fabric. The product according to -the invention achieved this without the inconvenience of the special rinsing prior to spin drying when using -the conve~tional produc-t. Both -the product according to ~he in~ention and the compara-tive liquid product were far superior for fabric softening to the known impregnated non-woven fabric product.
The antistatic properties were particularly good, with the time for "de-clinging" being decreased from about 50 seconds to only

3 seconds on the initial application of the 6 K~ charge, by the treatment with the product according to the invention.
i Further successful results were achieved when the product of Figure 1 was impregnated with an ~0:20 mixture of the same sof-tening agen-t, di-hardened-taliow-dimethyl amllloniulll chloride with a differen-t nonionic surface active agent, namely Tergitol . . .
lS-S-12 (trademark), which is a condensate product of a secondary-linear (C11-C15) alcohol with 12 moles of ethylene oxide. Good results were also achieved when 1% of perfume was added -to this ;, ... .

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~~ cC.770 :~8~ill6 fabric softening composition, with an at-tractive lasting :fresh smell bein~, impar-ted to treated fabric in mul-tiple dryer cycles.
Fur-ther -tests l~ere also conducted with alternative iabric softeners, namely 80 parts by welght of 3-all~yloxy-2-hydroxy-propyl -trime-thyl ammonium chlo:ride (the alkyl group was derived from rape seed oil and con-tained about 6~% C22, about 22% C18 and about 12% C20 alkyl groups) or a condensation produc-t of 2 moles of stearic acid with 1 mole of N-hydroxyethylenediamine and 20 parts by weigh~ of secondary-linear C11-C15 alcohol - 12 E0 condensate. 35 grams of these mixtures were employed in the product cons-tructed as in Figure 1 made of sheets of a laminated foam having an inner layer (6 mm) of large pore size and tl~o outer layers (1 mm) of foam of small pore size. These products were used to treat fabric in five successive tumble drier cycles, and in each case the softening effect was readily noticeable compared with untreated fabrics.
The product of Figure 2 takes the form of a flo~er, perhaps rose-like in appearance, formed of ten "petals" ~ each of generally oval shape which are secured toge-ther by binding with nylon cord to form a stem portion 5, which can if desired be ; covered by a plastic foam cap (not sho~n) to improve its appearanceO The petals ~ (and cap, if any) are each for~lled of soft open-celled polyurethane foam of about 3/16 inch (about 0.5 cm) thicl~ness impregnated with the same second mixture of fabric conditionlng agen-ts as described for the product of Figure 1, except tha-t the ratio was chaMged from 80:20 to 70:30.
In Figure 3, a bundle of seven sof-t polyurethane foam strips 6, each about 2 inches (about 5 cm) wide and about .

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:~86~ cc. 770 3/16 illch (a'bout 0.5 cm) thick i3 held -toge-ther by an encircling strip 7 O:r the same foam material wrapped around the mid-por-tions of the strips and then secured by stapling (not sho~n). 'rhe product was impregnated ~ith the same fabric conditioning agent as described for Figure 2 abo~e by treatmen-t of the foam in sheet form before cons-tructing the product shape as shown.
Both proclucts of Figures 2 and 3 were folmd to give satisfactory fabric sof-tening and antistatic properties in u,se.
In Figures 4 and 5, eight hesagonal pieces of -thick plas-tic foam sheet 8 are superimposed with -two larger pi,eces 8a being adjacent and the progressively smaller pieces 8b, 8c and 8d being towards -the outer ends of the products so as to give an ove:rall ball-shaped appearance. ~he eigh-t plastic foam pieces ' are held together by an elastic cord 9 passing through their centres and held at each end by a thin plas-tic disc 10.
Before being assembled together as shown, the plastic foam pieces are impregnated with a fabric conditioning agent.
During use of the product, the conditioning agent melts at the elevated temperatures met during tumble drying, and some of the conditioning agent at the sur~ace oi' the product is removed by contact with the fabric being treated. Both surface tension , and the pressure exerted by the elastic cord through the product, - then encourage the remaining fab,ric conditioning agent to move towards the surface of the product for more effective and multiple use of the product.

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- ~ 8 ~g~ 6 cC.770 In a practical test of ~ product as shown in Figures and 5, a polyurethane foam was used having a thickness of 12 ~ml per sheet, and the diameter of the product a-t its wides-t point was about 6 inches (15 cms). ~he total amount of -the Eabric softerl-5 ing agent uscd was ~5.5 grams of a mix-ture of 58% di-hardened-tallow dime-thyl al~monium chloride, 22% of secondary~linear C11-C15 alcohol - 12 E0 condensate and 20% water. This product was used to treat fabric in a domestic tumble drier using the recommended procedure, when it was found that the product - 10 discharged about 5 grams of fabric softener in -the first drying cycle, abou-t 2 grams during the next cycle and then gradually decreasing an~ounts of between about 1 and 2 grams for each of the next 10 cycles. The treated fabrics were found to be no-ticeably sof-ter than compara-tive untreated fabrics.
15Fur-ther tests were also undertaken in which differen-t fabric conditioning agents were used. In one test a 15%
aqueous dispersion of a copolyl~er of e-thylene glycol and terephthalic acid formed by reacting 2 moles of the for~er with 1 mole of the latter and then reac-ting the product with additional polyethylene glycol, obtained as Permalose T (trade-mark) was used to i~lpregnate -the foam sheet which was then dried. ~be resultant product, which contained 30 grams O:e the anti-soiling aid, was used to treat polyester fabrics in a ~ tumble drier and it was :Eound that satisfactory illlproved anti-- 25 s-tatic alld an-ti-soiling proper-ties were impar-ted to the trea-ted fabric over 5 successlve dryer cycles.

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~ 9 ~ ~ cC.770 In another test the product was impregna-ted wi-th 20 grams of a 2~:1 mixture by weight of tallow alcohol ~ 50 E0 condensate and disodium ~ di(2"-anilino-~"-diethanol-aminotriozin-6"-yl~nino)-stilbene-2,2'-disulphonate (obtained as Photine C
(trademark)). Cot-ton shee-ting was dried in a tumble drier using this product and it was found to improve in apparent whiteness under artificial lighting, for several -tumble drier cycles.
In a variation of the form of the product of Figures iO and 5, it is possible to have a hollow centre which can if desired be filled with fabric conditioning agent.
The product shown in Figure 6 is constructed somewhat similarly to the product of Figure 3, except for -the shape of the piece of plastic foam. In this product six pieces 11 of i5 plastic foam sheet are used, each having the shape of a rectangle from which two triangular parts have been cut from the two longer sides so as to form si~-sides pieces each with a "waist" in the middle region thereof. The six pieces are tied together in the middle 12 with nylon cord so as to give an ao oYerall ball-like appearance. The sheets of plastic foam are impregnated before cutting with a fabric conditioning agent as described for Figures ~ and 5. The fabric conditioning agent may be applied either in molten liquid form or as a solution in a solvent, eg isopropyl alcohol, which is -then evaporated.

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cC.770 igO6 In a practical app]ication of a product as in Figure 6, polyurethaIle sheeting l~as usecl of 6 mnn thickness, and the overall maximum leng-th of -the product l~as 5 inches (12.5 cm) and the maximum width (ie at the end of each piece of foam plastic shee-t) was 4 inches (10 Clll). rrhe pieces of foam plastic were impregnated with about ~3 grams of the same fabric softener mix used for the product of Figures ~ and 5. When this product was used in a tumble drier it, was found that fabric was softened satisfactorily for at least 5 drying cycles.
When a comparative -test l~as undertaken using a single sheet of the same plastic foam impregnated with the same fabric conditioning agent, it was found that when a satisfactory level - of the fabric conditioner was discharged in the first drying cycle, there was insufficient fabric conditioner available subsequently for satisfactory mul-tiple use properties. A
furtl~er comparative test was undertaken using a colmnercially available product with a single sheet of this foam, about 20 cms by 7.5 cms, carrying about 2.5 grams of fabric softening agen-t.
It l~as found that during a normal tumble dryer operation only about 0.5 gram of the fabric softening agent was transferred to the fabric being dried, which was insufficient to give a sa-tisfactory fabric softening effect or any appreciable anti.-sta-tic proper-ties, and there was no benefit to be achieved on attemp-ted re-use of the produc-t.

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Claims (15)

THE EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION IN WHICH AN EXCLUSIVE
PROPERTY OR PRIVILEGE IS CLAIMED ARE DEFINED AS FOLLOWS:

1. A multiple-use product for the treatment of fabric in a tumble drier, said product being formed of at least one piece of resiliently flexible substrate impregnated with a conditioning agent wherein said at least one piece of substrate is secured together to form a non-planar product in such a manner that the surface of at least one region of said substrate is in close face-to-face contact with the surface of at least one other re-gion of said substrate thereby defining an interior reservoir for said conditioning agent while the surfaces of the remaining regions of said substrate are remote from each other and define fabric contacting surfaces and said substrate possesses the facility to allow the conditioning agent to diffuse from said reservoir to said fabric contacting surfaces.

2. A product according to claim 1, wherein the resilient-ly flexible substrate is foam plastic sheet.

3. A product according to claim 2, wherein the sheet has a thickness of from about 0.25 to about 2 cms.

4. A product according to claim 3, wherein the sheet has a thickness of about 0.5 to about 1 cm.

5. A product according to claim 2, wherein the foam sheet has a pore count of about 10 to about 30 cells per cm.

6. A product according to claim 5, wherein the pore count is about 15 to about 25 cells per cm.

7. A product according to claim 2, wherein the resil-iently flexible substrate is reticulated plastic foam.

8. A product according to claim 2, wherein the resil-iently flexible substrate is formed of laminated plastic foam sheet.

9. A product according to claim 2, wherein the resil-iently flexible substrate is formed of polyurethane plastic foam.

10. A product according to claim 1, which is formed of from about 2 to 12 pieces of substrate secured together to have an overall ball-like shape.

11. A product according to claim 1, wherein the fabric conditioning agent is a softening agent.

12. A product according to claim 11, wherein the fabric softening agent is a quaternary ammonium compound.

13. A product according to claim 12, wherein the quater-nary ammonium compound is admixed with a nonionic surfactant in the ratio of about 2:1 to about 10:1 parts by weight.

14. A product according to claim 1, wherein the fabric conditioning agent comprises an anti-static agent.

15. A product according to claim 1, wherein the fabric conditioning agent is a normally solid material which melts at elevated temperatures during tumble drying.