Antibacterial and Non-Clumping Liquid Spray

Abstract

A liquid spray system having antimicrobial and non-clumping properties that may be achieved without having more than 100% of the electron cation exchange. The agent may be chosen from a large number of antimicrobial agents, wherein citric acid is the most desirable. When the spray is applied to a surface, the surface does not exhibit a formation of clumps or coagulations, etc. This non-clumping property may be achieved three different ways. First, the agent may be dissolved in a specially denatured alcohol. Second, the agent may be dissolved in water or an SDA and then forced into a fine mist by way of a high pressure gas. Third, the agent may be dissolved into a water in oil emulsion. With any of these formulations, the alcoholic carrier/solvent evaporates after spraying leaving the bactericidal and virucidal agent behind to kill microbes found on the sprayed surface.

Claims

1. An antimicrobial and non-clumping spray comprising: up to 6% citric acid in solution; less than 4% by weight water; and ethyl alcohol, wherein the antimicrobial and non-clumping spray further has a pH around 5.

2. The antimicrobial and non-clumping spray of claim 1 wherein the spray has less than 100% electron cation exchange.

3. The antimicrobial and non-clumping spray of claim 1 wherein the spray comprises 1% citric acid.

4. The antimicrobial and non-clumping spray of claim 1 wherein the spray is bactericidal to a bacteria selected from at least one member of the group consisting of Streptococcus pyogenes C-203, Streptococcus viridans, Escherichia coli, Salmonella gallinarum, Salmonella choleraesuis, Salmonella typhimurium, Salmonella schottmulleri, Pseudomonas aeruginosa PRD-10, Lactobacillus casei, Shigella sonnei, Klebsiella pheumoniae, Saccaromyces cerevisiae, Pityrosporumovale, Trichophyton mentagrophytes, Monilia albicans, Aspergillus niger, Apergilus oryzae, Penicillium notatm, and Penicillium luteum.

5. An antimicrobial and non-clumping spray comprising: up to 6.0% citric acid; up to 10% of an antimicrobial agent selected from at least one member of the group consisting of a quaternary ammonium compound, a transition metal, an organo metallic compound, a perchlorate, a charged halogen-containing compound; a charged organic peroxide, an ionic polymer, and an ionic surfactant; less than 4% by weight water; and a high pressure gas, wherein the antimicrobial and non-clumping spray further has a pH around 5.

6. An antimicrobial and non-clumping spray comprising: up to 6% citric acid; less than 4% by weight water; an alcohol; and a high pressure gas, wherein the antimicrobial and non-clumping spray further has a pH around 5.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

[0022] In one embodiment, the spray of this disclosure is an antibacterial liquid spray that when sprayed onto a material, provides non-clumping properties to that material. As used herein, the term antibacterial encompasses all natural progressions and derivations of the act of killing or eliminating bacteria. As used herein, the term antimicrobial encompasses all natural progressions and derivations of the act of killing or eliminating bacteria, algae, fungi, viruses, yeast and molds. As used herein, the term non-clumping encompasses all natural progressions and derivations of the proposition that, once the material comprising loose particles is sprayed, the material will then not undergo the formation of clumps, clusters, mounds, formations, coagulations, growths, etc.

[0023] The spray described in this disclosure is composed of an antibacterial agent dissolved or dispersed in a liquid. Any inorganic material exhibiting a combination of high surface area and a relatively significant ion exchange capacity (or electron cation exchange), is useful as particles in the present disclosure. Typical particles include natural and synthetic clay materials as well as zeolites, illite, chlorite, kaolinite, hydrotalcite, talc, halloysite, sepiolite and palygorskite. Electron cation exchange is of particular importance to the current invention because it defines the ability of the particles, such as clay minerals, to exchange their cations thereby imparting antimicrobial properties to the clay minerals.

[0024] Desirable antimicrobial agents having antimicrobial properties may include quaternary ammonium compounds (QAC), transition metals, organo metallic compounds, perchlorates, charged halogen-containing compounds, charged organic peroxides, ionic polymers, ionic surfactants, and derivatives and mixtures thereof. QACs of particular desirability include benzalkonium and benzethonium. This list is non-limiting and other similar QACs may be used. Other, non-QAC, antimicrobial agents can be used in water-in-oil emulsions if the agent is water soluble or in a lipid solution if the agent is oil soluble.

[0025] The QAC component of the composition can be used as a bactericidal and bacteriostatic on organisms such as Streptococcus pyogenes C-203, Streptococcus viridans, Escherichia coli (E. Coli), Salmonella gallinarum, Salmonella choleraesuis, Salmonella typhimurium, Salmonella schottmulleri, Pseudomonas aeruginosa PRD-10, Lactobacillus casei, Shigella sonnei, Klebsiella pheumoniae, Saccaromyces cerevisiae, Pityrosporumovale, Trichophyton mentagrophytes, Monilia albicans, Aspergillus niger, Apergilus oryzae, Penicillium notatm, and Penicillium luteum among others.

[0026] Notably, the antimicrobial agents are retained even after substantial force is applied such as in washing or cleaning. Thus, this composition is stable and long lasting. As stated above, this invention does not require a substantially high electron cation exchange percentage. In one embodiment, the invention requires less than 100% of the electron cation exchange of the particles so that the composition has a longer effective time spent on the top layer of the surface being sprayed.

[0027] A preferred composition is a water-oil emulsion that comprises 0.2% antimicrobial agent, 30% water, 30% mineral oil, and 40% petrolatum by weight. The percentages of mineral oil and petrolatum can be varied to create a the spray having the desired consistency. An additional preferred composition contains 0.05% to 10% antimicrobial agent and 99.9% to 99% by weight ethanol, SDA, glycol, or other alcohol or glycol or other solvent of the antimicrobial agent having a high vapor pressure and low flash point. The alcohol or glycol can be diluted with as much as 30% water and still provide the anti-clumping properties that are desired. Yet another composition only uses 0.05% to 1% antimicrobial agent mixed in water. It is an important limitation of this invention that the solvent evaporates before hitting the material that is being sprayed.

[0028] A significant aspect of this invention is the ability of the antimicrobial spray to be sprayed onto a material, whereupon the material does not form significant clumps. That is, the spray imparts non-clumping properties to the material. In one instance, the non-clumping property was achieved by using a non-water solvent carrier such as an ethyl alcohol or glycol as a component of the spray composition. The solvent carrier, given that it contains little or no water, provides the non-clumping feature to the antimicrobial spray, while at the same time delivering the QAC or other antimicrobial agent like citric acid to the litter. Citric acid is a weak organic acid that has the molecular formula C.sub.6H.sub.8O.sub.7 and usually occurs naturally in citrus fruits This is done by having the antimicrobial agent in a solid form dissolved in the alcoholic solvent carrier such that it is able to be sprayed onto the material and remain in solid form.

[0029] In a second instance, the non-clumping property was achieved by using a high pressure propellant, such as nitrogen, butane, propane, or other similar propellant, to form the composition into a fine mist. The small particle size of the mist prevent the water molecules from forming clumps in the material. The same concentration of QAC or other antimicrobial agent should be used in this embodiment as in the embodiment using an alcohol or glycol. The antimicrobial agent in this embodiment is simply mixed with water and the creation of the fine mist prevents any clumping from occurring.

[0030] In a third instance, the non-clumping property was achieved by using a water in oil emulsion. The purpose of using a water in oil emulsion is due to the fact that many surfaces are composed of oil based products. That is, they are hydrophilic and clump together when in the presence of water. Having a water in oil emulsion allows the agent to be positioned within the bentonite such that it displaces the normally ensnared water molecules. To prepare the water in oil emulsion, the agents are dissolved in water, ethanol, or another solvent, separately or in combination, in the water phase of the water in oil emulsion preparation.

[0031] In each of the embodiments described above, it is important for the pH to remain as close to neutral as possible so as to prevent irritation or inflammation to the genital region of the feline user. Having a pH between 6 and 8 is ideal with the preferred pH being slightly neutral at around 7.5.

[0032] In another embodiment, the QAC is replaced with citric acid. Specifically, the composition contains only up to about 6% citric acid and has a pH around 5 so as to maintain maximum bactericidal and virucidal properties. In yet another embodiment, QAC and citric acid may be used together with up to 10% QAC and 6% citric acid.

[0033] The present disclosure includes that contained in the appended claims, as well as that of the foregoing description. Although this invention has been described in its preferred form with a certain degree of particularity, it is understood that the present disclosure of the preferred form has been made only by way of example and that numerous changes in the details of construction and the combination and arrangement of parts may be resorted to without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.