Lotion treated through-air dried tissue

Abstract

A soft through-air dried tissue having a soothing feel and method of making the same is disclosed which contains an aqueous softening composition comprising from about 10 to about 20 weight percent of a cationic softening compound, such as quaternary ammonium compounds and imidazolinium compounds; from about 10 to about 20 weight percent of a polyhydroxy compound having a molecular weight of at least about 1,000 g/mol, and optionally a silicone or glycerin. Examples of the cationic softening compound include tallow- and ester-substituted quaternary ammonium compounds having chloride or methyl sulfate as the anion, and examples of the polyhydroxy compound include polyethylene glycols (PEG) or polypropylene glycols (PPG) having a molecular weight of at least about 1,000 g/mol, such as PEG-1000 and PEG-8000.

Claims

1. A treated through-air dried tissue product comprising a through-air dried tissue web having a first and an opposed second surface, a softening composition disposed on the first or the second surface, the softening composition comprising (i) from about 10 to 20 weight percent of a polyhydroxy compound selected from the group consisting of polyethylene glycols and polypropylene glycols and having a molecular weight from about 1,000 to about 10,000 g/mol (ii) from about 10 to about 20 weight percent of a cationic softener compound selected from the group consisting of amidoamine quaternary ammonium compounds, diamidoamine quaternary ammonium compounds, ester quaternary ammonium compounds, alkoxy alkyl quaternary ammonium compounds, benzyl quaternary ammonium compounds, alkyl quaternary ammonium compounds and imidazolinium compounds, and (iii) from about 40 to about 75 weight percent water, the treated through-air dried tissue product having a coefficient of friction (COF) less than about 300 g.

2. The treated through-air dried tissue product of claim 1 having a sheet bulk greater than about 10 cc/g and a COF less than about 250 g.

3. The treated through-air dried tissue product of claim 1 further comprising a silicone, or a glycerin, and mixtures thereof.

4. The treated through-air dried tissue product of claim 1 wherein the softening composition comprises from about 0.5 to about 5.0 dry weight percent, based upon the dry weight of the tissue product.

5. The treated through-air dried tissue product of claim 1 wherein the weight ratio of cationic softener to polyhydroxy compound are from about 1:0.3 to about 0.3:1.

6. The treated through-air dried tissue product of claim 1 wherein the polyhydroxy compound is a polyethylene glycol having a molecular weight from about 4,000 to about 10,000 g/mol and the weight ratio of water to polyhydroxy compound are from about 1:02 to about 1:5.

7. The treated through-air dried tissue product of claim 1 further comprising less than about 2.0 weight percent silicone.

8. The treated through-air dried tissue product of claim 1 wherein the tissue product is substantially free from silicone.

9. The treated through-air dried tissue product of claim 1 wherein the softening composition comprises from about 10 to about 15 weight percent polyhydroxy compound.

10. The treated through-air dried tissue product of claim 9 wherein the polyhydroxy compound has a molecular weight from about 6,000 to about 8,000 and wherein the weight ratio of cationic softener to polyhydroxy compound is about 1:0.7 to about 0.7:1.

11. A treated through-air dried tissue product comprising a through-air dried tissue web having a first and an opposed second surface, a softening composition disposed on the first or the second surface, the softening composition comprising: a. from about 10 to about 20 weight percent of a cationic softening compound selected from the group consisting of diamidoamine quaternary compounds, ester quaternary compounds, alkoxy alkyl quaternary compounds, benzyl quaternary compounds, alkyl quaternary compounds and imidazolinium quaternary compounds; a. from about 10 to about 20 weight percent of a polyhydroxy compound selected from the group consisting of polyethylene glycols and polypropylene glycols having a molecular weight of at least about 1,000 g/mol; b. from about 60 to about 80 percent water; and c. optionally a silicone or glycerin, wherein the treated tissue product has a coefficient of friction (COF) less than about 300 g.

12. The treated through-air dried tissue product of claim 11 having a GMT from about 500 to about 1,500 g/3, a Stiffness Index less than about 15 and a sheet bulk greater than about 10 cc/g.

13. The treated through-air dried tissue product of claim 11 wherein the softening composition comprises from about 0.5 to about 5.0 weight percent, based upon the dry weight of the tissue product.

14. The treated through-air dried tissue product of claim 11 wherein the softening composition comprises a polyethylene glycol having a molecular weight from about 1,000 to about 10,000.

15. The treated through-air dried tissue product of claim 11 wherein the ratio of water to the polyhydroxy compound, on a weight basis, is from about 1:0.1 to about 1:10.

16. A method of manufacturing a soft through-air dried tissue product comprising the steps of: a. forming an aqueous softening composition comprising (i) from about 10 to 20 weight percent of a polyhydroxy compound selected from the group consisting of polyethylene glycols and polypropylene glycols and having a molecular weight from 1,000 to about 10,000 g/mol (ii) from about 10 to about 20 weight percent of a cationic softener compound selected from the group consisting of amidoamine quaternary ammonium compounds, diamidoamine quaternary ammonium compounds, ester quaternary ammonium compounds, alkoxy alkyl quaternary ammonium compounds, benzyl quaternary ammonium compounds, alkyl quaternary ammonium compounds and imidazolinium compounds, (iii) from about 40 to about 75 weight percent water, and optionally a silicone or glycerin; b. providing a through-air dried tissue web having a first and an opposed second surface; and c. applying the aqueous softening composition at a temperature less than about 100 C. to at least the first surface of the through-air dried tissue web.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein the through-air dried tissue web is a dry tissue web and the step of applying is carried out by slot coating, gravure printing, flexographic printing or spraying.

18. The method of claim 16 wherein the aqueous softening composition is applied at a temperature from about 20 to about 30 C.

19. The method of claim 16 wherein the aqueous softening composition comprises from about 30 to about 70 weight percent water and has a viscosity from about 50 to about 300 cPs.

Description

EXAMPLES

(1) Base sheets were made using a through-air dried papermaking process commonly referred to as uncreped through-air dried (UCTAD) and generally described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,607,551, the contents of which are incorporated herein in a manner consistent with the present invention. Base sheets with a target bone dry basis weight of about 46 grams per square meter (gsm) were produced.

(2) In all cases the base sheets were produced from a furnish comprising northern softwood kraft and eucalyptus kraft using a layered headbox fed by three stock chests such that the webs having three layers (two outer layers and a middle layer) were formed. The two outer layers comprised eucalyptus (each layer comprising 30 percent weight by total weight of the web) and the middle layer comprised softwood and eucalyptus. The amount of softwood and eucalyptus kraft in the middle layer was maintained for all inventive samplesthe middle layered comprised 29 percent (by total weight of the web) softwood and 11 percent (by total weight of the web) eucalyptus. Strength was controlled via the addition of starch and/or by refining the furnish.

(3) The tissue web was formed on a forming fabric, vacuum dewatered to approximately 25 percent consistency and then subjected to rush transfer when transferred to the transfer fabric. The web was then transferred to a through-air drying fabric. Transfer to the through-drying fabric was done using vacuum levels of about 10 inches of mercury at the transfer. The web was then dried to approximately 98 percent solids before winding. Table 1 summarizes the physical properties of the basesheet webs.

(4) TABLE-US-00001 TABLE 1 Sample BW (gsm) GMT (g/3) Caliper (mils) Basesheet 1 46.0 1125 26.15 Basesheet 2 46.0 1367 26.81 Basesheet 3 42.2 798 19.2 Basesheet 4 41.8 994 19.7

(5) The inventive softening compositions were prepared by mixing the cationic softening compound with a small amount of water using a high shear mixer. After mixing, the polyhydroxy compound was added along with silicone, as specified in Table 2 below, followed by further high shear mixing. The pH of the composition was adjusted and the composition was further diluted with water and mixed. Viscosity was measured by Brookfield DV-II ultra-type (Brookfield Engineering Laboratories) at 25 C. and 60 rpm. The silicone was UTA6014 (Commercially available from Wacker Chemical Corp., Adrian, Mich.) and cationic softening compound was either CEQ90 (Commercially available from Sunjin Chemical Co. Ltd) (softener composition 1) or Incroquat Behenyl TMS-50, (commercially available from Croda Inc., Edison, N.J.) (softener composition 2).

(6) TABLE-US-00002 TABLE 2 Softener Softener Composition 1 Composition 2 Silicone (wt %) 30 30 Softener (wt %) 14 7 PEG-1,000 (wt %) 7 7 Water (wt %) 49 60 Estimated % Solids 34 27 Initial viscosity (cPs) 140 650

(7) The base sheet webs were converted into bath tissue rolls. Specifically, basesheet was calendered using a conventional polyurethane/steel calender system comprising a 40 P&J polyurethane roll on the air side of the sheet and a standard steel roll on the fabric side. The calendered web was then subjected to topical treatment with a softening composition. The softening compositions were applied by offset gravure printing. The add-on levels where controlled by changing the gravure roll cell volume (measured as BCMbillion cubic microns per square inch) and estimated add-on levels are reported in Table 3, below. The estimated add-ons are provided as both a wet weight basis and a dry weight percentage basis.

(8) TABLE-US-00003 TABLE 3 Estimated Softening Estimated Composition Softening Gravure roll Add-on Composition cell volume (wet grams per Add-on Sample Basesheet (BCM) square meter) (dry wt %) Control 1 1 Control 2 2 Inventive 1 1 4 1.65 1.3 Inventive 2 2 4 1.65 1.3 Inventive 3 1 6 4.65 3.5 Inventive 4 2 6 4.65 3.5 Inventive 5 3 6 7.14 4.4 Inventive 6 4 6 7.14 4.4

(9) The finished products were subjected to physical analysis, which is summarized in Tables 4 and 5, below.

(10) TABLE-US-00004 TABLE 4 Softening Composition Basis Sheet Add-on Weight GMT Caliper Bulk MD COF Sample (dry wt %) (gsm) (g/3) (mils) (cc/g) (g) Control 1 43.1 933 26.15 14.44 288 Control 2 43.6 1074 26.81 14.80 276 Inventive 1 1.3 44.0 929 24.89 13.74 231 Inventive 2 1.3 44.1 1099 25.46 14.06 207 Inventive 3 3.5 44.4 922 25.67 14.17 213 Inventive 4 3.5 44.9 1080 25.93 14.32 197 Inventive 5 4.4 42.2 785 18.05 12.60 190 Inventive 6 4.4 42.0 874 18.35 12.99 193

(11) TABLE-US-00005 TABLE 5 GM Stiff- CD Tensile CD Stretch CD TEA Slope ness Sample (g/3) (%) (g*cm/cm.sup.2) (kg) Index Control 1 764 8.6 6.06 6.801 7.29 Control 2 877 9.0 7.45 7.136 6.64 Inventive 1 732 7.8 5.48 7.474 8.05 Inventive 2 851 8.4 6.65 7.705 7.01 Inventive 3 785 8.0 5.62 7.689 8.34 Inventive 4 840 8.0 6.39 8.072 7.47 Inventive 5 794 8.8 7.0 5.712 7.27 Inventive 6 1010 8.4 8.2 5.827 6.66

(12) While various softening compositions, and tissue webs and products treated therewith, have been described in detail with respect to the specific embodiments thereof, it will be appreciated that those skilled in the art, upon attaining an understanding of the foregoing, may readily conceive of alterations to, variations of, and equivalents to these embodiments. Accordingly, the scope of the present invention should be assessed as that of the appended claims and any equivalents thereto and the following embodiments.

(13) In a first embodiment the present invention provides a treated through-air dried tissue product comprising a through-air dried tissue web having a first and an opposed second surface, a softening composition disposed on the first or the second surface, the softening composition comprising (i) a polyhydroxy compound having a molecular weight of at least about 1,000 g/mol and (ii) a cationic softener compound, the treated through-air dried tissue product having a COF less than about 300 g.

(14) In a second embodiment the present invention provides the tissue product of the first embodiment having a COF less than about 250 g.

(15) In a third embodiment the present invention provides the tissue product of the first or the second embodiments having a COF from about 200 to about 250 g, a GMT from about 700 to about 1,200 g/3 and a Stiffness Index less than about 10.

(16) In a fourth embodiment the present invention provides the tissue product of any one of the first through third embodiments wherein the cationic softener compound selected from the group consisting of amidoamine quaternary ammonium compounds, diamidoamine quaternary ammonium compounds, ester quaternary ammonium compounds, alkoxy alkyl quaternary ammonium compounds, benzyl quaternary ammonium compounds, alkyl quaternary ammonium compounds and imidazolinium compounds.

(17) In a fifth embodiment the present invention provides the tissue product of any one of the first through fourth embodiments wherein the softening composition further comprises a silicone, a glycerin, or mixtures thereof.

(18) In a sixth embodiment the present invention provides the tissue product of any one of the first through fifth embodiments wherein the softening composition comprises less than about 12 dry weight percent, based upon the dry weight of the tissue product.

(19) In a seventh embodiment the present invention provides the tissue product of any one of the first through sixth embodiments wherein the softening composition comprises from about 0.5 to about 5.0 dry weight percent, based upon the dry weight of the tissue product.

(20) In an eighth embodiment the present invention provides the tissue product of any one of the first through seventh embodiments wherein the softening composition comprises from about 10 to about 20 weight percent of a cationic softening compound and from about 10 to about 20 weight percent of a polyhydroxy compound.

(21) In a ninth embodiment the present invention provides the tissue product of any one of the first through eighth embodiments wherein the softening composition comprises from about 40 to about 75 weight percent water and the ratio of water to the polyhydroxy compound, on a weight basis, is from about 1:0.1 to about 1:10.