METALLIC GEL NAIL POLISH AND METHOD OF APPLICATION

Abstract

The present invention is a metallic gel nail polish composition and method of application. The polish lacks harmful airborne toxins and is comprised of monomers, aluminum, epoxy acrylate oligomer, acrylic acid polymer and photoinitiator. The aluminum is deduced to a semi-solid phase before mixing in with the remaining chemicals. When the composition is applied to a solid surface, the surface tension between the aluminum and remaining chemicals disperses the aluminum evenly across a surface resulting in a shiny, metallic color. The composition is cured for about 2 minutes using an about 36-watt UV light or about 10-60 seconds using an LED light. The composition may be applied above a cured standard base coat or under a cured standard top coat. If a colored metallic color is desired, a translucent gel polish is applied atop the cured metallic gel polish whereby the aluminum particles reflect off the translucent coat.

Claims

1. A metallic gel nail polish comprising: at least a first monomer; a semi-solid aluminum compound including stearic acid adsorbed on aluminum powder and a second monomer, the second monomer being different from said first monomer; an epoxy acrylate oligomer; an acrylic acid polymer; and a photoinitiator.

2. A metallic gel nail polish comprising: about 72% by weight at least a first monomer; about 16% by weight an aluminum compound including stearic acid adsorbed on aluminum powder and a second monomer, the second monomer being different from said first monomer; about 5% by weight an epoxy acrylate oligomer; about 4% by weight an acrylic acid polymer; and about 3% by weight a photoinitiator.

3. The metallic gel nail polish of claim 2 wherein the aluminum compound is comprised of about 12% weight aluminum, about 3% weight stearic acid and about 85% weight second monomer.

4. The metallic gel nail polish of claim 3 wherein the second monomer is 1-methoxy-2-propanol.

5. The metallic gel nail polish of claim 2 wherein the at least a first monomer is one of Di-HEMA trimethylhexyl dicarbamate or 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA).

6. The metallic gel nail polish of claim 2 wherein the at least a first monomer comprises two monomers including about 60% by weight Di-HEMA trimethylhexyl dicarbamate and 12% by weight 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA).

7. The metallic gel nail polish of claim 2 wherein the epoxy acrylate oligomer is bisphenol-A-epoxy diacrylate.

8. The metallic gel nail polish of claim 2 wherein the acrylic acid polymer is acrylate polyurethane.

9. The metallic gel nail polish of claim 2 wherein the photoinitiator is 1-hydroxycyclohexyl phenyl ketone.

10. The metallic gel nail polish of claim 2 wherein the photoinitiator is an alpha-hydroxylalkyl phenyl ketone.

11. The metallic gel nail polish of claim 2 wherein the photoinitiator is benzophenone.

12. The metallic gel nail polish of claim 2 wherein the photoinitiator is a mixture of 1-hydroxycyclohexyl phenyl ketone and benzophenone.

13. The metallic gel nail polish of claim 2 wherein the percentage of aluminum compound is between 15.5-16.5% by weight of the total composition.

14-25. (canceled)

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0022] FIG. 1 illustrates a flowchart of the preferred method of applying the metallic gel nail polish.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0023] The metallic gel nail polish of the preferred embodiment is generally comprised of monomers, aluminum compound, epoxy acrylate oligomer, acrylate polyurethane, and photoinitiator. The composition polymerizes upon exposure to a UV or LED light source and results in a shiny silver with a metallic effect achieved by order of applying the metallic gel polish such that aluminum particles of the aluminum compound reflect off a top coat.

[0024] In a preferred embodiment, the monomers are a methacrylate ester monomer, trimethylhexyl dicarbamate (Di-HEMA) (C.sub.23H.sub.38N.sub.2O.sub.8), at about 60% wt of the total composition and a carbamate ester monomer, 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA) (C.sub.6H.sub.10O.sub.3), at about 12% wt of the total composition. The epoxy acrylate oligomer is preferably bisphenol A-epoxy diacrylate (C.sub.21H.sub.25ClO.sub.5) at about 5% wt, the acrylate polyurethane is comprised of polyester polyol and isophorone diisocyanate (C.sub.12H.sub.18N.sub.2O.sub.2) at about 4% wt, and the photoinitiator is preferably free radical photoinitiator 1-hydroxycyclohexyl phenyl ketone (C.sub.13H.sub.16O.sub.2) at about 3% wt. The polyester polyol is preferably comprised of adipic acid (C.sub.6H.sub.10O.sub.4) and 2-methyl-1,2-propanediol (C.sub.4H.sub.10O.sub.2).

[0025] The preferred embodiment also includes aluminum compound at about 16% wt of the total composition. While about 15.5% to 16.5% may be used, using less could decrease the shiny metallic effect of the polish, while adding more could increase production costs and lessen the ability of the metallic gel nail polish to cure. Solid aluminum is processed into a aluminum compound, a semi-solid aluminum pulp-like phase, by adsorbing a predetermined amount of stearic acid (CH.sub.3(CH.sub.2).sub.16COOH or C.sub.18H.sub.36O.sub.2) onto solid aluminum. The adsorption process occurs by mixing powdered stearic acid, a monomer, and aluminum powder using a steel ball grinding machine for preferably 2-4 hours. The monomer is preferably 1-methoxy-2-propanol (C.sub.4H.sub.10O.sub.2) and is about 85% wt, the stearic acid is about 3% wt, and the aluminum (Al) is about 12% wt of the composition. During the mixing process, stearic acid is adsorbed onto the aluminum powder through interaction of the stearic acid's carboxyl group with the aluminum. The mixture is kneaded using a kneading machine until a semi-solid, pulp results. The aluminum compound is then filtered by vacuum preferably using a 15 filter to remove small impurities.

[0026] The metallic gel polish composition is made, for example, by mixing the preferably filtered aluminum compound with the monomer, epoxy acrylate oligomer, acrylate polyurethane, and photoinitiator mixture resulting in a final product with a preferred viscosity of about 200 cps at about 25 C.

Example 1

[0027]

TABLE-US-00001 Amount Components (wt %) trimethylhexyl dicarbamate 60 aluminum compound 16 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate 12 bisphenol A-epoxy diacrylate 5 acrylate polyurethane 4 1-hydroxycyclohexyl phenyl ketone 3 100

[0028] In another embodiment, the photoinitiator may be 2-hydroxy-2-methyl-1-phenyl-propane-1-one. In yet another embodiment, the photoinitiator may be benzophenone (C.sub.13H.sub.10O) or a mixture of 1-hydroxycyclohexyl phenyl ketone and benzophenone.

Example 2

[0029]

TABLE-US-00002 Amount Components (wt %) trimethylhexyl dicarbamate 60 aluminum compound 16 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate 12 bisphenol A-epoxy diacrylate 5 acrylate polyurethane 4 2-hydroxy-2-methyl-1-phenyl-propane-1-one 3 100

Example 3

[0030]

TABLE-US-00003 Amount Components (wt %) trimethylhexyl dicarbamate 60 aluminum compound 16 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate 12 bisphenol A-epoxy diacrylate 5 acrylate polyurethane 4 benzophenone 3 100

Example 4

[0031]

TABLE-US-00004 Amount Components (wt %) trimethylhexyl dicarbamate 60 aluminum compound 16 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate 12 bisphenol A-epoxy diacrylate 5 acrylate polyurethane 4 1-hydroxycyclohexyl phenyl ketone/benzophenone 3 100

[0032] The monomers of the aforementioned embodiments may be only one monomer, trimethylhexyl dicarbamate or 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate, at 72% weight of the total composition.

[0033] The following additional embodiments are provided:

Embodiment 1

[0034] A metallic gel nail polish comprising: about 72% weight monomers; about 16% by weight aluminum compound; about 5% weight an epoxy acrylate oligomer; about 4% weight an acrylic acid polymer; and about 3% weight a photoinitiator.

Embodiment 2

[0035] The aluminum compound of Embodiment 1 wherein the aluminum compound is comprised of about 12% by weight aluminum, about 3% by weight stearic acid, and about 85% by weight monomer.

Embodiment 3

[0036] The monomer of any of Embodiments 1-2 wherein the monomer is 1-methoxy-2-propanol.

Embodiment 4

[0037] The metallic gel nail polish of any of Embodiments 1-3 wherein the monomers are about 60% by weight trimethylhexyl dicarbamate (Di-HEMA) and 12% by weight 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA).

[0038] The shiny metallic mirror-like effect may also be achieved with regular nail polish by mixing the aluminum compound with a preferably clear-colored nail polish such that the aluminum compound is about 16% wt of the total regular nail polish composition. The regular nail polish may also be substantially clear-colored or may contain a slight tint of color.

[0039] The preferred method of application of the metallic gel nail polish includes chronologically applying and curing a first base coat, metallic gel nail polish, a second base coat and a top coat preferably to a fingernail or toenail. Optionally, a colored translucent gel polish may be applied between the metallic gel nail polish and top coat.

[0040] The first step of application is preferably coating the nail with a first base coat and curing using standard curing practices. Next, the metallic gel nail polish is preferably applied atop the base coat, followed by a waiting period of about 10-60 seconds or more until a shiny effect occurs. During the about 10-60-second time frame, the aluminum from the aluminum compound uniformly disperses across the nail through the differences of surface tension between the aluminum and metallic gel nail polish. To ensure uniformity of aluminum during application, the metallic gel nail polish should be shaken prior to use. After the shiny effect occurs, the metallic gel nail polish is cured using standard curing practices. Should a silver metallic look be desired, the final step of application is applying a top coat and curing using standard curing practices.

[0041] The next step is preferably applying a second base coat and curing using standard curing practices. Alternatively, the second base coat is not applied.

[0042] If a different colored shiny metallic look is desired, the next step is applying a colored translucent top coat and curing using standard curing practices. The translucent gel polish may be a variety of colors with a preferred translucency of about 84% to ensure the aluminum particles from the metallic gel nail polish reflect off the translucent gel polish to provide a colored shiny metallic effect. For example, applying a translucent yellow coat atop the metallic gel nail polish will produce a gold metallic color. The translucency of the gel polish may also be about 82-86% and still obtain an optimal shiny effect. The colored translucent gel polish is then cured using standard curing practices.

[0043] The next step is applying and curing a top coat using standard curing practices. A final step may be wiping the adhesive residue from the top coat preferably with a lint-free cloth if the top coat is not formulated as wipe-free.

[0044] The foregoing descriptions of embodiments have been presented only for purposes of illustration and description. They are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the present invention to the forms disclosed. Accordingly, many modifications and variations will be apparent to practitioners skilled in the art. Additionally, the above disclosure is not intended to limit the present invention. The scope of the present invention is defined by the appended claims.

[0045] Insofar as the description above and the accompanying drawings disclose any additional subject matter that is not within the scope of the claims below, the inventions are not dedicated to the public and the right to file one or more applications to claim such additional inventions is reserved.