Solid polymeric material impregnated with a volatile organic substance and a specific ester and uses of same

Abstract

The present invention concerns a solid polymeric material impregnated with a volatile organic substance (such as a perfume, an odour-masking agent or an insecticide) and a solvent comprising a C.sub.10-C.sub.18 monoester of C.sub.1-C.sub.8 alkyl that helps improve the rate of infusion of the volatile organic substance in the material and the diffusion profile of same. It also concerns a method for producing this material, and the uses of same for perfuming or deodorising the atmosphere, the body or laundry or as an insect repellent or insecticide. The invention also concerns a perfuming or deodorising product, an insect repellent or an insecticide comprising the above-mentioned material.

Claims

1. A solid polymeric material impregnated with a volatile organic substance and with a solvent comprising isopropyl myristate, wherein the solid polymeric material is prepared by a process comprising the following steps: (a) solubilizing the volatile organic substance in the solvent comprising isopropyl myristate to form a solution, and (b) impregnating the solid polymeric material with the solution obtained from step (a), wherein the solid polymeric material comprises a thermoplastic polymer or an elastomer.

2. The material according to claim 1, wherein the volatile organic substance is selected from the group consisting of: a fragrance, an odor-masking agent and an insecticide.

3. The material according to claim 2, wherein the volatile organic substance is a fragrance.

4. The material according to claim 1, wherein the concentration of the volatile organic substance in the solvent is between 20 and 95% by weight.

5. The material according to claim 4, wherein the concentration of the volatile organic substance in the solvent is between 30 and 90% by weight.

6. The material according to claim 4, wherein the concentration of the volatile organic substance in the solvent is between 50 and 80% by weight.

7. The material according to claim 1, which comprises a silicone elastomer.

8. The material according to claim 7, wherein the solvent also contains a saturated C.sub.2-C.sub.10 diester of a C.sub.3-C.sub.12 alkyl.

9. The material according to claim 8, wherein the saturated C.sub.2-C.sub.10 diester of a C.sub.3-C.sub.12 alkyl is a saturated C.sub.4-C.sub.8 diester of a C.sub.6-C.sub.10 alkyl.

10. The material according to claim 9, wherein the mass ratio of isopropyl myristate to the saturated C.sub.2-C.sub.10 diester of a C.sub.3-C.sub.12 alkyl is between 40:60 and 60:40.

11. The material according to claim 8, wherein the saturated C.sub.2-C.sub.10 diester of a C.sub.3-C.sub.12 alkyl is dioctyl adipate.

12. The material according to claim 8, wherein the mass ratio of isopropyl myristate to the saturated C.sub.2-C.sub.10 diester of a C.sub.3-C.sub.12 alkyl is between 5:95 and 95:5.

13. A method for fragrancing or deodorizing the atmosphere, comprising contacting the atmosphere with the material according to claim 1.

14. A method for fragrancing or deodorizing laundry, comprising introducing the material according to claim 1 into the drum of a washing machine or a tumble dryer.

15. An article comprising the material according to claim 1, which is selected from the group consisting of: a fragrancing or deodorizing product, an insect repellant and an insecticide.

16. The article according to claim 15, wherein the article is a fragrancing product.

Description

FIGURES

(1) FIG. 1 illustrates the variation, as a function of time, of the rate of infusion of a fragrance in a polymeric material impregnated with a solution of this fragrance in various solvents.

(2) FIG. 2 illustrates the variation, as a function of time, of the rate of release of a fragrance infused in a polymeric material by means of a solution containing various solvents.

(3) FIG. 3 represents the variation, as a function of time, of the sensory intensity given off by a fragrance infused in a polymeric material by means of a solution containing various solvents.

(4) FIG. 4 represents the degree of swelling of a silicone material impregnated with a solution containing a fragrance in various solvents.

(5) FIG. 5 illustrates the variation, as a function of time, of the rate of infusion of a fragrance in silicone materials with various hardnesses.

(6) FIG. 6 illustrates the variation, as a function of time, of the rate of release of a fragrance infused in silicone materials of various hardnesses.

EXAMPLES

(7) The invention will be understood more clearly in light of the following examples, which are given purely by way of illustration and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention, defined by the appended claims.

Example 1: Influence of the Solvent on the Rate of Infusion

(8) The rate of infusion in a silicone material of a fragrance carried in various solvents was measured. To do this, identical silicone elastomer rings were each weighed and then immersed for various periods of time (1 h, 4 h, 18 h and 24 h) in a solution containing the same fragrance in a different solvent, namely: ethanol (EtOH), methyl oleate, isopropylideneglycerol (Augeo MC), isopropyl myristate (IPM), 3-methyl-3-methoxybutanol (MMB), dioctyl adipate (DOA) and a 50:50 (w/w) mixture of isopropyl myristate and dioctyl adipate (DOA/IPM). The fragrance concentration in the solution ranged from 50% by weight (for the individual solvents) to 80% by weight (for the mixture of solvents). The ring was removed at the end of the time period in question and weighed to determine the percentage of fragrance that it contained.

(9) The results of these tests are illustrated in FIG. 1. As shown in this figure, isopropyl myristate makes it possible to obtain the highest rate of infusion. The rate of infusion decreases when this solvent is mixed with dioctyl adipate, nevertheless remaining higher than the levels that it was possible to obtain with other solvents such as 3-methyl-3-methoxybutanol, used as a compatibilizing agent in U.S. Pat. No. 6,379,689, and the alkyl diesters as described in FR 1 601 586.

Example 2: Influence of the Solvent on the Rate of Release

(10) The rate of release or of diffusion of a fragrance carried in various solvents and infused in the same silicone material was measured. To do this, identical silicone elastomer rings were each immersed for 24 h in a solution containing the same fragrance in a different solvent, namely: ethanol (EtOH), methyl oleate, isopropylideneglycerol (Augeo MC), isopropyl myristate (IPM), 3-methyl-3-methoxybutanol (MMB), dioctyl adipate (DOA) and a 50:50 (w/w) mixture of isopropyl myristate and dioctyl adipate (DOA/IPM). The fragrance concentration in the solution ranged from 50% by weight (for the individual solvents) to 80% by weight (for the mixture of solvents). The ring was then weighed after various storage times at ambient temperature in order to determine the percentage of fragrance remaining in the ring.

(11) The results of these tests are illustrated in FIG. 2. As shown in this figure, the fragrance release kinetics depend on the solvent tested. Isopropyl myristate allows a gradual diffusion of the fragrance which remains present in the ring in a much higher amount, after 120 days, than those which can be obtained with the other solvents tested, in particular 3-methyl-3-methoxybutanol and dioctyl adipate. It will be noted that the test using methyl oleate was interrupted because of exudation of the solvent.

(12) Additional tests made it possible to show that the release kinetics of the fragrance carried in isopropyl myristate did not significantly vary when the concentration of the fragrance in the solvent varied from 30 to 90% by weight.

Example 3: Influence of the Solvent on the Sensory Intensity of the Fragrance

(13) The sensory intensity of a fragrance carried in various solvents and infused in the same silicone material was measured. To do this, identical silicone elastomer rings were each immersed for 24 h in a solution containing the same fragrance in a different solvent, namely: ethanol (EtOH), methyl oleate, isopropylideneglycerol (Augeo MC), isopropyl myristate (IPM), 3-methyl-3-methoxybutanol (MMB), dioctyl adipate (DOA) and a 50:50 (w/w) mixture of isopropyl myristate and dioctyl adipate (DOA/IPM). The fragrance concentration in the solution ranged from 50% by weight (for the individual solvents) to 80% by weight (for the mixture of solvents). The ring was then stored at ambient temperature in a cupboard for two months. A panel of trained experts evaluated the sensory intensity of the fragrance after various storage times. Said intensity was scored on a scale of 0 to 10 where 10 corresponds to the initial sensory intensity of the fragrance.

(14) The results of these tests are illustrated in FIG. 3. As shown in this figure, the sensory intensity of the fragrance in solution in isopropyl myristate, alone or as a mixture with dioctyl adipate, drops less strongly than in the presence of the other solvents (in particular 3-methyl-3-methoxybutanol) and decreases in a more linear manner than with dioctyl adipate alone.

Example 4: Influence of the Solvent on the Swelling of the Material

(15) The degree of swelling of a silicone elastomer ring in various solvents was measured, said solvents being namely: ethanol (EtOH), isopropylideneglycerol (Augeo MC), isopropyl myristate (IPM), dioctyl adipate (DOA) and a 50:50 (w/w) mixture of isopropyl myristate and dioctyl adipate (DOA/IPM). The fragrance concentration in the solution ranged from 50% by weight (for the individual solvents) to 80% by weight (for the mixture of solvents). It was observed, as emerges from FIG. 4, that the swelling of the material was greatest in isopropyl myristate and that it could be significantly reduced by combining it with dioctyl adipate. As demonstrated in examples 1 to 3, the IPM/DOA mixture makes it possible to incorporate a considerable amount of fragrance into the material and has good fragrance diffusion properties, such that it constitutes a choice solvent for silicone-elastomer-based materials.

Example 5: Influence of the Hardness of the Material

(16) The rate of infusion of a fragrance carried in isopropyl myristate (20% w/w) in various silicone elastomers, prepared from silicone resins having a Shore A hardness ranging from 30 (MED-4930 from NuSil) to 80 (MED-4980 from NuSil), was evaluated in a manner similar to example 1.

(17) The results of this test are presented in FIG. 5. As shown in this figure, the hardness of the elastomer has little impact on the rate of infusion of the fragrance, the hardest materials being slightly less charged with fragrance than the softer materials.

(18) The rate of release of the fragrance by these various materials was also measured in a manner similar to example 2. As illustrated in FIG. 6, the hardness of the elastomer has a non-significant impact on the release properties of the fragrance, insofar as the slope of the curve obtained as a function of time varies little.