Film containing compositions

Abstract

An oral care, personal care or cleansing composition with a carrier comprising a functional material and at least two polymers. One polymer has a greater solubility in water than the other polymer; one of the polymers may be water-soluble and the other polymer water-insoluble. The polymers are selected and apportioned to provide at least one of the following: (1) a desired stability of the film in the composition, (2) a desired rate of disintegration of the film during use of the composition, and (3) a desired rate of delivery of the functional material during use of the composition.

Description

Claims

1. A composition comprising a carrier comprising a film, wherein the film comprises a first polymer having a first solubility and a second polymer having a second solubility, wherein the first solubility is greater than the second solubility in water.

2. The composition of claim 1, wherein the carrier is non-aqueous.

3. The composition according to claim 1, wherein the first polymer is substantially water-soluble and the second polymer is substantially water-insoluble.

4. The composition according to claim 1, wherein a weight ratio of the first polymer and the second polymer is about 20 to 1 to about 1 to 20.

5. The composition according to claim 1, wherein the film further comprises a functional material.

6. The composition according to claim 1, wherein the functional material is an active agent.

7. The composition according to claim 1, wherein the functional material comprises at least one selected from the group consisting of therapeutic active materials, flavorants, colorants, pearlescent materials, beads, cosmetic materials, fragrances, and combinations thereof.

8. The composition according to claim 1, wherein the second polymer is selected from the group consisting of crosslinked poly(vinyl pyrrolidone), poly(vinyl acetate), cellulose acetate, cellulose nitrate, alkyl cellulose, cellulose, cellulose acetate phthalate, shellac, ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymers, acrylic copolymers, dispersed acrylic copolymers, and combinations thereof.

9. The composition according to claim 1, wherein the first polymer is selected from the group consisting of poly(vinyl pyrrolidone), poly(vinyl pyrrolidone/vinyl acetate) copolymers, ethylene oxide graft copolymers of poly(vinyl alcohol), hydroxylated and carboxylated celluloses, and combinations thereof.

10. The composition according to claim 1, further comprising a poly(vinyl pyrrolidone/vinyl acetate) copolymer.

11. The composition according to claim 1, wherein the carrier has a yield value of about 3 to about 20 Pascal and a viscosity of about 2,000 to about 20,000 centipoise.

12. The composition according to claim 1, wherein the carrier is thixotropic and has a viscosity of at least about 4,000 centipoise.

13. The composition according to claim 1, wherein the carrier comprises a hydrophobic phase.

14. The composition according to claim 13, wherein the aqueous phase of the carrier and the hydrophobic components of the carrier are present in a ratio of about 1:1 by weight to about 10:0.01 by weight.

15. The composition according to claim 5, wherein the functional material is selected from the group consisting of flavorants, fragrances, essential oils, emulsifying agents, thickening agents, colorants, cooling agents, sweeteners, binding agents, surfactants, sulfur precipitating agents, plasticizing agents, pharmaceutical actives, salivary stimulants, stain prevention actives, anti-microbial agents, vitamins, herbs and herbal extracts, amino acids, enzymes and other proteins, abrasives, anti-caries agents, whitening agents, odor control agents, breath freshening agents, tartar control actives, plaque control agents, periodontal actives, antiperspirant actives, deodorant actives, conditioning agents, moisturizers, hair colorants, ultraviolet light absorbers, antioxidants, humectants, pigments, color stabilizers, hydrophilic actives, lipophilic actives, and combinations thereof.

16. A personal cleansing composition, comprising an carrier that has a yield value of about 3 to about 20 Pascal and a viscosity of about 2,000 to about 20,000 centipoise anda film comprising a plurality of film pieces comprising a functional material, a substantially water-soluble polymer, and a substantially water-insoluble polymer.

17. The personal cleansing composition according to claim 16, wherein the carrier comprises a crosslinked, alkali-swellable polyacrylate.

18. The personal cleansing composition according to claim 17, wherein the polyacrylate comprises about 20% to about 80% by weight carboxylic acid-functional monomers.

19. The personal cleansing composition according to claim 16, wherein the carrier has a structure that maintains the film pieces substantially suspended.

20. The personal cleansing composition according to claim 16, wherein the carrier comprises a surfactant selected from an amphoteric surfactant, an anionic surfactant, a cationic surfactant, and an amphoteric surfactant.

21. The personal cleansing composition according to claim 16, wherein the aqueous carrier comprises an acrylate copolymer that exhibits thixotropic behavior in the carrier.

22. The personal cleansing composition according to claim 16, wherein the carrier comprises the acrylate copolymer in an amount of about 1.5% to about 5% by weight of the carrier.

23. The personal cleansing composition according to claim 16, wherein the carrier comprises about 5 weight % to about 15 weight % of a surfactant selected from the group consisting of anionic surfactants, amphoteric surfactants, cationic surfactants, betaine surfactants, and combinations thereof.

24. The personal cleansing composition according to claim 16, wherein the carrier comprises at least one anionic surfactant and at least one amphoteric or quaternary surfactant.

25. The personal cleansing composition according to claim 16, comprising about 0.05 to about 10 weight % of film pieces.

26. The personal cleansing composition according to claim 16, comprising about 1 to about 5 weight % of film pieces.

27. The personal cleansing composition according to claim 16, wherein the functional material comprises at least one member selected from the group consisting of colorants, texturing agents, and fragrances.

28. The personal cleansing composition according to claim 16, wherein the functional material comprises at least one active agent.

29. The personal cleansing composition according to claim 16, wherein the substantially water-soluble polymer is selected from the group consisting of poly(vinyl pyrrolidone), poly(vinyl pyrrolidone/vinyl acetate) copolymers, ethylene oxide graft copolymers of poly(vinyl alcohol), hydroxylated and carboxylated celluloses, and combinations thereof.

30. The personal cleansing composition according to claim 16, wherein the substantially water-insoluble polymer is selected from the group consisting of crosslinked poly(vinyl pyrrolidone), acrylic copolymer, acrylic copolymer dispersion, poly(vinyl acetate), cellulose acetate, cellulose nitrate, alkyl cellulose, cellulose, cellulose acetate phthalate, shellac, ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymers, and combinations thereof.

31. The personal cleansing composition according to claim 16, wherein the film pieces further comprise a poly(vinyl pyrrolidone/vinyl acetate) copolymer.

32. The personal cleansing composition according to claim 16, wherein the film pieces comprise the water-soluble polymer in an amount of about 0.1 to about 90 weight % and the water-insoluble polymer in an amount of about 0.1 to about 70 weight % of the film.

33. The personal cleansing composition according to claim 16, wherein the film pieces comprise the water-soluble polymer in an amount of about 10 to about 90 weight % and the water-insoluble polymer in an amount of about 5 to about 90 weight %.

34. The personal cleansing composition according to claim 16, wherein the film pieces comprise a weight ratio of water-soluble polymer to water-insoluble polymer of about 10 to 1 to about 1 to 10.

35. The personal cleansing composition according to claim 16, wherein the film pieces further comprise a water-soluble filler.

36. The personal cleansing composition according to claim 16, wherein the film pieces comprise the water-soluble polymer, the water-insoluble polymer, and a second functional material.

37. A personal cleansing composition comprising a thixotropic carrier having a viscosity of at least about 2,000 centipoise; anda plurality of film pieces comprising a functional material, a water-soluble polymer, and a water-insoluble polymer.

38. An oral care composition comprising a film, wherein the film comprises a first polymer having a first solubility and a second polymer having a second solubility, wherein the first solubility is greater than the second solubility in water.

39. The oral care composition of claim 38, wherein the first polymer is substantially water-soluble and the second polymer is substantially water-insoluble.

40. The oral care composition of claim 38, wherein the film further comprises a functional agent selected from a fluoride ion source, an anticaries agent, an antiattachment agent, a zinc ion source, an antibacterial agent, an arginine ester, triclosan, delmopinol, a flavorant, a peptide, an amino acid, an enzyme, a peroxide, an abrasive, am essential oil, a colorant, and a sensate.

41. The oral care composition of claim 38, wherein the composition is in a form selected from a paste, a gel, a mouthrinse, a powder, and a confectionary.

42. A home care composition comprising a film, wherein the film comprises a first polymer having a first solubility and a second polymer having a second solubility, wherein the first solubility is greater than the second solubility in water.

43. The home care composition of claim 42, wherein the first polymer is substantially water-soluble and the second polymer is substantially water-insoluble.

44. The home care composition of claim 42, wherein the film further comprises a functional agent selected from a grease cutting agent, a clay, a fabric conditioning agent, a perfume, a colorant, a bleaching agent, an abrasive, an essential oil, and an enzyme.

45. The home care composition of claim 42, wherein the composition is in a form selected from a light duty cleaning liquid, a heavy duty cleaning liquid, a fabric conditioning composition, and a hard surface cleaning composition.

46. A method of making an oral care, personal care or cleansing composition comprising incorporating into a carrier composition a plurality of film pieces comprising two polymers, one polymer being more soluble in water than the other polymer, and a functional material.

47. The method according to claim 46, wherein the film pieces are substantially stable in the carrier composition but release the functional material at a desired rate when the composition is used.

48. A method for making a functional material available for cleansing or treatment of a surface, comprising applying a composition comprising a carrier comprising a film, wherein the film comprises a functional material and at least two polymers, one of which polymers is water soluble and another polymer that is less water soluble or water-insoluble, wherein the film provides a desired rate of release of the functional material during the applying of the composition.