Claims
- 1. A method for cleaning and treating a surface of a vehicle, said method comprising the steps of:
(1) applying a cleaning solution to the surface of a vehicle wherein the cleaning solution comprises at least one water-soluble or water dispersible copolymer comprising, in the form of polymerized units
(a) at least one monomer compound of general formula I: 4 in which:
R1 is a hydrogen atom or a methyl or ethyl group; R2, R3, R4, R5 and R6, which are identical or different, are linear or branched C1-C6, preferably C1-C4, alkyl, hydroxyalkyl or aminoalkyl groups; m is an integer from 0 to 10, preferably from 0 to 2; n is an integer from 1 to 6, preferably from 2 to 4; Z represents a —C(O)O— or —C(O)NH— group or an oxygen atom; A represents a (CH2)p group, p being an integer from 1 to 6, preferably from 2 to 4; B represents a linear or branched C2-CI2, advantageously C3-C6, polymethylene chain optionally interrupted by one or more heteroatoms or heterogroups, in particular 0 or NH, and optionally substituted by one or more hydroxyl or amino groups, preferably hydroxyl groups; X, which are identical or different, represent counterions; (b) at least one hydrophilic monomer carrying a functional group with an acidic nature which is copolymerizable with (a) and which is capable of being ionized in the application medium; (c) optionally at least one monomer compound with ethylenic unsaturation with a neutral charge which is copolymerizable with (a) and (b), preferably a hydrophilic monomer compound with ethylenic unsaturation with a neutral charge, carrying one or more hydrophilic groups, which is copolymerizable with (a) and (b); (2) optionally contacting the surface of the vehicle with the cleaning solution thereon and agitating the cleaning solution to loosen dirt on the surface of the vehicle; (3) rinsing the surface of the vehicle to remove at least some of the cleaning solution; (4) at least partially removing any residue-forming substances remaining on the surface of the vehicle, if any residue-forming substances remain on the surface of the vehicle; (5) applying a treating composition to the surface of the vehicle, said treating composition comprising an effective amount of non-photoactive nanoparticles; (6) allowing the treating composition to dry on the surface of the vehicle before the surface of the vehicle is contacted by water.
- 2. The method of claim 1 wherein step (4) comprises towel-drying or forced air-drying the surface of the vehicle.
- 3. The method of claim 1 wherein step (4) comprises rinsing the surface of the vehicle with purified rinse water.
- 4. The method of claim 3 wherein the method is performed without a step of drying the surface of the vehicle after step (4).
- 5. The method of claim 1 wherein the cleaning composition applied in step (1) renders the surface of the vehicle hydrophilic.
- 6. The method of claim 5 wherein the step (4) comprises rinsing the surface of the vehicle with purified rinse water, and a plurality of beads appear on the surface of the vehicle during the step (4) of rinsing the surface of the vehicle with purified rinse water.
- 7. The method of claim 1 wherein the treating composition applied in step (5) comprises a wetting agent.
- 8. The method of claim 7 wherein said wetting agent comprises a nonionic surfactant comprising at least one of the following: ethylene oxide, propylene oxide, and mixtures thereof, primary aliphatic alcohols, secondary aliphatic alcohols, and mixtures thereof.
- 9. The method of claim 1 wherein the step (5) of applying the treating composition to the surface of the vehicle comprises spraying the treating composition onto the surface of the vehicle.
- 10. The method of claim 9 wherein the treating composition is sprayed onto the surface of the vehicle at a flow rate of less than or equal to about 8 gal./min.
- 11. The method of claim 1 wherein the treating composition applied in step (5) forms a film of non-photoactive nanoparticles having a thickness of less than or equal to about 400 nanometers.
- 12. The method of claim 1 wherein a single spray device is used for the application of at least two of the following steps: step (1) applying a cleaning solution to the surface of a vehicle; step (2) rinsing the surface of the vehicle to remove at least some of the cleaning solution; and step (5) applying a treating composition to the surface of the vehicle.
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED PATENT APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/950,757 filed on Sep. 11, 2001, which is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/875,311, filed on Jun. 6, 2001, which claims the benefit of the filing date of PCT international patent application US00/16349 filed on Jun. 14, 2000; U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/876,363, filed on Jun. 7, 2001, which claims the benefit of the filing date of provisional U.S. patent application Ser. No. 60/265,059, filed on Jan. 30, 2001; and U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/828,014 filed on Apr. 6, 2001.
Provisional Applications (1)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
|
60265059 |
Jan 2001 |
US |
Continuation in Parts (2)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
09950757 |
Sep 2001 |
US |
Child |
09972090 |
Oct 2001 |
US |
Parent |
09875311 |
Jun 2001 |
US |
Child |
09950757 |
Sep 2001 |
US |