FABRIC CONDITIONING METHODS

摘要

Fibrous materials and manufactured articles which are washable, preferably in the form of damp laundry, are softened by being tumbled against a fabric conditioning article comprising a base and a coating thereon which includes either a nonionic surface active conditioning agent or a water soluble anionic surface active conditioning agent or a mixture thereof. The coating is transferable to the fibrous materials under the conditions of operation, usually in the presence of moisture and heat in an automatic laundry dryer, and the tumbling is continued for a period of time long enough to apply to the fibrous materials to be treated a coating of the conditioning substance sufficient to accomplish the desired conditioning. A portion of the softening substance penetrates the base and constitutes 10 to 30% of the portion exterior of the base. Preferred compositions of the coating include poly-lower alkoxy-containing compounds of molecular weights of from 300 to 6,000, which contain hydrophilic and lipophilic groups in balance and which are surface active, together with alkali metal higher fatty alcohol sulfates. Particularly preferred compositions comprise higher fatty acid mono-lower alkanolamides and higher fatty acid di-lower alkanolamides. These compositions are preferably coated onto form-retaining bases.