The scientific designing of systems for effecting controlled and sustained release of fragrances and malodour counteractants from semi-solid substrates including fabric, human skin and hair surfaces into the environment proximate such substrates has been the subject of ongoing investigations. Such systems include the targeted deposition onto substrate surfaces for extended periods of time of rupturable microcapsules composed of thin polymeric walls and containing substantial quantities of monophasic liquid compositions of such fragrance compositions and malodour counteractant compositions.
In designing and then employing such systems it has been found necessary to achieve optimization of (a) the nature and content of the targeted microcapsules, such as microcapsule dimensions, including average effective diameters and average wall thickness, polymer wall composition, specific ingredients, weight ratio of capsule wall: functional product composition, ratios of microcapsule volume:substrate area to which microcapsules are adhered and loaded, microcapsule weight:substrate area to which microcapsules are adhered in combination with (b) their respective rates of release of the functional products contained therein as a function of time, temperature and abrading use thereof, such as rubbing fabrics or skin having the microcapsules adhered thereto or, brushing of groups of hair follicles to which the microcapsules are adhered to.
Accordingly, a need has been found to exist for (a) simulating such abrading use in the laboratory, and (b) enabling analytical measurement of the results of such abrading use on a continuing basis, including analytical measurement over an extended period of time of the several components of the headspace composition proximate the microcapsule-bearing substrate being abraded, as well as the rate of change of the several components of the headspace composition proximate the microcapsule-bearing substrate being abraded with respect to time and temperature.
The prior art discloses techniques for enabling the analysis of fragrances, including movement-activated fragrances adsorbed onto a porous substrate and evolving into the environment proximate such substrate, such as, towels as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,511,852 and 6,495,375. In addition, the use of relatively large and dense objects having a high degree of surface hardness, such as, steel spheres, for causing formation of dust from vinyl polymer-coated granules for the purpose of enabling analytical measurements, such as, analysis of vinyl polymer-coated enzyme granule dust is disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,324,649 and 5,879,920 and published U.S. Patent Applications 2001/0056177 and 2002/0193275, wherein reference is made therein to the “Heubach attrition test”. The Heubach attrition test is described in detail in “Enzymes in Detergency”, ed. Jan H. Van Ee et al. (Marcel Dekker, N.Y., 1997) at pages 310-312 of Chapter 15 (Becker et al. “Formulation of Detergent Enzymes”). A schematic diagram of the Heubach apparatus is set forth on page 312, FIG. 3b. In addition, (i) for effecting particle size reduction, U.S. Patent Application 2001/0016259 A1, discloses the use of mobile steel balls maintained in motion by means of the operation of a shaker, and (ii) for effecting solubilization of solids in liquids, U.S. Pat. No. 5,672,456 discloses the use of a reciprocating shaker to hasten the dissolution process.
However, nothing in the prior art discloses or infers any method or apparatus for effectively and efficiently enabling the qualitative and/or quantitative chemical analysis of the components of the headspace above abraded microencapsulates containing fragrances and/or malodour counteractants as a result of the simulated abrading use such as rubbing and/or brushing on such functional product-containing microcapsules which are affixed to a semi-solid substrate, including fabric, skin or hair follicles.