WO2008132769A1

WO2008132769A1 - Detergentand disinfectant abrasive product

Info

Publication number: WO2008132769A1
Application number: PCT/IT2007/000576
Authority: WO
Inventors: Paolo Alessandro Sommacal
Original assignee: Bicar Jet Srl
Priority date: 2007-04-24
Filing date: 2007-08-06
Publication date: 2008-11-06
Also published as: ITPD20070158A1

Abstract

The invention is a new abrasive product for surfaces in general, comprising, in the form of a solid mixture, sodium bicarbonate in powder and/or in granules added to a disinfectant agent and/or biocide and/or to substances with detergent and/or aromatizing and/or perfuming action and/or to one or more medical products with specific action. The application process provides for the use of equipment with pressurised air and/or water, wherein said water is used at ambient temperature, comprising a device for the. production of compressed air which, via at least one chamber or Venluri tube and one or more valves, withdraws said abrasive product from a lank, metering it, and propels it to the outside.

Description

DETERGENTAND DISINFECTANT ABRASIVE PRODUCT

DESCRIPTION

The present patent concerns abrasive products and devices for cleaning and/or disinfection of surfaces in general, and in particular concerns a new detergent and disinfectant abrasive product, comprising sodium bicarbonate, in powder and/or in granules, added to disinfectant agents and/or biocides, for industrial and/or domestic use, and relative application process and devices. In particular, the new product is applied effectively and usefully in appropriately modified sandblasters or pressure washers. In industrial, domestic, hospital environments etc. the need often arises to thoroughly clean the surfaces by removing the substances deposited on them, such as oil, grease, organic or inorganic substances of various type, and to disinfect the surfaces themselves in order to limit the proliferation of bacteria and prevent infections from spreading.

Numerous chemical products are currently known that are used for cleaning or disinfecting surfaces in general, in which the detergent action of said products is performed mainly by the surface-active agents and solvents contained in them.

In addition to the products for normal cleaning, specific disinfectant products are also known that are able to eliminate the bacterial load present on the surface, guaranteeing greater effectiveness compared to the known products based on surface-active agents. The known products for cleaning and disinfecting surfaces in general have to be applied repeatedly in succession on the surface to be treated, in order to guarantee high cleaning efficiency. In particular, the product has to be applied several times on the surface to be treated in order to remove the polluting mass, i.e. the dirt, and then it has to be rinsed off.

For adequate disinfection, the disinfectant product must then be applied and, lastly, at least one further rinsing operation must be performed.

Thorough cleaning and disinfection are therefore time-consuming and hence costly in terms of labour.

Furthermore, to increase the efficiency of the detergent products it is expedient to use hot water, thus involving higher power consumption and energy costs.

In addition, hot water creates the ideal conditions for rapid resumption of bacterial proliferation on the surfaces treated.

A further -drawback deriving from use of the known detergent products consists in the high concentration of surface-active agents or other type of solvents present in said products, which are often harmful for humans who, without noticing, inhale or even swallow large quantities thereof. Furthermore, the waste water containing surface-active agents requires specific and costly purification treatment, using activated carbon filters or special membranes, since the surface-active agents, which create very stable emulsions, are not removed by traditional treatment in oil separators.

The cleaning method in which substances firmly adhering to the surfaces to be cleaned arc removed by abrasion is also known. Said method, commonly performed in known equipment such as sandblasters or pressure washers, consists substantially in blasting a large mass of granules of sand or other solid material, at high speed, against the contaminated surfaces.

In particular, a flow of air or water under pressure sucks the sand or abrasive material in granules from a tank and conveys it to a delivery nozzle from which the granules arc emitted at high speed. Some sandblasting processes include the use of water in addition to air and abrasive material in granules in order to more effectively remove the particles detached! Said physical method is frequently used for example for the removal of paints, grease, oil etc.

The method described involves numerous drawbacks, however, including considerable health risks for the workers who inhale large quantities of dust, problems connected with disposal of the waste left by the work processes, excessive aggressiveness on particular types of materials and lower efficiency compared to the chemical methods.

The subject of the present patent is a new type of detergent and disinfectant abrasive product for surfaces in general, which can be used particularly in sandblasting machines or pressure washers, for example appropriately modified, and relative process and devices for application of the same, wherein said product comprises, in the form of a solid mixture, sodium bicarbonate, in powder or granules, added to disinfectant agents and/or biocides.

The main aim of the present invention is to obtain high efficiency in mechanical removal of substances adhering to surfaces in general and, simultaneously, in cleaning and disinfection of said surfaces.

A further important object of the present invention is to eliminate the polluting load in the waste water, since the product does not contain surface- activc agents. A further object of the present invention is to guarantee a lasting disinfectant and anti-bacterial action, preventing resumption of bacterial proliferation on the surfaces treated. A further important advantage of the present invention also consists in the considerable reduction in cleaning times and therefore in the relative labour costs, since the new product simultaneously performs, in one single application-, the abrasive action, the detergent action and the disinfectant and/or biocide action. A further advantage deriving from use of the present invention lies in that energy costs are reduced, since the effectiveness of the product is guaranteed also by applying it with air and/or non-heated water and therefore without requiring the use of hot water.

These and other direct and complementary objects are achieved by the new detergent and disinfectant abrasive product for surfaces, which can be used in particular in sandblastcrs or pressure washers, and the relative process and devices for application of the same.

The product is substantially a solid mixture comprising sodium bicarbonate, in powder -or in granules, added to disinfectant agents and/or biocides in a variable quantity according to the type of active ingredient used.

In particular, according to the invention the disinfectant agent is present in a quantity of 5% and preferably between 0.5% and 20%.

Sodium bicarbonate has an excellent detergent, degreasing and deodorant action while disinfection is performed by the biocide. The new product can be used in the solid state, in a powder or granular form, and is applied to the surface to be treated by means of systems with air and/or water under pressure, thus also performing the abrasive action.

The application method exploits the pressure of the air and/or water to maximise the effectiveness of the detergent and abrasive action performed by the powder or granules of sodium bicarbonate.

The new product can also comprise further substances aiding the detergent and/or disinfectant action and/or further aromatizing or perfuming agents and/or medical products for specific applications in particular environments, such as hospitals and veterinary surgeries, in the presence of infective agents etc.

As previously illustrated, the new product is applied in ohe single solution, therefore reducing the successive repetitions required when applying the known detergent and disinfectant products.

Furthermore, since the product does not contain surface-active agents, there is a reduction in the cost of treatment and disposal of the waste rinsing water. A further advantage in environmental terms derives from the fact that hot water is not used, thus reducing power consumption and energy costs.

In addition to this, the antibacterial effectiveness is maintained for longer because using non-heated water instead of hot water avoids the creation of environmental conditions favourable to rapid resumption of bacterial proliferation.

Said abrasive product will be applied to surfaces in general using new equipment like dedicated sandblasters or pressure washers.

Said new equipment has the innovative aspect of using compressed air for delivery of the abrasive product, i.e. said solid mixture of bicarbonate with or without disinfectant agents, from the head of the sandblaster or pressure washer.

In this way it is possible to meter the abrasive product independently of the operating pressure of the water pump and, at the same time, use delivery or feed pipes of considerable length, for example longer than 5 metres, without clogging of the solid abrasive product on the inner walls of the pipe due to friction, generating irregularities or even interruptions_! in supply of the material to the head of the equipment. As is known, the so-called sandblasting heads of the pressure washers currently on the market are provided with a short feed pipe in order to prevent clogging as described above. On the contrary, the new equipment used for application of the new abrasive

.product can be adapted to existing pressurised water systems by means of accessories or adaptation kits described below.

For example, food industry factories usually have high-pressure pumping stations with distribution network throughout the premises. This limits application of the known pressure washers or sandblasters, since they require a pumping unit which must be purposely purchased.

The new equipment for application of the new abrasive product solves this problem as it comprises at least one hopper/tank to contain the abrasive product, i.e. bicarbonate with the addition of disinfectant agents, at least one chamber or Venturi tube fed, via one or more valves, with compressed air generated by a small compressor or taken from an external source, if present.

The new equipment furthermore comprises at least two switches, one of which for general operation and one for excluding the abrasive product during the rinsing phases.

Therefore, with reference to the preceding description and the details illustrated, the following claims are made.

Claims

1. Abrasive product for surfaces in general, characterized in that it comprises, in the form of a solid mixture, sodium bicarbonate in powder and/or in granules added to at least one disinfectant agent and/or biocide.

2. Abrasive product according to claim I₃ characterized in that said disinfectant agent and/or biocide is present in a concentration of between 0.5 and 20%.

3. Abrasive product according to claims I₃ 2, characterized in that it also comprises one or more further substances with detergent and/or disinfectant action added to said mixture.

4. Abrasive product according to claims 1, 2 or 3, characterized in that it also comprises one or more further aromatizing and/or perfuming agents added to said mixture.

5. Abrasive product according to claims 1 , 2 or 3 or 4, characterized in that it also comprises one or more medical products with specific action added to said mixture.

6. Process for abrasive treatment of surfaces, characterized in that it comprises the phase of application of the product, as in claims I₃ 2, 3, 4, 5, to the surface to be treated via the use of equipment with pressurised air and water, wherein said water is used at ambient temperature.

7. Process for abrasive treatment of surfaces, characterized in that it comprises the phase of. application of the product, as in claims 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, to the surface to be treated via the use of equipment with pressurised air or water, wherein said water is used at ambient temperature.^'

8. Process according to claims 6 or 7, characterized in that it comprises the final rinsing phase.

9. Equipment for application of an abrasive product for surfaces in general, according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that it comprises at least one device for the production of compressed air which, via at least one chamber or Venturi tube and one or more valves, withdraws and meters said abrasive product from a tank and propels it to the outside, through at least one delivery or feed pipe, maintaining sufficient product fluidity inside the pipe.

10. Equipment according to claim 9, characterized in that it comprises at least one device for mixing air and/or water with said abrasive product, comprising at least one chamber suitable for permitting contact and distribution of the abrasive material with the jet of air and/or water necessary for imparting kinetic energy to the abrasive product.

11. Equipment according to claims 10, 11, characterized in that it comprises at least one switch for exclusion of the abrasive product at least during the rinsing phases.