Silicone-polyalkylene oxide copolymer

High soil-release performance, excellent softness and combinability with fluorocarbon finishes may be achieved by special silicone/polyalkylene oxide copolymers. The silicone segments contain hydrophobic dimethylsiloxane structures and hydrophilic silicone modifications with ethoxylated or amino group-containing side groups. The different hydrophilic-lipophilic balance (HLB) of the polyalkylene blocks is adjusted by the ratio of hydrophobic (polypropylene oxide) and hydrophilic (polyethylene oxide) components. 

A significant amount of information regarding the uses of silicone surfactants is still found primarily in the patent art, but the major applications have recently been reviewed in journals. Silicone (or siloxane) surfactants are also called silicone polyethers (SPEs), polyalkylene oxide silicone copolymers, silicone poly(oxyalkylene) copolymers and silicone glycols. The International Cosmetic Ingredient Nomenclature and the Cosmetic, Toiletry and Fragrance Association (CTFA) adopted name is dimethicone copolyol. 

The capped allyl polyalkylene oxide can also be based upon propylene oxide or a mixed ethylene oxide-propylene oxide copolymer. The resulting structure is a comb polymer, with pendant capped hydrophilic groups. In aqueous solution, the hydrophilic groups may form a sheath around the hydrophobic silicone backbone to minimize its contact with the water. 

All types of conventional non-ionic surfactants have at one time or another been recommended for use in polyester and, in certain instances, in polyether polyurethanes. However, the predominant surfactants used today are the silicones. These materials are block or graft copolymers or polydimethyl siloxanes and polyalkylene oxides. The polyether part is usually a copolymer of propylene and ethylene oxides. Variations in the commercially available surfactants are in the molecular weight and the weight ratio of the two blocks, the ratio of ethylene oxide to propylene oxide in the polyether portion, and the type of link between the silicone and... 

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