US 20100204395A1 (19) United States (12) Patent Application Publication (10) Pub. No.: US 2010/0204395 A1 Rajaraman (43) Pub. Date: Aug. 12, 2010 (54) LIQUID COLOR CONCENTRATE FOR Related U.S. Application Data POLYESTER ARTICLES (60) Provisional application No. 60/974,616, filed on Sep. (75) Inventor: Hari Rajaraman, Chardon, OH 24, 2007. (US) Publication Classification Correspondence Address: POLYONE CORPORATION (51) Int. Cl. AVON LAKE, OH 44012 (US) C09D 5/00 (2006.01) (73) Assignee: PolyOne Corporation, Avon Lake, (52) U.S. Cl. .................................... 524/559; 106/287.26 OH (US) (57) ABSTRACT (21)21) Appl. NoNo.: 12/679,6279 A liquid color concentrate is disclosed, having a polyalkylene (22) PCT Filed: Sep. 23, 2008 polyol carrier, colorant; and optionally other functional addi 9 tives. The colorant can be one or more pigments, one or more (86). PCT No.: PCT/US08/77311 dyes, or combination thereof. The liquid color concentrate is compatible with polyalkylene terephthalate resins, especially S371 (c)(1), to make colored polyester beverage bottles and other polyes (2), (4) Date: Mar. 23, 2010 ter articles. US 2010/0204395 A1 Aug. 12, 2010 LIQUID COLOR CONCENTRATE FOR 0011. Another feature of the present invention is that the POLYESTER ARTICLES colorant can include pigment(s), dye(s), or both as needed by the polymer engineer and product designer to achieve desired CLAIM OF PRIORITY color effects. 0012. Other features will become apparent from a descrip 0001. This application claims priority from U.S. Provi tion of the embodiments of the invention. sional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/974,616 bearing Attor ney Docket Number 12007018 and filed on Sep. 24, 2007, which is incorporated by reference. EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION (0013 Liquid Polyalkylene Polyol FIELD OF THE INVENTION 0014. The liquid carrier can be a liquid polymer (ho 0002 This invention relates to use of a liquid polymeras a mopolymer or copolymer) of one or more alkyl polyols. Of carrier for colorants used as a concentrate for making colored the possible candidates, polyalkylene glycols are preferred. polyester articles. Of those, polyethylene glycol is most preferred. 0015 Suitable polyalkylene glycols should have a weight BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION average molecular weight ranging from about 200 to about 8000, and preferably from about 200 to about 800, and most 0003 Plastic has taken the place of other materials in a preferably about 200, which is why the preferred polyethyl variety of industries. In the packaging industry, plastic has ene glycol product is referred to as PEG 200. replaced glass to minimize breakage, reduce weight, and 0016. The liquid polymer can have a glass transition tem reduce energy consumed in manufacturing and transport. In perature ranging from about -15° C. to about 100° C., and other industries, plastic has replaced metal to minimize cor preferably from about 10° C. to about 60° C. and most pref rosion, reduce weight, and provide color-in-bulk products. erably about 25° C. 0004 Attracting consumers to purchase individually 0017 Non-limiting examples of commercially available sized or family-sized containers includes branding and trade polyalkylene polyol include Pluracol E200 from BASF and dress. Among the elements of valuable trade dress is the color Lumulse PEG 200 brand polyethylene glycol from Lambent of the container. Moreover, such color may need to co-exist Technologies of Gurnee, Ill., USA. These branded products with translucency, transparency, or other special effects for are offered to the market as PEGs Of them, Lumulse PEG 200 the bottle. is particularly preferred, because polyethylene glycol is par 0005 Liquid colorants are being extensively to color poly ticularly compatible with polyesters such as polyethylene ester (such as polyethylene terephthalate or PET) articles, terephthalate (PET), polytrimethylene terephthalate (PTT), such as beverage bottles. Many of the applications in PET are and polybutylene terephthalate (PBT). tints and have very low loading of colorants. Some existing products base their carrier on a blend of sorbitan mono-oleate 0018 Colorant and dioctyl adipate. In many tint applications, this carrier 0019. As explained above, colorant can be a pigment, a system yields liquid dispersions with low viscosity. Unfortu dye, a combination of pigments, a combination of dyes, a nately, liquid products with low viscosity have a poor shelf combination of pigments and dye, a combination of pigment life, because the colorants tend to settle, and this could lead to and dyes, or a combination of pigments and dyes. The choice color variation in blow molded PET bottles. of colorants depends on the ultimate color desired by the 0006 To counteract shelf life problems, often thickeners designer for the plastic article. based on silica are added to the liquid color concentrate 0020. The science of coloris well knownto those skilled in increase viscosity. But these silica-based thickeners are dif the art. Without undue experimentation, one can use color ficult to process and control of Viscosity during processing matching techniques to identify a particular location in becomes difficult. spherical color space. For example, one skilled in the art can use the teachings of PCT Patent Application US2004/012233 SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION to digitally map color space using specific polymer carriers and colorants as raw material ingredients. Alternatively, one 0007 What the art needs is a liquid carrier for color con can make Small samples called plaques for visual review. centrates for polyester articles that has sufficient viscosity to 0021 Colorants are commercially available from a num forestall shelf life problem and avoid the use of silica-based ber of sources well known to those skilled in the art. Com thickeners. mercially available pigments are well known to those skilled 0008. The present invention solves the problem in the art in the art and include organic and inorganic colorant chemis by using a liquid polyethylene glycol as a carrier for color tries. Commercially available dyes are well known to those concentrates for polyester articles. skilled in the art and include all organic chemistries. Com 0009. One aspect of the invention is a color concentrate for mercial sources for pigments and dyes include multinational polyester articles, comprising: (a) a carrier comprising a liq companies such as BASF, Bayer, Ciba-Geigy, Color-Chem uid polyalkylene polyol (b) colorant; and optionally (c) at International, Sun Chemical, Zhuhai Skyhigh Chemicals, and least one functional additive. others identified at Internet Web Sites such as http://www. 0010. One feature of the present invention is that com colorpro.com/info/vendors/colorant.html and http://diriya pounding the color concentrate of the present invention using hoo.com/Business and Economy/Business to Business/ polyethylene polyol as the carrier permits proper viscosity for Chemicals and Allied Products/Pigments and Dyes/ good processing and storage and also permits letdown into the 0022 Table 1 lists 8 commercially available pigment colo compounding equipment, via a fluid addition to the equip rants in a variety of primary and secondary colors, 5 chromat ment. ics, 2 blacks, and 1 white. US 2010/0204395 A1 Aug. 12, 2010 TABLE 1. TABLE 2-continued Commercial Pigment Colorants Commercial Dye Colorants Raw Material Raw Material Name CI Name Family COLOR. FDA Name CI Name Family Color FDA Key Plast Solvent Quinophthalone Yellow N TIOXIDE PIGMENT INORGANIC WHITE Y Yellow AG Yellow 114 R-FC6 WHITE WHITE 6 REGAL 66OR PIGMENT ORGANIC N *As publicized by the commercial producer or as tested by the applicant, or both. BLACK BLACK7 POWDER both. MPC CHANNEL PIGMENT ORGANIC Y 0024 Preferably, colorants include colorants intended for BLACK BLACK7 transparent or translucent plastic polyester articles, although HELIOGEN PIGMENT ORGANIC BLUE Y BLUE K7090 BLUE 15:3 colorants intended for opaque plastic articles are not excluded Heliogen PIGMENT ORGANIC BLUE Y from consideration. Blue K6903 BLUE B 15:1 0025 Achievement of a color match of a plaque with a 34L2OOO PIGMENT INORGANIC BLUE Y desired color from the creativity of a designer or a pre-ar AZURE BLUE BLUE 28 ranged color standard Such as Pantone(R) color standards from SICOTAN PIGMENT INORGANIC YELLOW Y an inventory of commercially available colorants is relatively YELLOW BROWN 24 straightforward for a skilled color matcher, even if a few SICOTAN PIGMENT INORGANIC YELLOW Y iterations are required to satisfy the customer. YELLOW YELLOW 53 0026. The concentration of colorant into a carrier is sig K 1011 nificant because of the relative cost of the colorant ingredient (s) and the need for that color to consistently and precisely *As publicized by the commercial producer or as tested by the applicant, or both. mix and disperse into the carrier and then to consistently and precisely dilute into the plastic resin and other compound 0023 Table 2 shows 14 commercially available dyes. ingredients during “letdown of the concentrate in mixing equipment prior to formation of the pre-form embryonic TABLE 2 bottles or other articles. Letdown ratios depend on the con centration of colorant in the color concentrate and whether Commercial Dye Colorants the final molded product is intended to be opaque, translu Raw Material cent, or transparent. Name CI Name Family Color 0027 Concentration of concentrate after letdown into the Solvent Anthraquinone Blue final molded product can range from about 0.05 to about 0.2 Blue 59 weight percent, and preferably from about 0.1 to about 0.5 Solvent Anthraquinone Blue weight percent. Blue 97 0028. The mixing equipment used to make the liquid color Solvent Anthraquinone Green concentrate can be any Suitable equipment already used in the Green 28 art of making liquid color. For example, such equipment includes high speed “Cowles’ type dispersors, media mills, Solvent Anthraquinone Green three-roll mills and rotor-stator type dispersors Green 3 0029 Mixing equipment can operate at mixing speeds Disperse Polymethine Orange ranging from about 100 rpm to about 10,000 rpm, and pref Orange 47 erably from about 500 to about 8000 rpm.