Antimicrobial polymer resins, fibers, and yarns with phosphorus content
View Patent ↗The present disclosure relates to polymer resins, fibers, and yarns with permanent antimicrobial activity, and a method of producing the same. In one embodiment, the antimicrobial polymer resin comprises a polymer having less than 2500 ppm of zinc dispersed within the polymer, less than 1000 ppm of phosphorus, wherein the weight ratio of zinc to phosphorus is at least 1.3:1 or less than 0.64:1.
1. A polymer resin composition having permanent antimicrobial properties comprising:
a polymer;
less than 2500 ppm of zinc dispersed within the polymer resin composition;
less than 1000 ppm of phosphorus;
wherein the weight ratio of the zinc to the phosphorus:
ranges from 3.0:1 to 30:1; or
is less than 0.5:1.
2. The polymer resin composition of claim 1 , wherein the relative viscosity of the polymer resin composition ranges from 20 to 100.
3. The polymer resin composition of claim 1 , wherein the polymer resin composition comprises from 200 ppm to 600 ppm of zinc.
4. The polymer resin composition of claim 1 , wherein the polymer resin composition comprises a delusterant including at least a portion of the phosphorus.
5. The polymer resin composition of claim 1 , wherein when antimicrobial fibers are formed from the polymer resin composition and when the antimicrobial fibers are dyed using a dye recipe having a pH greater than 4.5 to form dyed antimicrobial fibers, then the dyed antimicrobial fibers will have a zinc retention greater than 40%.
6. The polymer resin composition of claim 1 , wherein when antimicrobial fibers are formed from the polymer resin composition and when the antimicrobial fibers are dyed using a dye recipe having a pH greater than 5.0 to form dyed antimicrobial fibers, then the dyed antimicrobial fibers will have a zinc retention greater than 20%.
7. The polymer resin composition of claim 1 , wherein the zinc is provided via a zinc compound comprising zinc oxide, zinc acetate, zinc ammonium carbonate, zinc ammonium adipate, zinc stearate, zinc phenyl phosphinic acid, zinc pyrithione and/or combinations thereof.
8. The polymer resin composition of claim 1 , wherein the phosphorus is provided via a phosphorus compound comprising phosphoric acid, benzene phosphinic acid, benzene phosphonic acid, manganese hypophosphite, sodium hypophosphite, monosodium phosphate, hypophosphorous acid, phosphorous acid, and/or combinations thereof.
9. The polymer resin composition of claim 1 , wherein the polymer resin composition comprises less than 700 ppm of zinc, wherein the polymer resin composition comprises a delusterant including at least a portion of the phosphorus, wherein fibers formed from the polymer resin composition inhibits greater than 89% of S. aureus as measured by ISO 20743:2013, and wherein when antimicrobial fibers are formed from the polymer resin composition and when the antimicrobial fibers are dyed using a dye recipe having a pH greater than 4.5 to form dyed antimicrobial fibers, then the dyed antimicrobial fibers will have a zinc retention greater than 45%.
10. The polymer resin composition of claim 1 , wherein the polymer comprises nylon-6,6, wherein the zinc is provided via zinc oxide, wherein the weight ratio of zinc to phosphorus is at least 2:1, wherein the polymer resin composition inhibits greater than 95% of S. aureus as measured by ISO 20743:2013, and wherein when antimicrobial fibers are formed from the polymer resin composition and when the antimicrobial fibers are dyed using a dye recipe having a pH greater than 4.5 to form dyed antimicrobial fibers, then the dyed antimicrobial fibers will have a zinc retention greater than 60%.
11. Antimicrobial fibers having permanent antimicrobial properties comprising:
a polymer;
less than 2500 ppm of zinc dispersed within the polymer, and
less than 1000 ppm of phosphorus;
wherein the weight ratio of the zinc to the phosphorus:
ranges from 3.0:1 to 30:1; or
is less than 0.5:1; and
wherein the denier of the antimicrobial fiber is less than 12 dpf, and
wherein the fibers have a diameter less than 15 microns.
12. The antimicrobial fibers of claim 11 , wherein the fibers comprise 200 ppm to 600 ppm of zinc.
13. The antimicrobial fibers of claim 11 , wherein the antimicrobial fibers have a zinc retention greater than 20%.
14. The antimicrobial fibers of claim 11 , wherein the polymer comprises less than 700 ppm of zinc, wherein the polymer comprises a delusterant including at least a portion of the phosphorus, wherein the antimicrobial fibers inhibit greater than 89% of S. aureus as measured by ISO 20743:2013, and wherein the antimicrobial fibers, when dyed using a dye recipe having a pH greater than 4.5, will have a zinc retention greater than 45%.
15. The antimicrobial fibers of claim 11 , wherein the polymer comprises nylon-6,6, wherein the zinc is provided in the form of zinc oxide and/or zinc pyrithione, and/or zinc ammonium adipate, wherein the weight ratio of zinc to phosphorus is at least 2:1, wherein the antimicrobial fibers inhibit greater than 95% of S. aureus as measured by ISO 20743:2013, wherein the antimicrobial fibers, when dyed using a dye recipe having a pH greater than 4.5, will have a zinc retention greater than 60%, wherein the antimicrobial fibers have an average diameter less than 10 microns.
16. The polymer resin composition of claim 1 , wherein the weight ratio of the zinc to the phosphorus ranges from 3.0:1 to 20:1.
17. The polymer resin composition of claim 1 , polymer resin composition has a relative viscosity ranging from 5 to 100.