Field of the Invention This invention is directed to a method for conducting a laundry business. More particularly, the invention is directed to a method for cleaning fabrics wherein soiled laundry fabrics are picked up, cleaned and delivered to the consumers requesting service.

Background of the Invention Many commercial dry cleaning establishments exist around the world today. Such establishments require that the consumer drop off his or her soiled clothing at the dry cleaning establishment and pick up the clothing at a later time after the soiled clothing has been cleaned.

Other cleaning businesses clean ordinary laundry (e. g., laundry cleaned with detergent and water). Like the dry cleaning establishments, these cleaning businesses also require

that the consumer drop off his or her soiled clothing at the cleaning business and pick up the clothing at a time after the soiled clothing has been washed.

Conventional cleaning facilities, unfortunately, are not fully responsive to the needs of families subject to the demands in the new millenium. This is true because most cleaning facilities require that the customer drop off and pick up his or her own clothes. Also, most cleaning facilities are not equipped to clean both ordinary laundry and laundry requiring dry cleaning. Moreover, conventional dry-cleaning facilities are beginning to become less desirable since they typically clean garments with environmentally unfriendly solvents like perchloroethylene. This invention, therefore, is directed to a method for conducting a laundry business. The laundry business contains the capacity to pick up, clean and deliver laundry to customers requesting service. The laundry business provides environmentally friendly dry cleaning alternatives, is cost competitive and does not cause damage to soiled laundry fabrics targeted for cleaning.

Background Material Efforts have been disclosed for dry cleaning with environmentally friendly solvents. In U. S. Patent No.

5,676,705, a dry cleaning method which employs densified carbon dioxide is described.

Other efforts have been disclosed for dry cleaning with carbon dioxide. In U. S. Patent No. 5,683,473, dry cleaning with carbon dioxide and a surfactant is described.

Still further, U. S. Patent No. 5,683,977 discloses, a superior dry cleaning system with carbon dioxide and a surfactant adjunct.

Summary of the Invention In a first aspect, this invention is directed to a method for conducting a laundry business comprising the steps of: (a) collecting soiled laundry fabric from a customer at a residential home or a customer at a business and transporting the soiled laundry fabric collected to a cleaning facility of the laundry business, or (b) gathering soiled laundry fabric from a central laundry drop off location, the central laundry drop off location being within the cleaning facility of the laundry business or at a location which is at a driving distance of the cleaning facility of the laundry business, (c) or both; (d) cleaning the soiled laundry fabric to produce clean laundry fabric; and (e) delivering the clean laundry fabric to the customer or allowing the customer to pick up the clean laundry fabric at a pick up location, with the proviso that the laundry business is of the type whereby a first portion of soiled laundry fabric is cleaned with a first dry cleaning technique that uses a densified gas at a cleaning temperature and pressure, and a second portion of soiled laundry fabric is cleaned with a second dry cleaning

technique that does not comprise carbon dioxide wherein the first portion of soiled laundry fabric does not comprise fabric having a glass transition temperature in the densified gas of less than about the cleaning temperature of the densified gas used in the first dry cleaning technique.

In a second aspect, this invention is directed to a laundry business that separates clothing (requiring dry cleaning) into at least a first portion and a second portion wherein the first portion of clothing is cleaned in a densified gas at a cleaning temperature and pressure and the second portion of clothing is not cleaned in carbon dioxide, the first portion of clothing not comprising fabric having a glass transition temperature of less than about the cleaning temperature in the densified gas.

In a third aspect, this invention is directed to the laundry business as described in the first and second aspects of this invention further comprising the step of separating a third portion of soiled laundry fabric to be cleaned with water and detergent (e. g., ordinary laundry).

In a fourth aspect, this invention is directed to a laundry business in a building for carrying out at least a portion of the laundry business set forth in the first three aspects of this invention.

As used throughout, any fabric, including portion of fabric or fabric fibers (requiring dry cleaning) cleaned in a densified gas (e. g., carbon dioxide) will be referred to as and defined to mean a high glass transition temperature (Tg) fabric and any fabric, inlcuding portion of fabric or fabric fibers (requiring dry cleaning) cleaned by a dry cleaning technique

that does not comprise carbon dioxide will be referred to as and defined to mean a low Tg fabric. The fabrics described herein are made of fibers natural or synthetic and cleaning temperature is defined to mean the temperature during cleaning.

Such a temperature is typically from about 0. 0°C to about 100°C, and preferably, from about 5.0°C to about 40°C, most preferably, from about 8.0°C to about 25°C, including all ranges subsumed therein. Cleaning pressure is defined to mean the pressure of the densified gas during cleaning which is typically from about 14.7 to about 10,000 psi, and preferably, from about 250 to about 4,000 psi, and most preferably, from about 650 to about 900 psi.

Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiments As noted above, it has become increasingly difficult in the new millenium for family members to manage basic household chores. Moreover, consumers are very concerned with the environment and particularly prefer that harmful chemicals are not used to, for example, dry clean their clothing. Attempts have been made to dry clean clothing with environmentally friendly solvents. However, certain friendly solvents, such as densified gases like densified carbon dioxide, have demonstrated that fabric shrinkage can occur when the soiled laundry fabric being cleaned in carbon dioxide has a glass transition temperature of less than about the temperature of the carbon dioxide in the actual dry cleaning system. The superior business method described in this invention is designed to make household chores much less burdensome for the consumer, while at the same time cleaning fabrics in a manner which is safe for the environment as well as the fabrics being cleaned.

The soiled laundry fabric which is accumulated via this invention is limited only to the extent that the fabric may be cleaned in a commercial fabric cleaning facility or in a household machine. Such soiled laundry fabric includes men's and women's suits, coats, rugs, slacks, curtains, upholstery and shirts. The soiled laundry fabric may be collected from the consumer at his or her home, place of business, or both.

The collecting of the soiled laundry fabric is achieved by the laundry business of this invention via delivery personnel utilizing delivery vehicles such as vans. The soiled laundry fabric which is collected by the delivery personnel is delivered to a cleaning facility of the laundry business of this invention (usually in, for example, laundry sacks).

Soiled laundry fabric may also be gathered at a central laundry drop off location. The central laundry drop off location may be directly within the cleaning facility of the laundry business or at a location which is at a driving distance from the cleaning facility. If, for example, the consumer drops soiled laundry fabric off at a central laundry drop off location not located within the cleaning facility of the laundry business, delivery personnel will pick up and deliver such soiled laundry fabric to a cleaning facility of the laundry business. As used herein, central laundry drop off location is defined to include a box or bin (e. g., container or locker) capable of holding soiled laundry fabric as well as an actual laundry store with or without laundry cleaning machines.

Cleaning facility, as used herein, is designed to mean an actual laundry store with laundry cleaning machines or a facility with laundry cleaning machines and no actual laundry store. Pick up location, as used herein, is defined to mean any box, bin, building or store front where the consumer can

pick up his or her cleaned fabric. Driving distance is meant to mean less than about 250 kilometers. Laundry, as used herein, is defined to mean the cleaning of fabrics via emersion in water or a non-aqueous solvent.

Regarding the soiled laundry fabric accumulated by the laundry business of this invention (e. g., the soiled laundry fabric collected by the laundry business and gathered at the drop off locations), such soiled laundry fabric accumulated may be monitored by any inventory control means known in the art.

Such inventory control means include stamping the soiled laundry fabrics with a heat stamp, using conventional bar codes, using conventional paper tags and receipts, labeling laundry sacks (e. g., especially when the consumer uses a laundry drop off location) or using conventional radio frequency inventory chips such as those made commercially available by SCS Corporation.

Subsequent to accumulating the soiled laundry fabric, the high and low Tg soiled laundry fabric are separated. This separation is achieved by, for example, a laundry technician reading the labels on the soiled laundry fabrics. Also, if soiled laundry fabrics are accumulated that do not require dry cleaning, such fabrics are separated by, for example, the same laundry technician. Optionally, the laundry technician may use an analytical device such as an infrared spectrophotometer or an ultra violet/visible spectrophotometer to assist in identifying the fabrics.

Therefore, three portions of soiled laundry fabric may be accumulated by the laundry business of this invention. The first portion of soiled laundry fabric and the second portion of soiled laundry fabric (both requiring dry cleaning) are,

again, soiled laundry fabric with a high and low Tg, respectively. The third portion of soiled laundry fabric is fabric not requiring dry cleaning.

In this invention, the first portion of the soiled laundry fabric that has a high glass transition temperature as described above (and does require dry cleaning) is preferably cleaned with a densified gas such as densified carbon dioxide.

(Other densified gases may be used and they include propane as described in U. S. Patent Nos. 5,158,704 and 5,266,205, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference).

Such a densified gas is a gas at standard temperature and pressure and is the preferred solvent employed in this invention to clean soiled laundry fabric that, again, does not comprise acetate as described above. Moreover, the densified gas may be, within the dry cleaning process, a gas, liquid or supercritical fluid depending upon how densified the gas is (how much pressure is applied at a given temperature) in the laundry system (e. g., apparatus) of the cleaning facility used in the laundry business of the invention.

When carbon dioxide is used to clean the soiled laundry fabric having a high glass transition temperature, surfactant is typically used. Such a surfactant can be an end- functionalized polysiloxane like those represented in general, by the formula B1-A-B2 wherein B1 and B2 are each independently an end-functional group and A is a polysiloxane such as polydimethysiloxane (having an average weight molecular weight of about 75 to about 400,000).

The end-functionalized polysiloxanes typically are represented by the formula:

wherein n is an integer from about 1 to about 10,000, preferably from about 1 to about 100.

At least one, and preferably, both of B1 and B2 are solvent phobic groups such as lipophilic or hydrophilic (e. g., anionic, cationic) groups, but are not C02-philic groups. Each R is independently an alkyl, aryl or haloalkyl, with perfluoroalkyl, C1-C4 alkyls, phenyl and trifluoropropyl being the preferred R groups.

Regarding B1 and B2, such end-functional groups may be derived from silicones with reactive groups that yield end- functional materials upon contact with a substrate.

Illustrative examples of such reactive groups include vinyl, hydride, silanol, alkoxy/polymeric alkoxide, amine, epoxy, carbinol, methacrylate/acrylate, mercapto, acetoxy/chlorine/dimethylamine moieties.

A more detailed description of the types of end- functionalized polysiloxanes which may be used in the laundry business of this invention may be found in WO 99/10587, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.

Other surfactants which may be employed in carbon dioxide when soiled fabric having a high Tg (as described above) is being cleaned include those generally classified as acetylenic

alcohols or diols as represented by the formulae below, respectively: Ru i R-CC= C-H (alcohon 2/ RO Ile 5 s R-/c==c-R oD R + R R = C R (dion s R RO wherein R*, R1, R3 and R4 are each independently hydrogen atoms or linear or branched alkyl groups comprised of 1 to 38 carbons, and R2 and R5 are each hydrogen atoms or hydroxyl terminated polyalkylene oxide chains derived from 1 to 30 alkylene oxide monomer units of the following structure: wherein R6, R, R71 and R9 are each independently hydrogen atoms, linear or branched alkyl groups having about 1 to about 5 carbons, or phenyl.

The most preferred surfactants which may be used in this invention when carbon dioxide is used to clean soiled laundry fabrics that have a high Tg include those having the formula: M Dx D*y M wherein M is a trialkylsiloxyl end group, Dx is a dialkylsiloxyl backbone which is solvent-philic and D*y is one or more alkylsiloxyl groups which are substituted with a solvent-phobic group wherein each solvent phobic group is independently defined by the formula: (CH2) a (C6H,) b (A) d- [ (L) e- (A') r] n- (L') gZ (G) h wherein a is 1-30, b is 0 or 1, C6H4 is unsubstituted or substituted with a Calo alkyl or alkenyl, and A and A'are each independently a linking moiety representing an ester, a keto, an ether, a thio, an amido, an amino, a C1_4 fluoroalkyl, a Cl_4 fluoroalkenyl, a branched or straight chained polyalkylene oxide, a phosphate, a sulfonyl, a sulfate, an ammonium, and mixtures thereof, L and L'are each independently a C1_30 straight chained or branched alkyl or alkenyl or an aryl which is unsubstituted or substituted, E is 0-3, F is 0 or 1, N is 0-10, G is 0-3, 0 is 0-5, Z is a hydrogen, carboxylic acid, a hydroxy, a phosphato, a phosphate ester, a sulfonyl, a sulfonate, a sulfate, a branched

or straight-chained polyalkylene oxide, a nitryl, a glyceryl, an aryl unsubstituted or substituted with a C1_30 alkyl or alkenyl, a carbohydrate unsubstituted or substituted with a Cl-lu alkyl or alkenyl or an ammonium, G is an anion or cation such as H+, Na+, Li+, K+, NH, Ca+2, Mg+2, Cl, Br, I, mesylate, or tosylate, and h is 0-3.

Such surfactants are described in U. S. Patent Nos.

5, 676, 705,5,683,977,5,683,473, commonly assigned to Lever Brothers Company, a Division of Conopco, Inc., the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference.

When performing the actual cleaning of the soiled laundry fabrics having a high Tg, the cleaning process takes place with the densified gas being maintained at a temperature from about 0.0 to about 100°C, and preferably, from about 5.0 to about 4000°C, and most preferably, from about 8.0°C to about 30°C, including all ranges subsumed therein. Moreover, when a densified gas is used, it is typically maintained at a pressure from about 100 to about 10,000 psi, and preferably from about 250 to about 4,000 psi, and most preferably, from about 650 to about 900 psi, including all ranges subsumed therein.

When carbon dioxide is selected as the densified gas to clean the soiled laundry fabrics having a high glass transition temperature, the machine which is employed for cleaning is well known in the art. Such a machine typically comprises a gas supply, cleaning tank and condenser. The machine may further comprise a means for agitation; particularly, when the contaminated substrate targeted for removal is a fabric. The means for agitation may be, for example, a mechanical device like a mechanical tumbler, or a gas-jet agitator. The art

recognized machines which may be used in this invention (e. g., when carbon dioxide is used) may be found in U. S. Patent Nos.

5,943,721,5,925,192,5,904,737,5,412,958,5,267,455 and 4,012,194, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference.

When carbon dioxide is employed, the amount of surfactant used is from about 0.01% to about 10. 0%, and preferably, from about 0.02% to about 2.0% by weight surfactant based on total weight of surfactant and carbon dioxide, including all ranges subsumed therein.

In a most preferred embodiment, a polar solvent, such as water, is employed along with the surfactant in the cleaning system comprising carbon dioxide. The amount of polar solvent used is typically from about 0.5 to about 8.0 times, and preferably from about 1.0 to about 5.0 times, and most preferably, from about 1.5 to about 2.5 times the amount of surfactant used in the cleaning system comprising carbon dioxide. Often, the polar solvent is used so that reverse micelles may be formed within the cleaning system. The reverse micelles are formed often because the surfactant has a carbon dioxide-philic portion and a carbon dioxide-phobic portion wherein the carbon dioxide phobic portion dissolves in a resulting polar solvent (e. g., water) core of the resulting reverse micelle.

When soiled fabric (requiring drycleaning) comprising a portion having a low glass transition temperature is cleaned via this invention, such cleaning may take place in a solvent like a hydrocarbon or a silicon comprising solvent.

There generally is no limitation with respect to the type of hydrocarbon which is used to clean the soiled laundry fabric having a low Tg except that the hydrocarbon may be used in a dry cleaning machine to clean fabric. Such a hydrocarbon includes a biodegradable functionalized hydrocarbon generally classified as a azeotropic solvent. The azeotropic solvent often comprises alkylene glycol alkyl ethers, like propylene glycol tertiary-buty ether, and is described in U. S. Patent No.

5,880, 250, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. Moreover, as used herein, biodegradable functionalized hydrocarbon is defined to mean a biodegradable hydrocarbon comprising at least one member selected from the group consisting of an aldehyde, ketone, alcohol, alkoxy, ester, ether, amine, amide, and sulfur comprising group.

Other hydrocarbons which may be used in this invention include aliphatic and aromatic hydrocarbons, and esters and ethers thereof, particularly mono and di-esters and ethers (e. g., Exxon Isopar L, Isopan M, Isopar V, Exxon Exxsol and especially Exxon DF 2000). These solvents are well known and made commercially available by Exxon.

It should be noted that hydrocarbon as used herein is defined to include halogenated (substituted) hydrocarbon such as perchloroethylene. However, while such a halogenated hydrocarbon may be used in this invention, it is not preferred and is not required because of its (i. e., the halogenated hydrocarbon like perchloroethylene) impact on the environment.

As to the silicon comprising solvent which may be used in this invention, such a solvent is typically a commercially available cyclic-siloxane based solvent made available from Green Earth Cleaning, LLC. The cyclic-siloxane based solvent

is generally one having a flash point over about 65°C, with octamethyl-cyclotetrasiloxane and decamethyl-cyclopentasiloxane being most preferred. A more detailed description of such a commercially available siloxane comprising solvent may be found in U. S. Patent No. 5,942,007, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.

A preferred and superior silicon comprising solvent which may be used in this invention includes those classified as linear silicon comprising oligomers. These oligomers are typically siloxanes with molecular weights (Mw) ranging from about 100 to about 3000. Such linear silicon comprising solvents are made commercially available by The General Electric Company and Dow Corning (e. g., Dow Corning 200 (R) Fluids). A more detailed description of the linear silicon comprising solvent which may be used in this invention may be found in U. S. Patent Application Serial No. 09/449,896, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.

When the solvent employed to clean low Tg comprising soiled fabrics is a hydrocarbon or silicon comprising solvent, the cleaning machine which may be used typically comprises a solvent tank, a cleaning tank, a distillation tank, a filter and solvent exit. Such machines are well known, typically used in facilities that dry clean with perchloroethylene, and are described in U. S. Patent No. 4,712,392, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.

It is preferred that the portion of soiled laundry fabric having a low Tg is cleaned with a technique that does not comprise carbon dioxide. If desired, however, a technique with from about more than zero and up to about 5.0% carbon dioxide

(based on total weight of solvent) may be used to clean the low Tg portion of the soiled laundry fabric.

Regarding the ordinary laundry accumulated via this laundry business, such ordinary laundry may be washed in conventional machines made by, for example, Whirlpool and Maytag. The preferred superior detergents used when ordinary laundry is washed via this invention are all, Wisk and Surf, all of which made commercially available by Unilever. Also, industrial machines may be employed; especially, those equipped to use commercial detergents made available by DiverseyLever.

The examples which follow are provided to illustrate and facilitate an understanding of the present invention.

Therefore, the examples are not meant to be limiting and modifications which fall within the scope and spirit of the claims are intended to be within the scope and spirit of the present invention.

Example 1 Six swatches (about 50.0 cm2) of each fabric having a low Tg (Tg less than 10°C in C02 at 850 psi) are described in Table I. The swatches were cleaned as follows: sets of three of each in carbon dioxide, and sets of three of each in a hydrocarbon (Exxon 2000).

The three (3) swatches that were cleaned in carbon dioxide were placed in a cleaning chamber of a dry cleaning unit suitable for cleaning with carbon dioxide. The dry cleaning unit was constructed in a manner described in U. S. Patent No.

5,467,492. The carbon dioxide was circulated in a cleaning loop containing about 490 liters of liquid C02 and a storage

tank was used to feed the unit with clean carbon dioxide. The cleaning cycle lasted for about 15 minutes and the carbon dioxide was pressurized to about 850 psi at 10°C. Subsequent to the cleaning cycle, the liquid C02 was pumped back to the storage tank and the swatches were removed.

When the three (3) swatches were dry cleaned in Exxon 2000, a commercial establishment with a commercially available Union petroleum dry cleaning machine was used and all cleaning conditions were as required by the State of New Jersey. The machine was charged with the acetate comprising fabrics and cleaned at a temperature of approximately 27°C. Subsequent to the cleaning cycle, which lasted about 45 minutes, the swatches were heated to about 40°C for approximately 2 minutes to evaporate off any solvent. After the solvent was evaporated, the swatches were removed from the dry cleaning machine and pressed. The data in Table II depicts the percent dimensional change of the low Tg fabrics that were cleaned in carbon dioxide and Exxon 2000. The negative (-) numbers indicate shrinkage with a dimensional change of more than-1.7 being unacceptable (a shrinkage standard similar to the one described in ASTM Standard Performance Specifications for Textile Fabrics, First Edition 1983).

Table IA Swatches Made Commercially Available by TestFabrics of Pittston, PA Swatch Material Weight 100 Acetate satin 92g/m2 1015 Acetate sans crepe 85g/m2 105B Acetate satin 169g/m2 114 Acetate taffeta 125g/m2 122 Acetate tricot 78g/m2 154 Spun acetate suiting 164g/m2

A = Acetate is defined to include manufactured fibers prepared from cellulose acetate, including secondary acetates and triacetates, all as described in Dictionary of Fiber & Textile Technology, Introductory Textile Science (5th Edition) ; Textile World Man Made Fiber Chart-1996. The above fabrics all have a Tg of less than 10°C in carbon dioxide at the cleaning pressure.

Table IIB SwatchMaterial Carbon Dioxide Hydrocarbon Fill Warp Fill Warp 100 -3.4 -4.1 -1.0 -0.6 101S -4.1 -2.0 -0.6 -1.0 105B -1.8 -6.8 -0.7 -1.0 114 -1.9 -5.2 -0.7 -0.9 122 2.1 -10.6 -0.0 0.4 154 -0.7 -5.9 -1.7 -1.1

B = All swatches were marked at 30cm in both the warp and fill direction. After the swatches were dry cleaned, they were ironed and dimensional change was determined by measuring the

change in the 30 cm marks and averaging the data over all the measurements for each style of fabric, the dimensional change being defined by AATCC test method 158.

Table IIIC Swatch Material Carbon Dioxide Fill Warp Nylon 6,6 0. 0 0. 0

C = The swatch material, Nylon 6,6 (made commercially available by DuPont) was cleaned in a manner similar to the one described in Example 1. Nylon 6,6 has a Tg greater than the cleaning temperature in carbon dioxide (10°) at the cleaning pressure and no shrinkage was observed.