Superabsorbent polymer and the method of fabricating the same

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10550243-B2
Application number	US-201715821766-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 23, 2017
Priority date	Mar 31, 2017
Publication date	Feb 4, 2020
Grant date	Feb 4, 2020

Abstract

A superabsorbent polymer includes polymeric particles, surface cross-linking agents and an extract of a plant of Sapindaceae. The polymeric particles have cross-linking inside the polymeric particles. The surface cross-linking agents are covalently bound to the surface of the polymeric particles so as to constitute a layer of surface cross-linked region at the surface of each polymeric particle, and the extract of the plant of Sapindaceae covers the surface of the polymeric particles.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A superabsorbent polymer, comprising:
a plurality of polymeric particles and each said polymeric particles having an internally cross-linked structure;
a surface cross-linking agent bonded to a surface of each said polymeric particles so as to constitute a layer of surface cross-linked region at said surface of each said polymeric particle, wherein said layer constituted with said surface cross-linking agent incompletely covers said surface of each said polymeric particle; and
an extract of Sapindaceae covering said surface of each said polymeric particles, wherein said extract of Sapindaceae comprises a compound represented by the following formula (I), and said extract of Sapindaceae has a concentration between 10 and 1000 ppm of said superabsorbent polymeric particles:

wherein hydroxyl groups in formula (I) are bonded to said surface of each said polymeric particles.

2. The superabsorbent polymer of claim 1 , wherein each of said polymeric particles is made from a hydrophilic monomer having an unsaturated double bond.

3. The superabsorbent polymer of claim 2 , wherein said hydrophilic monomer is selected from the group consisting of acrylic acid, methacrylic acid, marinic acid, fumaric acid, 2-propenylamine-2-methylpropane sulfonic acid, maleic acid, maleic acid anhydride, fumaric acid and fumaric acid anhydride.

4. The superabsorbent polymer of claim 1 , wherein said surface cross-linking agent is selected from the group consisting of polyhydric alcohols, polyamines, compounds having two or more epoxy groups and alkylene carbonate.

5. The superabsorbent polymer of claim 1 , wherein said extract of Sapindaceae is prepared by:
(a) drying a fruit of Sapindus saponaria , wherein said fruit has a shell;
(b) grinding said shell until said shell is powdered;
(c) dispersing said powdered shell in water to form an aqueous solution to formulate a dispersion of Sapindus saponaria ; and
(d) distilling said dispersion under reduced pressure to obtain said extract of Sapindaceae.

6. A method for producing the superabsorbent polymer of claim 1 , comprising:
(a) providing an aqueous solution of an acid-based monomer and performing a radical polymeric reaction to obtain a superabsorbent polymer having an internally cross-linked structure;
(b) shredding said superabsorbent polymer to obtain a plurality of superabsorbent polymeric particles;
(c) adding a surface cross-linking agent to a surface of each of said superabsorbent polymeric particles and subjecting said superabsorbent polymeric particles to a heat treatment to constitute a layer formed from said surface cross-linking agent, wherein said layer formed from said surface cross-linking agent incompletely covers said surface of each of said superabsorbent polymeric particles; and
(d) coating an extract of Sapindaceae onto said surface of each of said superabsorbent polymeric particles, wherein said extract of Sapindaceae has a concentration between 10 and 1000 ppm of said superabsorbent polymeric particles and said extract of Sapindaceae comprises a compound represented by the following formula (I):

wherein hydroxyl groups in formula (I) are bonded to said surface of each said polymeric particles.

7. The method for producing a superabsorbent polymer of claim 6 , wherein said extract of Sapindaceae is extracted from a fruit of Sapindaceae.

8. The method for producing a superabsorbent polymer of claim 7 , wherein said Sapindaceae is Sapindus saponaria, Sapindus chinensis or Koelreuteria elegans.

9. The method for producing a superabsorbent polymer of claim 6 , wherein step (d) comprises mixing said extract of Sapindacea and said superabsorbent polymeric particles, wherein said extract of Sapindaceae has a concentration between 10 and 1000 ppm of said superabsorbent polymeric particles.

10. The method for producing a superabsorbent polymer of claim 6 , wherein said extract of Sapindaceae is prepared by:
(a) drying a fruit of Sapindus saponaria , wherein said fruit has a shell;
(b) grinding said shell until said shell is powdered;
(c) dispersing said powdered shell in water to form an aqueous solution to formulate a dispersion of Sapindus saponaria ; and
(d) distilling said dispersion under reduced pressure to obtain said extract of Sapindaceae.

Assignees

• Formosa Plastics Corp

Inventors

• Chen Zhong-Yi
• Chuang Yu-Yen
• Huang li-han
• Lin Yu-Sam
• Chen Feng-Yi
• Liang Ching-Hua

Classifications

• C08K5/0025

  Crosslinking or vulcanising agents; including accelerators · CPC title

• B01J20/267

  Cross-linked polymers · CPC title

• C08L101/14

  the macromolecular compounds being water soluble or water swellable, e.g. aqueous gels · CPC title

• A61L15/60

  Liquid-swellable gel-forming materials, e.g. super-absorbents · CPC title

• C11B9/0042

  compounds containing condensed hydrocarbon rings · CPC title