U.S. patent number 3,738,540 [Application Number 05/148,396] was granted by the patent office on 1973-06-12 for container for corrosive products to be stored under pressure.
This patent grant is currently assigned to L'Oreal. Invention is credited to Bruno P. Morane.
United States Patent |
3,738,540 |
Morane |
June 12, 1973 |
CONTAINER FOR CORROSIVE PRODUCTS TO BE STORED UNDER PRESSURE
Abstract
Container for corrosive fluids to be stored under pressure
comprises a strong, rigid, perforate can carrying a filling and
dispensing valve and an inner plastic bag impermeable to liquids
but permeable to gases, the interior of which is connected to said
valve.
Inventors: |
Morane; Bruno P. (Paris,
FR) |
Assignee: |
L'Oreal (Paris,
FR)
|
Family
ID: |
9053234 |
Appl.
No.: |
05/148,396 |
Filed: |
June 1, 1971 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
222/397 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B65D
83/38 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
B65D
83/14 (20060101); B65d 083/14 () |
Field of
Search: |
;222/105,397,183,394
;220/63 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Foreign Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Tollberg; Stanley H.
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. Dispenser for storing fluids under pressure and equipped with
dispensing and filling valve means, said container comprising a
pressure resistant outer wall and an inner bag of plastic material
permeable to gas but impermeable to liquids, said bag having
substantially the inner shape of said pressure resistant wall, said
outer wall being provided with a plurality of perforations
extensively distributed thereover and providing direct access to
the ambient atmosphere for gas passing outward through the greater
portion of the wall of said bag, and the interior of said bag being
connected to the exterior of the container through said valve
means.
2. Container as claimed in claim 1 in which the dispensing and
filling valve is attached to a cap which is attached to said outer
wall by a crimped joint, with the open end of the bag of plastic
material gripped in said joint between the cap and container
wall.
3. Container as claimed in claim 1 in which the bag of plastic
material is made of a flexible plastic material selected from the
group consisting of polyethylene, polyvinyl chloride and
Rilsan.
4. Container as claimed in claim 1 in which the pressure resistant
wall is made of a metal comprising aluminum.
Description
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
When products which are relatively corrosive and have a tendency to
decompose are stored under pressure there is always a risk that
they will corrode the container. When the container is a metallic
can of the aerosol bomb type it has already been suggested that the
walls of the container be internally coated in a manner which will
protect the metal against possible attack by the products stored
therein. However, if this product is nevertheless capable of
decomposition which will produce gas, such a coating will not
prevent the possible creation of an excessive pressure inside the
can, which is then capable of exploding.
It has already been suggested that the product be enclosed within a
bag of deformable plastic material adapted to separate the product
from the metallic walls of the container. The results are not,
however, entirely satisfactory, because the sheets of plastic
material composing the bags which hold the products are permeable
to gas so that the decomposition gases which may be formed inside
the bag diffuse through the walls of the bag and come into contact
with the metallic walls of the container and neither the risk of
corroding these metallic walls nor the risk of an explosive
pressure are avoided.
It is the purpose of the present invention to provide a new
container for products under pressure which is adapted to avoid
both the above mentioned disadvantages.
It is the specific object of the present invention to provide as a
new article of manufacture a container for products under pressure
which are to be dispensed in the form of an aerosol spray or a
fluid jet, which container comprises dispensing and filling valve
means, which may be combined in a single valve, and is essentially
characterized by the fact that it comprises a strong perforated
wall which resists the internal pressure and a bag of plastic
material permeable to the gas but impermeable to liquids, said bag
having substantially the interior shape of the resistant wall, and
the inside of the bag being connected to the outside of the
container through the valve means.
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the outer wall of the
container is perforated by numerous holes distributed over a
substantial area of this wall. The dispensing and filling valve is
attached to a cap crimped to one end of the container, with the
open end of the bag of plastic material gripped between the
periphery of the cap and the edge of the container. The bag of
plastic material is made of a sheet of flexible plastic material
such, for example, as polyethylene, polyvinyl chloride or the
material sold under the trademark Rilsan.
The bag of plastic material is formed by blowing, or by heat
sealing a sheet of plastic material. The strong external wall of
the container is a metallic wall made, for example, of aluminum or
an aluminum alloy.
When the outer wall of the container is formed by stamping and
drawing a metallic disc and then forming the base and the open end
of the can, this wall has a cylindrical shape having no sharp
angles and may be perforated by as many holes as desired after
completion of the stamping operation. The bag of plastic material
is then placed inside the metallic can and attached to the metallic
wall along with the filling and the dispensing valve by crimping
the periphery of the cap which carries said valve to the upper edge
of the wall.
When the strong wall of the container is made from several pieces
assembled together, the lateral part of the wall may have small
pieces stamped out of it to form holes in a large portion thereof,
which may have a decorative shape. The lateral part of the wall is
then formed into a cylinder and a base is crimped to one end of
this lateral part. The other end is shaped to make it slightly
conical. The bag of plastic material is then introduced into the
can and attached to the lateral wall by crimping it between the
wall and the cap which carries the dispensing and filling
valve.
In order to fill the container according to the invention, the
desired quantity of the product to be stored therein is introduced
into the bag of plastic material before or after crimping of the
cap to the wall. Then, after crimping of the cap, the desired
quantity of propellant gas which will cause dispensing of the
products stored therein under pressure is introduced through the
valve. The product is dispensed by actuating the container valve,
and is ejected in response to the force exerted by the propellant
gas in the form of a jet of fluid or an aerosol spray. Any of the
gases conventionally used as propellants may be selected for this
purpose, and in particular the light hydrocarbons such as butane
and propane and the chlorofluorinated hydrocarbons sold under the
trademarks "Freon," such as trichlorofluoromethane,
dichloro-difluoromethane, and dichloro-tetrafluoroethane. It is
obvious that the quantity of propellant gas to be injected into the
container according to the invention must be selected in dependence
on the diffusion of this propellant gas through the walls of
plastic material of the bag which encloses the stored product, in
other words, in dependence on the average storage time of the
container before use. The quantity of gas introduced into the
container must remain sufficient to produce the desired operation
when the user acts on the dispensing valve, despite the loss of
some of this gas by diffusion through the wall of the plastic
bag.
It is also clear that in selecting the propellant gas it is
necessary to take into account the nature of the product to be
stored so as to avoid any chemical interaction between the
propellant gas and said product. In order that the container
according to the invention may be used in all positions it is
necessary to provide the dispensing valve with a depending tube
extending the full depth of the bag which encloses the product to
be dispensed. It will be appreciated that the container according
to the invention makes it possible to prevent the metallic walls
from being attached by the product stored therein, since this
product is separated from the metallic wall by the plastic wall of
the bag which encloses it. Moreover, the gases resulting from
decomposition cannot attack the metallic wall since after having
diffused through the plastic wall of the inner bag, they escape
into the atmosphere through the perforations in the lateral wall of
the metallic can. This escape is facilitated by the fact that the
propellant gas diffuses at the same time through the material of
the plastic wall the inner bag and thus serves as a carrier and
diluting gas. I have thus solved the problem of inner corrosion of
the metallic walls of the cans of this type.
Moreover, if the product stored is accidentally subjected to sudden
decomposition and generation of gas an excessive pressure is
produced within the plastic inner bag which increases the speed of
evacuation of the gases of decomposition. However, if the excessive
pressure is too great, producing a situation which would result in
explosion of a conventional container, the bag of plastic material
breaks in alignment with the perforations of the metallic can, thus
permitting relief of the excess pressure without producing any
dangerous explosion. It will thus be seen that the inner bag of
plastic material serves as a safety valve.
In order that the object of the invention may be better understood
there will now be described, purely by way of illustration and
example, a preferred embodiment of the invention, which is
illustrated in the accompanying drawing on which:
The single FIGURE shows in perspective a container under pressure
according to the invention with one-fourth of the wall thereof
broken away.
Referring now to the drawing, it will be seen that the container
according to the invention comprises a bottom 1 which is slightly
dished and connected at its periphery to the lateral wall of the
container indicated by reference numeral 2. The annular joint
formed between the base 1 and lateral wall 2 carries reference
numeral 3. At the end of the lateral wall 2 remote from the base 1
is a cap 4 which carries a central filling and dispensing valve 5
connected to a depending tube 6. The cap 4 is connected to the
lateral wall 2 by a crimped joint 7. The container according to the
invention is generally cylindrical in shape, but its upper part is
slightly conical.
The lateral wall 2 comprises three zones, the first of which, 2a,
near the cap 4, is conical in shape. The second zone near the base
1 carries reference numeral 2b. Between the zones 2a and 2b is the
zone 2c. The lateral wall 2 of the container according to the
invention is made from a sheet of aluminum 1 millimeter thick. It
has been stamped in the median zone 2c to provide lozenge-shaped
openings 8. The zone 2c thus appears to constitute a grille. The
sheet which forms the lateral wall is then rolled into a cylinder,
sealed along one of its generatrices, and the connected by crimping
to the base 1 along the annular joint 8 and finally formed into a
conical shape in the zone 2a. A bag 9 made of sealed polyethylene
sheet material is then introduced into the metallic can formed in
this manner. The bag 9 has a wall 1 millimeter thick. It has a
substantially cylindrical shape and its free end extends slightly
beyond the metallic can which contains it.
9,100 cm.sup.3 of a hair dyeing composition having the following
formula is then introduced into the bag:
-nonylphenol condensed with 4 molecules of ethylene oxide 23 g
-nonylphenol condensed with 9 molecules of ethylene oxide 25 g
-copra diethanolamide 6 g -butylglycol 2 g -propylene glycol 16 g
-20% ammonia 12 ml -paratoluylene diamine 0.9 g -para-aminophenol
0.9 g -meta-diamine-anisol sulfate 0.06 g -meta-aminophenol 0.2 g
-resorcinol 0.5 g -nitroparaphenylene diamine 0.02 g -hydroquinone
0.10 g -sodium salt of diethylene-triamino- pentaacetic acid 1.5 g
-sodium bisulfite 1.2 ml -water, q.s. 100 g
The cap 4 provided with its valve 5 and depending tube 6 is then
positioned above the open end of the metallic can and the cap is
crimped, together with the free end of the plastic bag 9, to the
lateral wall of the container. 30 grams of
dichloro-tetrafluoroethane are then introduced through the valve 5
so as to produce above the stored product 10 a gaseous phase 11
under a pressure of 1.7 bars at 20.degree.C.
It has been found that a container made in this manner may be
stored with perfect satisfaction for 2 years at a temperature of
20.degree.C. At the end of this storage period there still remains
within the container a pressure of propellant gas sufficient to
dispense the products stored therein.
It will of course be appreciated that the embodiment hereinbefore
described has been given purely by way of illustration and example
and may be modified as to detail without thereby departing from the
basic principles of the invention.
* * * * *