Process for the non-lasting reshaping of keratinous fibres

The invention relates to a treatment process for obtaining a non-permanent reshaping of keratinous fibres, especially the setting of hair, comprising the steps of (i) contacting the fibres, which are maintained under mechanical tension and to which has been applied a composition consisting essentially of at least one polysaccharide and/or polysaccharide derivative, optionally combined with at least one silicone and/or oil, with a gas containing water vapor, the gas having a temperature of at least 75.degree. C., for a time not exceeding 2 minutes to non-permanently reshape the fibres, (ii) cooling the fibres thus contacted, and lastly (iii) removing the mechanical tension which was applied to the fibres, in order to obtain fibres having long-lasting, attractive curls and exceptional cosmetic properties of softness and smoothness.

The present invention relates to an improved process for the treatment of 
keratinous fibres, preferably human keratinous fibres and especially hair, 
for the purpose of obtaining a non-permanent reshaping and/or restoration 
of shape of the fibres, especially in the form of a setting. The process 
of the invention is usable in the field of professional hairdressing, 
beauty and cosmetic salons, and the like. It relates still more 
specifically to a process employing water vapour and special treatment 
substances. 
In hairdressing, the term "setting" is known to denote the simple operation 
which consists of giving the hair an non-permanent and temporary set 
(generally wavy, such as ringlets, curls and the like) which vanishes 
instantaneously when the hair is wetted again, especially when the latter 
is subjected to the action of washing with water or with shampoos. The 
"setting" process differs from a so-called permanent reshaping operation, 
during which genuine chemical treatments and/or conversions 
(reduction/oxidation) have to be carried out on the keratinous fibres, the 
final shape imposed on the hair becoming no longer sensitive (or remaining 
only very slightly sensitive) to the above-mentioned external agents. 
The most common technique for carrying out setting (or non-permanent 
reshaping) of hair consists in first placing previously wetted or still 
wet hair under tension (with traditional supports of the setting curler or 
roller type, and the like), in then drying the hair thus placed under 
tension under a salon hair dryer heating to a temperature ranging from 
30.degree. C. to 60.degree. C. for a time which can vary from 20 to 60 
minutes depending on the bulk of the hair to be dried, in thereafter 
removing the means for placing under tension used above from the hair thus 
dried, and lastly in putting the finishing touches to the hair with a comb 
in order to obtain the hairstyle with the desired final shape. Another, 
less common, process consists in using the old so-called curling tongs or 
styling tongs technique (lock of wet hair coiled around a metal core and 
taken by the latter to more than 100.degree. C. for at least 20 seconds); 
this latter technique is little used nowadays by professional 
hairdressers, since it achieves results which are considered on the whole 
to be unsatisfactory and uneven owing to the fact, in particular, that the 
hair is subjected to widely differing temperatures according to whether it 
is in actual contact with the heating core or, on the contrary, some 
distance away from the latter. 
In French Patent Application FR-A-2,273,492 and in U.S. Pat. No. 4,166,473, 
the entire disclosures, including the drawings, of which are hereby 
incorporated by reference, it has already been proposed to make use of 
treatments with superheated steam with the aim, inter alia, of improving 
the quality and/or the efficiencies of a setting on hair. Although this 
technique does actually make it possible, compared to the traditional 
processes, to improve certain features of the set immediately, and 
especially the setting efficiency (or degree of curling), these 
improvements nevertheless remain of limited durability (or hold) over 
time, since they generally disappear within a few days following the 
treatment. Moreover, independently of the aspect of retention of the 
degree of curling referred to above, it would naturally be advantageous to 
be able to have the possibility of curly hair displaying an initial degree 
of curling (i.e. immediately after setting treatment) which is still 
further improved compared to what is known at the present time, with or 
without steam treatment. Lastly, the above steam process has another major 
drawback, namely that of finally resulting in fibres which seem rough to 
the touch, which is undesirable from a cosmetic standpoint. 
The aim of the present invention is, in particular, to solve the above 
problems. 
More specifically, the object of the present invention is to provide a new 
treatment process suitable for the non-permanent reshaping of keratinous 
fibres, preferably human keratinous fibres, and especially hair, which 
makes it possible to obtain curling of high quality. 
Another object of the present invention is to provide a process as above 
which enables, in addition, this curling to be preserved on a long-lasting 
basis (retention). 
Yet another object of the invention is to provide a process as above that 
makes it possible to obtain keratinous fibres which are reshaped 
non-permanently while displaying exceptional cosmetic properties of 
softness and smoothness. 
Following a considerable amount of research, it has now been found by the 
inventor, most unexpectedly and surprisingly, that these and other objects 
of the invention may be achieved by using water vapour under certain 
special conditions on keratinous fibres, preferably human keratinous 
fibres, and especially hair, previously treated with polysaccharides 
and/or polysaccharide derivatives, optionally in combination with 
silicones and/or oils. This discovery underlies the present invention. 
The present invention thus provides a new process suitable for the 
non-permanent reshaping and/or restoration of shape of keratinous fibres, 
preferably human keratinous fibres, and especially hair. This process 
comprises the steps of (a) contacting said fibres, said fibres being 
maintained under mechanical tension (rollers, curlers or the like) and 
having had applied thereto a composition containing at least one 
polysaccharide and/or polysaccharide derivative, with a gas containing 
water vapour, said gas having a temperature of at least 75.degree. C., for 
a time not exceeding 2 minutes to non-permanently reshape said fibres, (b) 
cooling said fibres after said contacting step, and (c) removing the 
mechanical tension which was applied to said fibres. 
Although the description which follows chiefly centres on the special case 
of the treatment of hair, it may be noted here that the process according 
to the invention is preferably applicable to any human keratinous 
substance in general, in particular eyelashes, moustaches, and hairs 
generally, as well as to non-human keratinous fibres, for example, the 
hair of show dogs. 
The gas used in the process of the present invention preferably contains at 
least 1% by volume of water vapour. In addition to water vapour, the 
carrier gas (or gaseous vehicle) can contain solvent vapour, as well as 
gases such as oxygen or nitrogen, mixtures of gases such as air or 
alternatively other vapourizable compounds. 
As solvents which can advantageously be used for the production of vapour 
(water/solvent mixtures), use may be made of cosmetically acceptable 
organic solvents such as, for example, alcohols such as ethanol, 
isopropanol, benzyl alcohol and phenylethyl alcohol, or glycols or glycol 
ethers such as, for example, ethylene glycol and its monomethyl, monoethyl 
and monobutyl ethers, propylene glycol, butylene glycol, dipropylene 
glycol and also alkyl ethers such as diethylene glycol monobutyl ether. 
According to the present invention, the gas preferably consists either 
exclusively or chiefly of water vapour, or of a mixture of water and air. 
The temperature of the gas is preferably above or equal to 85.degree. C., 
and more preferably ranges from 85.degree. C. to 150.degree. C., 
approximately. Still more preferably, the temperature ranges from 
75.degree. C. to less than 105.degree. C. The temperature can also range 
from 75.degree. C. to less than 100.degree. C. The time of contact between 
the hot treatment gas and the fibre should be brief, and should preferably 
not exceed 2 minutes. Preferably, the gas is brought into contact with the 
fibre for a time ranging from 0.01 second to 30 seconds, more preferably 
from 1 to 20 seconds, and still more preferably from 1 to 10 seconds. 
Naturally, the application of the gas may be repeated several times on the 
same fibre, each operation being carried out on the basis of a time as 
stated above. 
A preferred embodiment of the process according to the invention consists 
in first applying to the hair a composition consisting partly or 
completely of polysaccharides and/or polysaccharide derivatives, it being 
possible for this application to be carried out before, during or after 
the customary operation of placing the locks of hair under tension in a 
shape corresponding to the final shape desired for these latter, e.g., 
ringlets. This operation may be carried out by any suitable means known 
per se, in particular a mechanical means, for maintaining hair wider 
tension, such as, for example, tubular bodies, rollers, curlers and the 
like. The locks thus impregnated with polysaccharides (or with 
polysaccharide derivatives) are then subjected briefly to the action of 
water vapour according to the conditions mentioned above, and are then 
cooled, preferably rapidly, for example, by passing a stream of air at 
room temperature over or through them and/or by drawing a stream of 
ambient air through the coiled locks. Finally, the mechanical means which 
maintained the locks under tension and in the desired shape throughout the 
whole treatment is removed from the hair, resulting in locks or a head of 
hair displaying, for example, attractive, even and soft ringlets. 
In another embodiment of the present invention, the hair is put under 
mechanical tension as described above and a composition consisting partly 
or completely of polysaccharides and/or polysaccharide derivatives is 
applied to the hair simultaneously with a gas containing water vapour, as 
described above. The locks of hair thus treated are then cooled, 
preferably rapidly, by a method as set forth above, and finally, the 
mechanical means which maintained the locks under tension and in the 
desired shape throughout the whole treatment is removed from the hair, 
resulting here also in locks or a head of hair displaying, for example, 
attractive, even and soft ringlets. 
The production of a hot gas comprising water vapour can be done using any 
apparatus known per se and designed for this purpose. However, according 
to the invention, it is preferable to use an apparatus such as the one 
described in French Patent Application FR-A-2,273,492 or in U.S. Pat. No. 
4,166,473, the disclosures of which were incorporated by reference above, 
or any other equivalent apparatus, which is, in effect, particularly 
suitable in the present case as it provides steady and homogeneous 
selective treatment of the fibres without risk of overheating and with 
integrated post-treatment cooling. 
According to the present invention, it is possible to use any 
polysaccharide or any polysaccharide derivative known per se, including a 
homopolysaccharide or heteropolysaccharide, of animal, vegetable, 
microbial, bacterial or synthetic origin. 
Generally speaking, the polysaccharides and their derivatives which are 
usable in the context of the present invention are those which are 
described in the Kirk-Othmer Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology, 3rd 
Edition, vol. 3, pp. 896-900, and vol. 15, pp 439-458" (1982), in 
"Polymers in Nature", E. A. MacGregor and C. T. Greenwood, Eds., pp 
240-328 (1980), and in "Industrial Gums--Polysaccharides and their 
Derivatives," Roy L. Whistler, Ed., 2nd Edition, the disclosures of these 
three works being hereby fully incorporated by reference. 
According to the present invention, it is possible either to use one 
polysaccharide and/or one of its derivatives on its/ their own or to 
employ several different polysaccharides and/or polysaccharide 
derivatives. 
As examples of polysaccharides or polysaccharide derivatives suitable for 
carrying out the process according to the invention, there may be 
mentioned, in particular, glucans, starches, modified or otherwise (such 
as those taken, for example, from cereals such as wheat, maize or rice, 
legumes such as peas, tubers such as potatoes or manioc), amylose, 
amylopectin, glycogen, dextrans, .beta.-glucans, celluloses and their 
derivatives (methylcelluloses, hydroxyalkylcelluloses, 
ethylhydroxyethylcelluloses, carboxymethylcelluloses), fructosans, inulin, 
levan, mannans, xylans, lignins, arabans, galactans, galacturonans, 
chitin, glucoronoxylans, arabinoxylans, xyloglucans, glactomannans, 
glucomannans, pectic acids and pectins, alginic acid and alginates, 
arabinogalactans, carrageenans, agars, glycosaminoglucans, gum arabics, 
gum tragacanths, ghatti gums, karaya gums, carob gums, guar gums and 
xanthan gums. 
According to an especially preferred embodiment of the process according to 
the invention, the polysaccharides used are chosen from starches and 
celluloses, optionally modified, as well as their derivatives. 
Modified starches or celluloses are understood to mean starches or 
celluloses which have been subjected to traditional chemical operations 
such as pregelatinization, hydrolysis (maltodextrin, glucose syrup), 
roasting (dextrin, yellow dextrin, white dextrin), oxidation, 
crosslinking, esterification, etherification, grafting or quaternization, 
with the object either of modifying some of their physical properties or 
of introducing new functionalities into the molecule (modification of the 
chemical properties), such as, for example, anionic groups (phosphates, 
sulphates, sulphonates, carboxylates or dicarboxylates, such as acetates, 
adipates, acrylates, crotonates and octenylsuccinates, and the like), 
cationic groups (quaternary ammonium) or neutral groups (acetyl and 
hydroxyalkyl, for example). 
According to the present invention, the polysaccharides may be employed on 
their own, but it is preferable to use compositions containing such 
polysaccharides in a cosmetically acceptable vehicle. They can thus be 
either solubilized or made into dispersions or (micro)emulsions in aqueous 
media or organic media or alternatively aqueous-organic media. As suitable 
organic solvents, monohydric alcohols or polyols (ethanol, isopropanol, 
glycerol, benzyl alcohol, glycols), acetone, polyol ethers, hydrocarbons, 
esters, dimethoxymethane or alternatively volatile silicones may be 
mentioned in particular. 
According to another embodiment of the present invention, the above 
compositions contain, in addition, at least one silicone (silicone oil, 
resin or gum, or alternatively volatile silicone) and/or at least one oil 
(mineral, animal, vegetable or synthetic), for example a 
polydimethylsiloxane, petroleum jelly or an isoparaffin. The silicone may 
be present in an amount preferably ranging from 0.01 to 50%, more 
preferably 0.1 to 10%, by weight relative to the whole composition. The 
oil may be present in an amount preferably ranging from 0.01 to 50%, more 
preferably 0.1 to 10%, by weight relative to the whole composition. The 
addition of a silicone and/or an oil makes it possible to obtain hair 
which, at the end of the treatment, has improved cosmetic properties, 
especially softness and smoothness. 
The contents of polysaccharide(s) (or of polysaccharide derivatives) in the 
compositions can vary within very wide limits, and can range, for example, 
from 0.01% to 50%, and preferably from 0.1 to 30%, by weight relative to 
the whole of the composition. 
The compositions can take any form customarily used in the field of 
hair-care compositions for topical use, such as, for example, more or less 
thickened or gelled liquid, cream, mousse, lotion, gel, paste, emulsion, 
aerosol or any other suitable form. 
The polysaccharide-based compositions can thus, and generally speaking, 
contain all the various traditional additives which are used in the field 
of the preparation of hair-care compositions for topical use, and can be 
chosen, for example, from UV screening agents, thickening agents, 
penetrating agents, antioxidants, sequestering agents, opacifying agents, 
buffers, surfactants chosen from nonionic surfactants such as alkyl 
polyglycosides, cationic surfactants, anionic surfactants and amphoteric 
surfactants, solubilising agents, emollients, colorants, perfumes and 
preservatives. 
The polysaccharide-based compositions used in the context of the present 
invention, which are hence intended for application to hair, preferably 
have a pH ranging from 3 to 11. If necessary, this pH may be adjusted to 
the desired value by adding, as appropriate, either standard alkalinizing 
agents or standard acidifying agents which are known to be cosmetically 
acceptable. 
Specific, but in no way limiting, examples illustrating the invention will 
now be given. For the purposes of a significant comparison, the same 
initial locks of hair (before treatment) were used for all the examples.

EXAMPLE 1 
A polysaccharide-based composition 1 having the following features (% by 
weight) was used: 
______________________________________ 
Modified starch marketed by NATIONAL 
3% 
STARCH & CHEMICAL under the brand name 
PURITY GUM 59 (100% of AS) 
Distilled water qs 100% 
______________________________________ 
This composition was packaged in a pump bottle dispensing 0.15 ml doses per 
spraying. 
4 sprayings of the above composition were applied to a lock of natural hair 
and the lock thus treated was then coiled on a curler 20 mm in diameter. 
The coiled lock was then treated for 5 seconds by means of a jet of gas 
essentially containing only water vapour and the temperature of which was 
85.degree. C. The lock was then rapidly cooled by means of a stream of 
ambient air and, lastly, was uncoiled from the curler. 
To quantify the efficacy of the process according to the invention, the 
initial length L.sub.0 (in cm) of the lock of hair was first measured 
before the vapour treatment (length measured between the roots and the 
ends on the vertically suspended lock); in the same way, the length 
L.sub.1 of this same lock was measured immediately after the treatment had 
ended; and lastly the length L.sub.2 of this lock was measured 48 hours 
after the treatment. 
The setting, or curling, efficiency, p, (in %) is defined by the ratio: 
##EQU1## 
The curl retention, r, (in %) of the set is defined by the ratio: 
##EQU2## 
The higher the value of one and/or the other (and preferably of both at 
once) of these two ratios, the better the set will be. 
The results obtained were as follows: 
EQU L.sub.0 =24 cm; L.sub.1 =16 cm (p=33%); L.sub.2 =17 cm (r=29%) 
By way of comparison, the results obtained in the case of a vapour 
treatment conducted on locks not previously treated with polysaccharides 
were as follows: 
L.sub.0 =24 cm; L.sub.1 =18 cm (p=25%); L.sub.2 =23(r=4%) 
EXAMPLE 2 
The procedure was like that used in Example 1, except that a 
polysaccharide-based composition 2 having the following features (% by 
weight) was used: 
______________________________________ 
Pregelatinized and quaternized 
2% 
starch (potato flour) marketed 
by AVEBE wider the brand name 
SOLVITOSE N (100% of AS) 
Distilled water qs 100% 
______________________________________ 
The results obtained were comparable to those of Example 1. 
EXAMPLE 3 
The procedure was like that used in Example 1, except that a 
polysaccharide-based composition 3 having the following characteristics (% 
by weight) was used: 
______________________________________ 
Starch (potato flour) phosphate 
3% 
marketed by AVEBE wider the brand 
name RETABOND AP (100% of AS) 
Distilled water qs 100% 
______________________________________ 
The results obtained were comparable to those of Example 1. 
EXAMPLE 4 
The procedure was like that used in Example 1, except that a 
polysaccharide-based composition 4 having the following features (% by 
weight) was used: 
______________________________________ 
Sodium carboxymethylcellulose 
3% 
marketed by AQUALON wider the 
brand name AMERGUM 1221 
(100% of AS) 
Distilled water qs 100% 
______________________________________ 
The results obtained were comparable to those of Example 1. 
All the above results show clearly the improvements brought about with 
respect to efficiency and retention for the sets obtained by the process 
according to the invention. Moreover, all the locks of hair pretreated 
with a polysaccharide in combination with a silicone and/or an oil 
afforded exceptional softness and smoothness to the touch.