Patent Description:
What is needed, then, are improved hair care products and methods for reducing frizziness, and improving curl retention or curl definition. <CIT> discloses compositions and methods are disclosed for preventing or reducing frizzy appearance of keratin fibers, including hair, and reducing the amount of fly-away strands of hair, particularly in humid conditions, by forming a coating on hair that is resistant to water vapors from the air or surrounding environment, wherein the compositions comprise a combination of a hydrophobic particulate material comprising a hydrophobic ally surface-modified oxide and one or more hydrophobic film formers in a cosmetically acceptable vehicle. <CIT> discloses a relaxer gel activator composition, which includes a carbomer and guanidine carbonate as an alkaline neutralizing agent therefor, and a method for producing the relaxer gel activator, wherein in some embodiments, the relaxer gel activator composition includes at least one conditioning agent, which may be PEG-<NUM> dimeadowfoamamidoethylmonium methosulfate. <CIT> discloses a personal care composition and a method of using personal care compositions which results in increased fragrance retention when such compositions are applied to a keratin surface including hair and skin, wherein the personal care compositions contain a quaternary ammonium compound, one or more fragrances, and a personal care acceptable carrier.

This summary is intended merely to introduce a simplified summary of some aspects of one or more implementations of the present disclosure. Further areas of applicability of the present disclosure will become apparent from the detailed description provided hereinafter. This summary is not an extensive overview, nor is it intended to identify key or critical elements of the present teachings, nor to delineate the scope of the disclosure. Rather, its purpose is merely to present one or more concepts in simplified form as a prelude to the detailed description below.

Embodiments of the disclosure may provide a hair care composition for improving curl retention of hair. The hair care composition includes a carrier and a quaternary ammonium compound as defined in the claims, wherein the quaternary ammonium compound of formula (I) is present in an amount of from <NUM> weight % to <NUM> weight %, based on a total weight of the hair care composition and the composition is configured to improve curl retention of hair. The quaternary ammonium compound is represented by formula (<NUM>).

In at least one embodiment, the counterion of the quaternary ammonium compound is selected from a halide ion, a sulfate ion, a phosphate ion, a methosulfate ion, or an organic ion.

In at least one embodiment, the quaternary ammonium compound may be represented by formula (<NUM>).

In at least one embodiment, the carrier may include at least one of surfactants, colorants, denaturants, film forming polymers, conditioning agents, fixatives, hair color stabilizers, anti-inflammatory agents, antioxidants, moisturizers, enzymes, proteins, protein hydrolizates or hydrolysates, amino acids, vitamins, minerals, natural extracts, antidandruff agents, sunscreen agents, and mixtures thereof.

In at least one embodiment, the carrier is anhydrous.

In at least one embodiment, the carrier is hydrophilic.

In another embodiment, the carrier is hydrophobic.

Embodiments of the disclosure may also provide a method for improving curl retention in hair of a subject. The method may include contacting any one of the hair care compositions disclosed herein with surfaces of the hair of the subject in need thereof.

In at least one embodiment, the hair contacted with the hair care composition exhibits relatively less change in curl volume as compared to hair treated with a hair care composition without the quaternary ammonium compound.

Embodiments of the disclosure may further provide a method for preparing any of the hair care compositions disclosed herein. The method may include contacting the quaternary ammonium compound with the carrier.

Further areas of applicability of the present disclosure will become apparent from the detailed description provided hereinafter. It should be understood that the detailed description and specific examples, while indicating some typical aspects of the disclosure, are intended for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the disclosure, which is defined in the claims.

The following description of various typical aspect(s) is merely exemplary in nature and is in no way intended to limit the disclosure, its application, or uses.

Any value within the range may be selected as the terminus of the range.

Compositions disclosed herein may be or include a personal care product or a personal care composition thereof. The personal care composition may be a leave-in or leave-on composition (e.g., leave-in or leave-on hair conditioner) or a rinse-off composition (e.g., rinse-off hair conditioner). The personal care composition is a hair care composition. Illustrative hair care products may be or include, but are not limited to, shampoos, leave-in or rinse-off conditioners, leave-in or rinse-off deep treatments, hair spray, gels, or the like. In an exemplary implementation, the composition is a leave-in or a rinse-off conditioner. As further described herein, the composition includes a quaternary ammonium compound as defined in the claims and a vehicle or carrier.

The personal care product or the composition thereof is a hair care composition, such as a hair conditioner, and includes a quaternary ammonium compound dispersed in, mixed with, combined with, or otherwise contacted with a vehicle or carrier. In at least one implementation, the carrier may be capable of or configured to store, entrain, or otherwise contain the quaternary ammonium compound, and deliver the quaternary ammonium compound to surfaces of hair.

The carrier may include any one or more further ingredients that are suitable for inclusion into the composition for use on hair of a mammal or human. As used herein, the expression "one or more further ingredients that are suitable for inclusion in the composition for use on the hair of a mammal or human" may refer to any one or more ingredients or components that are characteristic of a hair care product, such as a hair conditioner. The carrier disclosed herein may also include ingredients or components that are not necessarily characteristic of a hair care product in combination with at least one ingredient or component that is characteristic of a hair care product.

The carrier for the hair care composition may include, but is not limited to, any one or more of the following: surfactants, viscosity enhancers or control agents, pH modifiers (e.g., acids, bases, buffers, etc.), emulsifiers, oils, fatty alcohols, silicones, cationics, detangling agents, hair shine enhancers, hair strengtheners, preservatives, fragrances, thickeners, rheology modifiers, colorants, denaturants, film forming polymers, conditioning agents, fixatives, hair color stabilizers, anti-inflammatory agents, antioxidants, moisturizers, enzymes and other proteins including protein hydrolizates or hydrolysates, amino acids, vitamins, minerals, natural extracts, antidandruff agents, sunscreen agents, and mixtures thereof.

Illustrative conditioning agents may include, but are not limited to, any one or more of silicones (e.g., silicone oils, cationic silicones, silicone gums, high refractive silicones, silicone resins, etc.), and organic conditioning oils (e.g., hydrocarbon oils, polyolefins, fatty esters, etc.).

Illustrative anti-dandruff agents may include, but are not limited to, pyridinethione salts, selenium sulfide, particulate sulfur, and the like, and mixtures thereof.

Illustrative anti-inflammatory agents may include, but are not limited to, glucocorticoids, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatories, and the like, and mixtures or combinations thereof. Illustrative colorants may include, but are not limited to, non-oxidative dyes, such as "direct action dyes," metallic dyes, metal chelate dyes, fiber/fibre reactive dyes, other synthetic and natural dyes, and the like, and mixtures or combinations thereof.

Illustrative sunscreen agents may include, but are not limited to, <NUM>-ethylhexyl p-methoxycinnamate, <NUM>-ethylhexyl N,N-dimethyl-p-aminobenzoate, p-aminobenzoic acid, <NUM>-phenylbenzimidazole-<NUM>-sulfonic acid, octocrylene, oxybenzone, homomenthyl salicylate, octyl salicylate, <NUM>,<NUM>'-methoxy-t-butyldibenzoylme-thane, <NUM>-isopropyl dibenzoylmethane, <NUM>-benzylidene camphor, <NUM>-(<NUM>-methylbenzylidene) camphor, titanium dioxide, zinc oxide, silica, iron oxide, and the like, and mixtures or combinations thereof.

Illustrative vitamins may include, but are not limited to, Vitamin E, panthenol, and the like, and mixtures or combinations thereof.

Illustrative fatty alcohols may include, but are not limited to, stearyl alcohol, cetyl alcohol, or the like, or mixtures and combinations thereof.

Illustrative silicones may include, but are not limited to, dimethicone, dimethiconol, amodimethicone, cyclopentasiloxane, or the like, or any combination thereof.

Illustrative cationics may include, but are not limited to, surfactants such as cetrimonium chloride, behentrimonium methosulfate, behenamidopropyl dimethylamine, or quaternium <NUM>, or polymeric cationics, such as the polyquaternium series (e.g., polyquaternium-<NUM>, -<NUM>, or -<NUM>), cationic guar gum, or the like, or mixture and combinations thereof. Further examples of fatty alcohols, silicones, and cationics are known to those skilled in the art of formulating hair care products and hair care compositions thereof.

The carrier may be hydrophilic or hydrophobic. The carrier may be anhydrous. The carrier may be a liquid or a solid at room temperature. The carrier may have a viscosity of from about <NUM>,<NUM> centipoise (cP) to about <NUM>,<NUM> cP. For example, the carrier for a shower gel may have a viscosity of from about <NUM>,<NUM> cP to about <NUM>,<NUM> cP. In another example, the carrier for a lotion may have a viscosity of from about <NUM>,<NUM> cP to about <NUM>,<NUM> cP. Accordingly, it should be appreciated that the viscosity of the carrier may vary and may at least partially depend on the type of personal care composition.

The quaternary ammonium compound is a cationic material represented by formula (<NUM>):
<CHM>
where:.

In at least one implementation, the R<NUM> and R<NUM> groups may be derived from naturally occurring fats or oils such as tallow, soybean oil, coconut oil, cottonseed oil, castor oil, safflower oil, meadowfoam seed oil, abyssinia oil, or the like, or mixtures and combinations thereof. In another implementation, the polyoxyalkylene group may include: an oxyethylene having the structure -(OCH<NUM>CH<NUM>); an oxypropylene having the structure -(OCH(CH<NUM>)H<NUM>)- or - (OCH<NUM>(CH)CH<NUM>)-; an oxytrimethylene having the structure -(OCH<NUM>CH<NUM>CH<NUM>)-; and/or a <NUM>,<NUM>-oxybutylene having the structure -(OC<NUM>H<NUM>)-.

The counterion (X-) of the cationic material may be any suitable cation. Illustrative cations may be or include, but are not limited to, halide ions, sulfate ions, phosphate ions, methosulfate ions, organic ions, and other anions, or the like, or mixtures and combinations thereof. Illustrative organic ions may include, but are not limited to, lactate, citrate, tartrate, acetate, or the like, or combinations thereof.

In an exemplary implementation, the quaternary ammonium compound may be a PEG-<NUM> dimeadowfoamamidoethylmonium represented by formula (<NUM>), which is commercially available from Elementis Specialties Inc. of Livingston, UK under trade name MEADOWQUAT® HG-<NUM>. <CHM>
where R may have the following composition:.

The amount or concentration of the quaternary ammonium compound may vary widely. The quaternary ammonium compound is present in an amount of from <NUM> weight %, The quaternary ammonium compound is present in an amount of less than or equal to <NUM> weight %.

Unless otherwise specifically identified, the ingredients for use in the compositions and formulations of the present invention are preferably cosmetically acceptable ingredients. By "cosmetically acceptable" is meant suitable for use in a formulation for topical application to human skin. A cosmetically acceptable excipient, for example, is an excipient that is suitable for external application in the amounts and concentrations contemplated in the formulations of this invention, and includes for example, excipients that are "Generally Recognized as Safe" (GRAS) by the United States Food and Drug Administration.

The present disclosure includes methods for using the personal care or hair care composition including the quaternary ammonium compound that results in improved or increased curl retention and/or reduced frizziness when applied to a surface (e.g., keratin surface) of hair. The method includes applying to the hair of a mammal or human in need thereof a personal care composition including a carrier and a quaternary ammonium compound.

Useful for understanding the invention is the use of a composition including a quaternary ammonium compound for improving or increasing curl retention and/or reducing frizziness.

The present disclosure further includes methods for making a hair care composition for improving or increasing curl retention and/or reducing frizziness. The method includes contacting a quaternary ammonium compound with a carrier.

The examples and other implementations described herein are exemplary and not intended to be limiting in describing the full scope of compositions and methods of this disclosure. Equivalent changes, modifications and variations of specific implementations, materials, compositions and methods may be made within the scope of the present disclosure, with substantially similar results.

The curl definition as determined by frizziness or control of frizz of hair treated with a hair care composition including a quaternary ammonium compound was evaluated. Particularly, a control hair care composition (<NUM>) and a hair care composition including a quaternary ammonium compound, namely, PEG-<NUM> dimeadowfoam-amidoethylmonium methosulfate, (<NUM>) were prepared according to Table <NUM> and evaluated.

To evaluate each of the compositions (<NUM>) and (<NUM>), twelve European virgin hair tresses each having about <NUM> grams of hair and about <NUM> to about <NUM> in length were pre-cleaned and randomly separated into two sets of six tresses. The first set of six tresses was treated with <NUM> of the control (<NUM>) and the second set of six tresses was treated with <NUM> of the hair care composition with the PEG-<NUM> dimeadowfoam-amidoethylmonium methosulfate (<NUM>). To treat each of the tresses, the respective composition (<NUM>) and (<NUM>) was manually massaged into the tress from root to tip for one minute, then rinsed under tap water. A curl setting was made with a plastic rod and dried overnight. After drying, all the tresses were exposed to a humidity controlled walk-in chamber maintained at <NUM>% relative humidity (RH) and <NUM> for <NUM> hours.

Photocopies or photographs of each of the tresses were taken immediately after drying to provide the baseline (T<NUM>), and after exposure to the humidity controlled walk-in chamber for <NUM> hours (T<NUM>). The images were scanned and digitally analyzed to calculate the percentage change in area, % Δ Area, (i.e., degree of frizziness) comparing the square area (in pixels) of the baseline (i.e., after drying) and the final images (i.e., after exposure to the humidity walk-in chamber). The % Δ Area of each of the tresses was then calculated according to formula (<NUM>) and averaged for each set of six tresses. The results are summarized in Tables <NUM> and <NUM>. Table <NUM> observed the volume of the area of the curl and "flyaways" (frizz or stray hairs). Table <NUM> only observed the volume of the curl.

As illustrated in Tables <NUM> and <NUM>, hair treated with the hair care composition (<NUM>) exhibited less change in frizziness and curl volume as compared to the control (<NUM>). Accordingly, hair treated with the hair care composition (<NUM>) exhibited relatively greater curl retention as compared to the control hair care composition (<NUM>) without the quaternary ammonium compound.

Claim 1:
A hair care composition for improving curl retention of hair, comprising:
a carrier; and
a quaternary ammonium compound configured to improve curl retention of hair, wherein the quaternary ammonium compound is represented by chemical formula (I):
<CHM>
wherein:
R<NUM> is independently selected from: a C<NUM>-C<NUM> alkyl group, a C<NUM>-C<NUM> ester group, an R<NUM>-C(=O)NH(CH<NUM>)m group, where R<NUM> is a C<NUM>-C<NUM> alkyl and m is an integer from <NUM> to <NUM>, and mixtures thereof;
R<NUM> and R<NUM> are each independently selected from: H, C<NUM>-C<NUM> alkyl and
polyoxyalkylene groups having polyalkylene repeating units containing from <NUM> to <NUM> carbon atoms;
R<NUM> is independently selected from R<NUM>, R<NUM>, and R<NUM>; and
X- is a counterion,
wherein the quaternary ammonium compound of formula (I) is present in an amount of from <NUM> weight % to <NUM> weight %, based on a total weight of the hair care composition.