Patent ID: 7071155

Claim:
An alkali cleaning composition comprising: 0.5–20 weight percent of a sparingly water soluble surfactant comprising a linear or branched, substituted or unsubstituted alkyl benzene sulfonate, or a derivative thereof, the sparingly water soluble surfactant having water, solubility in the range of about 0.01 to about 15 weight percent in water; 1–20 weight percent of an organic solvent comprising a water soluble glycol ether; 1–40 weight percent of an alkali metal hydroxide or an alkaline earth metal hydroxide as an alkalinity source, wherein the alkalinity source is present in a molar excess with respect to the sparingly water soluble surfactant; and a polar carrier; wherein the cleaning composition is a liquid and the combination of sparingly water soluble surfactant, organic solvent, alkalinity source, and polar carrier interact to thicken the composition and provide the composition with a viscosity in the range of about 200 to about 1000 centipoise without inclusion of additional thickening agents.