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Detergent enzymes

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Detergent power containing enzymes

Detergent enzymes are biological enzymes that are used with detergents. They catalyze the reaction between stains and the water solution, thus aiding stain removal and improving efficiency.[1] Laundry detergent enzymes are the largest industrial enzyme application.[2]

In consumer products, laundry enzymes are usually little blue particles or flecks.[citation needed] They can be a part of both liquid and powder detergents.

History

Otto Röhm introduced the use of enzymes in detergent by adding trypsin extracted from the tissues of slaughtered animals. Röhm's formula, though successful compared to the traditional cleaning methods employed in German households, was considered unstable when dealing with alkali and bleach.[clarification needed] In 1959 yields were improved by microbial synthesis of proteases.[3]

Properties

Laundry enzymes must be able to function normally in a wide array of adverse conditions: water temperatures as high as 60 °C. or as low as 0℃.; alkaline and acidic environments; solutions with high ionic strength; and the presence of surfactants or oxidizing agents.[4][2]

Types

The five classes of enzymes found in laundry detergent include proteases, amylases, lipases, cellulases, and mannanases. They break down proteins (e.g. in blood and egg stain), starch, fats, cellulose (e.g. in vegetable puree), and mannans (e.g. in bean gum stain) respectively.[2]

Merits

Household energy saving

Conventionally, household washing machines would use heated tap water to provide better conditions for the stain on the cloth to dissolve, because most stubborn stains have better solubility in the hot solvent. However, the energy used in this process is not negligible. The introduction of laundry enzymes that perform even in cold tap water can result in significant energy savings.[5]

A wider variety of clothes at one time

As a consequential benefit, consumers can freely choose a larger range of clothes with diverse materials. Lower temperature laundry condition allows more delicate materials like wool and silk that are easily affected when placed into a high-temperature environment. Moreover, maintaining a lower temperature avoids fading jeans and denim which are usually dyed with dark colors, and causes less color transfer.[6]

Better laundry process for leather manufacture

There is another piece of evidence that emphasizes the merits of using laundry enzymes in the leather industry. The traditional procedure was complex. First, animal hides with a mixture of urine and lime were soaked altogether to get rid of unwanted hairs, flesh, and fat.[7] Then, the skins were softened by kneading them in dogs or pigeons' feces, which was usually done with bare feet.[7] What made the leather industry infamous was the discharges and refuse disposal. They caused severe hazards and problems both on human health and the environmental eco-system because of the enormous amount of effluents with highly concentrated sulfide and chromium.[8] Therefore, leather making was considered a noxious and redundant trade without any doubt.[7] After laundry enzymes were introduced into the leather pre-treating procedure, the leather industry discarded the foul method[7] to pre-process the leather and provide a better eco-friendly situation.[6] The use of sodium sulfide, a hazardous iconic compound to remove hair from animal hides, is lessened by 60%,[7] water usage for soaking and hair cut is lowered by 25%,[7] the most remarkable one is toxic pollution and emission has been greatly reduced by 30%.[7] These laundry enzymes have never completely substituted the industrial chemical compounds. Nevertheless, the working conditions, wastewater, and processing time have been greatly improved.

Phosphate and synthetic surfactants' replacement

With the more completed legislative files and contexts coming towards the laundry industry. The environmentally unfriendly synthetic surfactants and phosphate salts are no longer allowed to use without any usage limit. Consequently, synthetic surfactants are then used with lower concentration in combination with enzymes.[9] Currently, laundry industry manufacturers have recognized the importance of producing environmentally friendly detergents, and to fulfill the achievement, laundry enzymes have been added to reformulate the detergent and replace the previous chemical surfactants and phosphate.[9] Laundry enzymes are biological active factors such as bacteria, yeast or even mushrooms[10] that are biologically sourced, and hence there will be less chemical pollution from the enzymes and they decompose some toxicants[9]

Public concerns

Damage to delicate materials

Detergent enzymes have been shown to adversely affect delicate materials. A study testing enzymes on untreated knit and woolen fabrics showed damage that was proportional to both soaking time and the enzyme concentration.[11]

Skin allergy and testing

After laundry enzymes have been popular for a few decades, consumers’ response also varies personally. It is reported that some Philippine consumers who are used to laundering by hand slightly suffered from powder detergents and the noticeable granular components were found to be mainly with laundry enzyme formulation. As a result, it was thought that laundry enzymes have the potential to increase the likelihood of getting occupational type 1 allergic responses.[12] However, a large-scale skin prick test (SPT) containing 15,765 volunteers with 8 different types of laundry enzymes find that the allergy reaction is extremely rare among the public, with only 0.23% showing a reaction.[13] The issue in Filipino consumers are said to be the mighty and rush way of rubbing laundry with hands.[12] After various tests with abundant volunteers worldwide, it is found that exposure to laundry enzymes leads to neither skin allergy (Type I sensitization) nor skin erosion.[12][13]

References

  1. ^ "Cosmetics & Toiletries & Household Products Marketing News in Japan". Pacific Research Consulting, Inc. February 25, 2009.
  2. ^ a b c Kirk, Ole; Borchert, Torben; Fuglsang, Claus (1 August 2002). "Industrial enzyme applications". Current Opinion in Biotechnology. 13 (4): 345–351. doi:10.1016/s0958-1669(02)00328-2. PMID 12323357.
  3. ^ Leisola, Matti; Jokela, Jouni; Pastinen, Ossi; Turunen, Ossi; Schoemaker, Hans. "INDUSTRIAL USE OF ENZYMES" (PDF). Physiology and Maintenance. II: 2–3.
  4. ^ Yim, Joung Han; Lee, Jun Hyuck; Koo, Bon-Hun; Kim, Jung Eun; Han, Se Jong; Do, Hackwon; Kim, Dockyu; Lee, Chang Woo; Park, Ha Ju (2018-02-21). "Crystal structure of a cold-active protease (Pro21717) from the psychrophilic bacterium, Pseudoalteromonas arctica PAMC 21717, at 1.4 Å resolution: Structural adaptations to cold and functional analysis of a laundry detergent enzyme". PLOS ONE. 13 (2): e0191740. Bibcode:2018PLoSO..1391740P. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0191740. ISSN 1932-6203. PMC 5821440. PMID 29466378.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: unflagged free DOI (link)
  5. ^ "Enzymes in Biological Detergents – The Facts About Laundry Detergents and How They Work". Persil UK. Retrieved 2019-05-19.
  6. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference :2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ a b c d e f g says, Novozymes. "From excrement to enzyme: How biotech helped clean up leather production – Rethink Tomorrow". Retrieved 2019-05-19.
  8. ^ Choudhary, R; Jana, A; Jha, M (September 2004). "Enzyme technology applications in leather processing" (PDF). Indian Journal of Chemical Technology. 11: 659–671.
  9. ^ a b c Gaubert, Alexandra; Jeudy, Jérémy; Rougemont, Blandine; Bordes, Claire; Lemoine, Jérôme; Casabianca, Hervé; Salvador, Arnaud (2016-07-01). "Identification and absolute quantification of enzymes in laundry detergents by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry". Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry. 408 (17): 4669–4681. doi:10.1007/s00216-016-9550-8. ISSN 1618-2650. PMID 27098933. S2CID 39950551.
  10. ^ Waldhoff, Heinrich; Spilker, Rudiger, eds. (2016-04-19). Handbook Of Detergents, Part C. doi:10.1201/9781420030334. ISBN 9780429132605.
  11. ^ Friedman, Mendel (April 1971). "Effect of Enzymes and Enzyme-Containing Detergent On Strength of Untreated Woolen Fabrics". Textile Research Journal. 41 (4): 315–318. doi:10.1177/004051757104100405. ISSN 0040-5175. S2CID 137326402.
  12. ^ a b c SARLO, K; CORMIER, E; MACKENZIE, D; SCOTT, L (January 1996). "749 Lack of type I sensitization to laundry enzymes among consumers in the Philippines". Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. 97 (1): 370. doi:10.1016/s0091-6749(96)80967-5. ISSN 0091-6749.
  13. ^ a b Sarlo, Katherine; Kirchner, Donald B.; Troyano, Esperanza; Smith, Larry A.; Carr, Gregory J.; Rodriguez, Carlos (May 2010). "Assessing the risk of type 1 allergy to enzymes present in laundry and cleaning products: Evidence from the clinical data". Toxicology. 271 (3): 87–93. doi:10.1016/j.tox.2010.03.007. ISSN 0300-483X. PMID 20223268.
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