[0001] The present disclosure relates to a room freshener composition. Specifically, the present disclosure relates to an anti-microbial room freshener that deodorizes the bad smell and kills the microorganisms in the surrounding air including bacterial and fungal spores.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] The background description includes information that may be useful in understanding the present invention. It is not an admission that any of the information provided herein is prior art or relevant to the presently claimed invention, or that any publication specifically or implicitly referenced is prior art.
[0003] Room fresheners are chemical products used in households, hotels, offices, railways, airports, toilets etc. for multiple purposes. The most important purpose is to impart an aroma to the place. The aroma may be imparted to places to mask or counter act a bad odor as in urinal or fecal or cigarette smoking zones. It may also be employed to generally impart a favorable scent to a place for example a hotel lobby or a household. Other purposes of room fresheners could include purification or filtering of air.
[0004] Earliest forms of room fresheners used chlorofluorocarbons, however their usage was reduced in the 1980s because of their impact on the ozone layer. Many different room freshener compositions have been developed since. Room fresheners have also been made available in multiple forms for example, aerosols, liquids, candles, electric plug-on, potpourri, oils, wicks etc. In spite of their name air fresheners do not freshen up the air, use of room freshener merely increases the concentration of the chemicals released into the air. Most room fresheners release volatile organic compounds (VOCs), semi-volatile organic compounds (SVOCs) and aldehydes in the air after their use. Room fresheners release toxins such as acetaldehyde, long-chain aldehydes, esters, styrene, toluene, glycol ether, phthalates, pre-polymers and artificial musk into the air. Some of these compounds may be toxic air pollutants, allergens, hormones-stimulating or worse, carcinogens. These volatile organic compounds and aldehydes have the potential to affect the central and peripheral nervous systems. Some common ailments caused by the chemicals include asthma, breathlessness or other bronchial problems, migraines, dermatitis, illness in infants or pets etc. These are some of the direct implications of the harmful chemicals released by these room fresheners. Apart from the direct impact, room fresheners may also generate secondary reaction products on reaction with compounds present in the environment. The optimum safe volatile compound dose is 200µg/m3 but for some room fresheners it reaches around 4000-5000 µg/m3.
[0005] Therefore, there is a need in the art to develop unique compositions that target the cause of the odors i.e. these compositions should not just be capable of improving the odor but should also be devoid of volatile organic chemicals.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
[0006] An object of the present disclosure is to provide a room freshener composition.
[0007] An object of the present disclosure is to provide a room freshener composition that has anti-microbial properties.
[0008] An object of the present disclosure is to provide a room freshener composition that deodorizes the bad smell and kills the disease causing microorganisms including bacterial and fungal spores.
[0009] An object of the present disclosure is to provide a room freshener composition that controls mold and mildew on mattresses, pillows, curtains etc.
[0010] An object of the present disclosure is to provide a room freshener composition that maintains low VOC concentration in the surrounding air.
[0011] An object of the present disclosure is to provide a room freshener composition that is free from toxic chemicals.
[0012] The other objects and preferred embodiments and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following description of the present invention when read in conjunction with the accompanying examples and figures, which are not intended to limit scope of the present invention in any manner.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0013] This summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in a simplified form that are further described below in Detailed Description section. This summary is not intended to identify key features or essential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended to be used as an aid in determining the scope of the claimed subject matter.
[0014] The present disclosure relates to a room freshener composition. Specifically, the present disclosure relates to a room freshener composition that acts as an anti-microbial.
[0015] In one aspect, the present disclosure relates to an anti-microbial room freshener composition comprising active ingredients, solvent, fragrance and color.
[0016] In one aspect, the present disclosure relates to an anti-microbial room freshener composition wherein the active ingredients are selected from one or more anti-microbial agents, one or more preservatives and mixtures thereof.
[0017] In another aspect, the present disclosure relates an anti-microbial room freshener composition that deodorizes the bad smell and kills the disease causing micro-organisms including bacterial and fungal spores providing a germ free surrounding air with a pleasant fragrance.
[0018] Other aspects of the invention will be set forth in the description which follows, and in part will be apparent from the description, or may be learnt by the practice of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0019] The following is a detailed description of embodiments of the disclosure. The embodiments are in such detail as to clearly communicate the disclosure. However, the amount of detail offered is not intended to limit the anticipated variations of embodiments; on the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the present disclosure as defined by the appended claims.
[0020] Unless the context requires otherwise, throughout the specification and claims which follow, the word “comprise” and variations thereof, such as, “comprises” and “comprising” are to be construed in an open, inclusive sense that is as “including, but not limited to.”
[0021] Reference throughout this specification to “one embodiment” or “an embodiment” means that a particular feature, structure or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment. Thus, the appearances of the phrases “in one embodiment” or “in an embodiment” in various places throughout this specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment. Furthermore, the particular features, structures, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments.
[0022] As used in this specification and the appended claims, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” include plural referents unless the content clearly dictates otherwise. It should also be noted that the term “or” is generally employed in its sense including “and/or” unless the content clearly dictates otherwise.
[0023] In some embodiments, the numbers expressing quantities of ingredients, properties such as concentration, reaction conditions, and so forth, used to describe and claim certain embodiments of the disclosure are to be understood as being modified in some instances by the term “about.” Accordingly, in some embodiments, the numerical parameters set forth in the written description are approximations that can vary depending upon the desired properties sought to be obtained by a particular embodiment. In some embodiments, the numerical parameters should be construed in light of the number of reported significant digits and by applying ordinary rounding techniques. Notwithstanding that the numerical ranges and parameters setting forth the broad scope of some embodiments of the disclosure are approximations, the numerical values set forth in the specific examples are reported as precisely as practicable.
[0024] The recitation of ranges of values herein is merely intended to serve as a shorthand method of referring individually to each separate value falling within the range. Unless otherwise indicated herein, each individual value is incorporated into the specification as if it were individually recited herein. All methods described herein can be performed in any suitable order unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context. The use of any and all examples, or exemplary language (e.g. “such as”) provided with respect to certain embodiments herein is intended merely to better illuminate the disclosure and does not pose a limitation on the scope of the disclosure otherwise claimed. No language in the specification should be construed as indicating any non-claimed element essential to the practice of the disclosure.
[0025] The headings and abstract of the disclosure provided herein are for convenience only and do not interpret the scope or meaning of the embodiments.
[0026] The following discussion provides many example embodiments of the inventive subject matter. Although each embodiment represents a single combination of inventive elements, the inventive subject matter is considered to include all possible combinations of the disclosed elements. Thus if one embodiment comprises elements A, B, and C, and a second embodiment comprises elements B and D, then the inventive subject matter is also considered to include other remaining combinations of A, B, C, or D, even if not explicitly disclosed.
[0027] The present disclosure relates to a room freshener composition. Specifically, the present disclosure relates to a room freshener composition that acts as an anti-microbial.
[0028] In one embodiment, the present disclosure relates to an anti-microbial room freshener composition comprising active ingredients, solvent, fragrance and color.
[0029] In another embodiment, the present disclosure relates to an anti-microbial room freshener composition wherein the active ingredients are selected from one or more anti-microbial agents, one or more preservatives and mixtures thereof.
[0030] In a preferred embodiment, the present disclosure relates to an anti-microbial room freshener composition wherein the active ingredients are a mixture of one or more anti-microbial agents and one or more preservatives.
[0031] In another embodiment of the present disclosure the present disclosure relates to an anti-microbial room freshener composition wherein the active ingredients are present in an amount ranging from about 10% to about 50%, preferably about 20% to about 35% by weight of the composition.
[0032] In another embodiment, the present disclosure relates to an anti-microbial room freshener composition wherein the anti-microbial agents are selected from the group comprising of alkyl dimethyl benzyl ammonium chloride (also known as benzalkonium chloride), alkyl dimethyl benzyl ammonium saccharinate, lactic acid, L-lactic acid, methylchloroisothiazoline, benzisothiazolinone (BIT), mixtures thereof and the like.
[0033] In a preferred embodiment, the present disclosure relates to an anti-microbial room freshener composition wherein the anti-microbial agents are a mixture of alkyl dimethyl benzyl ammonium chloride (also known as benzalkonium chloride), L-lactic acid, and benzisothiazolinone (BIT).
[0034] In another preferred embodiment, BIT is BIT-20 and acts as an anti-microbial as well as preservative.
[0035] According to the embodiments of the present invention, the anti-microbial agents also act as disinfectants.
[0036] In another embodiment, the present disclosure relates to an anti-microbial room freshener composition wherein the preservatives are selected from but not limited to sodium benzoate, potassium benzoate, citric acid, sodium hydroxide and the like.
[0037] In another embodiment, the present disclosure relates to an anti-microbial room freshener composition wherein solvent is selected from water, alcohol or a mixture thereof. Preferably the solvent is water, present in an amount ranging from about 15% to about 50%, preferably about 25% to about 40% by weight of the composition.
[0038] In an embodiment, the present disclosure relates to an anti-microbial room freshener composition wherein the fragrance is selected from the group comprising of zest, lavender, sandalwood, rose, lavender and the like.
[0039] In a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure, the fragrance is present in an amount ranging from about 15% to about 50%, preferably about 30% to about 40% by weight of the composition.
[0040] In another embodiment, the present disclosure relates to an anti-microbial room freshener composition wherein color is selected from the group comprising of naturally permitted colors like pink, yellow, red, orange, blue, lavender and the like.
[0041] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the color is present in an amount ranging from about 0.001% to about 3%, preferably about 0.01% to about 1% by weight of the composition.
[0042] In a preferred embodiment, the anti-microbial room freshener composition comprises:
Benzalkonium Chloride 5.00%
L-Lactic Acid 7.00%
Sodium Benzoate 7.00%
BIT-20 12.00%
Pink Color 0.05%
Zest Fragrance 37.00%
Water 31.95%
Wherein the components are expressed in weight percent by weight of the composition.
[0043] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the anti-microbial room freshener composition may be present in the form of solid or liquid, preferably as a liquid in the form of a concentrate. Preferably the anti-microbial room freshener composition is present in the form of a “ready to use” liquid concentrate. The essence of compressed technology is that the components of the composition are compressed or collected together without the solvent as a base or carrier. The concentrate or the solute is specified in a desired formulation so that once dissolved in solvent or water, the liquid concentrate dissolves completely. The inventive aspect of the compressed technology is the specific composition of the ingredients involved which are completely soluble, stable, disinfectant and efficient at the same time.
[0044] According to the embodiments of the present invention, the room freshener liquid concentrate (10 mL) is diluted with tap water (500 mL) to make an antimicrobial room freshner solution that is sprayed like a standard room freshner in the surrounding area. The composition is sprayed using a small pore size spray bottle and the room is left for 10-12 minutes, allowing the sprayed contents to interact with the microbial load in the surrounding air. 10 mL of the diluted composition of the room freshener is capable of killing 5 x 105 cfu of bacteria and 103 cfu of fungus resulting in 99.99% germ free surrounding. Therefore 6-7 sprays are enough for a 200-300 square feet area.
[0045] The room freshener composition exists as a compressed liquid concentrate, thus decreasing the overall use of plastic per person and is relatively cost-effective than the existing products by about 60-70%.
[0046] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the anti-microbial room freshener composition displays a good result in reducing microbial load and removing bad odor.
[0047] In another embodiment, the present disclosure relates an anti-microbial room freshener composition that deodorizes the bad smell and kills the microorganisms including bacterial and fungal spores providing a germ free surrounding air with a pleasant fragrance.
[0048] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the anti-microbial room freshener composition kills microorganisms selected from the group comprising gram positive bacteria, gram negative bacteria, fungal spores and the like.
[0049] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the anti-microbial room freshener composition helps to prevent the spread of harmful diseases caused by microorganisms.
[0050] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the anti-microbial room freshener composition also controls mold and mildew on mattresses, pillows, curtains and the like.
[0051] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the anti-microbial room freshener composition exhibits extremely good results in toilets, indoors, inside car, garbage dumping area among others.
[0052] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the anti-microbial room freshener composition helps to maintain low VOC concentration in the surrounding air.
[0053] While the foregoing describes various embodiments of the disclosure, other and further embodiments of the disclosure may be devised without departing from the basic scope thereof. The scope of the disclosure is determined by the claims that follow. The disclosure is not limited to the described embodiments, versions or examples, which are included to enable a person having ordinary skill in the art to make and use the disclosure when combined with information and knowledge available to the person having ordinary skill in the art.
[0054] The present invention is further explained in the form of following examples. However, it is to be understood that the following examples are merely illustrative and are not to be taken as limitations upon the scope of the invention.
[0055] All the raw materials used for the composition are commercially available. Benzalkonium Chloride was purchased from Chemtiver, Delhi; L-Lactic Acid from CDH Chemicals, New Delhi; Sodium Benzoate from Goyal Chemicals, Delhi; BIT-20 from BRM Enterprise, Delhi; Pink Color from Gogia Fragrance, Delhi and Zest Fragrance from Neelikon Food Dyes & Chemicals Ltd, Delhi.
[0056] Example 1: Room freshener composition

Ingredients %
Composition w/w
Benzalkonium Chloride 5.00%
L-Lactic Acid 7.00%
Sodium Benzoate 7.00%
BIT-20 12.00%
Pink Color 0.05%
Zest Fragrance 37.00%
Water 31.95%
Total 100.00%

[0057] Example 2: Preparation of Room Freshener composition
[0058] Sodium benzoate (0.7 g) was dissolved in hot water (3.195 g) to prepare an aqueous solution. Benzalkonium Chloride (0.5 g) and L-Lactic Acid (0.7 g) were mixed to form another mixture to which BIT-30 (1.2 g) was added. The resulting mixture was added to the aqueous solution containing sodium benzoate, followed by addition of fragrance (3.7 g) and color (0.005 g) resulting in 10 g (equivalent to 10 mL) of the anti-microbial Room freshener.
[0059] Example 3: Anti-microbial activity of the Room Freshener Composition
[0060] Anti-bacterial activity of the Antimicrobial Room Freshener composition: The method used to determine the anti-bacterial activity of the Antimicrobial Room Freshener composition is based on the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) E2315 "Standard Guide for Assessment of Antimicrobial Activity Using a Time-Kill Procedure" where the inoculation of a standardized liquid culture of the test strain in a dilution series of the tested antibacterial for which the MIC is determined. The first concentration in the dilution series at which no visual growth can be determined is then considered as the MIC. Graph was plotted with respect to Log concentration of the test product and Probit of mortality for calculation of LC99.99 against bacterial strains Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 6538, Staphylococcus epidermidis (ATCC12228, Escherichia coli (ATCC 8739), Salmonella abony (NCTC6017) and Listeria monocytogenes (ATCC 19111).
[0061] Procedure: The working culture of bacteria was prepared. Stock solution of the test organism was prepared as to obtain a count of at least 5 x 105 cfu per ml by using densitometer. The concentration of Antimicrobial Room Freshener composition taken was 200 mg/ml to 20 mg/ml, prepared in Soybean Casein Digest Medium (SCDM). After preparation of all the tubes, a 100µl of the adjusted culture (approx.105cfu/ml) was added in to each tube and all the tubes were incubated in the plate reader and observed in 30 seconds and 2 minutes. After incubation, all the tubes were observed with the help of spectrophotometer for growth of microorganisms and time required to kill the microorganism. The effectiveness of the antibacterial activity of Antimicrobial Room Freshener composition was recorded in terms of MIC. The concentration at which the growth of test organisms is inhibited was considered as the MIC of composition.
[0062] The antibacterial activity of Antimicrobial Room Freshener composition was calculated in terms of LC99.99 against Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 6538) Staphylococcus epidermidis (ATCC12228) Escherichia coli (ATCC 8739) Salmonella abony (NCTC6017) and Listeria monocytogenes (ATCC 19111) and resulted in LC99.99 of 200 mg/ml within 30 seconds against all the bacterial strains.
[0063] Anti-Fungal activity of the Antimicrobial Room Freshener composition
[0064] Fungal Strain Candida albicans (MTCC 227) and Aspergillus brasilensis (ATCC 16404) were used to evaluate the anti-fungal activity of the Antimicrobial Room Freshener composition.
[0065] Procedure: The working culture of test organism Candida albicans and Aspergillus brasilensis was prepared. Stock solution of the test organism was prepared as to obtain a count of at least 0.5-2.5 x 103 cfu per ml by using densitometer. The concentration of Antimicrobial Room Freshener composition taken was 200mg/ml to 20mg/ml. After preparation of all the tubes, a 100µl of the adjusted culture (approx.103 cfu/ml) was added in to each tube and all the tubes were incubated for in the plate reader and observed in 30 seconds and 2 minutes. After incubation, all the tubes were visually observed for growth of microorganisms. The concentration at which the growth of test organisms is inhibited was considered as the MIC of product. The effectiveness of the antifungal activity of Antimicrobial Room Freshener composition was recorded in terms of MIC. Graph was plotted with respect to Log concentration of the test product and Probit of mortality.
[0066] The antifungal activity of Antimicrobial Room Freshener composition resulted in LC99.99 against the mentioned fungus at 200 mg/mL within 30 seconds.
[0067] The foregoing examples are merely illustrative and are not to be taken as limitations upon the scope of the invention. Various changes and modifications to the disclosed embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Such changes and modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the invention.

ADVANTAGES OF THE PRESENT INVENTION
[0068] The present disclosure provides an anti-microbial room freshener composition.
[0069] The present disclosure provides an anti-microbial room freshener composition that kills germs that cause bad odors.
[0070] The present disclosure provides an anti-microbial room freshener composition that controls mold and mildew on mattresses, pillows, curtains etc.
[0071] The present disclosure provides an anti-microbial room freshener composition that maintains low VOC concentration in the surrounding air.
[0072] The present disclosure provides an anti-microbial room freshener composition that is free from toxic chemicals.

WE CLAIM

1.An anti-microbial room freshener composition comprising active ingredients, solvent, fragrance and color, wherein the active ingredients are selected from one or more anti-microbial agents, one or more preservatives and mixtures thereof, present in an amount ranging from about 10% to about 50%, preferably about 20% to about 35% by weight of the composition, characterized in that the composition is compressed in the form of a “ready to use” liquid concentrate, further diluted with water before use and the composition is 60-70% cost effective as compared to the existing products.
2. The composition as claimed in claim 1, wherein the active ingredients are a mixture of one or more anti-microbial agents and one or more preservatives.
3. The composition as claimed in claim 1, wherein anti-microbial agents are selected from the group comprising of alkyl dimethyl benzyl ammonium chloride, alkyl dimethyl benzyl ammonium saccharinate, lactic acid, L-lactic acid, methylchloroisothiazoline, benzisothiazolinone (BIT) and mixtures thereof, preferably a mixture of alkyl dimethyl benzyl ammonium chloride, L-lactic acid, and benzisothiazolinone (BIT-20).
4. The composition as claimed in claim 1, wherein the preservatives are selected from sodium benzoate, potassium benzoate, citric acid and sodium hydroxide.
5. The composition as claimed in claim 1, wherein solvent is water, present in an amount ranging from about 15% to about 50%, preferably about 25% to about 40% by weight of the composition.
6. The composition as claimed in claim 1, wherein the fragrance is selected from the group comprising of zest, lavender, sandalwood, rose and lavender, present in an amount ranging from about 15% to about 50%, preferably about 30% to about 40% by weight of the composition.
7. The composition as claimed in claim 1, wherein color is selected from the group comprising of naturally permitted colors like pink, yellow, red, orange, blue and lavender, present in an amount ranging from about 0.001% to about 3%, preferably about 0.01% to about 1% by weight of the composition.
8. The composition as claimed in claim 1, wherein the composition reduces microbial load, removes bad odor and kills microbes selected from gram positive bacteria, gram negative bacteria and fungal spores.
9. An anti-microbial room freshener composition comprising:
Benzalkonium Chloride 5.00%
L-Lactic Acid 7.00%
Sodium Benzoate 7.00%
BIT-20 12.00%
Pink Color 0.05%
Zest Fragrance 37.00%
Water 31.95%
wherein the components are expressed in weight percent by weight of the composition.