Aerosol composition and method for producing same

Claim 1

An aerosol dispenser provided with a valve through which the contents thereof are discharged therefrom and containing a propellant under pressure and sprayable microcapsules dispersed therein, said microcapsules encapsulating a liquid cosmetic or pharmaceutical material and a fluid under pressure to provide a liquefied encapsulated pressuring medium, said microcapsules having walls compatible with said aerosol propellant and having a size ranging from about 50 - 1000 microns in diameter and being less than the diameter of the valve of said aerosol dispenser in which said propellant and microcapsules are packaged; said fluid encapsulated in said microcapsules under pressure and said propellant in which said microcapsules are dispersed and stored being essentially the same and comprising a liquefied gas of a fluorinated hydrocarbon selected from the group consisting of trichlorofluoromethane, dichlorofluoromethane and mixtures thereof or a saturated aliphatic hydrocarbon selected from the group consisting of propane, isobutane, n-butane and mixtures thereof, said liquid cosmetic or pharmaceutical material being miscible with said liquefied pressuring medium and the internal pressure of said microcapsules containing said liquid cosmetic or pharmaceutical material and said liquefied pressuring medium being essentially equal to the pressure of said propellant in said dispenser but greater than the atmosphere into which said microcapsules are to be sprayed so that said microcapsules without any independent action of the user upon actuating the valve of the dispenser to discharge said microcapsules into the atmosphere through the valve of the dispenser, rupture as soon as said microcapsules come into contact with the atmosphere thereby releasing said liquid cosmetic or pharmaceutical material therefrom.

Claim 2

A method for producing and dispensing a sprayable aerosol composition contained under pressure in an aerosol dispenser provided with a valve through which the contents thereof are discharged therefrom into an atmosphere having a pressure less than the pressure in said aerosol dispenser, said composition comprising an aerosol propellant and sprayable microcapsules dispersed therein, said microcapsules encapsulating a liquid cosmetic or pharmaceutical material and a fluid under pressure to provide a liquefied encapsulated pressuring medium, said microcapsules having walls compatible with and permeable to said aerosol propellant and having a size ranging from about 50 - 1000 microns in diameter and being less than the diameter of the valve of said aerosol dispenser in which said propellant and microcapsules are contained, the steps comprising microencapsulating said liquid cosmetic or pharmaceutical material in said microcapsules; placing said microcapsules in an atmosphere containing said fluid at a pressure sufficient for said fluid to permeate the microcapsule walls so that fluid is contained within said microcapsules as a liquid to provide a liquefied encapsulated pressuring medium; dispersing at said pressure the resulting microcapsules containing said liquid cosmetic or pharmaceutical material and liquefied pressuring medium in an aerosol propellant, liquefied pressuring medium and said aerosol propellant in which said microcapsules are dispersed and stored being essentially the same and comprising a liquefied gas of a fluorinated hydrocarbon selected from the group consisting of trichlorofluoromethane, dichlorofluoromethane and mixtures thereof or a saturated aliphatic hydrocarbon selected from the group consisting of propane, isobutane, n-butane and mixtures thereof, said liquid cosmetic or pharmaceutical material being miscible with said liquefied pressuring medium; and confining under pressure said microcapsules, containing said liquefied cosmetic or pharmaceutical material and liquefied pressuring medium, dispersed in said aerosol propellant in said aerosol dispenser, the internal pressure of said microcapsules containing said liquefied cosmetic or pharmaceutical material and said liquefied pressuring medium being essentially equal to the pressure of said aerosol propellant in said dispenser but greater than the atmosphere into which said microcapsules are to be sprayed so that said microcapsules without any independent action of the useR upon actuating the valve of the dispenser rupture as soon as said microcapsules come into contact with the atmosphere thereby releasing said liquid cosmetic or pharmaceutical material therefrom.

Claim 3

A method for producing and dispensing a sprayable aerosol composition contained under pressure in an aerosol dispenser provided with a valve through which the contents thereof are discharged therefrom into an atmosphere having a pressure less than the pressure in said aerosol dispenser, said composition comprising an aerosol propellant and sprayable microcapsules dispersed therein, said microcapsules encapsulating a liquid cosmetic or pharmaceutical material and a fluid under pressure to provide a liquefied encapsulated pressuring medium, said microcapsules having walls compatible with said aerosol propellant and having a size ranging from about 50 - 1000 microns in diameter and being less than the diameter of the valve of said aerosol dispenser in which said propellant and microcapsules are contained, the steps comprising microencapsulating said liquid cosmetic or pharmaceutical material in admixture with said fluid in said microcapsules at a sufficiently low temperature and at a pressure so that said fluid provides a liquefied pressuring medium encapsulated therein; dispersing the resulting microcapsules, containing said liquid cosmetic or pharmaceutical material and liquefied pressuring medium, in an aerosol propellant, said liquefied pressuring medium and said aerosol propellant in which said microcapsules are dispersed and stored being essentially the same and comprising a liquefied gas of a fluorinated hydrocarbon selected from the group consisting of trichlorofluoromethane, dichlorofluoromethane and mixtures thereof or a saturated aliphatic hydrocarbon selected from the group consisting of propane, isobutane, n-butane and mixtures thereof, said liquid cosmetic or pharmaceutical material being miscible with said liquefied pressuring medium; and confining, under pressure, said microcapsules, containing said liquid cosmetic or pharmaceutical material and liquefied pressuring medium, dispersed in said aerosol propellant in said aerosol dispenser, the internal pressure of said microcapsules containing said liquid cosmetic or pharmaceutical material and said liquefied pressuring medium being essentially equal to the pressure of said aerosol propellant in said dispenser but greater than the atmosphere into which said microcapsules are to be sprayed so that said microcapsules without any independent action of the user upon actuating the valve of the dispenser to discharge said microcapsules into the atmosphere through the valve of the dispenser, rupture as soon as said microcapsules come into contact with the atmosphere thereby releasing said liquid cosmetic or pharmaceutical material therefrom.