SUMMER INTERN

PRESENTATION

Anamika Chowdhury

10CH10003

Company : Hindustan Unilever Limited

Introduction
Hindustan Unilever Limited :
• FMCG company owned by Unilever
• Market leader in Indian consumer products
• Major fields:
1.) Food brands (Kissan, Knorr etc.)
2.) Personal Care (Dove, Ponds etc.)
3.) Homecare brands (Surf Excel, Vim etc.)
4.) Water Purifier (Pureit)
Project Description
• Different platforms different classes of consumers

• Different platforms have their own well-defined BPS and deliverables

Project Objective
To redesign detergent powders for different platforms based on
the defined BPS and identify opportunities for cost optimization
Brand Performance Standards

SKIP DIG RADIANT SURF

Makes clothes
Clean + Care Removes stains keeps whites
smell fresh and
Proposition in first wash white
clean

Makes clothes Leaves a long

Has a great
Cloth Care : WIN smell fresh and lasting fragrance
fragrance
clean on clothes
Detergent Components
Surfactants • Main cleaning agents

Builders • To reduce hardness of water

Fluorescers • Improve whiteness

Enzymes • Remove tough stains

Perfume • Impart fragrance

Surfactants
Surface active amphiphiles

Hydrophilic head and hydrophobic tail

Adsorb on cloth and dirt surface and lower IFT

Soil loosening and soil dispersal in wash liquor

Prevent re-deposition
Surfactant Adsorption
8

5
O-W IFT(mN/m)

0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16

X CMC

• Saturation beyond 10-11 times CMC

• Conventionally added surfactant level : 17-18 times CMC
• No additional benefit of extra added surfactants
Experimental Analysis
• Objective :
Compare cleaning levels of different detergent brands having
different surfactant concentrations

• Brands Compared
Breeze Comfort Decreasing surfactant
Breeze Oxymax concentration
Omo Plus
Surf All Blue

• Results
Parity on most test cloth except on particulate soil (loss by Surf
All Blue)
Result Explanation
• Loss on particulate soil is mainly due to high hardness levels

• Positively charged Ca and Mg ions acts as bridges between

negatively charged cloth and particulate soil

• Ca and Mg ions also promote re-deposition

Remedy Agitated
wash liquor Kaolinite
Increase Clay
builder levels !

Cat-ions
(Na+,Ca++)
Experimental Analysis
• Objective :
Compare cleaning levels of the losing brands with increased
builder concentration

• Builder Added
Zeolite
Sodium Carbonate

• Results
Parity on formulation with increased zeolite concentration,
but not with increased sodium carbonate concentration

• Zeolite functions by ion adsorption and sodium carbonate

functions by precipitation
In high ionic strength solution; solubility of CaCO3 increases
Enzymes
Complex, large protein molecules

Highly sensitive to wash liquor conditions

Substrate-specific

Remove tough stains by degradation

Very costly, added in minute quantities

Eg : Protease, Lipase, Cellulase etc.

 Lipase
• Catalyzes hydrolysis of water insoluble fats/lipids

• Active site consisting of a catalytic triad in an hydrophobic

environment covered by a lid

• Activity reduced in well-built, high surfactant

concentration regions

(from experimental results)

Explanation
Interaction with positive ions:
• Lipase and cloth, both negatively charged
• Positive ions reduce effective repulsions

Interaction with surfactants:

• Surfactants and enzymes compete to adsorb on dirt
• Surfactants smaller in size, partly hydrophobic

Recommendation
Reduction in lipase levels recommended as benefit in use is not
observed
THANK YOU