Thickened acid cleaner compositions containing quaternary ammonium germicides and having improved thermal stability

Claim 1

An aqueous, thickened acid cleaner composition consisting essentially of on a weight basis: (a) from about 3 to about 25% hydrochloric acid; (b) an acid compatible organic thickener agent in an amount effective to provide a viscosity of about 25 centipoise or greater, said organic thickener agent in said effective amount being unsuitable to provide a composition exhibiting thermal stability absent a phase stabilizing amount of a phase stabilizing surfactant; (c) a germicidally effective amount of a quaternary ammonium compound having the chemical structure [R 1 R 2 R 3 R 3 N] + X - , wherein R 1 is an alkyl of from 12 to 18 carbons; R 2 is a benzyl or alkyl benzyl, said alkyl having 1 to about 3 carbons; R 3 is an alkyl of from 1 to about 3 carbons, and X is a halide anion, (d) a phase-stabilizing amount of a phase-stabilizing surfactant selected from the group consisting of (i) alkyl betaines having the formula ##STR7## wherein R is an alkyl of from about 12 to 16 carbons and R' is methyl or ethyl (ii) alkoxylated tertiary amines having the formula ##STR8## wherein R is an alkyl or alkenyl of from about 12 to about 14 carbons, n is an integer of 2 to 3, and x and y are integers of from 1 to about 5, the sum of x and y having an average value of from about 2 to about 5; (iii) ethoxylated alkyl phenol having the formula R--φ--O--(CH.sub.2 CH.sub.2 O).sub.n H (IV) wherein R is an alkyl of 6 to 10 carbon and n has a value such that the HLB of the material is about 13 or less, and (iv) is a phosphate ester of an amine oxide having the formula ##STR9## wherein R is an alkyl of from 12 to 18 carbons; A is (C n H 2n O) m , n having a value of from 2 to about 3 and m having a value of from 1 to about 5, and M is hydrogen or an alkali metal or ammonium cation, and (e) water, said organic thickener agent being a material other than the phase-stabilizing surfactant (d).