Sulfoaroyl end-capped ester of oligomers suitable as soil-release agents in detergent compositions and fabric-conditioner articles

Claim 1

A water-soluable or water-dispersible, oligomeric or polymeric composition which comprises from about 25% to 100% of a substantially linear, sulfoaroyl end-capped ester having molecular weight ranging from about 500 to about 20,000; wherein said ester consists essentially of, on a molar basis, (i) from about 1 to about 2 moles of sulfobenzoyl end-capping units of the formula (MO 3 S)(C 6 H 4 )C(O)-- wherein M is a salt-forming cation; (ii) from about 2 to about 50 moles of oxy-1,2-propyleneoxy units or mixtures thereof with oxyethyleneoxy units provided that the oxy-1,2-propyleneoxy: oxyethyleneoxy mole ratio is in the range from about 1:10 to about 1.0; and (iii) from about 1 to about 40 moles of terephthaloyl units provided that the mole ratio of said units identified by (ii) and (iii) is from about 2:1 to about 1:24; and which further optionally comprises, per mole of said ester, (iv) from 0 to about 30 moles of 5-sulfoisophthaloyl units of the formula --(O)C(C 6 H 3 )(SO 3 M)C(O)-- wherein M is a salt-forming cation; or (v) from 0 to about 25 moles of poly(oxyethylene)oxy units of the formula --(OCH 2 CH 2 ) n O-- wherein the average degree of ethoxylation n ranges from 2 to about 100; or (vi) from 0 to about 30 moles of a mixture of said units (iv) and (v) at a (iv):(v) mole ratio of from about 29:1 to about 1:29; provided that when said ester consists essentially of said units identified by (i), (ii), and (iii), the content of said terephthaloyl units ranges from about 1 mole to about 8 moles; when said ester consists essentially of said units identified by (i), (ii), (iii) and (iv), the content of said 5-sulfoisophthaloyl units ranges from about 0.05 moles to about 18 moles; when said ester consists essentially of said units identified by (i), (ii), (iii), and (v), the content of said poly(oxyethylene)oxy units ranges from about 0.05 moles to about 10 moles; and further provided that when said ester consists essentially of said units identified by (i), (ii) and (iii) together with said units identified by said mixture (vi) of said units (iv) and (v), the content of said units identified by (iv) and (v) together ranges from about 0.1 moles to about 20 moles.