08.01.14
US Patent No. 8,759,272 B2; Ecolab USA has patented a method of laundering an article that has come in contact with sunscreen components. The method entails providing an article that has been contacted with a triglyceride sunscreen component; washing the article; rinsing the article; drying the article; and a phosphonic acid chelating agent to competitively chelate with the sunscreen components to reduce or eliminate strong metal complexes formed by the sunscreen components, during or prior to or after the article is laundered in the washing step. The effective amount of chelating agent is approximately 350 to about 600 ppm.