Pack of a Personal Cleaning Product; Its Manufacture; and Its Use

Abstract

A pack comprising a block of personal cleansing composition cast in a receptacle, wherein: the personal cleansing composition is solid at an ambient temperature and liquid at an elevated temperature; the personal cleansing composition is in direct contact with the receptacle; the receptacle is resistant to the liquid form of the personal cleansing composition; and the receptacle is configurable into a collapsed form to free the block.

1 . A pack comprising a block of personal cleansing composition cast in a receptacle, wherein:
 the personal cleansing composition is solid at an ambient temperature and liquid at an elevated temperature;   the personal cleansing composition is in direct contact with the receptacle;   the receptacle is resistant to the liquid form of the personal cleansing composition; and   the receptacle is configurable into a collapsed form to free the block.   
     
     
         2 . A pack as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the walls of the receptacle may be made of a material which is resistant to the liquid form of the personal cleansing composition. 
     
     
         3 . A pack as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the walls of the receptacle are formed of a base material and inner surfaces which are resistant to the liquid form of the cleansing composition. 
     
     
         4 . A pack as claimed in  claim 3 , wherein the inner surfaces have a barrier layer to provide resistance to the liquid form of the personal cleansing composition, wherein the barrier layer is provided in the form of foils or films on the inner surfaces of the receptacle, or as liquid coatings which have been allowed to dry. 
     
     
         5 . A pack as claimed in  claim 4 , wherein the barrier layer is selected from plastics materials, silicone materials and metallic materials. 
     
     
         6 . A pack as claimed in  claim 3 , wherein base material is a fibrous board material. 
     
     
         7 . A pack as claimed in  claim 3 , wherein the walls of the receptacle are of a fibrous board material having a metallic/plastics foil attached to one surface. 
     
     
         8 . A pack as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the receptacle is cuboid, having a base wall and four upstanding side walls which come together at the corners, and formed from one piece of a sheet product. 
     
     
         9 . A pack as claimed in  claim 8 , wherein the receptacle has a collapsed form in which the base wall and side walls are generally in one plane, and an erect form in which each side wall is substantially orthogonal to the base wall, so that the side walls meet at their edges and form the receptacle. 
     
     
         10 . A pack as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the block weighs at least 1 kg. 
     
     
         11 . A pack as claimed in  claim 10 , wherein the block weighs at least 5 kg. 
     
     
         12 . A pack as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the cleansing composition is a salt of a plant-derived fatty acid. 
     
     
         13 . A method of forming a block of a personal cleansing composition, the method comprising:
 forming a receptacle from a collapsed blank, the receptacle being resistant to the liquid form of the personal cleansing composition; and   casting the personal cleansing composition in its liquid form into the receptacle, in direct contact with it, and allowing the cleansing composition to cool, and set;   
       wherein the receptacle is reconfigurable into the collapsed blank to free the block. 
     
     
         14 . A method of storing a block of a personal cleansing composition which has been made by the method of  claim 13 , still in the receptacle in which it was formed. 
     
     
         15 . A method of conveying a block of a personal cleansing composition which has been made by the method of  claim 13 , by transporting it to the place of use, still in the receptacle in which it was formed. 
     
     
         16 . A method of using a block of a personal cleansing composition which has been made by the method of  claim 13 , wherein the recipient collapses the receptacle into the form of the blank from which it was made, thereby rendering the block accessible. 
     
     
         17 . A method of storing, conveying and using a block of a personal cleansing composition which has been made by the method of  claim 13 , wherein during the stages of storing and conveying the block is still in the receptacle in which it was formed, and in the step of using the block it is rendered accessible by unwrapping the receptacle from around the block.