A process for making substantially water- and dust-free anionic surfactant granules of high bulk density involving: (a) providing a starting material containing a water-containing paste of a monoglyceride (ether) sulfate having a solids content of at least 20% by weight, based on the weight of the paste; (b) providing a horizontally mounted thin-layer evaporator with rotating internals; (c) providing a negative temperature gradient within the evaporator; (d) passing air into the evaporator in countercurrent to the flow of starting material; and (e) simultaneously drying and granulating the starting material by passing it through the evaporator to form anionic surfactant granules having a residual water content of below 2% by weight.
Aqueous oral and dental care compositions are comprising of: (a) from about 0.1 to about 20% by weight of surfactant granules which are the product of the process which comprises subjecting an aqueous paste comprised of from about 40 to about 60% by weight of a monoglyceride (ether) sulfate to simultaneous drying and granulation in a fluidized bed; (b) from about 1 to about 25% by weight of an abrasive, a polish, or a combination thereof; (c) from 0 to about 65% by weight of a humectant; (d) from 0 to about 2% by weight of chitosan; (e) from 0 to about 3% by weight of a flavoring and; (f) from 0 to about 5% by weight other auxiliaries including water wherein the weight of all components adds up to 100% by weight.
