The industry most people associate an alkali compound with is within cleaning products and detergents where alkalis are widely used for their ability to break down and remove dirt and grime. However, alkalis are also present in a huge range of everyday household products including cosmetics, food and even construction materials. In this blog, we explore the top ten and their uses in everyday life.
What is an alkali?
An alkali is a substance with a pH of greater than 7. Alkalis can neutralise acids and denoted on a litmus test by the colour blue. Although they can neutralise acids, don’t think of them as safe. Some alkalis can also be highly corrosive and often possess far greater penetrating damage to the skin than an acid.
10 most common alkalis and their uses
Potassium Carbonate
Potassium carbonate is a white, odourless water-soluble salt with deliquescent (able to absorb moisture from the air) properties. Also referred to as dipotassium carbonate or dipotassium salt it has the chemical formula K2CO3 and available from Monarch as granular and solution.
Potassium Carbonate Uses:
- Food and Drink: Potassium carbonate serves as a general-use additive. It helps to lower the acidity of products, particularly wine, and acts as a source of seasoning and flavour enhancement. It is also extensively used in the production of baked foods such as bread and cake to aerate the mixture and create lighter, fluffier products.
- Soaps and Detergents : Potassium Carbonate is used within the manufacturing process of liquid and solid soaps, acting as a neutralising agent to convert fatty acids into soap.
- Glass Manufacture: Potassium carbonate is used as a flux (a substance added to the raw materials to lower the melting temperature) in glassmaking. The addition of a compound such as potassium carbonate helps to facilitate the melting and shaping of glass.
- Agriculture: When added to soil, potassium carbonate increases soil temperature, neutralises any acidity and offers a rich source of potassium.
- pH adjuster: Potassium carbonate is used as a pH adjuster in a wide variety of industries from paper and textiles to food and drink to help maintain pH levels.
Potassium Hydroxide
Potassium Hydroxide, also commonly referred to as caustic potash is a strong, caustic base with the chemical formula KOH. It appears as a white, odourless solid that is highly soluble in water creating a strong alkaline solution (potassium hydroxide solution or caustic potash liquor).
Potassium Hydroxide Uses:
- Cleaning Products and Detergents: Potassium hydroxide is a precursor to a majority of soft and liquid soaps acting as a neutralising agent. As a strong alkali it also possesses excellent grease and fat removal properties making it an ideal ingredient for most oven and drain cleaners. Due to its excellent ability in lifting dirt and contaminates from a surface it is also found in many concrete, path, and driveway cleaners where it assists in lifting out oils and greases from the surface.
- Agriculture and Horticulture: Potassium hydroxide is used in the production of potassium fertilisers which adjust the pH of soil as well as provide a rich source of potassium to crops.
- Food and Drink : Potassium hydroxide is used as a food additive in processed foods to regulate acidity levels. It also acts as a thickening agent, stabiliser and helps make crunchier baked snacks such as biscuits and crisps.
- Leather and Textile: Potassium hydroxide is used in the production of many textiles and leather products
- Industrial and Chemical: Potassium hydroxide is used in a wide range of industrial and chemical processes including the production of potassium salts, dyes, electroplating and petroleum refining.
Sodium Bicarbonate
Sodium bicarbonate, also known as bicarbonate of soda or baking soda is a white crystalline powder with the formula NaHCO3. This is sold by Monarch Chemicals in feed, food and technical grades and has uses spanning multiple industries from an additive within food and drink to the key compound in dry chemical fire extinguishers.
Sodium Bicarbonate Uses:
- Food and Drink: Sodium bicarbonate is used mainly in the baked goods industries as a leavening agent and pH buffer. It also provides carbonation to soft drinks and is added to premixed powder-based drinks such as cappuccinos and hot chocolates to create a smooth foam.
- Agriculture: Sodium bicarbonate can be added to livestock feed to reduce acidosis by neutralising excess acid in ruminants. It is also added to soil to balance pH and promote optimum growing conditions.
- Chemical Manufacturing: This product is also used as a chemical intermediate in the production of various substances including sodium percarbonate and sodium silicate.
- Personal Care: Sodium Bicarbonate is an ingredient in a lot of toothpaste products to help whiten teeth and eliminate odour.
- Fire Extinguishers: Sodium bicarbonate is commonly used in Class B (fires involving flammable liquids) and Class C (fires involving electrical equipment) fire extinguishers. It releases carbon dioxide when used on a fire to help smother fires by displacing the oxygen.
- Cleaning Products and Detergents: Due to its abrasive nature and odour fighting capabilities, bicarbonate of soda can be found in a wide range of cleaning products.
Sodium Hydroxide
Sodium Hydroxide, also known as Caustic Soda, is produced via the chlor-alkali process which is the technique of using electrolysis in a sodium chloride (salt) solution to separate the chloride and sodium ions. It is typically a white, odourless solid which is highly soluble in water and comes in many finished forms including pearls, flakes and liquid.
Sodium Hydroxide Uses:
- Paper and Pulp: Sodium hydroxide is used predominantly in the paper and pulp industries to break down lignin (a complex organic polymer found in the cell walls of plants and trees) which makes paper yellow and brittle over time. It also helps to separate the cellulose fibres in wood pulp during the paper making process.
- Cleaning Products and Detergents: Sodium hydroxide is a key ingredient in the production of soaps and detergents where it helps to saponify fats and oils to create soap. Due to being a strong base it is also a common ingredient in drain cleaners where it softens and converts fats into water-soluble material.
- Agriculture: Sodium Hydroxide, better known as Caustic Soda Pearl, is also used in the production of soda grain. Treated grain with caustic soda helps to increase the nutritional value and digestibility of feed as well as help reduce the levels of phytates and tannins in grains which are known to interfere with nutrient absorption.
- Water Treatment: As a strong base, sodium hydroxide is used in water treatment to adjust pH levels as well as remove heavy metals and contaminates.
- Petrol Refining: Sodium hydroxide is used in the refining process of petroleum to remove impurities and improve quality.
Sodium Hypochlorite
Sodium Hypochlorite, also referred to as bleach when dissolved in water, is a chemical compound consisting of sodium, oxygen, and chlorine. It is a pale, yellow/green liquid with a strong chlorine odour.
Sodium Hypochlorite Uses:
- Cleaning Products: Due to its powerful disinfectant and oxidising properties a large majority of sodium hypochlorite produced goes into the manufacture of janitorial bleaches and laundry additives.
- Swimming Pool Chemicals: With its excellent oxidising and antimicrobial properties, Sodium Hypochlorite is used in the maintenance and on-going care of swimming pools to treat and control bacteria and algae.
- Water Treatment: Sodium Hypochlorite is added to wastewater to kill off harmful bacteria and other microorganisms before being released back into the environment.
- Bleaching: This product is also used as a general bleaching agent within a variety of industries such as textiles, paper, and pulp production where it helps to remove stains and brighten the finished product.
Sodium Metasilicate
Sodium Metasilicate is an odourless white powder which forms highly alkaline solutions when mixed with water. Also known as disodium metasilicate, it is formed by the high temperature fusion of sodium carbonate and silicon dioxide and is commercially available in various level of hydration (anhydrous through to hydrate).
Sodium Metasilicate Uses:
- Cleaning Products and Detergents: Sodium metasilicate is largely used in the manufacture of soaps and detergents where it helps to remove dirt by breaking down and loosen soils. It also helps to increase the cleaning efficiency of surfactants by reducing the hardness of water and acts as an emulsifying agent.
- Water Treatment: Sodium metasilicate is used in the water treatment industry to control the growth of algae and harmful microorganisms. It also helps to inhibit the formation of scale in pipes.
- Textiles: Sodium Metasilitcate is used a wetting agent and detergent in the manufacture of textiles to help improve dye penetration and remove impurities.
- Construction: Sodium Metasilicate is used as a binder in the manufacture of cement. It is also used in the production of fire-proof materials and coatings and as a metal cleaning agent.
Sodium Silicate
Sodium silicate, also known as water glass, silicic acid or sodium hydroxy(oxo)silanolate is a slightly hazy, viscous alkaline liquid with the chemical formula Na2SiO3.
Sodium Silicate uses:
- Cleaning Products and Detergents: Sodium silicate is a key ingredient in many dish and laundry products where it helps to soften the water, prevent mineral deposits, and improve the cleaning power of the detergent. As a strong alkaline it is also ideal for breaking down and removing fats, oils, greases and proteins.
- Construction: Sodium silicate reacts with calcium hydroxide in cement paste to form a calcium silicate hydrate which fills in cracks and imperfections. It is also a widely used component in the mixing and manufacture of sealants and adhesives and works well as a preservation agent for wood.
- Water Treatment: In water treatment sodium silicate is used as both a sequestrant and as a corrosion inhibitor.
Sodium Sulphide
Sodium sulphide is a white to yellow solid flake with strong sulphurous odour.
Sodium Sulphide Uses:
- Leather: In the leather industry sodium sulphide flake is used to remove hair and other unwanted materials from animal hides.
- Paper and Pulp: In the paper and pulp industry, sodium sulphide is used as a pulping agent and helps in the removal of lignin from plant and wood fibres.
- Water Treatment: Sodium sulphide is used in water treatment to remove heavy metals from wastewater.
- Textiles: In the textile industry sodium sulphide is used as a reducing agent to remove oxygen from dye baths and to create sulphur dyes. It is also used to remove impurities left behind after bleaching and help achieve darker, richer pigments.
- Chemicals: Sodium sulphide is used in the production of various chemicals including sodium hydrosulphide, sodium thiosulphate and sodium polysulphide.
Triethanolamine
Triethanolamine, also known simply as TEA, is a colourless, viscous liquid which belongs to the class of compounds known as ethanolamines. It is a hygroscopic compound (readily absorbs water from the atmosphere) and is soluble in water and most organic solvents. It can also act as a base, alcohol or even surfactant due to its amphiphilic nature (possesses both hydrophilic and hydrophobic parts).
Triethanolamine uses:
- Cosmetics and Personal Care: TEA is found in a wide number of personal care products from makeup and moisturisers and shaving products to sun lotions. It helps to form emulsions so that the oil and water-based ingredients can be blended. It also offers surfactant properties and helps to control the pH.
- Construction: Triethanolamine is often used in a mixture with diethanolamine and/or water as a grinding agent in cement production to help increase production rate. In metalworking TEA used as a corrosion inhibitor and pH adjuster and in paints and coatings, TEA is used as a dispersing agent and pH adjuster.
- Textiles: Triethanolamine is used in the textile industry as a pH adjuster and softener in the finishing process.
Trisodium Phosphate
Trisodium phosphate is a white, granular inorganic solid with the chemical formula Na3PO4. It is a strong alkaline and highly soluble in water.
- Cleaning Products: As a strong alkaline trisodium phosphate (TSP) is used in cleaning agents and degreasers for its ability to break down fats and oils and remove a broad spectrum of soils from surfaces.
- Food and Drink: In the food industry this product is used as an emulsifier and buffering agent as well as acidity regulator in many processed foods. Other uses are as a leavening agent to help baked good retain their form and help products retain moisture to increase shelf life.
- Water Treatment: Trisodium Phosphate is used in the water industry as a pH adjuster and method to remove contaminates and impurities such as algae and minerals.
UK Bulk alkali supplier and distributor
Monarch has a long history of supplying various bulk packed alkali products to industries throughout the UK. From cleaning products and detergents to water treatment and construction we proudly work with a huge variety of companies supplying the chemicals they need, when they need them.
If you are looking to improve your buying options or to discuss your requirements for alkali products, please get in touch with us and we will be happy to help.
