Silica Gel is an adsorbent that absorbs moisture and maintains the area around it dry and prevents things from any form of damage.
Silica gel is a desiccant, or drying agent, is used to keep moisture from damaging certain food items, apparel, or commercial products, which manufacturers often place in little packets. You may have seen silica packets in everything from beef jerky to the new shoes you bought.
It can remove water from any state of matter like solid, liquid, or gas. It is non – crystalline, granular, compound with tiny pores that absorb moisture and keeps the area moist free.
FUNCTIONS AND PROPERTIES :
It acts as active adsorbers. They are available in different shapes and sizes which you can use according to your requirements. People use it to preserve medicines, foods, clothes, jewelry, and so on. As it removes the moisture, it extends the shelf life of the products.
- It prevents items that are prone to rust from rusting, as it maintains the area moist free.
- It protects items from any foul smell.
- It retains the freshness of things for an extended period.
- It avoids any form of bacterial or fungal formation in that area.
- It can act effectively to prevent any items in closed spaces like cupboards, glass containers, jewelry boxes, food containers, etc.
- It also can dissuade silver wares from tarnishing.
- It keeps the color, smell, texture of any item intact.
- It also can keep away insects, bugs from spoiling your stored things.
USES AND HACKS :
It is available in stores as sachets, strips, and bags. People purchase it as per their needs, areas they need to cover.
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- They are small white pellets, porous packed in paper sachets or bags.
- One can put it in their shoebox, and it removes any stinking smell from your shoes.
- It can be useful to conserve freshness in food in jars, containers, or packages.
- One can put a strip of silica gelin their jewelry box or accessory box, preventing them from losing their color or texture and especially silver jewelry and utensils from tarnishing.
- It can also keep seeds fresh and avoid degradation of their quality.
- It deters metals from rusting. One can put a sachet in their toolbox, kitchen cabinets, razor pouches, and many more.
- One can put it in their gym bags, laundry baskets so that it can keep the smell intact and stink-free.
- Used in the medicinal industry, to preserve stored, bottled medicines from varied weather conditions and used in large amounts during transportation.
- Slip your mobile into the pool? Do not panic; Silica Gelacts as an adsorber and removes all the water from mobile phones immediately.
- A person who is very attached to books and Documents, a sachet of silica in the document holder, inside the books helps protect it from any damage and increase its lifetime.
TYPES AND FUNCTIONS:
It is a chemical compound used in many fields. It is useful in laboratories for various test purposes. But the most common form is utilized as adsorbers by people worldwide in their daily lives.
Other similar products like a molecular sieve are zeolites that act as active adsorbers that adsorb relatively faster to silica and active carbon, which is highly porous and absorbs odors from substances.
These are also available in sachets, pouches, bags, and functions to adsorb gases and liquids with varying properties. It is available in several colors serving varied purposes. This type is known as indicators wherein they change color to indicate or notify that it has worked to its capacity and needs replacing or recharging.
- Silica-gel blue:This changes color from blue to purple to pink once they have adsorbed 5% moisture. These are useful to maintain humidity as in Transform Breathers.
- SILICA-GEL ORANGE – This soaks up about 2% of moisture and changes color from orange to light brownish-yellow to green color once it’s hydrated. They are generally in use in the chemical industry, medicinal purposes, and the electrical industry.
- SILICA-GEL WHITE– This is the most commonly used kind. Other types are transfused with indicating agents, but this is not. It appears transparent and changes color according to the amount of moisture adsorbed. It can soak up to 5% moisture. It is used as dryers in many industries and acts as a catalyst, carrier, and rust resistor.
BENEFITS:
- It is harmless and useful.
- It can be recharged and reused again.
- It is non-flammable.
- Active adsorbents with minute pores.
- Increases the longevity of products and does damage control.
- It also serves as a preserving agent.
- It maintains product quality and quantity unaltered.
- High stability and durability levels.
It does not react with any other substances.
