Caustic Soda Flakes

Item : Caustic soda flakes

Make : Chemplast/DCW/GACL

Sodium hydroxide, also known as lye and caustic soda,[1][2] is an inorganic compound with the formula NaOH. It is a white solid ionic compound consisting of sodium cations Na+

and hydroxide anions OH−

.

Sodium hydroxide is a highly caustic base and alkali that decomposes proteins at ordinary ambient temperatures and may cause severe chemical burns. It is highly soluble in water, and readily absorbs moisture and carbon dioxide from the air.

Sodium hydroxide is a popular strong base used in industry. Around 56% of sodium hydroxide produced is used by industry, 25% of which is used in the paper industry. Sodium hydroxide is also used in the manufacture of sodium salts and detergents, pH regulation, and organic synthesis. It is used in the Bayer process of aluminium production.[15] In bulk, it is most often handled as an aqueous solution,[29] since solutions are cheaper and easier to handle.

Sodium hydroxide is used in many scenarios where it is desirable to increase the alkalinity of a mixture, or to neutralize acids.

For example, in the petroleum industry, sodium hydroxide is used as an additive in drilling mud to increase alkalinity in bentonite mud systems, to increase the mud viscosity, and to neutralize any acid gas (such as hydrogen sulfide and carbon dioxide) which may be encountered in the geological formation as drilling progresses.

Another use is in Salt spray testing where pH needs to be regulated. Sodium hydroxide is used with hydrochloric acid to balance pH. The resultant salt, NaCl, is the corrosive agent used in the standard neutral pH salt spray test.

Poor quality crude oil can be treated with sodium hydroxide to remove sulfurous impurities in a process known as caustic washing. As above, sodium hydroxide reacts with weak acids such as hydrogen sulfide and mercaptans to yield non-volatile sodium salts, which can be removed. The waste which is formed is toxic and difficult to deal with, and the process is banned in many countries because of this.

It is used for making soaps and detergents. sodium hydroxide is used for hard bar soap while potassium hydroxide is used for liquid soaps.[32][33]sodium hydroxide is used more often than potassium hydroxide because it is cheaper and a smaller quantity is needed.

It is used as drain cleaners that contain sodium hydroxide convert fats and grease that can clog pipes into soap, which dissolves in water. (see cleaning agent)

It is used for making artificial textile fibres (such as Rayon).

It is used in the manufacture of paper. (see chemical pulping)

It is used in purifying bauxite ore from which aluminium metal is extracted. (see dissolving amphoteric metals and compounds)

It is used in de-greasing metals, oil refining, and making dyes and bleaches.

Sodium hydroxide is sometimes used during water purification to raise the pH of water supplies. Increased pH makes the water less corrosive to plumbing and reduces the amount of lead, copper and other toxic metals that can dissolve into drinking water.