Sodium polyacrylate is a water-soluble polymer compound, referred to as PAANa, the molecular formula is [C3H3O2Na]n, the relative molecular weight varies from hundreds to tens of millions, and the appearance is diverse, colorless or yellowish liquid, viscous liquid, gel, resin or solid powder, particles, dissolved in cold water, warm water, glycerol, propylene glycol, and other media, stable to temperature changes. When the pH is around 4, it is easy to gel; when the pH is around 2.5, it is close to dissolving. The pH value of aqueous solution is generally between 6-9, and it is easily soluble in sodium hydroxide aqueous solution, but it will first dissolve and then precipitate in aqueous solutions such as calcium hydroxide and magnesium hydroxide.
Sodium polyacrylate can be divided into two categories, namely water-soluble and water-swellable. Water-swellable sodium polyacrylate belongs to the category of super-absorbent resin and is used in products such as diapers, pet pads, water-retaining materials (helping soil retain water); water-soluble sodium polyacrylate has various differences due to different molecular weights, and this property is widely used in food, feed, textile, papermaking, water treatment, petrochemical industry, agriculture, forestry and horticulture, physiological hygiene and other fields.
The following are the applications of water-soluble sodium polyacrylate with different molecular weights:
Those with a relative molecular weight of 1,000-10,000 can be used as dispersants in water treatment scale inhibitors, papermaking, textile printing and dyeing, ceramics and other industrial fields;
When the relative molecular mass is 2000-4000 and the concentration is 65%-70%, it can be used as a papermaking coating dispersant;
Those with molecular weights between 1000-3000 are used as water quality stabilizers and scale control agents during black liquor concentration;
Those with a molecular weight of more than 10 are used as coating thickeners and water-retaining agents. They can increase the viscosity of synthetic latexes such as carboxylated styrene-butadiene latex and acrylate emulsions to avoid water analysis and maintain the stability of the coating system. They can also be used as flocculants, super absorbent resin, soil conditioner, and used as tackifier, emulsifying and dispersing agent in the food industry.
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Industrial Use of Sodium Polyacrylate
- The industrial use of water-soluble sodium polyacrylate
Water-soluble sodium polyacrylate is a commonly used dispersant in industry, which can be used as scale inhibitor and dispersant in circulating cooling water systems such as power plants, chemical plants, chemical fertilizer plants, oil refineries and air-conditioning systems.
Water-soluble sodium polyacrylate can also be used as a viscosity reducer for drilling fluid, suitable for water-based drilling fluid system, can reduce filtration loss, improve the quality of mud cake, and has a certain ability of temperature resistance and salt resistance. It can be used directly, or it can be prepared into aqueous solution.
In addition, sodium polyacrylate is also widely used in papermaking, textile printing and dyeing, ceramics, paints, building materials and other industries.
- The industrial use of water-swellable sodium polyacrylate
The industrial use of water-swellable sodium polyacrylate is significantly different from that of water-soluble sodium polyacrylate.
Super absorbent material for inorganic liquids. For example, it can be used in disposable diapers, used as wound dressings in medical materials to absorb body fluids exuded from wounds, and can also be used to absorb body fluids during and after surgery. It also greatly simplifies the difficulty of medical waste disposal.
Non-toxic and environmentally friendly gel material, it is widely used in new ice bags. In addition, modified sodium polyacrylate absorbs water to form a spherical hydrogel, which is widely used in indoor landscape potted plants, toy gun bullets, etc.
Special purpose waterproof material. The hydrogel formed after sodium polyacrylate absorbs water is insoluble in water and can effectively isolate water. It is widely used as a waterproof material for the exterior of cables and a water-blocking material for lightweight flood control sandbags.
Oxygen barrier fire extinguishing material. Sodium polyacrylate can quickly absorb water and expand in volume when exposed to water. According to this principle, it can be used as an efficient cooling and oxygen barrier material in fire extinguishers.
Food Use of Sodium Polyacrylate
Sodium polyacrylate is a new type of food thickener, the product is white powder, easily soluble in water, forming a transparent viscous solution, and stable to temperature changes. It can be used as instant rice noodle product reinforcement, dough quality improver, aquatic product water retention agent, cold beverage product stabilizer, beverage thickener, and brine sugar clarifier.
Application examples:
| Applied Food | Effect |
| Bread, cake, noodles, macaroni | Improve raw material utilization and improve taste and flavor |
| Instant noodles, instant rice noodles, instant vermicelli | Increases cooking resistance and gluten, retains water without mushy soup, and improves taste |
| Aquatic products, canned food, processed aquatic products, etc. | Strengthen tissue, maintain freshness, and enhance taste |
| Sauce, jam, mayonnaise, ketchup, cream, soy sauce | Thickening, stabilization |
| Fruit juice, alcohol, etc. | Dispersant |
| Ice cream | Improve taste and stability |
| Frozen rice noodles, quick-frozen balls, etc. | As a surface jelly agent to preserve freshness |
In addition, the main use of sodium polyacrylate in the food industry is as a thickener, so how does it achieve this effect?
- Enhance the protein binding force in raw flour.
- The starch particles are combined with each other and dispersed into the protein network structure.
- Form a dense dough with a smooth and shiny surface.
- Form a stable dough colloid to prevent soluble starch from seeping out.
- It has strong water retention, allowing moisture to be evenly maintained in the dough to prevent dryness.
- Improve the extensibility of dough.
- Stably disperse the fat content in the raw materials into the dough.
- As an electrolyte, it interacts with proteins, changes the protein structure, enhances the viscoelasticity of food, and improves tissue.
