Various uses of Silica Gel in Daily Life

Silica Gel – An Introduction

Silica Gel is a well-known desiccant used mainly to adsorb water vapour from the surroundings. Synthetically manufactured from sodium silicate, Silica Gel is mainly a granular and porous type of Silicon Dioxide (SiO2). The adsorbent is manufactured both in granular (with hard, irregular shape of crystals) and beaded (even-sized spherical) form. Silica Gel is known to have a very large surface area, which exposes it to maximum water vapour and hence it is able to absorb more moisture. Among all the desiccants available in the water, it is Silica Gel, which can take in the maximum quantity of water.

Silica Gel attracts water vapour onto its surface because it has a lower vapour pressure, when compared to the outside surroundings. The adsorption process is on-going and continues till the pressure is equal on both sides. After that no more adsorption of water molecules will take place. This is the mechanism by which Silica Gel beads/granules adsorb water vapour. Another factor determining the moisture adsorption rate is the pore size of the Silica Gel. Usually, an average pore size of 2.4 nanometers is ideal for proper moisture absorption.

Silica Gel is available in white as well as indicating colors. The indicating colors include orange, pink, blue among others. When the indicating Silica Gel gets saturated with water vapour, they change color showing that they cannot take in more moisture.

Silica Gel in Everyday Life

In our day-to-day lives, Silica Gel is mainly seen in boxes of new purchases. Silica Gel is an essential part of packaging and they are kept inside the packets to maintain optimum moisture levels. So what do people do with the Silica Gel sachets when the packages are opened? Most think of Silica Gel as trash and throw it away. The desiccant has many other uses, some of which are highlighted below:

1) Save Mobile Phone from Water Damage: Silica Gel is just the thing you need if your phone has fallen into water. First, take out the phone from the water and remove its battery. Now place the wet phone and battery in a Ziplock bag containing Silica Gel sachets. Leave it overnight or for one day. After the required period, take out your phone and it will be as good as new. This method works because Silica Gel adsorbs all the water present in the phone and makes it dry.

2) Keep photographs intact: Everyone has collections of photographs, which are precious memories of time spent with family and friends. Over time, the photographs may get spoilt because of moisture or outside weather conditions. To avoid this, keep a Silica Gel sachet near the photograph and it will adsorb all the existing moisture. This method will keep the photographs safe from damage.

3) Remove Fog from Windshields: During the winter season, driving becomes very difficult due to the fog outside. Foggy windshields are a result of the cold winters. This fog can be removed by placing some Silica Gel packets on the windshield. The Silica Gel will adsorb all the moisture present on the windshield and make it easy for driving.

4) Protect Silverware: Silver Jewellery or crockery will start losing its shine over a period of time. This is because of the silver reacting with atmospheric air. Silver jewelry can be prevented from tarnish by placing Silica Gel sachets in the jewelry box. The Silica Gel will keep the moisture levels in the box or crockery set at the desired levels.

5) Keeps Documents Safe: Important documents like certificates, bank documents, social security cards and identification cards always need to be kept safe. Place some Silica Gel sachets along with the documents to ensure that they remain unaffected by atmospheric elements like air, dust and moisture.

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