The soaps and detergents industry is a major customer of the soda ash manufactured by Tata Chemicals, and our products can be found in popular brands and products around the world. As the world’s second largest soda ash company, and with manufacturing facilities in India, UK, US and Kenya, we are able to provide an efficient supply chain that can service customers across the globe. Soda ash is used in a slew of laundry and cleaning compound formulations to enhance cleansing properties: as a builder to emulsify oil stains, to reduce the deposit of dirt during washing and rinsing, to provide alkalinity for cleaning, and to soften laundry water. Additionally, soda ash is a component of sodium tripolyphosphate (STPP), another major builder in detergent formulations.
Soda ash is used to manufacture ultramarine, which gives white clothes a sparkling look. Shampoos use soda ash as a pH modifier, while soda ash precipitate is used as a soft abrasive in toothpaste. Soda ash is also a key raw material in the production of percarbonates, silicates and phosphates which are used extensively in household cleaning products.
Sodium bicarbonate is used where a milder detergent is required. Its limited solubility is also advantageous in the production of hard surface cleaners.
Our product, Crex®, is a unique crystalline form of sodium sesquicarbonate, which is classified as a non-irritant and therefore lends itself for use in a range of consumer products. Crex® offers an intermediate pH/alkalinity that lies between soda ash and sodium bicarbonate. Its builder properties are such that it can be formulated into detergents or added as a water softener.