How to Choose the Right Desiccant?

Desiccants are compounds that are used in facilitating low humidity environments. This is because desiccants can absorb moisture from the air. Desiccants are often used in transport, maintenance or storage of various materials and products. Some common types of desiccants include montmorillonite clay, silica gel, etc. Here is how you can choose the right desiccant for your use:

What do You Need to Know before Selecting the Desiccant?

There are four common sources of water contamination in a closed container or package:

·         Water vapor in the air inside the package

·         Moisture contained in the materials inside the package

·         Moisture in or on the walls of the package

·         Entry of moisture into the package due to permeation or leakage

When deciding on the proper desiccant, you should know how much water vapor can be adsorbed by the desiccants at various relative humidity level.

Where to Start?

You need to determine the conditions of products that will transported such as the size and type of container used and the actual conditions. The container in which the product will be packaged, shipped, and stored is also vital in determining how much of a particular desiccant you will need and in what packaging form.

It is important that you know the conditions surrounding the shipment and storage of the product. You should also take into consideration the temperature and relative humidity to which the product will be exposed.

Types of Desiccants

1.       Silica Gel

Silica gel is the most commonly used desiccant in the pharmaceutical and nutraceutical industry. The gel has a unique structure that enables it to adsorb a wide variety of chemical substances. Silica gel can adsorb up to 40% of its weight in water. However, as the temperatures rise, the desiccant will release water back.

2.       Molecular Sieve

A molecular sieve desiccant is the best option for you to use if your package will see a wide range of environmental conditions. Molecular sieves have a distinctive feature in the uniformity of the pore size openings in its crystal lattice structure. Due to this uniformity, molecular sieves have a high adsorption capacity even at low relative humidity.

3.       Montmorillonite Clay

Montmorillonite Clay is a naturally occurring, porous adsorbent that is mined and then dried for use as a desiccant. One of the biggest advantages of the clay is that the clay can be successfully regenerated for repeated use at very low temperatures. However, this also causes the clay to release moisture into the container as temperatures rise.

4.       Calcium Oxide (CaO)

Calcium oxide (CaO) is a cost-effective desiccant that you should use if your product that will be stored or transported in areas with high temperatures. The substance, also known as quick lime, is distinguished by its ability to adsorb a much greater amount of water at low relative humidity than other materials.

Looking to get buy high grade desiccants? AgileNobel is your place to go. In addition to desiccants, the organization also offers humidity indicator cards, lithium hydroxide, oxygen absorbers, oxygen scavengers, Smecton clay, and many more.