Talk:Silica gel

I got this when I buy computer hard disk. I always wondered what it was... :D

Gel?

In layman's terms, Silica Gel isn't a gel. Even by the definition on gel, it doesn't seem to be quite a gel. Xerogel says silica gel is a xerogel, although it's a small page with few edits. Colloid makes it sound like xerogel means "solid foam", which may be what silica gel is.

So what is it? Is silica gel a dehydrated gel like aerogel, or is it a regular gel where the solid component is just very hard? ―BenFrantzDale 03:45, 10 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Causes cancer?

minor grammatical problem but...under "properties" heading, second paragraph, it says "...cobalt (II) chloride, a chemical that is known to cause cancer and change color when moist." It causes cancer when it gets wet? reword to "...cobalt (II) chloride, a chemical that changes color when moist. It has also been shown to cause cancer." or something like that. random regular visitor, 19:26, 26 February 2006 (UTC)

--The word Carcenegenic (sp) might also be gramaticly correct... —Preceding unsigned comment added by 217.243.200.234 (talk) 13:34, 23 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Eating Silica Gel

What happens when you eat it? Because I sure looked up this page to see what would happen if you eat it. IMFromKathlene 01:45, 8 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I've always wondered too... Regardless, I have eaten some, and I'm still alive today, so I guess it's not extremely fatal. Hispanic! At the disco 21:26, 8 July 2006 (UTC)Silvernich[reply]

You really ate some??? crazey dude! lol...I think they should dye these dark blue- or red- my puppy found a packet in some wrapping---he tore open the packet- and we heard tiny balls rolling round our wooden floor- prob is you cant bloo*y see them!!! They are clear and so almost invisable- the makers have a responsibility to make these 'safe' in any situation- so DYE them for the love of dog!

Did your puppy eat any or have any problems that may have been linked to it? I'm pretty sure my puppy ate some. He has thrown up and been lathargic for about14 hours now. Not sure what to do.

The small pellets may crack when enough moisture is absorbed. If they crack in your stomach, it'll be like tiny pieces of broken glass in your guts. Not recommended ;) --85.156.246.23 17:27, 24 December 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I would say that the fact that they can shatter is a bit more dangerous than any "poison" they contain; it IS kind of like broken glass or sand, and if you chew on a piece and break it and have all the little bits and pieces irritate your mouth, you'll probably not try it again.... -129.21.96.59 08:52, 29 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

DO NOT EAT

This warning is so strange, I mean, you don't get this warning on batteries, gun powder, ink cartriges, boxes of nails etc... Those are just the first things that came into my head. I mean I'm not so interested as to what would happen if you ate them, although this would be interesting, I always just presumed it would absorb the water in your stomach/wherever. What I want to know is why does silica gel have this warning in big upper case letters whereas far more dangerous things that you're just as unlikey to eat don't. --Aceizace 22:48, 25 September 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I'm guessing because to the untrained eye they may look just like sachets of sugar or salt. One person I know had a packet of Chinese food containing a sachet of silica gel without the written warning (just a vague diagram that might have looked like a warning not to eat it), and thought it was a dressing of some kind. And then wondered why the food tasted foul. Stannered 20:52, 12 November 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Production

How is it made? —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 203.0.101.131 (talk) 03:23, 18 April 2007 (UTC).[reply]

Why even use the stuff?

If it's potentially toxic, why do I find this stuff hidden in just about ever consumer good? Wouldn't rice do the same job of absorbing moisture?

Silica gel by itself is non-toxic. The sachets in food items and pharmaceuticals do not contain any potentially poisonous dopants like the cobalt (II) chloride moisture indicator, so they're not a problem. They're used instead of rice because of cost, and because they absorb much more moisture than grains of rice. 97.82.247.200 18:57, 2 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Also, silica gel does not germinate or spoil, unlike rice.RSido (talk) 04:12, 11 December 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Silica Sand and purity?

Most brands of silica gel cat litter (I'll use Food lion, for example) appear to be 100% silica gel, however in the case of the Food Lion product, the ingredients are: "silica sand, oxygen and water". That raises a few questions.

1) If the purpose of the product is to absorb moisture, why include water? Is that just the manufacturer's way of saying the product has already naturally absorbed trace moisture during packaging?

2) Is silica sand really the same thing as silica gel? Both terms are used interchangeably on the packaging.

3) Given that the ingredients list only silica sand, oxygen and water, why are some crystals vividly dark blue? That would seem to imply some kind of dopant, yet the blue crystals don't change color when wet, so it isn't a moisture indicator. I doubt this color is naturally occurring, so what is it? An unlisted color for litter box aesthetics, a chemical added for antibacterial properties, or something else? 97.82.247.200 19:08, 2 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Chemical formula?

I'm confused. This article states: silica gel is made from Na₂SiO₃ - sodium silicate. The sodium silicate article states In acidic solutions, the silicate ion reacts with hydrogen ions to form silicic acid, which when heated and roasted forms silica gel,, while the silicic acid article states Silicic acids are formed by acidification of sodium silicate in aqueous solution. When heated they lose water to form silica gel, an active form of silicon dioxide.. Neither article lists the actual chemical formula for silica gel. Only the previous blurb in the silicic acid article comes close. Thus, it remains unclear what the actual chemical formula is. My guess from the silicic acid line would be: SiO₂. Either way, the formula should be clearly mentioned in this article, and the other articles edited to fix that ambiguity. 97.82.247.200 23:43, 2 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Absorbtion

Anyone have any data on how much water silica can absorb per weight? StarkyD (talk) 18:34, 23 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Surface Area

Is the surface area really 800m2/g as stated in the article? Maybe I'm missing something here, but that's huge!

Yes. That's why it is used. --Jaded-view (talk) 05:34, 1 August 2008 (UTC)[reply]