SUPERDRYPAK™

Silica gel is a “desiccant”, which means it’s a substance used to absorb moisture and keep its surrounding environment dry. Here’s a bit more detail:

[1] Composition: It’s primarily made from a chemical called “Silicon Dioxide” (SiO₂). This is same compound found in beach sand and domestic glass. Silica Gel is created by reacting Sodium Silicate (Na₂SiO₃) with Sulfuric Acid (H₂SO₄), and this produces a gel-like substance, which is then dried-out into solid crystals.

[2] Structure: Silica gel has a porous structure with a vast internal surface area. This structure allows it to adsorb water vapour from the air. The final product is not actually a ‘gel’ in the common sense of the word, but rather a solid material, which can resemble either ‘granules’ or little round ‘beads’.

It’s only called a ‘gel’ because of the way in which it is made. The end format is dry and hard – so the ‘gel’ moniker is not a description of the product that the customer receives.

[3] Applications:

Moisture Control: Silica gel is commonly formed into in small packets that are found inside packaging for electronics, pharmaceuticals, clothing, and other products where moisture could damage or degrade the items.

Food Preservation: Silica gel can help keep foods fresh, by reducing moisture that can lead to spoilage.

Industrial Uses: It can be used in chromatography for separating compounds, in cat litter for odour control, and in various chemical processes where drying is necessary.

[4] Regeneration: Silica gel can be dried-out and reused (i.e. after absorbing moisture, it can be heated to drive off the water, restoring some drying capacity). However, this is not recommended – because with every saturation and drying cycle, the silica gel crystal structure breaks down, and thus the total absorptive potential of the product gets lower and lower with every attempt at recycling. Think of it as being like “taking a photocopy of a photocopied page, and then taking a photocopy of that copied page”. With each copy, the image on the page will degrade further, and any writing present on the page will become less legible.

[5] Safety: While generally non-toxic, silica gel is not for consumption. The packets often have warnings like “Do Not Eat” because ingesting large amounts could cause issues due to its desiccating properties or due to the addition of any added indicators (like blue or pink colouring agents which show when the gel has become saturated). For further assistance with Health and Safety matters click here.

[6] Indicators: Some silica gels contain moisture indicators. These chemical additives, change colour depending on the level of moisture within the silica gel. Some can transform from blue (when dry) to pink (when saturated). This indicates the gel has absorbed moisture and needs to be regenerated or replaced. Other colour indicators can change the colour of the beads from orange-to-green, or from orange-to-colourless.

If you want to buy Silica Gel from a high-quality supplier, then give us a call on: +44 (0)1628 531 900 or click here to receive a call back from one of our of our Expert Advisors.

Silica gel is called “gel” because of its method of production, rather than its appearance in its final form. Here’s why:

Production Method: Silica gel is produced through a process where sodium silicate (water glass) reacts with sulfuric acid or hydrochloric acid to form a gel-like silica mass. During this process, the silica particles form a three-dimensional structure that traps water within its pores, resulting in a gel-like consistency initially.

Gel Structure: Even though the final product might not look like a traditional gel (which we often associate with something like ‘jelly’), silica gel retains the structural characteristics of a gel. It has a porous, semi-rigid network where the solid particles (silica) are dispersed in a liquid (water, initially) but then dried, to form a solid with an extensive internal surface area. This structure allows it to absorb moisture effectively, which is its primary function.

Historical Naming: When silica gel was first developed, the term “gel” was used because during the intermediate stages of production, where it does indeed have a gel-like consistency. The name stuck, even though the product is dried to remove most of the moisture for commercial use, leaving behind what looks like small ‘granules’ or ‘beads’ rather than a true gel.

So, the name “silica gel” reflects its production process and its gel-like nature before drying rather than its appearance after processing. This naming convention is similar to other materials where the name might not reflect the final state but rather the process or initial form, like “gelatine” which can be used in both gel and solid forms.

If you are seeking to buy Silica Gel from a high-quality supplier, then give us a call on: +44 (0)1628 531 900 or click here to receive a call back from one of our Expert Advisors.

Our Silica Gel is used primarily as a desiccant: to control moisture levels and prevent damage caused by humidity, water vapour, or condensation. It can absorb up to 35% of its own weight and retain significant amounts of moisture from its environment, helping keep items dry. This prevents corrosion of products that are sensitive to moisture. Silica Gel is not the most aggressive form of desiccant, as it can lower relative humidity (RH) to 10%, unlike molecular sieves which are more aggressive, and will bring Relative Humidity down to 0%.

If you are looking to buy Silica Gel from one of the world’s best suppliers, then give us a call on: +44 (0)1628 531 900 or click here to receive a call-back from one of our Expert Advisors.

As a rough guide, we recommend using 170g of silica gel for every 1.0 m³ of headspace – but if you need to include this desiccant alongside packed goods, then you need to be using Silica Gel Sachets (typically 0.25g to 10g) or Silica Gel Bags (25g-500g). You should not use ‘bulk’ or’ loose fill’ silica gel granules or beads for packaging applications.

If you require something more accurate than a “rough guide” and are looking for a solution that is tailored to your specific product, then we can use SUPERDRYSIM™ Software to accurately predict which desiccant, and which mass of desiccant, is ideal for your product. You can read more about this software here.

[Note: SUPERDRYSIM™ Software is only available at Baltimore Innovations].

Want to buy Silica Gel or Need Further Advice ? Call us on: +44 (0)1628 531 900 or click here to receive a call-back, and we will be happy to help !

There are lots of different silica gels, produced by manufacturers all over the world. Ours is one of the highest-quality grades available on the global market, if not the highest quality. The shelf-life of our Silica Gel is “No less than “12 months from date of delivery, if stored in airtight conditions”. We do not recommend that it is regenerated, as the absorption performance (of any silica gel) will reduce after each regeneration cycle.

Want to buy Silica Gel or need some additional advice ? …No Problem ! …call us on: +44 (0)1628 531 900 or click here to receive a call-back, and we will be happy to help !

Silica Gel can be commonly found in our pre-formed sachets (0.25g to 10g) and bags (25g – to 500g) These are used for protecting small sensitive items against humidity and moisture.

However, some dehumidifying challenges are on a much larger scale – and this is where our Bulk Silica Gel is used; to fill or re-fill permanent heavy-engineering fixtures, such as High Voltage Transformers (see TRANSFORMAGEL™ here for more information).

Other forms of our Bulk Silica Gel are used to keep the air within compressed air / pneumatic systems dry. These systems are typically used for pneumatic doors (typically found on Railway Carriage doors and on Merchant Ships). For this application, you should consider our range of EUROGEL™ Bulk Silica Gel, and you can find more information about this product here.

For more information about our full range of silica gel, click here for a call back or telephone us on: +44 (0)1628 531 900 and we will be happy to help you further.

Our Silica Gel is typically supplied in 25kg sacks. We can also offer 25kg plastic pails if this is more convenient for you. Furthermore, should your order quantity be suitable, we can also re-pack our silica gels into pack formats of your choosing. Give us a call on +44 (0)1628 531 900 or click here for a callback, and we will be happy to help you further !

• In French, Bulk Silica Gel is called: “Gel de silice en vrac”.
• In German Bulk Silica Gel is called: ” Silicagel in großen Mengen”
• In Italian, Bulk Silica Gel is called: “Silica gel sfuso”.
• In Polish, Bulk Silica Gel is called: “Silikaż luzem”.
• In Portuguese, Bulk Silica Gel is called: “Sílica gel a granel”.
• In Spanish, Bulk Silica Gel is called: “Gel de sílice a granel”.
• In Swedish, Bulk Silica Gel is called: “Silicagel i bulk”.