Sodium Alginate

Sodium Alginate is white or yellowish powder, almost tasteless and odorless. It is a highly polymerized compound with high viscosity, also a kind of typical hydrophilic colloid.

The Chemical compound Sodium Alginate is the Sodium Salt of Alginic Acid. Its empirical chemical formula is NaC6H7O6. Its form as a gum, when extracted from the cell wall of brown algae, is used by the foods industry to increase viscosity and as an emulsifier.

Sodium Alginate is a good chelator for pulling radioactive toxins such as iodine -131 and strontium-90 from the body which have taken the place of their non-radioactive counterparts.

It is widely used in food, pharmaceutical and textile industry for its stability, thickening and emulsibility, hydratability and gel properties. It is also used in indigestion tablets and the preparation of dental impressions. Sodium alginate has no discernible flavor. Another major use of Sodium Alginate is reactive dye printing, where it is used in the Textile Industry. Sodium Alginate is also used in immobilizing enzymes by inclusion.