The utility of desiccant packets is manifold. This substance has the ability to absorb moisture, humidity and other similar substances present in nature. This is the reason; these packets are widely used for packaging different types of stuff that have the tendency to get spoiled when coming into contact with humidity and moisture. More so, these desiccant packets can also absorb gas, moisture vapor, and odor as well. You know them in the name of silica gel packets.

What is silica gel formulated with?

Silica gel in the form of naturally occurring mineral silicon dioxide (SiO2). It is better known in its granular form as sand. The important aspect of it is that it is a great absorber and can absorb water up to 40% of its body weight. The gel form of it contains thousands of tiny pores that are able to hold the sand. Furthermore, creating a custom blend is also possible, for instance, if silica gel is blended with activated carbon, it can produce desiccant packets that can absorb both odor and moisture. This is because; it has a large amount of internal space that is prudent to separate liquids from gases.

Aside from soaking up the water, moisture or humidity, it can also absorb other substances like; carbon (C12), carbon dioxide (CO2) and HC1. This feature of these clay packets allows them to be used in food and vitamin to prevent that from getting spoiled.

Variety of Silica Gel:

It appears in a variety of shapes, sizes, and colors and it is tasteless as well. There are blue silica gel desiccants, orange silica gel desiccants, and white desiccants. They don’t even change color even after absorbing water as well. But, blue silica gel gets light-colored after absorbing the moisture or water. Because of this color-changing indicator, this particular silica gel packets can never be used in pharmaceuticals and food products.

In spite of the fact that silica gel packets are mostly used for moisture control, but that doesn’t mean that you should throw them away after you unpack the package or after it slows down the process of soaking up the moisture. You can revive the ability once again by heating them up on an oven. Keep the temperature between 110-1150C and in case of blue or orange desiccant, they will start getting back to their original color. After that let the desiccant silica gel for cooling into an air-tight container and then you can apply them further to absorb the moisture from your favorite items.