Often people who buy shoes find small rectangular or square paper bags in the box. If you squeeze with your fingers, you can feel something inside that resembles a granular consistency, reminiscent of coarse sand.
Not everyone knows what they are needed for. But everyone is sure of one thing: they cannot be taken into the mouth, much less swallowed. That's what the inscription on the bag says. Although, often, it is written in English.
What are these bags actually for?
Many people are interested in the question of what is inside this closed bag.
The answer is simple - in fact, it is granular silicate gel, or as it is often called silica gel.
If we consider this substance from a chemical point of view, then it is a solution of silicic acids that are in a supersaturated concentration and brought to a dried state. That is, in the words of a simple layman, it is a dried gel.
The main purpose of its use is that it is a hydrophilic sorbent.That is, simply put, it is able to intensively absorb excess moisture, which is in both liquid and gaseous states.
Most often, such bags with silica gel granules are used in places where there is possible excess moisture that needs to be gotten rid of.
Sometimes manufacturers of such granules add color moisture indicators to the main composition. This is done in order to know how well such bags have worked. The mechanism of their action is extremely simple:
- at the release stage, such granules are packaged in a transparent or translucent bag;
- The granules will change color from colored to translucent or from one color to another as they absorb moisture (the color depends on the chemical component that was added as an impurity).
Important! Methyl violet or cobalt chloride are added as such pigments. They are toxic, but methyl violet is still considered toxic to humans. Therefore, it is better to use bags of silica gel without indicator additives.
The whole trick of the adsorbing properties of silica gel lies in its special structure.
It simply has a huge external surface area. This happens due to its porous structure and special technological processing. Thus, when silica gel granules are heated to a temperature of 150-200°C, its free surface area increases and reaches its maximum value. Due to this, adsorption occurs, that is, the absorption of liquid into the structure of the outer surface of the gel.
It is worth noting that silica gel used for household purposes is produced exclusively according to state standards (GOST). In accordance with this, it has a certain classification:
- according to the shape of the granules;
- by granule size;
- by the presence in them of indicators that change the pigmentation of granules.
If the bag is opened and the granules come into direct contact with air, the silica gel quickly absorbs excess moisture from the air and becomes unsuitable for further use.
Important! Do not attempt to dry the silica gel granules as this is a dangerous method.
How can you use such bags in everyday life?
Besides the standard use in shoes, these silica gel granule packets can be used in a variety of ways.
For example, put them in a sports bag with clothes. So, after training, excess moisture from clothing will be absorbed into the silica gel granules, and not into the fabric of the bag. In addition, the granules protect not only from excess moisture, but also from unpleasant odors.
Place sachets of the substance in a bag for video and photographic equipment. This is relevant when it is necessary to work with equipment under conditions of temperature changes. As professionals know, often in this case, the camera lens fogs up and the pictures become of poor quality. And besides, the equipment itself can deteriorate from an excess of water vapor. And silica gel balls will help get rid of this unpleasant effect.
Gardeners who save seeds in order to plant them in the ground in the spring may also find this trick useful. Silica gel granules placed near the seeds will help them not to become waterlogged. And, therefore, they will help avoid the appearance of mold and rot.
Those who own silver jewelry or silver tableware know the unpleasant property of this metal to darken. But if you place bags of silica gel on the shelf, in close proximity to the silver, you can significantly reduce the amount of blackness appearing on the outer surface of the silver.
Silica gel can also save those unfortunate people who managed to drown their smartphone or any other phone, including an old push-button one. You just need to place the phone in a container into which you should pour silica gel balls. They will take the brunt of the impact, absorbing all the moisture from the inside of the phone.
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