Potassium Hydroxide

Description

Loose weight  potassium hydroxide . Comes in the plastic container

Potassium hydroxide, also known as potash, is an inorganic caustic base used for liquid soap making. We carry potassium hydroxide in a flake form which is easy to handle and recommended for most liquid soap making recipes.

Potassium hydroxide is an inorganic compound  with the formula KOH and is commonly called caustic potash.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potassium_hydroxide

Along with sodium hydroxide (NaOH), KOH is a prototypical strong base . It has many industrial and niche applications, most of which exploit its caustic nature and its reactivity toward acids .An estimated 700,000 to 800,000 tonnes were produced in 2005. KOH is noteworthy as the precursor to most soft and liquid soaps as well as numerous potassium-containing chemicals. It is a white solid that is dangerously corrosive.

Uses :

• Manufacturer of soft soaps – The saponification of fats with KOH( Potassium Hydroxide)  is used to prepare the corresponding “potassium soaps“, which are softer than the more common sodium hydroxide-derived soaps. Because of their softness and greater solubility, potassium soaps require less water to liquefy, and can thus contain more cleaning agent than liquefied sodium soaps.
• Food industryIn food products, KOH acts as a food thickener, pH control agent and food stabilizer. The FDAconsiders it generally safe as a direct food ingredient when used in accordance with Good Manufacturing Practices.^[20] It is known in the E number system as E525.
• As an ElectrolyteAqueous potassium hydroxide is employed as the electrolyte in alkaline batteries based on nickel–cadmium, nickel–hydrogen, and manganese dioxide–zinc. KOH is preferred over sodium hydroxide because its solutions are more conductive.^[18] The nickel–metal hydride batteries in the Toyota Priususe a mixture of potassium hydroxide and sodium hydroxide.^[19]Nickel–iron batteriesalso use potassium hydroxide electrolyte
• Catalyst for hydrothermal gasification processIn industry, KOH is a good catalyst for hydrothermal gasification process. In this process, it is used to improve the yield of gas and amount of hydrogen in process. For example, production of coke (fuel) from coal often produces much coking wastewater. In order to degrade it, supercriticalwater is used to convert it to the syngas containing carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, hydrogenand methane. Using pressure swing adsorption, we could separate various gases and then use power-to-gas technology to convert them to fuel.^[16] On the other hand, the hydrothermal gasification process could degrade other waste such as sewage sludge and waste from food factories
• Niche applicationsLike sodium hydroxide, potassium hydroxide attracts numerous specialized applications, virtually all of which rely on its properties as a strong chemical base with its consequent ability to degrade many materials. For example, in a process commonly referred to as “chemical cremation” or “resomation“, potassium hydroxide hastens the decomposition of soft tissues, both animal and human, to leave behind only the bones and other hard tissues. Entomologists wishing to study the fine structure of insectanatomy may use a 10% aqueous solution of KOH to apply this process.In chemical synthesis, the choice between the use of KOH and the use of NaOH is guided by the solubility or keeping quality of the resulting salt.The corrosive properties of potassium hydroxide make it a useful ingredient in agents and preparations that clean and disinfect surfaces and materials that can themselves resist corrosionby KOH.KOH is also used for semiconductor chip fabrication (for example anisotropic wet etching). KOH is often the main active ingredient in chemical “cuticle removers” used in manicure treatments.Because aggressive bases like KOH damage the cuticle of the hairshaft, it is used to chemically assist the removal of hair from animal hides. The hides are soaked for several hours in a solution of KOH and water to prepare them for the unhairing stage of the tanning process. This same effect is also used to weaken human hair in preparation for shaving. Preshave products and some shave creams contain potassium hydroxide to force open the hair cuticle and to act as a hygroscopic agent to attract and force water into the hair shaft, causing further damage to the hair. In this weakened state, the hair is more easily cut by a razor blade.Potassium hydroxide is used to identify some species of fungi. A 3–5% aqueous solution of KOH is applied to the flesh of a mushroom and the researcher notes whether or not the color of the flesh changes. Certain species of gilled mushrooms, boletes, polypores, and lichens^[23] are identifiable based on this color-change reaction.^[24]

The shelf life of potassium hydroxide is at least one year, if the product is stored properly, in its original container, in cool (<80 F), dry, place and exposure to moisture and sunlight is avoided.​​​​