Trisodium Citrate
Chemical Formula: Na3C6H5O7
Grades: Norkem can offer a 10:40 mesh, as well as the more commonly-used 30:100 mesh.
Packaging: Material is available in 25 kilo and 1000 kilo nett big bags. Custom packaging is available if required.
Availability: Normally a stock item.
Material: Trisodium Citrate is often referred to as simply sodium citrate, despite the fact that this term can refer to any of the three sodium salts of citric acid. It usually takes the form of large, white crystals in crystalline powder, which is odourless but has a saline, tart taste.
Trisodium Citrate is freely soluble in water, practically insoluble in alcohol and deliquescent in moist air.
Applications
Food
Trisodium Citrate is used as a buffering agent and acidity regulator predominantly in the food industry. It is a food additive, flavour, antioxidant and preservative which can be found across multiple applications across the industry, as well as in multiple foodstuffs. With the E-Number of E331, Trisodium Citrate is commonly found in the following food items: gelatine mix, ice cream, yogurt, jams, sweets, milk powder, processed cheeses, carbonated beverages, and wine, amongst others.
It is also used in the process of making cheese as an emulsifier for oils, where it prevents the fats separating out and thus prevents the foodstuff taking on a greasy texture.
Medical Applications
Trisodium Citrate has uses within medical applications, where it is used as an alkalinizing agent. It works by neutralizing excess acid in the blood and urine. Trisodium Citrate has additionally been cited for the treatment of metabolic acidosis.
Sodium citrate, upon absorption into the body, subsequently dissociates into sodium cations and citrate anions. Once this occurs, these organic citrate ions are metabolized to bicarbonate ions, which results in raised concentration of plasma bicarbonate and an ant urolithic effect.
In addition, Trisodium Citrate causes the buffering of excess hydrogen ion and therefore the potential reversal of acidosis, wherein the body suffers from increased acidity in the blood, plasma and other body tissues (as well as excess hydrogen ion).
Trisodium Citrate can additionally be used as an anticoagulant during plasmapheresis, a process which filters the blood to remove harmful antibodies (similar to dialysis). This anticoagulant property is caused by the citrate ion, which chelates calcium ions in the blood by forming calcium citrate complexes. This also renders it a key chemical in the storage and preservation of blood in blood banks.
Trisodium Citrate can also be used as an agent in the treatment of upset stomach and relief of distal renal tubular acidosis caused by urinary-tract infections, thanks to its neutralising properties.
Alternative uses:
Trisodium Citrate can be used in cleaning; it has been found to be a particularly effective agent in the removal of carbonate scale from kettles, as well as the cleaning of automobile radiators. The material is also used in detergents and dishwasher tablets. Trisodium Citrate acts as a pH regulator and water softener.