Sodium silicate: Overview
Tyres, toothpaste, detergents and foundry moulds from sand
What this tab covers What the chemical is, how big its market is, what it is used for (with shares, volumes, why it wins and what could replace it), and its chain from raw material to end user. Ends with three things to remember.Sodium silicate, or water glass, is made by melting quartz sand with soda ash at about 1,300-1,500 C, or by dissolving sand in hot caustic soda under pressure. It is sold as glassy lumps, powder or viscous solutions with a set ratio of silica to soda. World capacity is roughly 6 Mt a year, 60% in Asia, and the market is worth about $5.5 billion. Its largest outlet is precipitated silica for low-rolling-resistance tyres, which save fuel. It releases process CO2 from soda ash, and its fuel use makes it a small but easy decarbonisation target.
Volume capacity about 6 Mt a year (indicative, basis: Europe 1.2 Mt, with Europe and North America about one-third and Asia about 60% of world capacity); output about 5 Mt (indicative, at about 85% utilisation) Market value $5.50 billion (2024), forecast $6.83 billion by 2029 Growth 4.4% a year in value, 2024-2029 (MarketsandMarkets); European free-market demand growing 3.9% a year (Qemetica) MarketsandMarkets (2024); Qemetica (formerly Ciech) market environment pageKey uses
| Use | Share | Annual volume | Why this commodity | Alternatives |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Precipitated silica (tyres, rubber, toothpaste, cosmetics, food, battery separators) | 40% | about 2.0 Mtbasis | Acidifying sodium silicate gives fine, porous silica. Used with silane coupling agents in tyre treads it cuts rolling resistance compared with carbon black, saving fuel. It is also a mild abrasive in toothpaste and a carrier in feed and agrochemicals. Qemetica market environment | Carbon black (tyres) Fumed silica (higher cost) Rice husk ash silica |
| Detergents and cleaning agents | 15% | about 0.75 Mtbasis | Silicate adds alkalinity, softens water, prevents corrosion of washing machines and acts as a binder in detergent powders. In Asia and Africa powder detergents remain dominant, which keeps global demand high. Qemetica; MarketsandMarkets (2024) | Sodium carbonate Zeolites and polycarboxylates |
| Pulp and paper (peroxide bleaching stabiliser, de-inking, adhesives for board) | 10% | about 0.5 Mtbasis | Silicate stabilises hydrogen peroxide in mechanical pulp bleaching by binding metal ions, and binds corrugated board and paper tubes cheaply. MarketsandMarkets (2024, segment named); share indicative | Organic chelants (DTPA) Starch adhesives |
| Construction, foundry and binders (concrete densifiers, soil stabilisation, fireproofing, foundry sand moulds, geopolymer activator) | 15% | about 0.75 Mtbasis | Silicate reacts with lime in concrete to seal pores and hardens with CO2 or esters to bind foundry sand. It is the main alkaline activator for geopolymer and alkali-activated cements made from fly ash and slag. MarketsandMarkets (2024, construction use named); share indicative | Organic resin binders (foundry) Portland cement |
| Zeolites, silica gel and catalyst supports (including FCC catalysts) | 10% | about 0.5 Mtbasis | Silicate is the cheapest soluble silica for making synthetic zeolites for detergents, adsorbents and refinery FCC catalysts, and silica gel desiccants. Indicative | Colloidal silica Kaolin-based zeolite synthesis |
| Water treatment, ceramics, TiO2 coating, textiles and other | 10% | about 0.5 Mtbasis | Activated silica aids coagulation and controls corrosion in water pipes; silicate deflocculates ceramic slips and coats TiO2 pigment particles. Qemetica; MarketsandMarkets | Polymer coagulants Phosphate corrosion inhibitors |
From raw material to user
- Raw materials High-purity quartz sand (low iron) and dense soda ash, or caustic soda for the hydrothermal route; a ratio-3.3 glass needs about 0.77 t SiO2 and 0.40 t soda ash per t (stoichiometry).
- Furnace melting Batch is melted in gas- or oil-fired regenerative tank furnaces at about 1,300-1,500 C; the soda ash releases about 0.17 t CO2 per t glass (stoichiometry).
- Glass lumps Molten glass is cast or cooled into lumps, which ship as solid or are dissolved.
- Dissolving Lumps are dissolved in water with steam in rotary or static autoclaves to make 35-50% solids solutions.
- Conversion Customers acidify it (precipitated silica, silica gel), react it with alumina (zeolites) or use it directly in detergents, binders and paper.
Made from (commodity table)
Qz Silica sandSda Soda ashThree things to know
- Precipitated silica takes about 40% of European silicate use, driven by fuel-saving 'green' tyres (Qemetica).
- Making 1 t of ratio-3.3 silicate glass needs about 0.40 t of soda ash and releases about 0.17 t of CO2 from it before any fuel is burnt (stoichiometry).
- Asia holds about 60% of world capacity and Europe about 1.2 Mt a year (Qemetica).