Another name (chemically) of Soda ash is sodium carbonate and its formulae is Na2Co3.Soda ash act as a raw material for various industries like in water treatment, Paper industry. Soda Ash is white, odourless and can be easily dissolved in water.
Functions of Soda ash
- To do cleaning. -It is mainly used in detergent powder which is used in cleaning and washing clothes.
- It balances the ph level (11.5) – It is used in water to change the acidic nature of water. It removes the hardness of water and impurities, thus making it suitable for drinking purpose and industrial use.
- Used in glass manufacturing industry– It is used to make glass and Sodium silicate.
- In baking soda– Soda ash is widely used in baking soda which is edible product.
- Textile industry– Soda ash is used as a colour fixer in this industry.
- Labrotary– This chemical is used in laboratory for doing experiments and making different chemicals.
- Agricultural purpose– Soda ash is used in agricultural purpose, as it maintains the ph. level of the soil and makes the soil fertile. It provides the sodium to the soil, thus making it suitable for certain types of crops to grow.
Side effects of soda ash
- Soda cash if it is consumed directly in our human body can cause skin burn, nausea, vomiting, stomach ache, Diarrhea, and mouth burn.
There are many producers in India of soda ash. Amongst them the top 10 producers in India of soda ash are-
- Tata Chemicals Ltd– This is the largest manufacturer and exporter of soda ash in the world. This company is the 3rd largest manufacturer of soda ash in the world. This company produces 32.90 lakh tonnes of soda ash. This company operates mainly in India, Kenya, UK and USA. It mainly deals in chemistry products. Their R & D department keeps on doing latest research. Their main mission is to serve society through science.
- Gujarat Heavy Chemicals Ltd– This company was established on 14 October 1983 in Sutra pada, Gujarat. It manufactures Soda Ash (Anhydrous Sodium Carbonate), a significant raw material for the detergent, glass, and ceramics industries, as well as Sodium Bicarbonate (baking soda). It also manufactures different types of soda like soda ash lite, Soda ash dense, and other products like I-FLO Honey and Jujube Honey. This company will be expanding its soda ash production by 5 lakhs till the year 2025. and presently it is producing 12 lakhs of soda ash in the year.
- Gujarat Akalies and chemicals Ltd (GACL)- This company was established in 1973 in Vadodara in Gujarat. It covers 20% of domestic market of India in producing caustic soda. It is known for making 35 unique items. Initially they manufactured around 37,425 Tonnes Per Annum of caustic soda and now they have started manufacturing around 8,52,400 Tonnes Per Annum. They are one of the largest producers of caustic soda ash. There soda ash is used in various industries like glass, agricultural and others. They use cutting edge technology in producing its products.
- Nirma Limited-Nirma company was established in 1969 in the city of Ahmedabad by Karsanbhai Patel. This company manufactures products for consumers and deals in industrial products. They manufacture different types of products like soaps, detergents, soda ash, cosmetics and cement. For Soda ash production the company has made an investment of 1140 crores. They manufacture quality products and is consumer oriented. It company continuously does new innovations and inventions. The main motto of the company is to provide quality product to its customers.
- DCW Ltd (Dhrangadhra Chemical works Ltd)- This Company Dhrangadhra Chemical Works is established in the year 1939 in Dhrangadhra, Gujarat. This is the first Indian soda ash plant company. It produces around 1.04 lakhs of soda ash per year.
- Caprolactam Chemicals Ltd- The old name of Caprolactam Chemicals Ltd is VA Motiwala Chemical Industries Limited. This company was changed into the public company on 15th April 1992. It is a small company adding in production of soda ash to our economy. It produces around 50000 tonnes per annum of soda ash.
- Lords Ch loro Alkali Ltd– Established in the year 1979, in Alwar Rajasthan, this plant manufactures caustic soda and chlor-alkali products by using modern and ecofriendly technology technology.
- Jayshree Chemicals Ltd– This company produces the best quality soda ash amongst all the industries.
- Primo Chemicals Ltd– This company market capitalization is around ₹325.4 crores. This plant daily produces 500 tonnes of caustic soda and has specialized in this product.
- Dwarka Das Chemical Company Pvt Ltd– This company is established in Kolkata. It manufactures various types of chemical products like Soda Ash (dense), Sodium Benzoic, boric acid etc. They give customer centric and quality product to the supplier
The prices of soda ash is consistently rising. More and more players are entering into the market for manufacturing soda ash. Soda ash is a very important chemical, as without it many things are not possible to produce and manufacture. In the year 2025 if the soda ash prices are expected to increase in the USA market, thus Tata chemicals Limited one of the top 10 soda ash producers in India might likely also increase the prices of soda ash in the US market.
