Main uses of citric acid

Because of its mild and refreshing sour taste, citric acid is widely used to make various drinks, soda, wine, candy, snacks, biscuits, canned fruit juice, dairy products and other foods. In all organic acid markets, the market share of citric acid is above 70%, and it can also be used as an antioxidant and flavoring agent for edible oils. At the same time, it can improve the sensory characteristics of food, enhance appetite and promote the digestion and absorption of calcium and phosphorus in the body. Anhydrous citric acid is widely used in solid drinks. Salts of citric acid, such as calcium citrate and iron citrate, are fortifiers that need to add calcium ions and iron ions to some foods. Esters of citric acid, such as triethyl citrate, can be used as nontoxic plasticizers to make plastic films for food packaging, and as acidulants and preservatives in beverage and food industries.

Used in chemical industry and textile industry.

Citric acid can be used as chemical analysis reagent, experimental reagent, chromatographic analysis reagent and biochemical reagent in chemical technology. Used as complexing agent and masking agent; Used to prepare buffer solution. Using citric acid or citrate as builder can improve the performance of washing products, quickly precipitate metal ions, prevent pollutants from reattaching to fabrics, and maintain the alkalinity necessary for washing; Disperse and suspend dust and ashes; It is an excellent chelating agent to improve the performance of surfactants; It can be used as a reagent to detect the acid resistance of building tiles.

Clothing formaldehyde pollution is a very sensitive issue. Citric acid and modified citric acid can be made into formaldehyde-free crease-resistant finishing agent, which can be used for crease-resistant finishing of cotton fabric. Not only the anti-wrinkle effect is good, but also the cost is low.

Used for environmental protection

Application of citric acid-sodium citrate buffer in flue gas desulfurization. China is rich in coal resources, which is the main source of energy. However, there has been a lack of effective flue gas desulfurization technology, which leads to serious SO2 pollution in the atmosphere. It is urgent to study effective desulfurization process. Citric acid-sodium citrate buffer solution has low vapor pressure, non-toxicity, stable chemical properties and high SO2 absorption rate, so it is a desulfurization absorbent with great development value.

Used in animal husbandry production

Adding citric acid to piglet feed can wean early, improve feed utilization rate by 5% ~ 10% and increase litter size of sows. Adding 1% ~ 2% citric acid to the diet of growing-finishing pigs can increase daily gain, reduce feed-meat ratio, increase protein digestibility, reduce back fat thickness and improve meat quality and carcass characteristics. Rare earth citrate is a new and efficient feed additive, which is suitable for pigs, chickens, fish, shrimp, cattle, sheep, rabbits, silkworms and other animals. It has the characteristics of promoting animal growth, improving product quality, improving disease resistance and survival rate, improving feed conversion rate and shortening feeding cycle.

Used in cosmetics

Citric acid is a kind of fruit acid, and its main function is to accelerate keratin renewal. It is often used in lotions, creams, shampoos, whitening products, anti-aging products and acne products. The renewal of keratin contributes to the shedding of melanin, the shrinking of pores and the dissolution of blackheads.

Used for disinfection

The combined action of citric acid and 80℃ temperature has a good killing effect on bacterial spores, which can effectively kill contaminated bacterial spores in the pipeline of hemodialysis machine. Lemon, which enjoys the reputation of "king of western food", has a strong bactericidal effect and is very beneficial to food hygiene. In addition, people always like to make cold dishes with lemons, which are not only delicious and refreshing, but also stimulate appetite.

Used in medicine

Calcium ion must participate in the formation of prothrombin activator and the subsequent coagulation process. Citrate ion and calcium ion can form a soluble complex which is difficult to dissociate, thus reducing the concentration of calcium ion in blood and blocking blood coagulation. This product is used as an anticoagulant in vitro when blood transfusion or laboratory blood samples are anticoagulated.

Chemical processing or deep processing of citric acid

Another main use of citric acid is deep processing, which is a rich industrial chain.

Medicinal value

⑴ Citric acid can prevent and eliminate skin pigmentation. Chinese medicine believes that lemon is mild, bitter and non-toxic. It has the functions of quenching thirst, promoting fluid production, dispelling summer heat, preventing miscarriage, relieving depression, quenching thirst, invigorating stomach and relieving pain, and regulating vascular permeability, and is suitable for mm with edema and puffiness. Smokers should eat more lemons because they need twice as much vitamin C as non-smokers. Lemon has low calorie and strong contractility, which is beneficial to reducing fat and is a good medicine for losing weight. Lemon can prevent cardiovascular arteriosclerosis and reduce blood viscosity. Hot lemon juice and honey are very effective in treating bronchitis and nasopharyngitis. Gandhi moistened lung, quenched thirst with acid, stimulated appetite, detoxified alcohol, whitened skin, moistened skin and lowered cholesterol. The rest of the brewing can be suitable for facial treatment of facial spots and acupuncture.

⑵ Eliminating phlegm: Little known is that lemon can eliminate phlegm, and the effect of eliminating phlegm is stronger than that of oranges and citrus. Add warm water and salt to lemon juice, drink it and cough up the thick phlegm accumulated in your throat. It is very effective. At the beginning of a cold, you might as well wash it with lemon and honey, which can relieve sore throat and relieve the discomfort of dry throat.

In vivo transformation of higher organisms

Citric acid is an important compound in the process of transforming fat, protein and sugar into carbon dioxide. These chemical reactions are the core reactions of almost all metabolism, providing energy for higher organisms. This series of reactions is called "citric acid cycle", "tricarboxylic acid cycle" or "Kjeldahl cycle".

keep fit

Drinking a glass of lemonade before eating any food every morning can strengthen gastrointestinal peristalsis, treat constipation, expel toxins from the body, achieve beauty effect, and remove oral odor and halitosis. A cup of hot lemonade every morning can also make your eyes more radiant and your skin more rosy. If you add more lemon juice to the water, it will also play a role in removing garbage from the body.