Citric Acid – 50% – Food Grade – 1,250kg

Information

Citric acid is an organic acid. It is found in particularly high concentrations in fruits of the genus Citrus, but a range of vegetables and fruits contain this acid in quantities that are relevant to nutrition. It is the starting and end point of the citric acid cycle, which plays a central role in the cells of all aerobic life forms, making it one of the fundamental substances of life.

It is also produced industrially, including by fermentation of sucrose and glucose using the fungus Aspergillus niger. This production method has largely replaced large-scale extraction from citrus fruit.

Citric acid is a natural preservative and antioxidant and is also widely used to give food a sour taste. In biochemistry, it is an important intermediate in the citric acid cycle. It is a food acid with E number E330.

Salts and esters of citric acid are known as citrates.

Applications

Citric acid is used, among other things:

• to bring foodstuffs to the correct acidity (acidity regulator)
• to bring cosmetics to the correct acidity
• as an aid in the etching of metals
• as a cleaning agent to remove or prevent limescale and algae deposits (for example on heat exchangers)
• for descaling household appliances, such as coffee machines
• to remove rust from metal objects
• as an odourless stop bath when developing photographic prints
• as an anticoagulant when taking blood samples
• as an (organic) toilet cleaner
• as a buffer in chemistry