Skip to content
silica gel

File:Silica_gel_pb092529.jpg · Wikimedia Commons · See Wikimedia Commons

EntityQ308976· pop 46· linked from 1,402 articles

silica gel

Sign in to save

Also known as smorphous silica, precipitated amorphous silica, smorphous silicon dioxide

granular, vitreous, porous form of silicon dioxide

Wikidata facts

Subclass of
absorbent
Has part
silicon
Mass
60.1
Image
Schematic silica gel surface.png
Show 10 more facts
vapor pressure
0
boiling point
4046
time-weighted average exposure limit
6
Commons category
Silica gel
density
2.20
described by source
Armenian Soviet Encyclopedia
NIOSH Pocket Guide ID
0552
immediately dangerous to life or health
3000
melting point
3110
MCN code
2811.22.30
Sources (5)

via Wikidata · CC0

~13 min read

Encyclopedic overview

Colloidal silica gel with light opalescence Silica gel is an amorphous and porous form of silicon dioxide (silica), consisting of an irregular three-dimensional framework of alternating silicon and oxygen atoms with nanometer-scale voids and pores. The voids may contain water or some other liquids, or may be filled by gas or vacuum. In the last case, the material is properly called silica xerogel.

Silica xerogel with an average pore size of 2.4 nanometers has a strong affinity for water molecules and is widely used as a desiccant. It is hard and translucent, but considerably softer than massive silica glass or quartz, and remains hard when saturated with water.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “silica gel” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.

Gallery (5)