In many industrial production processes, foam under strongly alkaline conditions is a common and troublesome challenge. For example, in cleaning, textile auxiliaries, and certain chemical synthesis processes, high concentrations of substances such as sodium hydroxide and potassium hydroxide intensify the generation and stabilization of foam. Such foam not only reduces the effective volume of equipment and affects heat and mass transfer efficiency, extending reaction or treatment time, but may also cause tank overflow, resulting in wasted raw materials, degraded product quality, and even affecting production safety. In strongly alkaline (pH>12) environments, conventional defoamers are easily saponified and decomposed, losing their defoaming ability, which leads to frequent replenishment, increased costs, and unstable performance.
To address this core pain point, the Chemi Tech R&D team has introduced a series of high-performance alkali-resistant defoamers. Our solution is not a simple blend, but is based on in-depth research into the mechanisms by which foam is stabilized in strongly alkaline systems. The product core uses polyethers and hydrophobic particles with special structures, whose chemical bonds can withstand strong alkali attack, maintaining structural stability and activity even under high-temperature and highly alkaline conditions. They can quickly penetrate and spread across the foam lamella, effectively reducing local surface tension, causing the lamella to drain, thin, and finally rupture, while remaining dispersed in the system for a long time to provide lasting foam-suppressing performance.
Our specific application steps are clear and simple: first, the customer can provide a small sample of the working fluid, and our technical engineers will carry out a free foam evaluation test, accurately recommending the suitable model and initial dosage (usually 0.1%-0.5%). Second, it is recommended to add it in one go at an appropriate point in the production process (such as the early batching stage or before a foaming-prone stage), ensuring thorough dispersion. For continuous production systems, drip feeding can be used to maintain the effective concentration. Finally, we provide follow-up service to help optimize the dosage and ensure the best cost-performance ratio.
A typical case comes from a manufacturer of metal surface treatment agents. In its high-temperature strongly alkaline degreasing tank, its product foamed and overflowed severely, requiring multiple additions of an ordinary defoamer every day with little effect. After adopting the Chemi Tech alkali-resistant defoamer, under the same process conditions, with an initial dosage of only 0.3%, the foam was quickly eliminated, and after 72 hours of continuous operation, the surface of the tank liquid remained clear without any mid-process replenishment. This not only solved the cleaning and safety problems caused by overflow, but also increased the effective utilization rate of the degreasing tank by about 15%, while reducing the overall cost of auxiliaries. The customer spoke highly of the product's lasting effectiveness under extreme conditions.
Choosing the Chemi Tech alkali-resistant defoamer means choosing reliable production assurance. We are committed to providing customers with targeted foam control solutions to help you overcome production bottlenecks in strongly alkaline environments and achieve smoother, more economical, and safer production operations.