Dishwasher detergent is a

detergent A detergent is a surfactant or a mixture of surfactants with Cleanliness, cleansing properties when in Concentration, dilute Solution (chemistry), solutions. There are a large variety of detergents. A common family is the alkylbenzene sulfonate ...

made for washing dishes in a

dishwasher A dishwasher is a machine that is used to clean dishware, cookware, and cutlery automatically. Unlike dishwashing, manual dishwashing, which relies on physical scrubbing to remove soiling, the mechanical dishwasher cleans by spraying hot wat ...

. Dishwasher detergent is different from

dishwashing liquid Dishwashing liquid (washing-up liquid or fairy liquid in British English), also known as dishwashing soap, dish detergent, or dish soap, is a detergent used in dishwashing. Dishwashing detergent for dishwashers comes in various forms such a ...

made to wash dishes by hand.

Uses

When using a dishwasher, the user must select a special detergent for its use. All detergents are designed for use after the user scrapes leftover food from the dishes before washing. To function, the user places dishes in the dishwasher in such fashion that the surface of all dishes is open to the flow of water. Most dishwasher detergents are incompatible for use with

silver Silver is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag () and atomic number 47. A soft, whitish-gray, lustrous transition metal, it exhibits the highest electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, and reflectivity of any metal. ...

brass Brass is an alloy of copper and zinc, in proportions which can be varied to achieve different colours and mechanical, electrical, acoustic and chemical properties, but copper typically has the larger proportion, generally copper and zinc. I ...

cast iron Cast iron is a class of iron–carbon alloys with a carbon content of more than 2% and silicon content around 1–3%. Its usefulness derives from its relatively low melting temperature. The alloying elements determine the form in which its car ...

bronze Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals (such as phosphorus) or metalloid ...

aluminum Aluminium (or aluminum in North American English) is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, symbol Al and atomic number 13. It has a density lower than that of other common metals, about one-third that of steel. Aluminium has ...

pewter Pewter () is a malleable metal alloy consisting of tin (85–99%), antimony (approximately 5–10%), copper (2%), bismuth, and sometimes silver. In the past, it was an alloy of tin and lead, but most modern pewter, in order to prevent lead poi ...

, and

goldleaf upA gold nugget of 5 mm (0.2 in) in diameter (bottom) can be expanded through hammering into a gold foil of about 0.5 m2 (5.4 sq ft). The Japan.html" ;"title="Toi gold mine museum, Japan">Toi gold mine museum, Japan. Gold leaf is gold that has ...

. They can also harm

disposable A disposable (also called disposable product) is a product designed for a single use after which it is recycled or is disposed as solid waste. The term is also sometimes used for products that may last several months (e.g. disposable air filt ...

plastic Plastics are a wide range of synthetic polymers, synthetic or Semisynthesis, semisynthetic materials composed primarily of Polymer, polymers. Their defining characteristic, Plasticity (physics), plasticity, allows them to be Injection moulding ...

, anything

wood Wood is a structural tissue/material found as xylem in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulosic fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin t ...

, knives with hollow handles, and fine

glassware upTypical drinkware. This list of glassware includes drinking vessels (drinkware), tableware used to set a table for eating a meal and generally glass items such as vases, and glasses used in the catering industry. It does not include laboratory ...

.They can lead to these materials to be bleached or oxidized.

Types

There are specific examples of chemical reactions we use in our everyday lives. For example, a dishwasher detergent uses sodium hypochlorite (simple bleach) and sodium carbonate (washing soda) in a chemical reaction to clean the dishes. Dishes washed in cold water are less clean than dishes washed in hot water.

Composition

Different kinds of dishwashing

contain different combinations of ingredients. Common ingredients include: *

Phosphates Phosphates are the naturally occurring form of the element phosphorus. In chemistry, a phosphate is an anion, salt, functional group or ester derived from a phosphoric acid. It most commonly means orthophosphate, a derivative of orthophosphor ...

: Bind calcium and magnesium ions to prevent 'hard-water' type limescale deposits. They can cause ecological damage, and have been partially banned or phased out. * Oxygen-based bleaching agents (older-style powders and liquids contain chlorine-based bleaching agents): Break up and bleach organic deposits. * Non-ionic

surfactant Surfactants are chemical compounds that decrease the surface tension or interfacial tension between two liquids, a liquid and a gas, or a liquid and a solid. The word ''surfactant'' is a Blend word, blend of "surface-active agent", coined in ...

s: Lower the surface tension of the water, emulsifies oil, lipid and fat food deposits, prevents droplet spotting on drying. * Alkaline salts: These are a primary component in older and original-style dishwasher detergent powders. Highly alkaline salts attack and dissolve grease, but are extremely corrosive (fatal) if swallowed. Salts used may include

metasilicates file:Na2SiO3idealized.png, 320 px, Idealized structure of sodium metasilicate. Metasilicates are silicates containing ions of empirical formula . Common Stoichiometry, stoichiometries include MSiO3 and MIISiO3. Metasilicates can be cyclic, usually ...

, alkali metal hydroxides,

sodium carbonate Sodium carbonate (also known as washing soda, soda ash, sal soda, and soda crystals) is the inorganic compound with the formula and its various hydrates. All forms are white, odourless, water-soluble salts that yield alkaline solutions in water ...

etc. *

Enzyme An enzyme () is a protein that acts as a biological catalyst by accelerating chemical reactions. The molecules upon which enzymes may act are called substrate (chemistry), substrates, and the enzyme converts the substrates into different mol ...

s: Break up protein-based food deposits, and possibly oil, lipid and fat deposits. The enzymes used are similar to the ones used in laundry. * Anti-corrosion agent(s): Often

sodium silicate Sodium silicate is a generic name for chemical compounds with the formula or ·, such as sodium metasilicate (), sodium orthosilicate (), and sodium pyrosilicate (). The anions are often polymeric. These compounds are generally colorless tra ...

, this prevents corrosion of dishwasher components. Dishwashing detergent may also contain: * Anti-foaming agents: Foam interferes with the washing action. Foam may affect operation of the machine's water-level sensors and will leak past the door seals. * Additives to slow down the removal of glaze & patterns from glazed ceramics *

Perfume Perfume (, ) is a mixture of fragrance, fragrant essential oils or aroma compounds (fragrances), Fixative (perfumery), fixatives and solvents, usually in liquid form, used to give the human body, animals, food, objects, and living-spaces an agre ...

s * Anti-caking agents (in granular detergent) *

Starch Starch or amylum is a polymeric carbohydrate consisting of numerous glucose units joined by glycosidic bonds. This polysaccharide is produced by most green plants for energy storage. Worldwide, it is the most common carbohydrate in human diet ...

es (in tablet based detergents) * Gelling agents (in liquid/gel based detergents) Dishwasher detergents are generally strongly

alkaline In chemistry, an alkali (; from the Arabic word , ) is a basic salt of an alkali metal or an alkaline earth metal. An alkali can also be defined as a base that dissolves in water. A solution of a soluble base has a pH greater than 7.0. The ...

(

basic Basic or BASIC may refer to: Science and technology * BASIC, a computer programming language * Basic (chemistry), having the properties of a base * Basic access authentication, in HTTP Entertainment * Basic (film), ''Basic'' (film), a 2003 film ...

). Inexpensive powders may contain sand. Such detergents may harm the dishes and the dishwasher. Powdered detergents are more likely to cause fading on china patterns. Besides older style detergents for dishwashers,

biodegradable Biodegradation is the breakdown of organic matter by microorganisms, such as bacteria and fungi. It is generally assumed to be a natural process, which differentiates it from composting. Composting is a human-driven process in which biodegrada ...

detergents also exist for dishwashers. These detergents may be more environmentally friendly than conventional detergents. Hand-washing dish detergent (washing up liquid) creates a large foam of bubbles which will leak from the dishwasher.

Rinse aid

Rinse aid (sometimes called rinse agent) contains

s and uses Marangoni stress to prevent droplet formation, so that water drains from the surfaces in thin sheets, rather than forming droplets. Rinse aid prevents "spotting" on glassware (caused by droplets of water drying and leaving behind dissolved

limescale Limescale is a hard, chalky deposit, consisting mainly of calcium carbonate (CaCO3). It often builds up inside kettles, boilers, and pipework, especially that for hot water. It is also often found as a similar deposit on the inner surfaces of old ...

minerals), and improves drying performance as there is less water remaining to be dried, and a thinner sheet of water has a much larger surface area than a droplet of the same volume.

References

{{reflist, refs= Detergents Dishwashing Cleaning products

Uses

Types

Composition

Rinse aid

See also

References