2024-07-05
Sodium Hexametaphosphate: Learn its Formula, Structure, Properties, Uses and Side Effects
Sodium hexametaphosphate is a water softener, commercially known as Calgon. The term Calgon is associated with calcium, which specifically indicates the elimination of calcium ions from water. The presence of calcium and certain cations in water enhances the water hardness, which in turn is reduced by applying powdered sodium hexametaphosphate, forming complexes with calcium and other ions. In 1963, the German chemists Erich Thilo and Ulrich Schülke discovered it by preparing sodium hexametaphosphate by heating anhydrous sodium trimetaphosphate.