White carbon black, also known as hydrated silicon dioxide, has a chemical formula of SiO2 nH2O. It is a white, non-toxic, amorphous fine powder inorganic silicon compound with porosity, high dispersibility, light weight, and good chemical stability. It has excellent properties such as high temperature resistance, non-flammability, and good electrical insulation, and has been widely used in many fields such as plastics, rubber, paper, coatings, dyes, and inks.

On the other hand, due to the presence of active silanol on the surface of silica, silica is hydrophilic and difficult to infiltrate and disperse in the organic phase, making it unusable in some special fields. However, the modified white carbon black has greatly broadened the application field of the product due to the improved surface activity.

Let's take a look at which industries white carbon black is favored by.

01 Application in tires
Silica is used as a reinforcing agent, and the largest amount is used in the rubber field, accounting for 70% of the total. Silica can greatly improve the physical properties of the compound, reduce the hysteresis of the compound, and reduce the rolling resistance of the tire without losing its wet skid resistance. In the rubber industry, carbon black is a very effective reinforcing agent, but its biggest disadvantage is that it cannot be used to prepare colored products. Ultra-fine silica is used as a reinforcing filler for the production of green tires. It can replace carbon black for sidewalls, which can significantly increase the tear strength and crack growth resistance of sidewalls, but has no obvious effect on vulcanization time. It is resistant to ozone. Aging is dependent on antioxidant and silica levels. Adding white carbon black to the tread rubber of the tire can improve the cutting resistance and tear resistance of the tread, and reduce the jumping and falling blocks. Compared with the ordinary carbon black filled rubber compound, the rolling resistance of the silica filled compound can be reduced by 30%.


02Application in defoamer
Fumed silica generally has two types of products: hydrophilic type and hydrophobic type. Among them, hydrophobic type products are obtained by surface chemical treatment of hydrophilic type products. Now all defoamer manufacturers generally use hydrophobic type fumed silica. Use the hydrophobic groups on its surface to attract the hydrophobic end of the surfactant in the foaming system, so that the hydrophobic solid particles become hydrophilic, thereby reducing the concentration of surfactants in the foam, promoting foam bursting, and improving defoaming speed.

03Application in paint and coating industry
Silica can be used as a rheological additive, anti-sedimentation agent, dispersant aid, and matting agent in the production of coatings to thicken, prevent sedimentation, thixotropy, and matting. Moreover, it can also improve the weather resistance and scratch resistance of the coating, the adhesion strength between the coating and the substrate and the hardness of the coating, the aging resistance of the coating, and the ultraviolet absorption and infrared light reflection characteristics.


04Application in electronic packaging
By fully dispersing the surface-active treated fumed silica in the silicone-modified epoxy resin encapsulation matrix, the curing time of the encapsulation material can be greatly shortened (2.0-2.5h), and the curing temperature can be lowered to room temperature , so that the sealing performance of the OLED device is significantly improved, and the service life of the OLED device is increased.

The addition of fumed silica reduces the process of electronic device packaging that required special environments in the past to room temperature conditions, greatly reducing production costs and shortening the curing time of packaging materials, greatly improving production efficiency and reducing production costs. It will promote the popularization and application of the new generation OLED display technology.

05Application in plastics
White carbon black is also often used in new plastics. Adding a small amount of white carbon black during plastic mixing will have a significant reinforcing effect and improve the hardness and mechanical properties of the material, thereby improving the processing technology and product performance. In addition, silica has the characteristics of small particle size and high light transmittance, which can make plastics denser and increase the transparency of plastics.

06 Application in Ceramics
Adding fumed white carbon black instead of nano-Al2O3 to 95 ceramics can not only play the role of nanoparticles, but also the second-phase particles, which not only improves the strength and toughness of ceramic materials, but also improves the hardness and elasticity of materials. Modulus and other properties, the effect is more ideal than adding Al2O3. Using fumed white carbon black to compound the ceramic substrate not only improves the compactness, toughness and smoothness of the substrate, but also greatly reduces the sintering temperature. In addition, the application effect of fumed silica in ceramic products such as ceramic filters and corundum balls is also very significant.

According to the editor of China Powder Network, it can also be used as a carrier to load Ti, Ag or Cu ions into ceramic materials by using its porosity, which can have an antibacterial effect, thereby preparing antibacterial ceramic sanitary ware.

07Application in the paper industry
In the paper industry, fumed silica products can be used as paper sizing agent, which can improve the whiteness and opacity of paper, and can improve oil resistance, abrasion resistance, hand feeling, printability and gloss. It can also be used for printing paper, which can make the paper surface quality good, the ink stable, and the back without cracks. It can also be used in azide paper to produce excellent blueprint paper, which can be used in coated paper to replace titanium dioxide. Adding 1-2% fumed silica products can reduce the weight of the paper, and the paper is thin, which can improve the strength, prevent ink penetration, and make the printed text clear and increase the opacity.

08Application in toothpaste
Precipitated silica is currently the main variety of abrasives used in toothpaste. Precipitated silica has a large specific surface area, strong adsorption capacity, many adsorbed substances, and uniform particles, which is conducive to improving transparency. Because of its stable properties, non-toxic and harmless, it is a good raw material for toothpaste. The refractive index of white carbon black is 1.45-1.50, which is very close to the refractive index of other ingredients in toothpaste, so when mixed together, it acts as a transparent agent. This property is used to create transparent toothpaste, a feature not found in any other abrasive.

09 Application in cosmetics
Non-toxic, odorless, easy to color and other excellent properties of silica make it widely used in the cosmetics industry. Silica is used in skin care products and cosmetics to give the skin a smooth and soft feel ("ball bearing effect"), resulting in a "soft focus effect" that evenly distributes light on the surface of the skin, making it less prone to Skin wrinkles and blemishes are perceived. In addition, the thixotropy of silica can prevent pigment from settling, and it can be used in products such as lipstick and nail polish.

10 Application of silica in rubber shoes
White carbon has high blackness and fine particles, and the vulcanizate made of transparent white carbon black has high transparency and can improve the comprehensive physical properties of the rubber compound. Therefore, white carbon black is widely used as a main reinforcing filler in high-end leather shoes and sports shoes Among the sole making materials, especially in transparent and translucent sole rubber. Improves the wear resistance, hardness, tensile strength and tear strength of the sole.

11 Application in the pharmaceutical industry
Silica has been widely used in pharmaceutical preparations due to its physiological inertness, high absorption, dispersibility and thickening properties. French researchers found that adding a small amount of fumed silica to drugs such as ranitidine, methamine, and pirenzepine would change their fluidity; adding griseofulvin to drugs such as A small amount of fumed silica can change its dissolution rate, that is, change the dispersibility and absorption of insoluble drugs in water; adding a small amount of fumed silica to the powder containing aspirin will change the antistatic properties of the powder. sex.
As an absorbent and dispersant, white carbon black can also be used in the production of western medicine tablets such as vitamin C; in the production of medical capsules, adding a small amount of white carbon black can act as a carrier. According to the editor of China Powder Network, Japanese researchers found that adding a small amount of white carbon black to the formula of polyethylene packaging materials can be made into a sterile packaging film for medical articles.


12 Application in ink
Silica is also used to control the flow of printer ink so that it does not flow or sag randomly for clear prints. In beverage cans, it controls the use of high velocity spray coatings. Fumed silica is also used as a dispersant and flow control agent in toner cartridges for copiers and laser printers.

13 Application in Pesticides
Silica is used in herbicides and insecticides in pesticides. Adding a small amount of fumed silica and precipitated silica to the mixture of two common herbicides, dinitroaniline and urea, will prevent the mixture from agglomerating. Adding a small amount of fumed silica to the granular insecticide formula will more effectively control and prevent harmful organisms from being produced. Silica can also be used as an absorbent for pollutants in the soil, absorbing pollutants in the soil.


14 Application in daily necessities
Food packaging bags added with white carbon black can keep fruits and vegetables fresh. White carbon black can also be used as a high-efficiency fungicide to prevent and treat various diseases of fruits; in the production of wine, adding a small amount of white carbon black can purify beer and prolong the fresh-keeping period. In the woven fabric containing vinyl chloride, adding a small amount of fumed silica will change its performance, and silica acts as a matting agent. It only stays on the surface of the braid and does not penetrate the weave.


According to the editor of China Powder Network, white carbon black still has important applications in other fields. For example, white carbon black can also be added to aviation silicone rubber as a special heat-resistant additive to improve its high temperature resistance; white carbon black can also be used as an absorbent for pollutants in the soil to absorb pollutants in the soil; in the field of building materials , adding nano-silica and natural zeolite to self-compacting mortar can reduce the penetration of chloride ions into self-compacting mortar, thereby improving the mechanical properties and durability of self-compacting mortar.