Trisodium Citrate as Chelating Agents for Low Temperature Cloth Washing Process of Textiles

ABSTRACT Low‐temperature washing is crucial for reducing energy consumption and protecting the environment, and it holds revolutionary significance for industrial washing. The chelating agent in the washing auxiliaries effectively removes metal ions from the water, enhancing the washing effect of the surfactant. In this research work, we have screened out the chelating agent trisodium citrate (CANa), which has good chelating ability at low temperature and is suitable for the linen washing process. The effect of CANa on the emulsification, foaming, foam stabilization, surface tension and detergency of four surfactants, namely LAS, AES, MES and APG, was investigated by using CANa as a detergent additive. CANa has strong calcium‐chelating ability at low temperature. Different additions of CANa had different effects on the washing effect of surfactants. It can be seen from the effect of raw pump stains that the best washing effect was achieved at a 2% addition.