What is a wetting agent and where are they used? (2024)

FAQs

What is a wetting agent and where are they used? ›

Wetting agents are commonly used to reduce the surface tension of water and thus help the water-based solutions to spread. Wetting agents are utilized in many different products. In coating industry, wetting agents help the fluid phase to wet pigment particles during the pigment dispersion process.

Dish soap is a great example of a wetting agent. With all the food oils and such on the plate cohesive forces make it difficult for the water to spread and clean the plate. The soap dissolves all theses unwanted particles, exposing a clean surface.

Wetting is important in the bonding or adherence of two materials. Wetting and the surface forces that control wetting are also responsible for other related effects, including capillary effects. Surfactants can be used to increase the wetting power of a liquid like water.

The addition of wetting agent removes the air phase and allows the liquid vehicle to penetrate easily into the pores of particles in a short time period. In the case of aqueous vehicles, the most commonly used wetting agents to remove the adsorbed air from the surface of particles are glycerin, PG, and alcohol.

wetting agent, chemical substance that increases the spreading and penetrating properties of a liquid by lowering its surface tension—that is, the tendency of its molecules to adhere to each other. See detergent; surfactant.

( a ) complete wetting, ( b ) incomplete wetting and ( c ) nonwetting.

The key difference between wetting agent and surfactant is that wetting agents can reduce the surface tension, allowing the liquid to spread drops to a surface, whereas surfactants can lower the surface tension between two substances. Wetting agents are a type of surfactants.

Wetting agents are like a detergent or surfactant that attract water to the soils surface, helping it to soak in. Hydrophobic soils repel water which can lead to serious problems in the garden and lawn. For existing lawns that are hydrophobic, a wetting agent is needed.

Unlike fertiliser, which can become toxic in large quantities, soil wetting agents are usually harmless. But once the soil has recovered, repeatedly applying them is a waste of time and money. Always read the product label and follow the instructions for application and safety precautions.

Wetting agents will help keep lawns greener for longer in the summer. Soil that has been treated with a wetting agent will not only absorb rain quickly but it will hold onto it better allowing the grass to stay hydrated and absorb vital nutrients from the soil (including your fertiliser!).

Can you apply too much wetting agent? ›

Application and Safety

Unlike fertilisers that can cause toxicity if applied too frequently or in too large an amount, wetting agents present no such risk.

Dry patches or heat stressed turf can present in patches rather than across the whole lawn. Wetting agents are best applied when the temperatures are cooler, either in the morning or afternoon. Repeated applications can be made every few months on an as needed basis.

The most common wetting agents used are Propylene Glycol USP (PCCA #30-1055) and Glycerin USP (PCCA #30-2865).

You can make your own wetting agent using the same soap you use on your sponge, your hands and dishes. It doesn't matter whether it's Lux, Ajax, Dove or Palmolive (your lawn is soaking in it); you can use it as a wetting agent.

Liquids that make effective wetting agents are those that reduce surface tension. While detergents reduce surface tension, the suitability of a detergent being used as a wetting agent depends on what's being wetted.

You can make your own soil wetting agent using the food grade thickener, agar agar (algin), derived from seaweed. Buy powdered kelp from a health food store. Slowly add boiling water to agar agar and stir to make a paste about the same consistency as wallpaper paste.

If you pour olive oil onto a glass surface, it will spread evenly – olive oil has a high wetting ability. A fluid with a high surface tension, such as mercury, has very little or no wetting ability. Petroleum, solvents, and other liquids with a low surface tension have a high wetting ability.

Wetting agents can be classified into three types based on how they affect water movement: vertical wetters (penetrants), horizontal wetters (spreaders), and multi-functional wetters.

Wetting agents are surfactants that are added to liquids to promote their absorbency into a solid porous mass [6], [7]. However, in situations such as the application of paper towels for the clean up of liquid spills, it is not possible to add a wetting agent to the liquid prior to its contact with the towel.