SODIUM SULPHATE PRODUCERS ASSOCIATION
(SSPA)
A PROFILE OF SSPA and Sodium Sulphate
SSPA
SSPA (Sodium Sulphate Producers Association) is a non-profit making organization
founded in 1999 as a sector group within CEFIC. The Association engages in the
following activities:
Promote and encourage safety and best environmental practices in production,
transport and use of sodium sulphate.
Represent and defend the industry’s interests at national and international levels
through the proper legal and regulatory channels.
Cooperate with national, supranational (in particular the European Commission)
and international authorities in matters of interest to the sodium sulphate industry.
Provide to governments and European Institutions a source of industry expertise.
Engage in programs to promote the image of this industry generally, particularly in
relation to environmental matters.
Collect trade statistics in accordance with the rules laid down by CEFIC.
Study the impact on sodium sulphate industry of substitute products or of technical
changes in customer’s industries, monitoring the trends of the end use markets.
The product
Sodium sulphate is an inert, free flowing white salt obtained from natural deposits or
recovered as a by-product from various industrial processes.
Natural sources in Europe have a share of just below 60 % of the total European
production and are concentrated in Spain and Turkey because of their rich deposits of
natural minerals. European industrial gained Sodium Sulphate is slightly above 40 %.
The total number of producers in Europe decreased over the past years, concentrating to
a few major producers with an output of roughly 100.000 tons/yr or more and several
smaller producers.
The end-uses and the sodium sulphate contribution.
Powder detergents
This is the major application of sodium sulphate, which is well appreciated by the
detergent industry as aiding filler, due to its whiteness, solubility and
biodegradability. It is the most adequate raw material to regulate the density of the
final product and its composition has also positive effects on the chemical
processes taking place during the washing. Additionally, its physical properties
have favorable effects on the free flowing of the detergent, and on preventing
caking during storage of same.
Glass
Used as a source of sodium in the glass formulas, sodium sulphate acts as a
refining agent that prevents the formation of bubbles in the melting glass avoiding
defects and weaknesses in the finished product.
Kraft paper pulp
Sodium sulfate is used as makeup chemical to
compensate the sulfur losses. During the recovery of
the alkali from the black liquor, sodium sulfate is
reduced to sodium sulfide, which is effective in the
cooking process.
Textile and Leather
It aids the fixing of the colorant to the textile fibers. In a similar way, it aids the
fixing of the mineral salts to the leather during the tanning process.
Other applications
Many other different chemical and industrial processes use sodium sulphate in
alternative ways, although the volumes used are quite low compared to the main
applications.