Sodium polycarboxylate

Sodium polycarboxylate is the name used on consumer product labels in the United States to designate a family of anionic polymers with a long carbon chain backbone along which are many attached carboxyl functional groups. They are used in consumer household cleaning products to enhance performance, and prevent redeposition of the material removed from the dirty article. In the United States the major end-use is in powdered home laundry detergents. The commonly used molecular weights range from 2,000-10,000. They can be homopolymers, made from one type of monomer, such as 2-propanoic acid, or heteropolymers (copolymers), made from two monomers, such as acrylate and maleic acid. These copolymers can be made in any ratio, thus the designation "sodium polycarboxylate" covers a wide range of distinct molecules.