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Zhongqi (Shandong) Silicon Materials Co., Ltd. Core Handbook of Synthetic Amorphous Silica (SAS): High-Efficiency, Sustainable, Safe
Created on 07.01
Zhongqi (Shandong) Silicon Materials Co., Ltd. Core Handbook of Synthetic Amorphous Silica (SAS): High-Efficiency, Sustainable, Safe
Synthetic Amorphous Silica (SAS) is a high-purity, non-crystalline silica material. With its versatile and stable performance, it has been safely applied in the food, cosmetics, and pharmaceutical industries for decades, and is the core product line manufactured by Zhongqi (Shandong) Silicon Materials Co., Ltd. The edible safety of SAS has been repeatedly verified by global authoritative institutions, and it is approved for use as a food additive, with the official EU food additive number E 551.
Zhongqi (Shandong) Silicon Materials Co., Ltd. has built a proprietary brand system for SAS:
1. ZLCSIL: General Purpose Fumed Silica Series
2. ZLSIL: Precipitated Silica Series
3. ZQSIL: Specialty Functional Silica Series
• ZLXIDE: Pharmaceutical-Grade Specialty Silica Series
Our full product range has been validated by long-term market performance, with stable and mature production processes. The core particle structure and product performance have remained consistent for decades, delivering controllable and reliable quality.
With its excellent adsorption properties, SAS serves as a high-performance anti-caking agent and flow aid for powder products, delivering value across the entire food value chain and benefiting manufacturers, retail channels, and end consumers alike:
• For Manufacturers: Ensures consistent quality of powder products, reduces equipment cleaning downtime, avoids production interruptions caused by pipeline blockages, and increases overall production throughput.
• For Retail Channels: Improves the stability of food products during storage and transportation, effectively reducing commodity loss and inventory risks.
• For End Consumers: Keeps powders in a free-flowing state for easier seasoning and reconstitution, enables accurate dosing even after long-term storage, and prevents premature discarding of food due to caking.
In key application scenarios, SAS is the only viable solution to guarantee the core performance of products:
1. Ready-to-Drink (RTD) Beverage Sector: Most alternative products will impair the taste and mouthfeel of the final product, while SAS is completely odorless and does not alter the original flavor profile of food.
2. Non-Nano Structural Alternatives: Feature a completely different mechanism of action from SAS, with far inferior performance as anti-caking agents and flow aids, requiring significantly higher dosage levels to achieve similar effects.
Overall, SAS relies on its superior adsorption properties to enable sustainable production and consumption of food products, while upholding strict hygiene standards throughout the entire processing and consumption cycle.
Silica occurs naturally in a wide range of plants including grains and grasses, and is also the main component of natural sand and gravel. SAS is produced from the most abundant natural sand and gravel reserves on earth, refined into high-purity products through the standardized proprietary process of Zhongqi (Shandong) Silicon Materials Co., Ltd., comprehensively improving efficiency and sustainability across all links of the food value chain.
3. Reduces the cleaning frequency of spray dryers from once every 2-3 days to once every 5 days, cutting equipment downtime by approximately 40%, while significantly lowering cleaning-related energy consumption, water consumption, and food waste.
• Cuts spray-dried product loss rate from nearly 25% to 10%-15%, as SAS reduces the adhesion of products to the inner wall of processing equipment, significantly improving finished product recovery rate.
SAS improves the stability and storage performance of food products, extends shelf life, and reduces food waste and resource loss throughout the entire process from production to consumption. Reduced food waste directly corresponds to lower consumption of feed, fertilizer, water resources, and associated carbon emissions, continuously enhancing the long-term sustainability of the global food industry chain.
Free-flowing food ingredients improve daily use convenience, and accurate dosing ensures stable intake of nutritional components, providing reliable support for a healthy dietary lifestyle.
The impact of SAS on humans, animals, and the environment has been extensively evaluated through global scientific research and regulatory reviews. As a food additive designated E 551, it has obtained official approval from the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA).
In October 2024, EFSA completed its full re-evaluation of E 551 for use in food for infants under 16 weeks of age and in food for the general population. The official conclusion confirmed that E 551 poses no safety risk to all population groups at the declared usage levels and dosages, and the assessment included comprehensive verification covering the nanomaterial dimension.
Statutory regulations in the EU for food, cosmetics and related fields (Cosmetics Regulation EC 1223/2009, Novel Food Regulation EU 2015/2283, Food Information Regulation EU 1169/2011) define nanomaterials based on multiple factors, including particle size (1-100 nanometers), as well as structure, morphology and other critical parameters.
The SAS products of Zhongqi (Shandong) Silicon Materials Co., Ltd. contain no isolated nanoparticles. Their physical structure consists of agglomerates formed by aggregates, with dimensions fully optimized for anti-caking and flow aid application requirements, and do not fall under the definition of nanomaterials in accordance with EU regulations.
The European Commission has clearly stated that "nanomaterial" is only a size classification and does not represent a specific safety risk; SAS is safe for consumption as a food additive regardless of whether it is classified as a nanomaterial or not.
Multiple international authoritative studies have consistently confirmed the edible safety of SAS:
1. 2016 Meta-Analysis in Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology: Confirmed the safety of nanostructured synthetic amorphous silica as food additive E 551.
2. 2024 EFSA Official Evaluation Report: Fully verified the application safety of E 551 in food for all population groups.
3. 2018 Study in Toxicology Research and Application: Confirmed that synthetic amorphous silica aerosols do not cause fatal lung lesions such as pulmonary fibrosis.
Zhongqi (Shandong) Silicon Materials Co., Ltd. has deep roots in the silicon materials industry. With stable production processes and strict quality control systems, we provide ZLCSIL, ZLSIL, ZQSIL, and ZLXIDE series synthetic amorphous silica products for the food, pharmaceutical, cosmetics and other industries, helping customers achieve efficient, sustainable and safe production and application.
The information in this handbook is compiled based on current global industry standards, scientific data and regulatory requirements. Product performance and safety indicators fully comply with internationally accepted specifications. Zhongqi (Shandong) Silicon Materials Co., Ltd. reserves the right to optimize and upgrade product technology and related information, and continues to provide customers with high-quality silicon material solutions.
For more technical information on the ZLXIDE™ FP series silica, please contact us at +86 18668999988 to obtain exclusive technical materials and application support.
Zhongqi (Shandong) Silicon Materials Co., Ltd. Specialized in R&D, production and sales of high-end food & pharmaceutical excipient grade silica. Core brands: ZLSIL™, ZLXIDE™, ZLCSIL™. Products meet global food-grade standards, providing compliant high-performance formulation solutions for global food & pharma enterprises.
Full-process technical support & customized services available from our headquarters and production base.
Contact: Tel +86 53188737397 | Email Levin@silicaplant.com
Technical docs & application support available on request.
All information herein and published content is for reference only, with no warranty of accuracy or completeness. No warranty is given for product use results. We accept no liability for improper product use or information reliance. We reserve the right to adjust product prices & specifications without notice. For infringement issues, contact us for removal.
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