Daily Chemical Products

Trisodium Methylglycinediacetate (MGDA): Driving a Green Revolution in the Detergent and Personal Care Industry

Trisodium methylglycinediacetate (MGDA), a new generation of biodegradable chelating agent, is sparking a green revolution in the detergent and personal care industry. This article provides a comprehensive overview of MGDA’s advantages, mechanisms of action, and innovative applications across various cleaning products, offering new solutions for sustainable industry development.

Outstanding Properties of MGDA

1. Remarkable Environmental Benefits
MGDA features excellent biodegradability, with a 28-day biodegradation rate exceeding 80%. It ultimately decomposes into carbon dioxide and water, leaving no risk of environmental accumulation. Its ecological toxicity is extremely low and safe for aquatic organisms, fully compliant with EU REACH regulations.

2. Excellent Chelating Performance
MGDA shows strong chelating ability with calcium, magnesium, and other metal ions (calcium chelation value up to 300 mg/g). It remains stable under high temperature and alkaline conditions, performing better than traditional chelating agents such as EDTA and NTA.

3. Outstanding Compatibility
MGDA is highly compatible with surfactants, enzymes, and other detergent ingredients, without interfering with their performance. It also offers excellent solubility and storage stability.

Mechanism of Action

Hard Water Softening
By strongly binding calcium and magnesium ions in water, MGDA prevents them from reacting with surfactants to form insoluble precipitates, thereby significantly enhancing the cleaning efficiency of detergents.

Soil Dispersion
MGDA effectively disperses and suspends dirt particles, preventing redeposition on fabric surfaces and helping maintain fabric whiteness and cleanliness.

Protection of Active Ingredients
By chelating metal ions, MGDA protects enzymes, bleaching agents, and other active components from metal ion interference, ensuring optimal performance.

Application Fields and Performance

Laundry Detergents

Adding 1–3% MGDA to concentrated laundry liquids significantly improves cleaning performance. In hard water regions, whiteness retention can increase by more than 30%.

Automatic Dishwashing Detergents

In automatic dishwashing formulations, MGDA effectively prevents scale formation, keeps tableware shiny, and avoids nozzle blockage.

Personal Care Products

In shampoos and body washes, MGDA improves the washing experience in hard water, enhancing foam quality and stability.

Industrial Cleaners

Applied in the cleaning of food processing and dairy equipment, MGDA ensures excellent cleaning performance while meeting food safety requirements.

Application Recommendations

1. Liquid Detergents

• Recommended dosage: 1.5–3.0%

• Usage: Add together with other components and stir until dissolved

2. Powder Detergents

• Recommended dosage: 2.0–4.0%

• Usage: Mix with base powders and process into granules

3. Tablet Products

• Recommended dosage: 3.0–5.0%

• Usage: Apply directly during tableting or use as a coating ingredient

Advantages over Traditional Chelating Agents

Compared with conventional chelating agents, MGDA provides:

Superior environmental performance

Stronger chelating capacity

Wider applicable pH range

Better safety profile

More stable performance

Future Outlook

1. Regulatory-Driven Adoption
With increasingly strict environmental regulations, MGDA will gradually replace traditional non-biodegradable chelating agents.

2. Rising Consumer Demand
Growing consumer focus on product safety and eco-friendliness will drive MGDA’s adoption in premium detergent products.

3. Technological Innovation
The integration of nanotechnology, microencapsulation, and other new technologies will further expand MGDA’s application scope.

4. Global Market Expansion
While MGDA is developing rapidly in Europe and North America, the Asian market is showing immense growth potential.

As a high-performance and environmentally friendly chelating agent, MGDA not only enhances detergent efficiency but also meets the requirements of sustainable development. With advancing technology and growing market recognition, MGDA is set to become a key choice in the detergent and personal care industry, driving the sector toward a greener and more efficient future.