Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid

Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid, widely abbreviated as EDTA (for other names, see Table), is a polyamino carboxylic acid and a colourless, water-soluble solid. Its conjugate base is named ethylenediaminetetraacetate. It is widely used to dissolve limescale. Its usefulness arises because of its role as a hexadentate ("six-toothed") ligand and chelating agent, i.e. its ability to 2+ 3+ "sequester" metal ions such as Ca and Fe . After being bound by EDTA, metal ions remain in solution but exhibit diminished reactivity. EDTA is produced as several salts, notably disodium EDTA and calcium disodium EDTA. The reduction of water hardness in laundry applications and the dissolution of scale in boilers both rely on 2+ 2+ EDTA and relatedcomplexants to bind Ca , Mg , as well as other metal ions. Once bound to EDTA, these metal centers tend not to form precipitates or to interfere with the action of the soaps and detergents. For similar reasons, cleaning solutions often contain EDTA.

Chelation
Chelation is the formation or presence of two or more separate coordinate bonds between [1] apolydentate (multiple bonded) ligand and a single central atom. Usually these ligands areorganic compounds, and are called chelants, chelators, chelating agents, or sequestering agents.

Chelators are used in producing nutritional supplements, fertilizers, chemical analysis, as water softeners, commercial products such as shampoos and food preservatives, medicine, heavy metal detox, and industrial applications.

Lime softening
[1]
Lime softening, also known as Clark's process , is a type of water treatment used for water softening. In the USA, it is used primarily in the Midwest, Florida and Texas. It utilizes the addition of lime (calcium hydroxide) to remove hardness (calcium and magnesium) ionsby precipitation. The process is also effective at removing a variety of microorganisms and dissolved organic

[2]
matter .

Hard water
Hard water is water that has high mineral content (in contrast with soft water)

Temporary hardness
Temporary hardness is a type of water hardness caused by the presence of dissolved carbonate minerals (calcium carbonate andmagnesium carbonate). When dissolved, these 2+ 2+ 2minerals yield calcium and magnesium cations (Ca , Mg ) and carbonate andbicarbonate anions (CO3 , HCO3 ). The presence of the metal cations makes the water hard. However, unlike the permanent hardnesscaused by sulfate and chloride compounds, this temporary hardness can be reduced either by boiling the water, or by the addition oflime (calcium hydroxide) through the process of lime [3] softening. Boiling promotes the formation of carbonate from the bicarbonate and precipitates calcium carbonate out of solution, leaving water that is softer upon cooling.

Permanent hardness
Permanent hardness is hardness (mineral content) that cannot be removed by boiling. When this is the case, it is usually caused by the presence of calcium and magnesium sulphates and/or chlorides in the water, which become more soluble as the temperatureincreases. Despite the name, the hardness of the water can be easily removed using a water softener, or ion exchange column.