Citric Acid, with the chemical name 2‑hydroxypropane‑1,2,3‑tricarboxylic acid, is a naturally occurring tricarboxylic acid. It is widely found in citrus fruits such as lemons, oranges, and pineapples, and is one of the most widely used basic organic acids in food, pharmaceuticals, chemical engineering, environmental protection and other fields.
Citric acid appears as colorless transparent crystals or white crystalline powder, odorless, strongly acidic in taste, and readily soluble in water and ethanol. It features a mild and pure sour taste, excellent solubility, strong chelating ability, and high safety. With stable chemical properties, it has multiple functions including acidity regulation, antiseptic preservation, antioxidant synergism, metal chelation, and pH adjustment, making it a versatile green chemical raw material.
In the food and beverage industry, citric acid is the most widely used food acidulant worldwide. It is extensively applied in carbonated drinks, fruit juices, wines, candies, canned foods, baked goods and other products. It not only provides a refreshing and mild sour taste to enhance flavor, but also acts as a preservative to inhibit microbial growth and an antioxidant synergist to extend the shelf life of food products, making it an indispensable core additive in the food industry.
In the pharmaceutical and daily chemical fields, citric acid can be used to adjust the acid-base balance of injections and oral solutions, and promote the absorption of minerals such as calcium and iron in the human body. In daily chemicals, it is a common ingredient in laundry detergents, dish soaps and skin care products, helping to soften water, remove scale, and adjust pH value, while providing gentle exfoliating and skin-brightening effects.
In industrial and environmental protection applications, thanks to its excellent metal chelating ability, citric acid is widely used in metal cleaning, pipeline descaling and water treatment processes. It can effectively remove scale and rust, replacing traditional phosphorus-containing cleaning agents for environmental friendliness. It is also used as a pH adjuster, dyeing auxiliary, buffer and more in textiles, papermaking, chemical synthesis and other industries, with an extremely wide range of applications.
At present, industrially produced citric acid is mainly manufactured through microbial fermentation, using renewable raw materials such as corn starch and molasses. The production process is eco-friendly, and the product features high purity and strong safety, complying with global food grade, pharmaceutical grade and industrial grade standards. It has become an indispensable basic chemical product in the global supply chain.