Oxygen absorbers for industrial use

Iron powders that protect sensitive products

Products such as pharmaceuticals, clothing and other textiles, cosmetics, electronic components and equipment are all vulnerable to degradation, discolouration or reduced performance when exposed to air. Oxygen absorbers are an excellent solution for deoxidisation. Its performance depends strongly on the iron powder’s properties.

Oxygen absorbers are used to reduce oxygen to extremely low levels within a sealed container. Oxygen absorbers are successfully used for applications where no oxygen at all or a very small concentration of oxygen is wanted to preserve the products. 

This is how it works: specifically developed iron powders chemically bind iron oxides in oxygen absorbers and are packed in a sealed container such as sachets, patches and films for ease of use and effective oxidation prevention.

What drives oxygen absorber performance?

Iron-based oxygen absorbers rely on several key powder properties that together define the rate and capacity of oxygen uptake:

• Morphology and porosity– Irregular, sponge-like particles provide a large internal surface area, enabling faster oxidation and more effective contact with catalysts and activators.
• Particle size– Finer grades accelerate kinetics thanks to greater surface area, while the right balance prevents handling or containment issues during sachet or film integration.
• Bulk properties – Determines how much active iron can be packed into a unit, influencing absorber capacity, permeability and package design.
• Purity– For some applications, chemical purity is vital to ensure that the powder reacts predictably and make sure that contaminants are kept at minimum levels.

Extending shelf life across industries

For non-food applications, iron powders help protect the colour stability of textiles, prevent oxidation of pharmaceutical formulations, maintain product integrity in cosmetics and safeguard sensitive electronic components. In all cases, sponge iron powder offers superior performance due to its porosity, which reacts with moisture to capture oxygen efficiently.

Reliable powders for critical applications

Höganäs supplies one of the world’s broadest ranges of iron powders, engineered with tightly controlled particle size, morphology and purity. Every batch is produced with full traceability, ensuring consistent performance in oxygen absorbers for pharmaceuticals, clothing, cosmetics and electronics.

By choosing Höganäs iron powders, manufacturers gain predictable oxygen absorption kinetics, safe and compliant material characteristics and dependable long-term protection for high-value products.