The mineral in our product is zeolite. There are approximately 150 varieties of zeolite, some natural and some man-made. Zeolites have different properties and depending on the chemical composition, they are used in many different ways. Some zeolites absorb moisture, some absorb odor and some do both.
One of the zeolite family.
According to the Mineral Gallery, Zeolites have many useful purposes. They can perform ion exchange, filtering, odor removal, chemical sieve and gas absorption tasks. The most well known use for zeolites is in water softeners. Calcium in water can cause it to be “hard” and capable of forming scum and other problems. Zeolites charged with the much less damaging sodium ions can allow the hard water to pass through its structure and exchange the calcium for the sodium ions. This process is reversable. In a similar way zeolites can absorb ions and molecules and thus act as a filter for odor control, toxin removal and as a chemical sieve. Zeolites can have the water in their structures driven off by heat with the basic structure left intact. Then other solutions can be pushed through the structure. The zeolites can then act as a delivery system for the new fluid. This process has applications in medicine, livestock feeds and other types of research. Zeolites added to livestock feed have been shown to absorb toxins that are damaging and even fatal to the growth of the animals, while the basic structure of the zeolite is biologically neutral. Aquarium hobbyists are seeing more zeolite products in pet stores as zeolites make excellent removers of ammonia and other toxins. Most municipal water supplies are processed through zeolites before public consumption. These uses of zeolites are extremely important for industry, although synthetic zeolites are now doing the bulk of the work.
Will Zeolite stones absorb gasoline smells completely, resulting from spilling a gas can in our car trunk?
Thanks for the question and yes, it will absorb the smell of gasoline. In fact, we have used it to do so. My recommendation would be the Bin Fresh-N granules. If the gas has already dried, dampen it again with water and then sprinkle a fine covering of the zeolite granules on the area. Leave for a minimum of 24 hours, 48 would be better and vacuum up. If you put a clean bag in the vacuum, you will be able to reuse your granules. You can then place the granules in the sun to recharge them and use them in your compost, or your garbage can, or another spill on a carpet.