ABOUT THE PRODUCT
Mineral "sand" for cats.
ZEOLITE- MIAU SANIT, FRESH, ZEOLITE
The basic material being used in all these litters is natural ZEOLITE. Different names result from fraction sizes of particular "sands", as well as from flavours being used to improve comfort in the room. Litter with smaller grains has the so-called greater absorptive surface, which means that it absorbs moisture and odours better. Use of such litters should be also diversified by sizes of the animals, that release nature there. Larger animals should use bigger sized grit and smaller animals - finer one. Thanks to that the floor near the tray will be cleaner.
| PRODUCT | SORPTION |
| Miau sanit | 1 - 5 mm |
| FRESH | 1 - 2,5 mm |
| ZEOLITE | 2,5 - 5 mm |
Well dried clay called bentonite is an absorbent material. Bentonites are very light. Due to that in cat's trays it is recommended to use granulates with bigger grain because fine ones stick to cat's paws and are scattered around the tray. Daphnia offers two types of fractions.
| PRODUCT | SORPTION |
| AMER BRYŁKA STANDARD flavoured and without flavour | 2 - 5 mm |
| AMER BRYŁKA SUPERIOR flavoured and without flavour | 1 - 3 mm |
ABOUT RAW MATERIALS USED FOR PRODUCTION.
ZEOLITES - sedimentary rocks
BENTONITES - clay minerals
ZEOLITES and BENTONITES are minerals commonly used for absorption of wet waste and accompanying bad smells. BENTONITE is considered to be the best absorbent as its part which already absorbed humidity forms lumps which are easy to remove. Their effectiveness is, however, different.
BENTONIT - according to world standards, bentonite has been defined a mineral, which contains at least 75% of montmorillonite. Minerals with a content of 50-75 % montmorillonite have been called bentonite clays. Bentonites and bentonite clays belong to loam minerals of the smectite gorup. Loam minerals possess a very complex structure. Tests performed with the use of X-rays and electron microscope have shown, that loams have fine-crystalline and layered internal structure, and crystals are shaped in a form of very small and elongated plates. Their thickness varies between 10-15 A. Approximate chemical composition can be presented as follows: Al2O3 × 4SiO2 ×n H2O . As it is shown above, montmorillonite is a hydrated aluminosilicate and the ratio of Al2O3 to SiO2 is ~ 1: 4. Hydrophillicity is a characteristic feature of bentonites. Absorption of water results in the loosening o their structure and creation of dispersions the sizes of which are the same as the colloidal sizes of particles. The content of water in bentonites is variable and depends on external conditions. Another very interesting property is the high capacity to exchange cations. Depending on the amount of ions that are present in exchangeable positions, we can tell about sodium, calcium, potassium bentonites or organophillic bentonites, also known as bentones. Calcium bentonites are most common in nature. Potassium bentonites are very rarely encountered. Due to the presence of weak bonds, there is a possibility of exchanging-replacing potassium ions with sodium ions. This is a known process, which is referred to as bentonite activation. Activated bentonite possesses also some other properties, e.g.: a significantly greater swelling factor.
GBecause of its properties, bentonite has been used in the following branches:
founding drilling construction chemistry hydro-insulation/geomats/ fodder industry natural environment protection construction industry food industry paints and lacquers plastics absorbers of animal droppings in amateur breeding.
COMPARATIVE TEST
of absorbers currently available on the pet market
Materials used in the test:
wood briquette 100 ml diatomite 100 ml bentonite 100 ml ZEOLITE 100 ml ammonia 4 x 1 ml
Course of the test: :
Hermetical containers made of glass were filled with, respectively: wood briquette, diatomite, bentonite and ZEOLITE. 1 ml of ammonia was poured into each of the containers. Containers were tightly closed and shaken in order to mix their contents thoroughly.
After 15 minutes, containers were opened and odours in each of them were compared.
Test result:
Wood briquette was perceivably damp and had a very strong smell of ammonia. Diatomite and bentonite absorbed moisture, yet the smells coming from containers that included these samples were strong, comparable with the smell of pure ammonia. The smell coming from the container that included ZEOLITE was barely perceivable.
Ranking list of tested absorbers, sorted according to their efficiency:
| Type of material | Score in points | Advantages | Disadvantages |
| ZEOLITE | 95 | best among the tested materials absorption of odour and moisture, visual information about the fact that the litter has been used up | none |
| BENTONITE | 70 | Creation of easily-removable grains very good absorption of moisture and satisfactory absorption of odours | Creation of mud in the excess of moisture |
| DIATOMITE | 60 | satisfactory absorption of moisture and odours | Medium absorptive ability |
| WOOD BRIQUETTE | 35 | satisfactory absorption of moisture | Lack of odour absorption |