Product Overview
Hydrochloric Acid 5% Technical Grade is a colorless, watery solution of hydrogen chloride in water — a diluted, working-strength form of one of industry's most common mineral acids, also sold under the name muriatic acid. At 5%, it delivers dependable acidity for pH adjustment, surface cleaning, and bench work without the aggressive fuming and handling burden of concentrated grades. We stock it in our Taylor, TX warehouse and ship it daily in DOT-compliant packaging, from single quarts to 330-gallon totes.
This is a product for working operations: water-treatment operators trimming pH, metal-processing shops cleaning oxide from parts, and labs that want a ready-to-use dilute acid instead of diluting concentrate themselves.
Why This Concentration
Pick 5% when you want the chemistry of hydrochloric acid with the mildest handling profile we offer in this family. A dilute solution reacts more slowly on metal surfaces, gives you finer control in pH adjustment, and produces less vapor at the container mouth than stronger strengths. It is the practical choice for dosing small water systems, bench titration and rinse work, and light-duty cleaning where a stronger acid would overshoot.
If your process consumes acid faster than a 5% solution can supply it — heavy scale removal, high-volume pH control, or pickling — step up to Hydrochloric Acid 15% Technical Grade for a middle-strength option, or Hydrochloric Acid 31% Technical Grade when you plan to dilute on-site or need full commercial strength. The trade-off is real: every step up in concentration buys reaction speed and reduced freight per unit of acid, and costs you more vapor, faster attack on equipment, and stricter handling discipline.
Chemical Profile
Hydrochloric acid solution is a colorless watery liquid with a sharp, irritating, pungent odor — hydrogen chloride gas dissolved in water. It sinks and mixes with water and gives off irritating vapor. This 5% w/w solution has a density of 1.025 at 20 °C, so it is only slightly heavier than water; a published solubility figure for hydrogen chloride of 82.3 g/100 g at 32 °F reflects how readily the gas holds in aqueous solution, and a vapor pressure of 413.6 mmHg is on record for the material. The chemistry itself is simple: formula HCl, molecular weight 36.46, CAS 7647-01-0. What you receive is a clear liquid that behaves predictably in dosing equipment and mixes cleanly into aqueous systems.
Industrial Applications
At 5%, hydrochloric acid earns its keep in processes that need controlled, moderate acidity rather than raw strength:
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pH adjustment in water treatment. Operators dose dilute HCl to pull down the pH of process and treatment water. The 5% strength lets small systems dose accurately without the overshoot risk of concentrated acid.
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Metal cleaning. Dilute hydrochloric acid dissolves oxides and surface impurities from metal parts ahead of finishing. At this strength it works slowly enough for light-duty cleaning and rinse steps where base-metal attack must stay minimal.
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Chemical synthesis. A stock reagent acid for reactions that call for a controlled addition of HCl — neutralizations, acidifications, and workups in industrial manufacturing.
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Laboratory reagent. A convenient bench acid for titrations and general analytical work where a pre-diluted technical-grade solution is sufficient and saves the hazards of diluting concentrate.
Handling & Storage
Treat this as the corrosive it is, even at 5%. The signal word is Danger, and the hazard statements are H290 May be corrosive to metals, H314 Causes severe skin burns and eye damage, and H335 May cause respiratory irritation (per the product's GHS classification). Wear chemical-resistant gloves, splash goggles, and clothing that covers exposed skin whenever you open or transfer it.
Store it cool, dry, and out of direct sunlight in corrosion-resistant containers — HDPE or glass, never unlined metal, since the acid attacks metals. Keep it away from strong bases and oxidizers, and ventilate the storage area so vapor cannot accumulate. Kept sealed in its original container, the solution is stable in normal warehouse storage. This handling guidance is reviewed by Andre Taki, DOT Hazmat Specialist.
Hazmat & Shipping
This product ships as regulated hazardous material. It moves under UN1789 (per 49 CFR 172.101), Hazard Class 8 — Corrosive (per 49 CFR 172.101), Packing Group III (per 49 CFR 172.101), with the proper shipping name Hydrochloric acid (per 49 CFR 172.101). Every order leaves our dock in UN-rated packaging with correct marks, labels, and shipping papers, prepared by a team that packs Class 8 corrosives every working day.
Documentation
A Safety Data Sheet ships with every order and is available in English, Spanish, French, and Japanese. A lot-specific Certificate of Analysis is available for the material you receive, and a Technical Data Sheet is available on request — useful when your QC program requires traceability to the exact lot in your storeroom.
Why Buy from Alliance Chemical
We are a distributor and hazmat shipping operation, and this product is part of our daily workload. It ships from our Taylor, TX warehouse in DOT-compliant packaging, in pack sizes from 1-quart bottles for the bench up to 55-gallon drums and 275- and 330-gallon totes for production use. Our shipping and handling guidance is reviewed by a DOT Hazmat Specialist, and our team handles the classification, packaging, and paperwork so a Class 8 corrosive arrives at your dock correctly and legally. Order the size your process actually consumes — we stock the full range.