Glycolic Acid is an organic, naturally occurring acid that is excellent in breaking down bonds, dissolving, and releasing hardened cement from common construction site surfaces. Keep your tools, equipment, and vehicles cleaned and maintained with Glycolic Acid-based concrete remover formulations.
Some of the key attributes of Glycolic Acid include:
Efficient, fast acting, and highly effective at penetrating and loosening concrete
Low to no corrosion on most metals
Readily biodegradable
Naturally occurring
Glycolic Acid is one of the most effective acids at complexing calcium ions while also being less corrosive than common mineral acids such as hydrochloric and phosphoric. The below table illustrates the corrosivity of Glycolic Acid vs the common mineral acids, phosphoric and hydrochloric.
Test Metal
Glycolic Wt. % Loss
Phosphoric Wt. % Loss
HCl Wt. % Loss
1018 Carbon Steel
0.17
0.64
2.03
1100 Aluminum
0.009
1.39
55.51
304 Stainless Steel
0.008
0.011
0.53
316 Stainless Steel
0.002
0.002
0.94
PureTech Scientific Glycolic Acid, previously manufacured by Chemours, can be easily formulated into ready to use or concentrated cleaning products. See below for starting point formulations.
