SAUDI STANDARDS, METROLOGY AND

QUALITY ORGANIZATION

Project No. 31373 /2018

Detergent for Automatic Dish Washing Machines

THIS DOCUMENT IS A DRAFT SAUDI STANDARD CIRCULATED FOR

COMMENT. IT IS, THEREFORE SUBJECT TO CHANGE AND MAY NOT BE
REFERRED TO AS A SAUDI STANDARD UNTIL APPROVED BY THE
BOARD OF DIRECTORS .

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 Detergent for Automatic Dish Washing Machines

1. Scope
This Standard specifies the requirements for detergents used in Automatic Dish
Washing (ADW) machines. Automatic dishwashing additives such as water
softening salts, rinse aids and dishwashing machine cleaners are out of scope of this
standard if comes separately.

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2. Complementary References
2.1 SASO GSO 2238:2012 Manual Dish washing.
2.2 GSO 391:1994 Method of Test for Liquid Detergent for Dishwashing.
2.3 GSO 152:2007 “Synthetic Detergents – Methods of Test for Household
Synthetic Detergent Powders”.
2.4 SASO ISO 4316:1977 “Surface Active Agents – Determination of pH of
aqueous solutions – Potentiometric method”.
2.5 SASO ISO 4321:1977 “Washing Powders – Determination of active oxygen
content – Titrimetric method”.
2.6 ISO 4325:1990 “Soaps and detergents – Determination of chelating agent
content – Titrimetric method.

3. Terms and definitions

3.1 Synthetic Automatic Dish Washing Detergent

Product in form of liquid, gel or powder, or for instance multi-compartment pouch
or capsule assembled by using water soluble film) orany other forms
Formulated to promote the development of detergency and may comprise of one
or more of the ingredients such as builders/chelates, bleaching agents,
performance enhancers, surfactants, anti-precipitating agents etc.

3.2 Builder/Chelate
An ingredient added to synthetic ADW detergents that has limited ability of
detergency during washing when used alone, but when added in conjunction
with complementary ingredients is improving the effectiveness of the synthetic
ADW detergent by sequestering metal ions present in the wash environment (for
instance water hardness ions).

3.3 Bleaching Agent

An ingredient added to synthetic ADW detergents able to discolor organic stains
usually of vegetable source (for instance coffee or tea stains) by oxidizing them.

3.4 Performance Enhancers

Substances added to synthetic ADW detergents to enhance their overall
performance. These can be comprised of substances that help reduce water
hardness, that help remove specific soils (for instance enzymes), that enhance
the performance of other ingredients (for instance bleach activators) and/or that
improve the user’s experience (for instance perfumes, metal corrosion
inhibitors).
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 3.5 Surfactant
An organic compound which when dissolved or dispersed in water is
preferentially adsorbed at an interface to lower the surface tension giving rise to
properties of practical interest. The compound contains hydrophobic and
hydrophilic portions.

3.6 Anti-Precipitating Agent

Substance which increases the stability of granules/particles suspended in liquid
and prevents them from reaggregating or depositing.

4 Classification

Synthetic ADW detergents that have all ingredients incorporated to deliver the desired
performance. Depending the manufacturer’s prescribed way of use, they can be added as
sole product or in conjunction with water softening salts and/or rinse aid products.

5 General Requirements
Synthetic ADW detergents shall fulfill the following requirements:

5.1 Form
5.1.1 Powder or granular forms shall be free of lumps that cannot be easily
fragmented and shall be free flowing. They may contain added materials
such as coloring agents, perfumes and preservatives.

5.1.2 Liquid or gel forms shall be homogenous and free from foreign matter.
They may contain added materials such as coloring agents, perfumes,
viscosity controlling agents, foam controlling agents, solubilizers and
preservatives.

5.1.3 For assembled forms, each of the components shall be compliant with
above requirements applicable to the form of that component
(powder/granule or liquid/gel).

5.2 When used in accordance with the manufacturer's directions, the detergent shall
not be injurious to human health.

5.3 The detergent shall not intentionally leave a residual taste on washed objects.

5.4 Its properties shall not change to a degree that significantly affects its detergency
action when stored in its original sealed package for a period of 12 months from
the date of production under normal storage conditions between 0 to 40 °C.

5.5 The detergent shall not intentionally have an adverse effect on the physical
condition of the objects being washed, according to the method indicated on its
container or labeled marking.
5.6 The detergent’s Phosphorous content shall not be equal to or greater than 0.3
grams within the recommended dose. Phosphorous content can get analyzed via

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 elemental analysis with an atomic absorption spectrophotometer, as offered by
many commercial analytical laboratories.

5.7 The detergent shall pass the rinsing test.

5.8 The pH value measured in of a 1% (w/w) solution in demineralized water of the

detergent shall be not be less than 4 and not more than 11.5 at (20 ± 2) ºC when
determined. In case of assembled products, above applies only to the
component(s) containing the ingredients that establish pH when tested as per 2.4.

5.9 For detergents that contain bleaching agent, the bleaching agent shall be present
at not less than 0.5% calculated as available oxygen, measured in In case of
assembled products, above applies only to the components that contain the
bleaching agent when tested as per 2.5.

5.10 The detergent shall be suitable for use in soft or hard water.

5.11 The detergent’s building / chelating capacity shall not be less than the
equivalent of 225 mg Copper bound per product dose. Builder/chelate capacity
can be determined when tested as per 2.6.

6 Sampling

6.1 In sampling, the following conditions shall be observed.

- It shall be done in a place not exposed to dust.
- The sampling instruments shall be clean and dry.
- The samples shall be kept in suitable dry containers.
- The containers shall be sealed air-tight and stored at a temperature which does
not vary from the normal temperature.

6.2 Method of sampling

6.2.1 The consignment shall be divided into similar groups so that the boxes of
each group shall consist of containers of same batch and date of
manufacture.

6.2.2 The boxes of the group shall be selected at random as shown in Table.

No. of Boxes No. of Boxes for selected sample

4 - 15 3
16 – 40 4
41 – 65 5
66 – 110 7
above 110 10

Table (1): The number of boxes selected from each group

Take one or 2 containers at random from each selected box and carry out the
visual test on these containers.
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 6.2.3 Preparation of samples in the laboratory shall be carried out according to
each test method.

7 Tests
Following tests should be carried out:
7.1 Visual inspection.
7.2 Determination of rinsing properties.
7.3 Determination of pH value.
7.4 Determination of active oxygen in detergents containing bleaching agent.
7.5 Determination of Building / Chelating capacity.
7.6 Determination of Phosphorous content, common technique is via elemental
analysis with an atomic absorption spectrophotometer, as offered by many
commercial analytical laboratories.

8 Packaging
The product shall be packed in suitable packages or containers made of suitable
material which shall be securely closed to minimize any change in its properties and
also to protect it from deterioration or outside effects during transportation or
storage.

9 Labeling
Each container shall be legibly and indelibly marked in Arabic at least with the
following information:
9.1 Name and description of the product.
9.2 Name of the manufacturer and trade mark "if any".
9.3 Production date or batch code.
9.4 The country of origin.
9.5 Ingredient list (can be in English only)
9.6 The quantity of the product.
9.7 Usage instruction as per the manufacturer recommendations in text or logos.
9.8 Cautionary and warning statements as per the manufacturer’s recommendation
"if any".
9.9 Keep out of reach of children.