Polyacrylamide (PAM): Grades, Specs & Bulk Sourcing

What is Polyacrylamide?

If you are sourcing a flocculant for a clarifier, a dewatering polymer for sludge, or a friction reducer for the field, polyacrylamide (PAM, CAS 9003-05-8) is the workhorse you are pricing. It is a high-molecular-weight synthetic polymer built from acrylamide monomer, supplied in anionic, cationic, and nonionic charge types. The procurement decision is not “polyacrylamide or not” but which charge, what molecular weight, in which physical form, with what residual-monomer documentation.

The largest commercial use of polyacrylamide by volume is as a flocculant and coagulant aid in water and wastewater treatment, where it binds fine suspended solids into fast-settling flocs. It also serves enhanced oil recovery (EOR), mining and mineral processing, papermaking retention, and soil conditioning. A separate, much smaller use is the cross-linked gel form for laboratory electrophoresis, covered briefly below.

Selecting the Grade: Charge, Molecular Weight, Form

Three variables decide whether a polyacrylamide performs on your solids. Get these on the spec before you price.

Ionic charge type

Charge is the first selection, because it must match the solids you are treating:

• Anionic (negatively charged): flocculates mineral and inorganic suspended solids; common in raw-water clarification, mining tailings, and aggregate wash water.
• Cationic (positively charged): dewaters organic sludges and biosolids; the standard for municipal and industrial sludge thickening and belt/centrifuge dewatering.
• Nonionic: suits near-neutral, lightly charged systems where minimal charge interaction is wanted.

Cationic grades carry a charge density (mole percent) that you should specify, because charge density tunes the polymer to the sludge as much as the charge sign does. The reliable way to pick is a jar test on the actual stream, not a catalog match.

Molecular weight

Molecular weight (reported as a range, often via solution viscosity) sets bridging power and floc size. Very high molecular weight builds large, fast-settling flocs but is more shear-sensitive and harder to dissolve; lower molecular weight is more robust to mixing energy. Specify the target molecular weight or solution viscosity, since two products with the same charge can behave very differently here.

Physical form

Form is driven by your make-up and dosing equipment:

• Dry powder or granules: highest active content and lowest freight per active kilogram, but needs a wetting/aging make-up system and careful dust handling.
• Liquid emulsion (water-in-oil): faster to invert and dose, lower active content, shorter shelf life.
• Solutions: convenient at small scale, lowest active content and highest freight cost.

Trade-off worth naming: dry powder is the cheapest per active kilogram and the most work to make up; emulsions cost more per active kilogram but cut make-up labor and equipment. Choose on total installed cost, not unit price alone.

Industrial Applications

Water and wastewater treatment

PAM is the primary flocculant and coagulant aid for clarification, thickening, and dewatering across municipal and industrial plants. Cationic grades dominate sludge dewatering; anionic grades dominate inorganic-solids clarification. Dose typically runs from a fraction of a ppm to a few ppm of active polymer, optimized by jar test.

Enhanced oil recovery and oilfield

High-molecular-weight anionic PAM and partially hydrolyzed polyacrylamide (HPAM) increase injection-water viscosity for mobility control in polymer flooding, and serve as friction reducers and viscosifiers. Here, shear stability and tolerance to brine salinity and temperature are the controlling specs.

Mining and mineral processing

PAM flocculates fine particles in thickeners and tailings, accelerates settling, and aids dewatering and filtration. Anionic grades are typical for mineral solids; charge and molecular weight are tuned to the ore and the thickener.

Papermaking and other uses

PAM functions as a retention and drainage aid in papermaking and as a soil-conditioning and erosion-control agent in agriculture. Each use has its own charge and molecular-weight optimum.

See the polyacrylamide supplier guide (anionic, cationic, nonionic) or the polyacrylamide flocculant product page for grade selection.

The Monomer Question: Residual Acrylamide

The one compliance point every buyer must check is residual free acrylamide monomer. Polyacrylamide the polymer (CAS 9003-05-8) is widely used and regarded as low-hazard for industrial handling. Acrylamide the monomer (CAS 79-06-1) is a regulated, toxic substance, and a small residual fraction remains in the finished polymer.

For drinking-water treatment, this is tightly controlled: products are certified to NSF/ANSI 60, which limits the contribution of residual acrylamide, and regulatory frameworks cap monomer content and dose. Specify the residual-monomer limit your application requires and confirm it on the certificate of analysis. For potable-water service, require NSF/ANSI 60 certification on the specific grade. Regulatory status, suitability, and safe handling for your application and jurisdiction remain the buyer’s responsibility; always review the current SDS.

The Laboratory Gel Form (Brief)

Separately from bulk flocculant use, polyacrylamide is the matrix for polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE), used to separate proteins and nucleic acids by size. The gel is made by polymerizing acrylamide with a cross-linker (typically N,N’-methylenebisacrylamide); acrylamide concentration sets the pore size, so the gel behaves as a tunable molecular sieve.

• Low percentage (4-8%): larger pores, for larger proteins and nucleic acids.
• Medium percentage (8-12%): general-purpose protein separation, including SDS-PAGE.
• High percentage (12-20%): smaller pores, for small proteins and fragments.
• Gradient gels: a low-to-high acrylamide gradient resolves a wide size range in one run.

Against agarose, polyacrylamide gives higher resolution for small molecules and proteins and finer pore-size control, while agarose remains the standard for larger DNA fragments (above roughly 500 bp). This cross-linked gel form is a laboratory consumable, not the bulk industrial material; the unreacted acrylamide used to cast gels is a neurotoxin and is handled accordingly in the lab.

Sourcing Polyacrylamide in Bulk

For a bulk inquiry, put four things on the request: ionic charge (and charge density for cationic), target molecular weight or solution viscosity, physical form (dry, emulsion, solution), and any compliance grade (NSF/ANSI 60 for potable water, plus your residual-monomer limit). Validate the choice with a jar test on your actual stream, and confirm the specs on the lot certificate of analysis, which governs over typical datasheet values.

RawSource supplies anionic, cationic, and nonionic polyacrylamide in bulk with a certificate of analysis. Send your charge type, target molecular weight or viscosity, form, and volume through the polyacrylamide supplier page for pricing and lead time.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is polyacrylamide used for?

Polyacrylamide is used mainly as a flocculant and coagulant aid in water and wastewater treatment, plus enhanced oil recovery, mining and mineral processing, papermaking retention, and soil conditioning. In the laboratory it forms the cross-linked gel matrix used in PAGE electrophoresis to separate proteins and nucleic acids by size.

What is the difference between anionic, cationic, and nonionic polyacrylamide?

The difference is the polymer’s surface charge. Anionic (negatively charged) grades flocculate mineral and inorganic solids; cationic (positively charged) grades dewater organic sludges and biosolids; nonionic grades suit near-neutral, lightly charged systems. Matching the charge to the solids drives flocculation performance, and a jar test confirms it.

Is polyacrylamide the same as acrylamide?

No. Polyacrylamide (CAS 9003-05-8) is the high-molecular-weight polymer and is regarded as low-hazard for industrial handling, whereas acrylamide (CAS 79-06-1) is the reactive monomer it is made from and is a regulated toxic substance. Quality water-treatment grades control residual free acrylamide monomer to low ppm limits; always confirm the figure on the SDS and certificate of analysis.

Is polyacrylamide suitable for drinking-water treatment?

Grades used in potable-water treatment are certified to NSF/ANSI 60, which limits the contribution of residual acrylamide monomer. Require NSF/ANSI 60 certification on the specific grade, confirm the residual-monomer figure on the certificate of analysis, and verify approval for your jurisdiction. Review the current SDS before handling.

What forms does polyacrylamide come in?

Common commercial forms are dry powder or granules, liquid emulsions (water-in-oil), and solutions; the right form depends on your make-up and dosing equipment and on total installed cost. The cross-linked gel form is specific to laboratory electrophoresis rather than bulk industrial use.

Where can I buy polyacrylamide in bulk?

RawSource supplies anionic, cationic, and nonionic polyacrylamide in bulk with a certificate of analysis. Send your ionic charge, target molecular weight or viscosity, form, and volume through the polyacrylamide supplier page to receive pricing and lead time.