Our lives are touched every day by soda ash, an alkali chemical. The majority of soda ash production is used for glass production, but it is also utilized in several other products, including detergents, soaps, and batteries, as well as in metallurgical processes, automotive, food, cosmetics, and pharmaceuticals. As well as cleaning the air, soda ash also softens water. With growing environmental concerns, soda ash is being increasingly used to remove sulfur dioxide and hydrochloric acid from stack gases. As an intermediate, soda ash is used by chemical producers to make sweetener, sodium bicarbonate to provide relief from, and phosphates to improve food and toiletries.