Salt Making Process: Methods, Stages, and Sources of Production

YOGYAKARTA - The process of making salt is different in every region because it depends on geographical conditions and raw material sources. There are regions that rely on the evaporation of seawater, while other regions use rock salt mining from underground. This variation makes salt have different types, textures, and purity levels.

The following will discuss the process of making salt, from the method of evaporating seawater, mining rock salt, to making salt through solution. You will also know the types of salt produced and how its processing affects its taste and its use in various industries.

Generally, there are three main methods in making salt, namely evaporation of seawater, mining salt formations underground, and making salt from solutions. Each method has its own stages and advantages, as explained below.

The production of sea salt is the oldest method that utilizes the natural process of evaporation of seawater. About 3.5 percent of seawater is salt, so when shallow ponds are allowed to evaporate, salt crystals are left behind and can be harvested. These crystals can then be packaged directly or further processed through washing and filtering.

Modern methods use concentration ponds designed to accelerate evaporation with the help of sunlight and wind. Salt water is fed into a crystallization pond measuring 20-400 hectares, where salt grains eventually form. The depth and salinity in these ponds are strictly controlled to produce quality salt crystals.

This technique is only effective in areas with low rainfall, such as the Mediterranean and Australian regions. On a small scale, in some areas, the production of sea salt is still carried out with traditional techniques and only in certain seasons.

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Rock salt is formed from ancient bodies of water that have dried up for millions of years. This salt is found underground or inside the mountains after going through a long geological process. Because it is located deep in the earth, rock salt must be extracted through the mining process.

The dry mining method is similar to other mineral mining, where the machine cuts the salt layer into large blocks before breaking it into small pieces. Large salt deposits such as the Sifto Salt Mine in Canada can produce up to 7 million tons of salt per year.

Rock salt has a purity that varies between 92-98 percent, so most of it is used for industrial and ice melting needs. However, some types such as Himalayan Pink Salt meet consumption standards and are used as table salt.

This method is used to produce high-quality table salt. Unlike blasting a salt layer, water is pumped underground to dissolve salt deposits, forming a concentrated salt solution. This solution is then pumped back to the surface to undergo a purification process.

At the purification plant, impurities such as magnesium and calcium are filtered to produce pure sodium chloride. After that, the brine is evaporated to produce the white salt crystals we know as table salt.

This method is considered efficient because it produces uniform crystals, iseasily enriched with iodine, and is suitable for household consumption.

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