DEAS 295: 2020  
 
© EAC 2020  Second Edition 2020  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
DRAFT EAST AFRICAN STANDARD  
 
 
Sodium hypochlorite  solutions for domestic and industrial use  — 
Specification  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
EAST AFRICAN COMMUNITY  DEAS 295: 2020  
ii © EAC 2020 — All rights reserved   
 
 
 
 
Copyright notice  
This EAC document is copyright -protected by EAC. While the reproduction of this document by 
participants in the EAC standards development process is permitted without prior permission 
from EAC, neither this document nor any extract from it may be reproduced, stored or transmitted 
in any form for any other purpose without prior written permission from EAC.  
Requests for permission to reproduce this document for the purpose of s elling it should be 
addressed as shown below or to EAC’s member body in the country of the requester:  
© East African Community 20 20 — All rights reserved  
East African Community   
P.O. Box 1096,  
Arusha  
Tanzania  
Tel: + 255 27 2162100  
Fax: + 255 27 2162190  
E-mail: eac@eachq.org  
       Web: www.eac -quality.net  
Reproduction for sales purposes may be subject to royalty payments or a licensing agreement. 
Violators may be prosecuted.  
 
 DEAS 295: 2020  
© EAS 2020 — All rights reserved  iii Foreword  
Development of the East African Standards has been necessitated by the need for harmonizing 
requirements governing quality of products and services in the East African Community. It is envisaged 
that through harmonized standardization, trade barriers that are encountered when goods and services are 
exchanged within the Community will be removed.  
The Community has established an East African Standards Committee (EASC) mandated to develop 
and issue East African Standards (EAS) and other deliverables. The Com mittee is composed of 
representatives of the National Standards Bodies in Partner States, together with the representatives 
from the public and private sector organizations in the community.  
East African Standards are developed through Technical Committee s that are representative of key 
stakeholders including government, academia, consumer groups, private sector and other interested 
parties. Draft East African Standards are circulated to stakeholders through the National Standards 
Bodies in the Partner Sta tes. The comments received are discussed and incorporated before finalization 
of standards, in accordance with the Principles and procedures for development of East African 
Standards.  
East African Standards and other deliverables are subject to review, to  keep pace with technological 
advances. Users of the East African Standards are therefore expected to ensure that they always have 
the latest versions of the standards they are implementing.  
The committee responsible for this document is Technical Committ ee EASC/TC 074, Surface active 
agents  
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be subject of patent 
rights. EAC shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.  
This second edition can cels and replaces the first edition (EAS 295:2002), which has been technically 
revised.  
 DEAS 295: 2020 
© EAS 20 20 — All rights reserved  1  
Sodium hypochlorite solutions for domestic use — Specification  
 
 
1. Scope  
This Draft East African Standard specifies requirements , sampling and test methods for sodium 
hypochlorite intended  for domestic and Industrial use. 
 
2. Normative references  
Not applicable  
 
3. Terms and definitions  
For the purpose of this draft standard the following definitions apply.  
 
3.1  
available chlorine  
quantity of chlorine chemically equivalent to the oxygen that would be released during the  
complete decomposition of the, sodium hypochlorite to  sodium chloride and oxygen  
 
NOTE - This is a conventional way of expressing the concentration of sodium hypochlorite solution. The available  
chlorine is 0.95 times the sodium hypochlorite content and is a measure of the oxidising power of sodium  hypochlorite 
solutions.  
 
3.2  
nominal concentration  
minimum available chlorine content of the sodium hypochlorite solu tion under test, at the time of 
manufacture  
 
3.3  
product unit  
unit of the final product, packed in a suitable container  
 
3.4  
lot 
number of containers consisting of product of the same type and style, which have been  manufactured 
and packed under essentially the same conditions  
 
4. Requirements  
4.1. General requirements  
4.1.1 Sodium hypochlorite solutions shall be of one of the following nominal concentrations, as required  
 
a) 15.0 % m/v for industrial use ;  
b) 5.0 % m/v for domestic use ; or 
c) 3.5 % m/v for domestic use.   
 
4.1.2  Sodium hypochlorite solution shall be a clear liquid, free from sediment and suspended matter. A  
solution shall be considered to be clear if the small amount of salts that has crystallised from the  solution 
dissolves completely when the solution is mixed with twice its volume of distilled water. When  so, required, 
the solution shall contain laundry blue. The laundry blue may settle on standing but shall  disperse 
completely in the solution when the solution, in the original container, is shaken for 30 s.  
 
DRAFT EAST AFRICAN STANDARD  DEAS 295:2020  
 
2 © EAC 2020 — All rights reserved  4.2. Specific  requirements  
The solution shall comply with t he specific requirements given below in Table 1 for domestic use and 
Table 2 for industrial use  
 
Table 1  — Specific  requirements for a sodium hypochlorite for domestic use  
 
S/No:  Characteristic  Requirement  Test 
method  
i Available chlorine content determined within 14 days ± 2 d of the 
date of manufacture , % (m/v) , min  
5.0 % nominal concentration  
3.5 % nominal concentration   
 
5.0 
3.5  
 
 Annex A  
ii Available chlorine content determined from 14th to the 60th day ± 
2 d of the date of manufacture , % (m/v) , min  
5 % nominal concentration  
3.5 % nominal concentration   
 
4.5 
3.2  
 
Annex A  
iii Sodium hydroxide content, % (m/v) , max 0.5 Annex B  
iv Sediment content, % (mass fraction expressed as a percentage), 
max 0.1 Annex C  
 
 
Table 2 - Specific requirements for sodium hypochlorite for Industrial use  
  
S/No:  Parameter  Requirement  Test 
method  
i Available chlorine content determined on the date of 
manufacture,  % (m/v) , min  15 Annex A  
ii Available chlorine content determined on the 14thday ± 2 d after 
date of manufacture, % (m/v) , min   13  
Annex A  
iii Sodium hydroxide content, %  (m/v) , max 1.5 Annex B  
iv Sediment content, % (mass fraction expressed as a 
percentage), max  0.1 Annex C  
 
5. Packing and Labelling  
5.1. Packing  
Sodium hypochlorite shall be packed in a suitable opaque containers that  withstand normal handling and 
transportation and that will prevent leakage and contamination of the product . 
 
5.2. Labelling  
Each  container shall be in prominent, legibly and indelibly labelled either in English, Kiswahili or French 
or combination or any other language as agreed between the manufacturer and supplier with the following 
information:  
a) the name of product as  "Sodium hypochlorite for domestic use” or “Sodium hypochlorite for 
industrial use ”; 
b) nominal available chlorine content and/or the percentage composition of the solution;  
c) name and physical address of the manufacturer and trade mark if any;  
d) net contents;  
e) the words " store in a cool place away from direct sunlight; avoid contactWith aluminium, 
zinc, tin and their alloys and do not mix with acids ”; 
f) the instructions for use;  
g) country of origin ; 
h) date of manufacture and  best before date;  DEAS 295: 2020 
© EAS 20 20 — All rights reserved  3 i) Caution:  
-"Keep out of  reach of children"  , avoid contact with eyes, or words having similar  meaning;  
- Do not use on wool, silk, rayon, and  leather ”; 
NOTE - Sodium hypochlorite solution may have deleterious effect on certain resin -treated materials, such 
as grease resistant, dry drip, embossed a nd glazed fabrics. Coloured fabrics may lose their colour if their 
dyes are not colour fast to hypochlorite  
 
6. Sampling and compliance with the standard  
6.1. Sampling  
6.1.1.  For ascertaining the conformity of the lot to the requirements of this standard, tests shall be  carried 
out on each lot separately.  
6.1.2.  The number of packages and product units from each container respectively to be selected  for 
drawing the sample shall be in accordance with 1.  
6.1.3.  The sample so drawn shall be deemed to represent the lot. From  a given lot, for product units  of 
500 cm3 or more a sample of one unit shall be chosen.  
6.1.4.  After checking the lot for compliance with the relevant requirements of 5.1 and 5.2, take from  it at 
random the number of containers shown in column 2 of Table 1, rela tive to the appropriate lot  size given in 
column 1  
6.1.5.  Reserve half the containers for the determination of the characteristics other than stability and  the 
other for the determination of stability.  
 
Table 1 — Scale of sampling  
 
1 2 3 
Lot size, number of cartons  
(packages) in a lot  Number of cartons  
(containers) to be  
selected  Number of product  
units to be selected  
from each carton  
25 – 50 4 4 
51 – 100 6 6 
101 – 500 8 2 
501 – 1500  10 1 
1501 – 5000  12 1 
 
6.1.6.  The packages (cartons) shall be selected at  random, using tables of random numbers. If  these 
are not available; the following procedure shall be applied:  
 
Starting from any package, count all the packages in one order as 1, 2, 3.... N, selecting every kth package, 
where k is the integral part of N ÷ n. 
 
From each package thus selected, draw at random an equal number of cakes so as to obtain a total  mass 
of at least 2 kg.  
 
6.2. Compliance with the standard  
The lot shall be deemed to comply with the requirements of the standard if after inspection of the  
containers and testing of the sample taken in accordance with 5.1 no defective is found.  
 
 DEAS 295:2020  
© EAS 2020 — All rights reserved   Annex A  
(Normative)  
 
Determination of available chlorine  
 
A.1 Method  1 
 
A.1.1 Principle  
Known volumes of sodium hypochlorite solution and arsenite solution are mixed and titrated against  
iodine solution.  
 
A.1.2 Reagents  
A.1.2.1 Phenolphthalein indicator solution , 
Dissolve 1 g of phenolphthalein in 100 mL  of ethanol (95 % v/v) 
 
A.1.2.2 Starch solution  
Prepare the starch solution immediately before use as follows  
Make a paste of 1 g of soluble starch and a small amount of distilled water. Pour the paste into 100 ml  
of boiling water, stirring it constantly. Boil for approxima tely 1 min and cool.  
 
A.1.2.3 Standard sodium arsenite solution (c (NaASO 2). = 0.025 mol/l)  
Dissolve exactly 4. 946 g of arsenic trioxide ( AS2O3) in 150 mL  of warm water containing about 3 g of  
sodium hydroxide. Coo l, add one drop of phenolphthalein indicator, and then neutralise the excess  
alkali with dilute sulphuric acid (1:3) until the solution is just decolourised. Transfer qualitatively to a 1  
litre volumetric flask and add 500 ml of water containing about 25 g of sodium bicarbonate. If a pink  
colour develops, add dilute sulphuric acid drop by drop until the solution becomes colourless. Make  
up to the mark with water, and mix well.  
 
A.1.2.4 Standard iodine solution 0.025M.  
 
A.1.2.4.1 Preparation : 
Mix 6.35 g ± 0.05 g of Iodine with twice this mass  of potassium iodide . Dissolve the mixture in 100 mL  
of water and then filter the solution through a filter the solution through a filter paper of medium  porosity, 
into a 1 L  volumetric flask. Wash the fil ter paper three times with 25 mL  portions of water.  Make up to 
the mark with water and mix well.  
 
A.1.2.4.2 Standardisation  
Standardise the iodine solution as follows:  
a) Pipette 20 mL  of the standard sodium arsenite solution ( A.1.2.3) into a 250 mL  conical flask;  
b) Add 5 mL  of water and about 5 g of bicarbonate and shake well the flask until the sodium  
bicarbonate has completely dissolved;  
c) While shaking the flask continuously, titrate the solution with the iodine solution until the yellow  
d) colour formed disappears slowly from the solution when it is  shaken; and  
e) Add 5 mL  of the starch solution ( A.1.2.2) and continue the titration until a permanent blue colour 
is obtained.  
Calculate the concentration of the standard iodine solution M, in moles per litre, as follows:  
 
M = 1.0/V  
Where  
 
V is the volume  of iodine solution used in the titration, in millimetres.  
 
 
  
2 © EAC 2020 — All rights reserved  A.1.3 Procedure  
 
A.1.3.1 Pipette 25 mL  of sodium hypochlorite solution into a volumetr ic flask containing about 500 mL  
of distilled water, dilute to 1000 mL  mark and mix well  
A.1.3.2 Pipette 25 mL  this solution and 25 mL  of the standard sodium  arsenite solution into a 250 mL  
conical flask.  
A.1.3.3 Add 5 g of sodium bicarbonate and shake the flask until it has completely dissolved.  
A.1.3.4 Titrate with the standard iodine solution until the yellow colour formed slowly disappears from  
the solution when it is shaken.  
A.1.3.5 Add 5 ml of the starch solution and continue the titration until a permanent blue colour is  
obtained.  
 
A.1.4 Calculation  
 
Calculate available chlorine content C, in grams per litre, as follows  
 
C = ((1.25 -VM) x 2836.0)  V1 
where,  
 
V is the volume of iodine solution used in the titration in millilitres;  
V1 is the volume of sodium hypochlorite (test specimen taken) in millilitres; and  
M is the concentration of the standard iodine  solution, in moles per litre.  
 
 
A.2 Method 2  (Alternative method)  
 
A.2.1 Principle  
 
The sample is added to acidified solution of potassium iodide and the released iodine is titrated with  
standard sodium thiosulphate  solution to the usual starch end point.  
 
A.2.2 Reagents  
A.2.2.1 Acetic acid, glacial  
A.2.2.2 Potassium iodide (KI), crystals, iodate free   
A.2.2.3 Sodium thiosulphate (Na 2S2O3.5H 2O), standard solution - Dissolve 25 g of Na 2SO 3 crystals in 
freshly boiled and cooled water and dilute to 1 L. The solution is more stable if the glassware is cleaned 
with sulphuric -chromic acid and thoroughly rinsed with water. Standardize against potassium iodate 
(KIO 3) as follows: Weigh out accurately 3.567 g of dry KIO 3 and transfer to a 1 L volumetric flask. 
Dissolve with water, make up to the mark and mix thoroughly. This solution will be exactly 0.1000 N. 
To standardize the Na 2S2O3. solution, carefully pipette a 50 mL aliquot of the KIO 3 solution into a 250 
mL Erlenmeyer flask and dilute to 100 mL with water. Add 1 g of KI crystals. When it is dissolved, add 
15 mL of 1.0 N hydrochloric acid and titrate immediately with the Na 2S2O3. solution. When the solution 
becomes light yellow, add 1 mL  of starch indicator solution and complete the titration to the 
disappearance of the blue colour. Standardize at least monthly.  
 
Calculate the normality of the Na 2S2O3 solution as follows:  
 
Normality, N1 = (50 x 0.1)/A  
 
where,  
A is the value of Na 2S2O3. solution required for titration of KIO 3 solution.  
 
A.2.2.4 Starch indicator solution , mix 0.5 g of soluble starch with 5 mL of cold water and add to 95 mL 
of boiling water. Mix, cool and store in a sterilized bottle. Replace frequently or add 0.1 % salicylic acid 
to minimize deterioration.  
 
 
 DEAS 295:2020  
© EAS 2020 — All rights reserved   A.2.3 Procedure  
Dissolve 2 g to 3 g of KI crys tals to 50 mL of water in a 250 mL Erlenmeyer flask. Add 10 mL of acetic 
acid. Then pipette the aliquot of sample into the solution keeping the tip of the pipette beneath the 
surface of the solution until drained. Titrate at once with 0.1 N Na 2S2O3 solutio n until the iodine colour 
is nearly gone then add 1 mL of starch indicator solution and complete the titration to the disappearance 
of the iodine colour. Record the titration as A.  
 
A.2.4 Calculations  
  
A.2.4.1 Calculate the available chlorine as follows:  
 
Available chlorine as CI, g/L = 𝐴 × 𝑁1 ×35.46
𝑉 
 
A.2.4.2 Calculate the sodium hypochlorite content as follows;  
 
Sodium hypochlorite (NaOCI), g/L = 𝐴 × 𝑁1 ×37.22
𝑉 
 
where  
A is the volume, in millilitres, of  Na2S2O3 solution required for titration of the sample ;  
N1 is the normality of the Na 2S2O3 solution ; and  
V is the volume, in millilitres, of original sample in aliquot used.  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
4 © EAC 2020 — All rights reserved   
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Annex B  
(Normative)  
 
Determination of sodium hydroxide  
 
B.1 Principle  
The sodium hypochlorite is decomposed with hydrogen peroxide, carbonate precipitated with  
barium chloride and the hydroxide determined by titration with hydrochloric acid.  
 
B.2 Reagents  
 
B.2.1 Barium chlorid e solution  100 g of barium chloride (BaCl 2.2H 2O) in water and dilute to 1 L  
with water. Filter the solution of turbid.  
B.2.2 Hydrogen peroxide solution  - approximately  3 % (10 volumes)  
B.2.3 Sodium hydroxide solution  - approximately  4 g/L  in water  
B.2.4 Phenolphthalein indicator  - prepared as described in 6.1.2.1  
B.2.5 Screened methyl orange indicator  - Dissolve 0.2 g of methyl orange and 0.28 g of xylene  
cyanol FF in 100 mL  of ethanol (50 %).  
B.2.6 Standard hydrochloric acid solution  0.1M  
 
B.3 Procedure  
 
B.3.1 Place 50 ml of barium chloride solution and 40 ml of hydrogen peroxide solution in a 250 ml  
conical flask.  
B.3.2 Add 10 drops of phenolphthalein indicator and then add sodium hydroxide solution drop by  
drop until a permanent faint pink colour is obtained.  
B.3.3 Immediately pipette 10 ml of sodium hypochlorite solution drop by drop into the flask, taking  
care that the effervescence does not become excessive.  
B.3.4 When the effervescence subsides, shake the flask vigorously for 1 min.  
B.3.5 Add anot her drop of phenolphthalein indicator and rapidly titrate the, solution with the  
standard hydrochloric acid solution ( B.2.6) until the pink colour first disappears. Do not continue the  
titration if the pink colour reappears on standing.  
 
B.4 Calculation  
 
Calculate the sodium hydroxide content X, in grams per litre, as follows:  
 
X= V x M x 4.0  
Where 
 
V is the volume, of standard hydrochloric acid solution used in the titration in millilitres  
M is the concentration of the standard hydrochloric acid solution,  in moles per litre.  
 
 
 DEAS 295:2020  
© EAS 2020 — All rights reserved    
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Annex C  
(Normative)  
 
Sediment content  
 
  
C.1 Procedure  
 
C.1.1 Mix the test specimen of sodium hypochlorite solution thoroughly and then  accurately weigh out 
approximately 300 g into a 500 mL beaker.  
C.1.2 Filter the solution through a Whatman GF/A glass -fibre filter paper that has been dried at  100 °C 
± 2 °C and tared, or equivalent.  
C.1.3 Wash the beaker and the sediment five times with 20 mL portions of cold water and then  
dry the glass fibre filter paper  with the sediment at 100 °C ± 2 °C until a constant mass is attained.  
 
C.2 Calculation  
 
Calculate the sediment content, S, as a percentage, as follows:  
 
S = 𝑚1
𝑚2 × 100  
 
where  
m2 is the mass of the sediment after it has been dried, in grams;  
m1 is the mass of test specimen taken, in grams.