What is Kalai metal? Kalai is the process where brass and copper utensils used for cooking and eating are coated with a metal called kalai. The kalai fades with use and needs to be re-tinned after 6-8 months of usage.
What is Kalai made of?
Virgin grade tin (called ‘ranga’ in Hindi ), caustic soda, sal ammoniac or ammonium chloride (called ‘nausadar’ powder in Hindi), and water are used in the process. The first step of kalai is to clean the utensil with water. There are two ways of cleaning the utensil further to remove any impurities such as dust.
What is Kalai coating?
The art of kalai (kalhai or qalai) is the process of coating an alloy surface such as copper or brass by deposition of metal tin on it. The word "kalai" is derived from Sanskrit word kalya lepa, which means "white wash or tin".
What is the history of Kalai?
The history of kalai is also recorded in “Parsibhashanushasana” of Vikaramasimha (before Samvat 1600 i.e. C.E. 1544) and also in the famous Ain- I -Akbari (C.E. 1590) by Abul Fazal.
Does Kalai affect the conductivity of tin?
Tin is also a good conductor of heat like copper, hence applying kalai does not result in loss of heat conductivity for the utensil. The kalai is required to be done on the vessels approximately every two months. Tin will melt if the temperature is above 425 degrees Fahrenheit (218.333 degrees Celsius). Also, the tin coating wears away with time.
Is Kalai necessary for brass utensils?
Kalai is the process where brass and copper utensils used for cooking and eating are coated with a metal called Kalai. The Kalai coating fades with use and needs to be re-tinned after 6-8 months of usage. Brass and copper tend to react to souring agents in food and thus giving them a Kalai lining is a must.
How do you make Kalai with utensils at home?
The process of 'Kalai' involves washing first the copper utensil with caustic soda to get rid of any surface impurities such as dust. The next step is washing it with an acid that contains the gold purifying compound 'Sufa', a salt and another element. It is then immediately wiped clean otherwise it might bear a mark.
Why is Kalai important?
Kali is the Hindu goddess of death, time, and doomsday. She is often associated with sexuality and violence but is also considered a strong mother figure and symbol of motherly love. Kali embodies shakti - feminine energy, creativity and fertility - and is an incarnation of Parvati, wife of the great Hindu god Shiva.
Is tin good for cooking?
Tin is non-reactive and rarely toxic to humans, so it is a relatively safe coating for copper pans. Also of note, however: tin combined with carbon (organotins) are used in making plastics, food packages, pesticides, paints, and wood preservatives, and these combinations are highly toxic.
Is Kalai coating harmful?
Copper carbonate is poisonous and can make a person severely ill if it gets mixed with food. The copper can get dissolved in water in trace amounts when the water is stored in copper vessels for a long period of time.
What is the price of Kalai?
Navyug Brass Kalai Degchi, Rs 515/kilogram Navjyoti Enterprises | ID: 20106783530.
What are the dangers of tin?
* Tin can affect you when breathed in.* Contact can irritate the skin and eyes. * Breathing Tin can irritate the nose, throat and lungs.causing coughing, wheezing and/or shortness of breath. * Tin can cause nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and abdominal.pain, headache, fatigue and tremors. ... normal lung function (stannosis).
Is tin toxic when heated?
Heating steel cans could release chromium and nickel. You could be exposed to BPAs from the plastic lining inside of the can, as well. An unopened can might explode if you heat food items on a stove top. It could start a fire if heated in a microwave oven.
Which metal is best for eating food?
Copper or brass reacts with sour food, salt and lemon which can be harmful for the body. Therefore, they are not recommended to eat or cook in. Whereas, Kansa or Bronze does not react with sour acidic food hence, it is the best metal to eat and cook in.
What is the definition of an alkali metal?
The alkali metals are six chemical elements in Group 1, the leftmost column in the periodic table. They are lithium (Li), sodium (Na), potassium (K...
Why are they called the alkali metals?
The alkali metals are so named because when they react with water they form alkalies. Alkalies are hydroxide compounds of these elements, such as s...
What are some properties of the alkali metals?
The alkali metals have low melting points. Lithium melts at 180.5 °C (356.9 °F); cesium melts at just 28.4 °C (83.1 °F). These elements are also ex...
What is the most common alkali metal?
The most common alkali metal is sodium, which is 2.8 percent of Earth’s crust. The most common sodium compound is sodium chloride (NaCl), salt. The...
Which alkali metals are rarer?
The other alkali metals are much rarer. Rubidium, lithium, and cesium are 0.01, 0.002, and 0.0007 percent of Earth’s crust, respectively. Francium is radioactive, and only minute amounts of it exist in nature. Sodium.
What is the lustre of alkali metals?
The alkali metals have the silver-like lustre, high ductility, and excellent conductivity of electricity and heat generally associated with metals. Lithium is the lightest metallic element. The alkali metals have low melting points, ranging from a high of 179 °C (354 °F) for lithium to a low of 28.5 °C (83.3 °F) for cesium. Alloys of alkali metals exist that melt as low as −78 °C (−109 °F).
Why are alkali metals called alkali metals?
The alkali metals are so called because reaction with water forms alkalies (i.e., strong bases capable of neutralizing acids ). Sodium and potassium are the sixth and seventh most abundant of the elements, constituting, respectively, 2.6 and 2.4 percent of Earth’s crust. The other alkali metals are considerably more rare, with rubidium, lithium, ...
What is the melting point of alkali metals?
The alkali metals have low melting points, ranging from a high of 179 °C (354 °F) for lithium to a low of 28.5 °C (83.3 °F) for cesium. Alloys of alkali metals exist that melt as low as −78 °C (−109 °F).
What are alkali compounds?
Alkalies are hydroxide compounds of these elements, such as so dium hydroxide and potassium hydroxide. Alkalies are very strong bases that are caustic. Lye, for example, is sodium hydroxide. Alkalies react with acids to form salts. Base.
What is the use of lithium batteries?
An important use of lithium is in the construction of lightweight batteries. Primary lithium batteries (not rechargeable) are widely used in many devices such as cameras, cellular telephones, and pacemakers.
Is potassium a free metal?
Potassium has considerably less use than sodium as a free metal. Potassium salts, however, are consumed in considerable tonnages in the manufacture of fertilizers. Lithium metal is used in certain light-metal alloys and as a reactant in organic syntheses.
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Overview
The art of kalai (kalhai or qalai) is the process of coating an alloy surface such as copper or brass by deposition of metal tin on it. The word "kalai" is derived from Sanskrit word kalya lepa, which means "white wash or tin". A cultural Sanskrit work by Keladi Basava called "Sivatattva Ratnakara" (1699) mentions "kalaya-lepa" in the chapter of cookery or "supashashtra" which means applying kalai on utensils. People practicing the art of kalai are called Kalaiwala or Kalaigar. Basically, Kalaigars o…
History
Vessels with kalai, both on its interior and exterior have been found in the excavations of Bramhapuri at Kolhapur, Maharashtra which adds to the archeological evidence of kalai art. From this evidence, P K. Gode, who studied tin coating on metallic vessels in India, stated that the history of tin coating dates back to 1300 C.E. The history of kalai is also recorded in “Parsibhashanushasana” of Vikaramasimha (before Samvat 1600 i.e. C.E. 1544) and also in the …
Spiritual approach
The copper vessels with kalai were used to store water and cook food earlier because of a spiritual belief that copper attracts and transmits a divine consciousness also called “Chaitanya”. The spiritual approach to the use of copper vessels to store water is that copper and tin have Sattva-Raja (the basic component of creation/universe) component that is transferred to water.
Scientific approach
Earlier, copper and brass vessels were used because of their high conductivity. High conductivity of copper vessels reduces the fuel cost. However, a chemical reaction between copper and oxygen called oxidization turns the copper vessels black. Copper also reacts with the moisture in air and creates copper carbonate, which can be noticed as light green rust on the surface. Copper carbonate is p…
Process
Kalai can be done in various ways. Virgin grade tin (called ‘ranga’ in Hindi), caustic soda, sal ammoniac or ammonium chloride (called ‘nausadar’ powder in Hindi), and water are used in the process.
The first step of kalai is to clean the utensil with water. There are two ways of cleaning the utensil further to remove any impurities such as dust. The first is to clean it with caustic soda. The othe…
Present scenario
Kalai was earlier done with silver instead of tin but now it would be too expensive. As stainless steel and aluminum ware came into being, the usage of copper and brass utensils decreased, which led the Kalaigars to suffer losses. Nowadays only some hotels and a very few people use vessels with kalai. As a result, there are a very few Kalaigars left and the art of kalai is vanishing.