Profile: Chemtotal Pty Ltd. specializes in offering guar gum products, citric acid monohydrate, glycerine, bentonite, manganese oxide, and mica. Hydrocolloids or the gums are used in cement to act as water-retention agent, thickener & binder, suspending agent, lubricant & friction reducing agent. Hydrocolloids can also act as air entraining agents, reducing weight without sacrificing strength, and eliminating the need of other additives. All these end uses require prolonged retention of water in order to permit proper hydration, setting of the cement, & consequent development of high bond strength. Purified galactomannans for industrial usage are obtained from four main plant sources in the sub family Ceasalpinioideae which are well characterized. There is guar gum from the seeds of cyamopsis tetragonoloba, locust bean gum from seeds of ceratonia siliqua (carob tree), Tara gum from seeds of cesal pinia spinosa, and cassia gum from seeds of cassia obtusifolia. Extraction of galactomannans involves de-hulling of seeds, crushing to remove the embryo, followed by milling of the endosperm to produce crude flour. The flour can be purified by dissolving in hot water, followed by filtration and precipitation with isopropanol to remove impurities. The properties of galactomannans from different sources varies depending on the structure of the galactomannan which is characteristic of the source species.