Carboxymethyl cellulose is a cellulose ether gum, being an anionic water-soluble polymer supplied as a GRANULES/COARSE/POWDER of white to cream colour, available in number of grades and viscosity types with wide application.
Carboxymethyl cellulose odorless, tasteless, non-toxic powder. It is highly soluble in both hot & cold water but dissolves faster in hot water than cold water. It is stable to hard water, alkalis, acids, and certain electrolytes. However, multivalent metal ions and certain complex cations tend to precipitate Carboxymethyl cellulose from solution. The solution of Carboxymethyl cellulose has better resistant for microbiological attack than many natural products.

Carboxymethyl celluloseis used in food science as a viscosity modifier or thickener, and to stabilize emulsions in various products including ice cream. As a food additive, it has E number E466. It is also a constituent of many non-food products, such as K-Y Jelly, toothpaste, laxatives, diet pills, water-based paints, detergents, textile sizing and various paper products. It is used primarily because it has high viscosity, is non-toxic, and is hypoallergenic. In laundry detergents it is used as a soil suspension polymer designed to deposit onto cotton and other cellulosic fabrics creating a negatively charged barrier to soils in the wash solution. Carboxymethyl cellulose is used as a lubricant in non-volatile eye drops (artificial tears). Sometimes it is methyl cellulose (MC) which is used, but its non-polar methyl groups (-CH₃) do not add any solubility or chemical reactivity to the base cellulose.