What Is Silica Gel and Why Do Packets of It Come With Everything You ...
Desiccants. Technically, silica gel packets are desiccants — the broader category of materials that suck up moisture. Bentonite clay, which comes from volcanic ash, and other chemical formulas, like calcium chloride, also end up in similar places as silica gel packets, for the same purpose: to keep water away from products that really shouldn't get damp.