Chemistry. a white powder that decomposes on contact with water and has the characteristic odor of gaseous chlorine: regarded, when dry, as a mixed calcium hypochlorite-chloride, used as a commercial bleach for wood pulp, textiles, oils, and soaps, and in laundering as a decolorizer and disinfectant.
bleach, solid or liquid chemical used to whiten or remove the natural colour of fibres, yarns, other textiles, and paper. In textile finishing, the bleaching process is used to produce white cloth, to prepare fabrics for other finishes, or to remove discoloration that has occurred in other processes.