Sodium bromate is an inorganic compound that acts as a powerful oxidizing agent, presenting as odorless white crystals or crystalline powder with good water solubility and chemical stability under proper storage conditions. It has a wide range of industrial and cosmetic applications, with its strong oxidation capability being the core of its functional performance.

In the personal care and cosmetics industry, it is a key ingredient in cold perm formulations, serving as the neutralizer (fixative) in perming systems. After a reducing agent breaks the disulfide bonds in hair keratin to reshape the hair, sodium bromate oxidizes the hair proteins to re-form stable disulfide bonds, locking the curly or straightened hairstyle in place permanently. It ensures the perm result is long-lasting and helps improve the hair's texture and shine.

In the textile industry, it is widely used as an oxidizing agent and finishing agent for wool and fabrics dyed with sulfur or vat dyes. It can enhance the brightness and fastness of dyed fabrics, and also aids in wool shrink-proof finishing. In the mining and metallurgical sector, when mixed with sodium bromide, it acts as a solvent for gold extraction, converting insoluble gold into soluble complexes for separation and purification.

It also serves as an analytical reagent for phenol determination in laboratories, a bromine generator, and a raw material for the synthesis of certain pharmaceutical intermediates and pesticides, demonstrating its versatility across multiple industrial fields.