This is another member of the group of ingredients curlies refer to as "sulfates".  We class them together because they are all chemcially similar.  They have very similar strings of atoms and they act in a very similar manner.  The sulfates are very good at stripping oils.  This makes the good for cleaning your dishes and bad for cleaning your hair.  If you've ever washed a black item of clothing and found that it was several shades lighter coming out of the wash, you know what this does to your hair. Honestly, this stuff gets used to de-grease your car's engine. 

This particular one is also known as ALES for short.  At least the clean up instructions in the Material Safety Data Sheet say "Mop thoroughly".  Unlike the other sulfates, this one has no warnings about wearing protective clothing or equipment.