11 Facts About Paraffin wax

Paraffin wax is a soft colorless solid derived from petroleum, coal or oil shale that consists of a mixture of hydrocarbon molecules containing between twenty and forty carbon atoms.

Common applications for paraffin wax include lubrication, electrical insulation, and candles; dyed paraffin wax can be made into crayons.

Paraffin wax was first created by Carl Reichenbach in Germany in 1830 and marked a major advancement in candlemaking technology, as it burned more cleanly and reliably than tallow candles and was cheaper to produce.

Paraffin wax is unaffected by most common chemical reagents but burns readily.

Paraffin wax is an excellent electrical insulator, with a resistivity of between 10 and 10 ohm metre.

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Paraffin wax is an excellent material for storing heat, with a specific heat capacity of 2.

Paraffin wax was first created in 1830 by the German chemist Karl von Reichenbach when he tried to develop the means to efficiently separate and refine the waxy substances naturally occurring in petroleum.

Paraffin wax represented a major advance in the candlemaking industry because it burned cleanly and reliably and was cheaper to manufacture than any other candle fuel.

Paraffin wax initially suffered from a low melting point; however, this shortcoming was later remedied by the addition of harder stearic acid.

The production of paraffin wax enjoyed a boom in the early 20th century as a result of the growth of the oil and meatpacking industries which created paraffin and stearic acid as byproducts.

Pure paraffin wax is rarely used for carving original models for casting metal and other materials in the lost wax process, as it is relatively brittle at room temperature and presents the risks of chipping and breakage when worked.