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of beeswax (8 kg/kg). Estimates are that bees fly 150,000 miles
to yield this one pound of beeswax (530,000 km/kg). When beekeepers
go to extract the honey, they cut off the wax caps from each honeycomb
cell. Its color varies from yellowish-white to brownish depending
on purity and the type of flowers gathered by the bees. Wax from
the brood comb of the honeybee hive tends to be darker than wax
from the honey comb. Impurities accumulate more quickly in the
brood comb. Due to the impurities, the wax has to be rendered
before further use. The leftovers are called slumgum.
The
wax may further be clarified by heating in water and may then
be used for candles or as a lubricant for drawers and windows
or as a wood polish. As with petroleum waxes it may be softened
by dilution with vegetable oil to make it more workable at room
temperature, whence it may be used to create sculpture and jewelry
models for use in the lost wax casting process.
Physical
Characteristics
It
is a tough wax formed from a mixture of several compounds including:
hydrocarbons 14%, monoesters 35%, diesters 14%, triesters 3%,
hydroxy monoesters 4%, hydroxy polyesters 8%, acid esters 1%,
acid polyesters 2%, free acids 12%, free alcohols 1%, unidentified
6%
The
main components of beeswax are palmitate, palmitoleate, hydroxypalmitate[1]
and oleate esters of long-chain (30-32 carbons) aliphatic alcohols,
with the ratio of triacontanylpalmitate CH3(CH2)29O-CO-(CH2)14CH3
to cerotic acid[2] CH3(CH2)24COOH, the two principal components,
being 6:1.
Beeswax
has a high melting point range, of 62 to 64 °C (144 to 147
°F). It does not boil in air, but continues to heat until
it bursts into flame at around 120 °C (250 °F). If beeswax
is heated above 85 °C (185 °F) discoloration occurs.
Density at 15 °C is 0.958 to 0.970 g/cm3.
Bee
wax can be classified generally into European and Oriental types.
The ratio of saponification value is lower (3-5) for European
beeswax, and higher (8-9) for Oriental types.
Hydroxyoctacosanyl
hydroxystearate can be used as a beeswax substitute as a consistency
regulator and emulsion stabilizer. Japan wax is another substitute.
Uses
as a product
Beeswax
is used commercially to make fine candles, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals
including bone wax (cosmetics and pharmaceuticals account for
60% of total consumption), in polishing materials (particularly
shoe polish), as a component of modelling waxes, and in a variety
of other products. It is commonly used during the assembly of
pool tables to fill the screw holes and the seams between the
slates. Beeswax candles are preferred in most Eastern Orthodox
churches because they burn cleanly, with little or no wax dripping
down the sides and little visible smoke. Beeswax is also prescribed
as the material (or at least a significant part of the material)
for the Paschal candle ("Easter Candle") and is recommended
for other candles used in the liturgy of the Catholic Church.
It
is also used as a coating for cheese, to protect the food as
it ages. While some cheesemakers have replaced it with plastic,
many still use beeswax in order to avoid any unpleasant flavours
that may result from plastic.
The
burning characteristics of beeswax candles differ from those
of paraffin. Beeswax has negative ionization, which binds particulate
matter to clear the air. A beeswax candle flame has a "warmer,"
more yellow color than that of paraffin, and the color of the
flame may vary depending on the season in which the wax was
harvested.
Beeswax
is also an ingredient in moustache wax, and was used in the
manufacturing of the cylinders used by the earliest phonographs.
Historical
use
Beeswax
has been used since ancient times; traces of it were found in
the paintings in the Lascaux cave and in Egyptian mummies. Ancient
Egyptians used it in shipbuilding as well. In the Roman period,
beeswax was used as waterproofing agent for painted walls and
as medium for the Fayum mummy portraits. In the Middle Ages
beeswax was considered valuable enough to become a form of currency.
More recently it found use as a modeling material, a component
of sealing wax, and in cosmetics. Beeswax is also the traditional
material from which to make didgeridoo mouthpeices.
References
The
chemistry of bees Joel Loveridge, School of Chemistry University
of Bristol accessed Nov 2005
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