Paraffin Wax Group of Petroleum Waxes

[15521246] Muhammad Fadhila Ragil Yoga [15521221] Gigih Lintang Prasetyo [15521123] Nailis
Saadah [16521171] Rizky Alfianto [16521094] Selva Susilowati Liau
Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Industrial Technology, Islamic University of Indonesia.

ABSTRACT
Petroleum wax is a white or colorless solid with soft texture which is derived or as a side product from
petroleum refinery process. It's molecule containing in a range of 20 - 40 of carbon atoms with < 1g/cm3 of
density. At room temperature, petroleum wax is a solid while begins to melt approximately at 37OC with a
boiling point more than 370OC. In daily life, they are being used for lubrication, adhesive mixture, candle,
insulator, food containers, paper manufactures, etc. Looking at the process, petroleum wax coming from
wax distillated of crude oil and obtained with the batch type, continuous type, and pipe still process
with solvent dewaxing method. Petroleum wax itself could be devided into three big groups; paraffin waxes,
petrolatums, and microcrystalline waxes which determined based on their crystalline structure. Paraffin
wax is a refined mixture of associated solid paraffin hydrocarbons and consist of more specific part those
are softer paraffin waxes, intermediate paraffin waxes, and harder paraffin waxes. The structure of molecular
chain of paraffin waxes determine their physical properties either melting points in certain temperature or
such a density and so on. Paraffin wax uses e.g. cosmetics in daily life.
Keywords: petroleum waxes, paraffin wax group, physical properties

INTRODUCTION polynaftenic, and aspaltic where some or all of them

Petroleum is the single largest source of
hydrocarbon wax or known as petroleum wax.
Petroleum wax itself is a by product of the
petroleum industry due wax must be removed from
oil to produce lubricants with the right low
temperature characteristics. The largest use of
petroleum wax so far is on the manufacture of
paper containers for packaging milk, secondly for
bread wrappers and the third is as a base of wax.
These three main uses require more than 50
percent of the wax produced.
Crude oil is essentially hydrocarbon while it
normally contains more than 97 percent
hydrocarbons, carbon content of 83 87 percent
and an 11 14 percent hydrogen content wherein
the remainder are oxygen, nitrogen and sulfur or
another impurities. The modern classification of
petroleum is currently divided into groups such as:
paraffinic, aromatic, naphthenic, polyaromatic,
are mixed in crude oil.
Petroleum generally balanced between two
groups such as paraffinic with naphthenic which is
then referred to as paraffinic naphthenic. Crude
oil not only comprises the components mentioned
above but also varies between crude oils to each
other and other contents such as sulfur and
impurities. In addition, the content will also
determine the results of the processing of
petroleum such as the formation of wax products. It
can be said that the same amount of crude oil does
not necessarily produce as much wax product, but
depends on the composition of its component
content. Crude oil from Pennsylvania (paraffinic)
and middle east (paraffinic naphthenic) is a good
example of crude oil to produce raffinate in the
form of petroleum wax in which the content is 36
percent paraffin hydrocarbons, 45 percent

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naphten, 14 percent aromatic, and 9 percent resin 3. Microcrystalline wax group
and aspaltin. - Medium soft
- Medium hard
In the other hand, there some properties refer
- Hard
to paraffin hydrocarbon group:
The classification of those three groups can be
Number of Melting Specific
distinguished by their crystalline characteristics,
Carbons point (OC) Gravity
where (1) paraffin wax group has relatively large
C20 37 0.734
crystals (macro crystals). Softer paraffin wax
C25 54 0.748
contains more oil than intermediate one and the
C30 66 0.759
C35 74 0.767
melting points usually are between 122 144OF.
C40 81 0.773 Intermediate paraffin waxes have negligible tensile
C43 85 0.781 strength and the melting points are between 118
C50 92 135OF. The harder paraffin has melting points
C64 95 around 123 165OF but usually from 126 146OF.
(2) Petrolatums are product of petroleum which is
include in petroleum waxes group but as a matter
In addition, each region / country that of fact, it seem not like a real wax where is has
produces petroleum also has a difference in amorphoid or amorphous like in structure. Not
producing petroleum wax from crude oil. For much more than 25 percent of the hydrocarbons of
example, in the US the states of Texas, Longview, petrolatums are waxlike. (3) Microcrystalline wax
and Panhandle have relatively high wax content of group has very minute crystals or micro crystals
about 6 - 7 percent, Romania 4.8 percent, Iran 4.5 and are of high melting point where generally above
percent, Burma 8 percent, Assam 10.7 percent. 145OF and might as high as 200OF.
While in one country it is not necessarily the same
wax content of crude oil obtained, as in Venezuela PARAFFIN WAXES
and Mexico that some crude oil contains about 3.5 A refined mixture of associated solid paraffin
percent wax and some contain very little wax and hydrocarbons of paraffins is commonly designated
can not even be said to contain waxes on their as Paraffin wax . The word Paraffin appears to be
crude. a French derivative of the Latin parum that has
CLASSIFICATION OF PETROLEUM WAX meaning of little and affinis means affinity, in other
words, a chemically inactive substance.
Its quiet difficult to draw up the classification
of petroleum waxes that could not to be subject to Paraffin wax appears in a state of binding to
critism. It might be different in classifying paraffin base oil on crude oil. The content of
petroleum waxes with one another of the raffinates in the form of waxes derived from crude
petroleum refinery processes. Based on American oil is about 10 percent. In the case, to obtain
refineries, it comprises the various types of waxes lubricating oil with high quality and quality it is
being produced, necessary to do a wax recovery from raffinates with
pour point depressant so that the wax raffinates
1. Paraffin wax group obtained are another product that is paraffin wax. It
- Softer paraffin waxes does not rule out the possibility that the wax
- Intermediate paraffin waxes distillate of each region has different API gravity
- Harder paraffins and the wax content itself. In the normal paraffin
2. Petrolatums

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series the first compound that is solid at room designation of the melting point, or as fully
temperature (20OC) is the n heptadecane which refined paraffin waxes. The term block
has melting points 72.5OC (22.5OC). paraffin is sometimes used to designate a
harder paraffin wax, one which, can be
1. Softer Paraffin Waxes
molded into a hard firm block. The
The softer paraffin waxes include slack wax
production of harder paraffin waxes
and sweat wax, the latter a more oily by
constitutes by far the greater proportion of
product of the former. In the refinery the
the refinery output of petroleum waxes.
crude oil raffinate known as paraffin
Slack wax which comes from the hydraulic
distillate (wax distillate) has a boiling point
presses, contains 10 to 15 percent oil, and
range of 170 310F when distilled at a
this oil as well as the softer waxes must be
very low pressure. To separate the paraffin
removed in order to produce block
wax from the oil, the wax distillate may be
paraffines. This is customarily done by
chilled until the wax crystallizes, and the
sweating beyond the stage employed in
resultant slurry may be filter pressed. If the
producing slack wax, or intermediate
wax forms a filter cake from which the oil
waxes.
drains easily the wax distillate is said to be
pressible. If the oil cannot be separated Physical Properties of Paraffin Waxes
well from the wax crystals in the pressing
Density and Solubility of Commercial Parafflnes.
operation, the wax distillate is unpressible.
The density of a paraffine increases with an
The wax left on the filter presses is called
increase of the melting point, as shown by the
slack wax. The consistency of slack wax may
figures given below for the various commercial
be soft or semisolid and the oil content is
paraffines.
normally 10 to 35 per cent.
Density of Paraffines with Melting
2. Intermediate Paraffin Waxes Points of
At
Scale wax or intermediate wax can be 121 126 131 136
141 OF
considered a paraffin wax intermediate OF OF OF OF

between softer waxes, such as slack wax, 34 OF 0.906 0.915 0.917 0.922 0.922
and the harder paraffines. It is derived by a 45 OF 0.903 0.911 0.914 0.919 0.919
process of sweating the greater part of oil 57 OF 0.897 0.909 0.910 0.914 0.915
from slack wax. Grades of crude scale wax 80 OF 0.872 0.897 0.902 0.911 0.905
which are marketed contain up to 6 per cent 100 OF 0.849 0.873 0.877 0.896 0.903
of oil. Crude scale waxes are obtainable in 150 OF 0.776 0.775 0.780 0.779 0.783
both yellow and white, the yellow usually 165 OF 0.769 0.768 0.774 0.772 0.775
containing less than 4 percent of oil, and the 185OF 0.762 0.766 0.765 0.769
white less than 2 percent. They are
produced in high as well as low melting
points, although their softening points are The density of paraffin wax generally increases
invariably low. with increasing molecular mass, but remains below
1.0 g/cm3, which is the density of water. Paraffin
3. Harder Paraffins waxes are also non polar therefore, they are
The harder paraffin waxes are referred to as insoluble in water but are soluble in other non
paraffins, customarily accompanied by a polar petroleum based solvents of similar structure.

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Examples of such solvents are benzene, ether, and
certain esters.
Some conclusions on the effect of melting
point, viscosity and temperature on the solubility of
paraffin wax are as follows:
a. Solubility of paraffin wax decreases as
melting point increases
b. Solubility decreases as viscosity increases
c. Solubility increases as temperature
increases
Stability and Reactivity
Paraffin wax stable and non reactive under
ordinary conditions of use and storage and is
unaffected by most common chemical reagents.
However, it does burn readily if ignited. Paraffins
will also react with halogens under UV, light or heat.
When heated at high temperatures in the absence
of air, paraffin waxes can also crack and break up
into smaller, lighter paraffin molecules.
Paraffin Wax Uses
Paraffin Wax is the structural backbone of
much cosmetic formulation. It can add hardness to
References:
Boroughs et al. 1972. Method of Separation of Wax From Oil. US Patent no. 3,670,888
Jones, et al. 1991. Fractionation Process for Petroleum Wax. US Patent no. 5,032,249
Warth, Albin H. 1956. The Chemistry and Technology of Waxes. Reinhold Publishing Corporation: New York
lip care formulation and increase the viscosity of
emulsion products. Paraffin wax is a by product of
mineral oil manufacturing. Molecular weight
distribution ranges from C18 to C60 but the useable
range for cosmetics is about C22 to C45. Within that
range there are a variety of melting point products.
Since most paraffins contain straight chain and
some branched chain molecules the physical
characteristics can vary depending on the method
of manufacture. Paraffin wax is a distilled product
so the molecular species with the same boiling
point will distill at the same time. So it is possible to
have straight chain and branched chain (isomers)
distilling at the same time. It is this molecular
weight distribution which gives the different
physical characteristics of each paraffin wax.
In cosmetics the use of paraffin wax imparts
structure to the formulation. That structure
generally leads to a rigid, brittle product which then
needs to be modified with oils and other waxes. The
single largest use of paraffin wax in cosmetics is in
color cosmetics lip sticks, lip balms, mascara, eye
shadow and eye liners.