From Crude Oil to Candle Wax
In short: How refineries recover paraffin wax from crude oil: atmospheric and vacuum distillation, solvent dewaxing that crystallises and filters out slack wax, and refining that wax into the paraffin used in candles and much more.
A 1:59 short film in the series “How Things Work”, narrated by intellect_voice_01.
Sources used in this film: Encyclopaedia Britannica, “Paraffin wax | Candle Making, Cosmetic Uses, Industrial Applications | Britannica”; Encyclopaedia Britannica, “Petroleum refining | Definition, History, Processes, & Facts | Britannica”; Springer Nature (Journal of Thermal Analysis and Calorimetry), “Thermal energy harvesting of highly conductive graphene-enhanced paraffin phase change material - Journal of Thermal Analysis and Calorimetry”; Memorial University of Newfoundland (thesis in its Scholaris research repository), “Thermal energy storage using paraffin wax and stability study of the phase change material containing nanoparticles”; Encyclopaedia Britannica, “Petroleum refining - Vacuum Distillation, Fractional Distillation, Cracking | Britannica”; U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), “Vacuum distillation is a key part of the petroleum refining process - U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA)”; Penn State College of Earth and Mineral Sciences (FSC 432: Petroleum Refining, course materials by Semih Eser), “Atmospheric and Vacuum Distillation Units | FSC 432: Petroleum Refining”; Iranian Journal of Oil & Gas Science and Technology (Petroleum University of Technology, Iran); study by M. H. Eghbali, A. R. Solaimany Nazar and T. Tavakoli, Department of Chemical Engineering, Univ…, “1093 rev. 2 ver. 0.3.2”; Penn State College of Earth and Mineral Sciences (FSC 432: Petroleum Refining, course materials by Semih Eser), “Solvent Dewaxing | FSC 432: Petroleum Refining”; Science Alert (Journal of Applied Sciences); authors from Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS, “Modeling of the Waxing-dewaxing Process in Scraped Surface Exchangers”; MDPI (journal Foods, 2023; University of Cadiz authors), hosted on PubMed Central by the US National Library of Medicine, “Rapid Classification of Petroleum Waxes: A Vis-NIR Spectroscopy and Machine Learning Approach”; John Wiley & Sons (Wiley-VCH), product page for the book 'Natural and Synthetic Waxes: Origin, Production, Technology, and Applications' by Ernst J. Krendlinger and Uwe H. Wolfmeier (November 2022), “Natural and Synthetic Waxes: Origin, Production, Technology, and Applications”; Elsevier (ScienceDirect), Fuel Processing Technology journal, Vol. 87, Issue 12, December 2006, pp. 1063–1070; research article by Qiang Wang, Hao Ling, Ben-xian Shen, Kun Li, Siauw Ng, “Evaluation of hydroisomerization products as lube base oils based on carbon number distribution and hydrocarbon type analysis”.
Sources used in this film
- Encyclopaedia Britannica — Paraffin wax | Candle Making, Cosmetic Uses, Industrial Applications | Britannica · View →
- Encyclopaedia Britannica — Petroleum refining | Definition, History, Processes, & Facts | Britannica · View →
- Springer Nature (Journal of Thermal Analysis and Calorimetry) — Thermal energy harvesting of highly conductive graphene-enhanced paraffin phase change material - Journal of Thermal Analysis and Calorimetry · View →
- Memorial University of Newfoundland (thesis in its Scholaris research repository) — Thermal energy storage using paraffin wax and stability study of the phase change material containing nanoparticles · View →
- Encyclopaedia Britannica — Petroleum refining - Vacuum Distillation, Fractional Distillation, Cracking | Britannica · View →
- U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) — Vacuum distillation is a key part of the petroleum refining process - U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) · View →
- Penn State College of Earth and Mineral Sciences (FSC 432: Petroleum Refining, course materials by Semih Eser) — Atmospheric and Vacuum Distillation Units | FSC 432: Petroleum Refining · View →
- Iranian Journal of Oil & Gas Science and Technology (Petroleum University of Technology, Iran); study by M. H. Eghbali, A. R. Solaimany Nazar and T. Tavakoli, Department of Chemical Engineering, Univ… — 1093 rev. 2 ver. 0.3.2 · View →
- Penn State College of Earth and Mineral Sciences (FSC 432: Petroleum Refining, course materials by Semih Eser) — Solvent Dewaxing | FSC 432: Petroleum Refining · View →
- Science Alert (Journal of Applied Sciences); authors from Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS — Modeling of the Waxing-dewaxing Process in Scraped Surface Exchangers · View →
- MDPI (journal Foods, 2023; University of Cadiz authors), hosted on PubMed Central by the US National Library of Medicine — Rapid Classification of Petroleum Waxes: A Vis-NIR Spectroscopy and Machine Learning Approach · View →
- John Wiley & Sons (Wiley-VCH), product page for the book 'Natural and Synthetic Waxes: Origin, Production, Technology, and Applications' by Ernst J. Krendlinger and Uwe H. Wolfmeier (November 2022) — Natural and Synthetic Waxes: Origin, Production, Technology, and Applications · View →
- Elsevier (ScienceDirect), Fuel Processing Technology journal, Vol. 87, Issue 12, December 2006, pp. 1063–1070; research article by Qiang Wang, Hao Ling, Ben-xian Shen, Kun Li, Siauw Ng — Evaluation of hydroisomerization products as lube base oils based on carbon number distribution and hydrocarbon type analysis · View →
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: Encyclopaedia Britannica: Paraffin wax | Candle Making, Cosmetic Uses, Industrial Applications | Britannica
- Also: Encyclopaedia Britannica: Petroleum refining | Definition, History, Processes, & Facts | Britannica
- Also: Springer Nature (Journal of Thermal Analysis and Calorimetry): Thermal energy harvesting of highly conductive graphene-enhanced paraffin phase change material - Journal of Thermal Analysis and Calorimetry
- Also: Memorial University of Newfoundland (thesis in its Scholaris research repository): Thermal energy storage using paraffin wax and stability study of the phase change material containing nanoparticles
- Also: Encyclopaedia Britannica: Petroleum refining - Vacuum Distillation, Fractional Distillation, Cracking | Britannica
- Also: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA): Vacuum distillation is a key part of the petroleum refining process - U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA)
- Also: The Pennsylvania State University, College of Earth and Mineral Sciences (FSC 432: Petroleum Refining course, materials : Atmospheric and Vacuum Distillation Units
- Also: Iranian Journal of Oil & Gas Science and Technology (Petroleum University of Technology, Iran); study by M. H. Eghbali, : 1093 rev. 2 ver. 0.3.2
- Also: Penn State College of Earth and Mineral Sciences (FSC 432: Petroleum Refining, course materials by Semih Eser): Solvent Dewaxing | FSC 432: Petroleum Refining
- Also: Science Alert (Journal of Applied Sciences); authors from Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS: Modeling of the Waxing-dewaxing Process in Scraped Surface Exchangers
- Also: MDPI (journal Foods, 2023; University of Cadiz authors), hosted on PubMed Central by the US National Library of Medicine: Rapid Classification of Petroleum Waxes: A Vis-NIR Spectroscopy and Machine Learning Approach
- Also: John Wiley & Sons (Wiley-VCH), product page for the book 'Natural and Synthetic Waxes: Origin, Production, Technology, a: Natural and Synthetic Waxes: Origin, Production, Technology, and Applications
- Also: Elsevier (Fuel Processing Technology, peer-reviewed journal; Wang, Ling, Shen, Li and Ng, December 2006, vol. 87, issue : Evaluation of hydroisomerization products as lube base oils based on carbon number distribution and hydrocarbon type analysis
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