What is Carnauba Wax Made Of?
If you are into taking care of your car, which probably means a lot of waxing and polishing, you have most likely heard of carnauba wax. Although it has the word “car” in it, does this have anything to do with what it actually is? Let’s find out what carnauba wax is made of and what it’s used for.
What Is Carnauba Wax Made Of?
Carnauba wax is made out of what is referred to as “The Tree of Life,” which is the Copernicia prunifera palm tree found mainly in Brazil.
Keep in mind that this is actually the hardest natural wax in existence, which makes it ideal for something like waxing a car. The palm tree from which carnauba wax is derived from is not the same type of tree which palm oil is made of.
In the native forests of Brazil, this type of palm tree grows in abundance. The way carnauba wax is made is by pruning the leaves of the tree by hand, generally by hand anyway.
The leaves are then treated with various methods to turn them into, and extract the wax. The reason why the tree leaves are harvested by hand is so that the trees are not killed off, and therefore are able to keep growing and produce more leaves at an increased rate.
What is interesting to note is that this kind of wax has a very sweet smell, and most would say that it smells like some sort of candy.
Chemical Composition of Carnauba Wax
If you are a curious person, you might be interested to know the chemical composition of carnauba wax. The chemical composition is as follows:
- 80-85% fatty acid esters
- 10-16% fatty alcohols
- 3-6% acids
- 1-3% hydrocarbons
Properties of Carnauba Wax
There are a few reasons why Carnauba wax is the go-to wax for waxing cars, and it is because it has certain properties which make it ideal for this.
Let’s take a look at the properties which this kind of naturally occurring wax has. Keep in mind that the properties listed below are all reasons why this wax is perfect for buffing your vehicle.
Carnauba wax has a very high melting point, at around 82-86° Celsius. This means that pure carnauba wax needs to be heated to be used.
However, when it comes to carnauba wax for cars, it usually contains additives or has been treated so that it is softer, sometimes almost liquid, therefore allowing for the easy spreading on your car.
What is also important to note is that pure carnauba wax is in fact solid. This wax is harder than concrete; another reason why it needs to be specially treated for use in various applications.
Carnauba wax is also not soluble in water, and in fact, it is not even soluble in ethanol. Diluting this wax is not as easy as you might think.
Uses of Carnauba Wax
Carnauba wax, due to the various properties we listed above, is great for various applications. You might not know it, but chances are almost 100% that you come into contact with it on a daily basis. So, what is carnauba wax used for?
First off, of course, Carnauba wax is used for the waxing and buffing of cars.
Due to its insoluble nature, and because it dries really hard, it makes for a great protective coating to keep paint jobs on vehicles in one piece. In fact, it also helps to add a nice shine as well.
Carnauba wax is also often used in personal cosmetic products. Many lip glosses, lipsticks, and fingernail polishes contain it.
It helps to keep oil and liquid at bay; it makes these products last longer when applied; it helps to add a glossy and creamy finish, and it smells pretty decent as well.
Carnauba wax, due to the fact that it is plant-based, is often used in food products as well, especially candies that have a hard or glossy outer coating.
It’s safe for human consumption and often serves as an anti-caking or anticoagulant in foods.
More or less, virtually everything from candles to dental floss, anything with a waxy coating, most likely has carnauba wax in or on it.
Conclusion
As you can see, this is a very useful type of wax, it’s used for may applications, and one of the most popular ones is for waxing that shiny car of yours.