Petrolatum, liquid

Description

A colorless, aliphatic hydrocarbon oil obtained from petroleum distilled at 330-360C. Liquid petrolatum, or Mineral oil, is normally divided into two fractions: light mineral oil (density 0.83-0.88) and heavy mineral oil (density 0.86-0.91). Mineral oil is used as a lubricants for textile processing. It has also been used to remove bloom on varnished oil paintings (Mayer 1969).

Synonyms and Related Terms

liquid paraffin; mineral oil; white Russian oil; petrolato líquido (Esp.)

Physical and Chemical Properties

Soluble in ether, chloroform, carbon disulfide, naphtha, benzene. Insoluble in water, cold ethanol or glycerol.

Resources and Citations

• Ralph Mayer, A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques, Harper and Row Publishers, New York, 1969 (also 1945 printing)

• Richard S. Lewis, Hawley's Condensed Chemical Dictionary, Van Nostrand Reinhold, New York, 10th ed., 1993

• Hermann Kuhn, Conservation and Restoration of Works of Art and Antiquities, Butterworths, London, 1986