Paraffin candles are beautiful in appearance and quite elegant. They are used, as a rule, to give a festive atmosphere to any event.
Description
Paraffin is the most common candle material, having supplanted stearin as a staple as early as the early 19th century.
In 1830, German chemist Carl von Reikenbach discovered a chemical compound called paraffin. The resulting substance instantly gained popularity not only among candle makers (paraffin in one form or another is part of most candles), but also affected the textile, food, and printing industries.
The composition of the candle
In a purified form, the resulting product is actively used in the manufacture of candles. It is a colorless substance that has neither taste nor smell. The resulting material is oily to the touch, insoluble in water, but highly soluble in mineral oils and when heated in a variety of oils of vegetable origin. The density of the purified material varies within 0.907-0.915/cm 3 . A colorless substance has a low thermal conductivity. Synthetic material begins to melt at a temperature of 50-60 ° C.
Essentially, paraffin is a carbon compound. Chemists and scientists know many varieties of a chemical compound.
Difference from wax
Unlike wax candles, paraffin candles do not burn for long. Wax ones are inferior to them in beauty, and even in an interesting design, in appearance they look more like church ones. However, from a medical point of view, candles made from wax are better than paraffin candles, as they are made from a natural material - wax produced by bees. Due to the fact that wax candles are quite expensive, they are usually made not entirely from beeswax, but are interspersed with various materials in order to extend the burning time of the candle, as well as to imitate a natural aroma.
The main distinguishing feature of a paraffin candle from wax is fragility. So, candles made from paraffin crumble easily, because they are a direct product of oil refining. Wax candles are always cut in an even layer.
Household paraffin candle
Household candles are most often made from untinted paraffin of medium or high purity. In appearance, they have a cylindrical shape, in color, as a rule, white translucent or opaque. Such candles are the simplest, most popular and cheapest type of candles. Use them for their intended purpose during a power outage. It is used by placing it in a candlestick, with the help of which the candle becomes more stable.
Candle production
Paraffin candles can be easily made at home. For this you will need the following materials:
- Paraffin (for example, from old candles or purchased in the form of a bar).
- Small load (you can use a nut).
- Thread for the wick.
- Essential oils and dyes.
- Metal utensils for melting.
- Form (you can use a children's sandbox kit).
The next step is to prepare the paraffin. In the case of using old candles or bought, but ugly, they must be placed in hot water. Then cut, pull out the wick from the inside and lower it into the dishes. Melt the paraffin with a water bath.
In the case of purchasing a piece of paraffin in a specialized store, you need to cut it into small pieces and immerse it in a melting dish. At this time, it is necessary to stir the mass periodically to prevent overheating, blackening and leakage of the substance.
Then you need to lubricate the walls of the candle mold with liquid soap and tie a load to one of the ends of the wick, placing it in the center of the mold. Add dry dye or wax colored crayons to the straightened paraffin mass. Pour in essential oil or fragrance. Then, slowly, in a thin stream, it is necessary to pour the paraffin into the prepared form. After that, a candle made of paraffin should be left to dry completely in the room.
Advantages and disadvantages
The advantages of the candle include good melting of the paraffin candle. Synthetic material perfectly melts and takes any shape. Paraffin also goes well with dyes, for example, when mixed with fatty dyes, it gives a rich bright color.
The only thing you should pay attention to when adding dyes and flavors is that you don’t need to get carried away with them. For the simple reason that when a paraffin candle burns, an excess of dye can release harmful, toxic substances and create soot on the wick. A large amount of flavor give off an unpleasant odor when burned.
Another positive point that can be used in the manufacture of candles is their versatility and unlimited scope for imagination. During production, metal, colored chips are added to paraffin candles, they are decorated in various ways with the help of glass. In the form of molds for paraffin candles, silicone, glass, and metal molds are used.
The disadvantages of candles made from paraffin include their inability to maintain a certain shape for a long time. So, after a short amount of time, candles made of pure paraffin are deformed, especially at high temperatures. To avoid this, experienced craftsmen involved in the production of candles add stearin, beeswax or mineral wax, ceresin or ozocerite.
Also, an unpleasant property that occurs when using candles can include soot and acrid smoke. When the following negative signs appear, the conclusion suggests itself that in the preparation of such a candle, unpurified synthetic material was used. And, therefore, in the composition of the candle there is a significant proportion of mineral impurities. Soaking the candle wick in ammonium chloride can help in such a situation.
Useful properties of candles
The material in question has useful properties for humans. Scientists have come to this discovery relatively recently. In their opinion, paraffin candles, made with eucalyptus or thyme essential oils, have the ability to destroy pathogenic bacteria. Scientists and researchers have come to the conclusion that it is all about the correct concentration of oils in the miraculous candle. For the simple reason that the basis of the essential oil is turpentine, and our grandmothers have heard about the healing properties of this material. So in the near future, thanks to the burning of a candle, it will be possible to eliminate a huge number of microorganisms harmful to human health.
Also, heated paraffin improves blood circulation and accelerates the healing process of wounds, significantly improves the functioning of the joints. Treatment with synthetic material is often used in the post-traumatic period during rehabilitation after injuries.
We purchased candles from various churches and a honey shop and experimented to see which candles were actually wax.
Unfortunately, nowadays it is extremely difficult to find 100% good quality wax candles. All over the world preference is given to paraffin candles, they are cheap, but all the advantages of paraffin candles end there.
Paraffin is a derivative of oil, in addition to paraffin, the composition of the candle includes a large set of chemical wax substitutes, stearin and fragrances. When burning, such candles release toxic substances, and paraffin itself is a carcinogen when burned. Now think about what the candles that we love to light on birthday cakes are made of? And they do drip into the cake when burning.
Candles made from real raw beeswax are not only safe, but also healthy! Such candles include propolis, which gives a special smell to candles and when burned, evaporating, cleans and disinfects the air in the room and has a beneficial effect on the entire human body.
How can you tell wax candles from paraffin candles?
The experiment involved:
1. Control candle - a candle made by the owner of the Old Believer Church by hand from the raw bee wax of our bees in the Russian Taurus. (Read the production of our wax candles in the previous article)
2. Factory-made wax candle from refined wax, bought in a church on the square in 1905.
3. Half-wax candle from the church on the square in 1905 (The percentage of wax in the candles turned out to be low).
4. Candle “wax” from a honey shop, as it turned out in the experiment, paraffin with other wax substitutes and perfume.
5. Festive paraffin candle from the church on Goncharny Lane.
6. The Jerusalem candle, burnt with holy fire, bought in the same church, turned out to be 100% paraffin.
The experiment showed:
1) By smell:
1. Our raw wax candle has a strong natural wax scent that can be felt when the candle is held up to the nose.
2. The factory candle has a very slight wax smell, almost no smell, as it is made from purified wax, from which all impurities that give such a unique aroma to our candles have been removed.
3. The semi-wax candle is odorless.
4. "Wax" from a honey shop has no smell.
5. Paraffin candle is odorless.
6. Jerusalem paraffin is also odorless.
2) Touch:
1. Our candle is slightly rough, pleasant to the touch, waxy.
2. The factory wax candle is smoother but also natural to the touch.
3. Semi-wax is less pleasant to the touch, more like paraffin.
4. "Wax" from a honey shop is unpleasant to the touch, it also resembles paraffin more
5. and 6. Paraffin to the touch like soap, very unpleasant, greasy.
3) When cutting with a knife:
1. Our candle is easy to cut, like plasticine, it does not crumble on the cut
2. Factory candle behaves the same
3. Semi-wax is a little more difficult to cut, it is more solid.
4. "Wax" from a honey shop is cut normally.
5. Paraffin is cut in the same way as semi-wax. Apparently, in addition to paraffin, there are other wax substitutes in the composition, which make the candle closer in properties to wax.
6. Jerusalem candle behaves like 100% paraffin, crumbles when cut, there is no plasticity.
4. When burning:
1. Our candle burns evenly, does not flow (does not cry), melts when burning, forming a drop of wax inside the candle. During combustion, it periodically crackles. Burns slowly. Gives a very faint smell of wax. The candle is easily placed on a drop of wax on a glass surface.
2. The factory light is also on.
3. Semi-wax burns a little faster.
4. "Wax" from the honey shop burns very quickly. It was not possible to put it on the surface, the droplet instantly froze, indicating a paraffin origin, greasy to the touch.
5. Paraffin burns quickly, flows, but there is a drop during melting, which also indicates the presence of other impurities in it besides paraffin. Does not smell when burned. I also failed to light a candle.
6. Jerusalem behaves like pure paraffin, burns very quickly, as if evaporating in the air, without forming droplets. Does not smell when burned. Failed to light a candle.
5. If you hold glass over a candle flame:
1. Our candle does not give soot or gives a very slight subtle darkening of the glass.
2. Factory candle also.
3. Semi-wax smokes glass moderately
4. "Wax" from the honey shop heavily smokes the glass, it turns black
5. Paraffin strongly smokes the same as the previous candle
6. Jerusalem paraffin also gives a lot of soot on the glass.
6. When extinguishing a candle:
1. Our candle gives off a natural, waxy scent in places.
2. factory also
3. Semi-wax gives a slight unpleasant paraffin odor.
4. "Wax" from a honey shop gives a strong unpleasant paraffin smell
5. and 6. An even more unpleasant strong smell.
7. Plasticity of the candle:
1. Our candle is very plastic, bends easily, and does not break or crumble.
2. factory also
3. Semi wax also
4. “Wax” from a honey shop is quite plastic, but crumbles when broken
5. Paraffin plastic, indicates other impurities
6. Jerusalem immediately breaks and crumbles, there is no plasticity, indicates 100% paraffin.
You can now buy natural wax candles from raw wax in Yekaterinburg in our online store.
When purchasing candles, it is better to make sure of their origin in order to protect yourself from harmful fakes. Paraffin candles are now very often made to reduce production costs and simplify the process itself. But paraffin is a product of chemistry and it cannot be called harmless, unlike natural wax, from which high-quality wax candles are made.
Paraffin candles
Paraffin is a synthetic substance that is obtained from petroleum and a mixture of hydrocarbons. For the production of paraffin candles, the following are added to the substance:
- chemical wax substitutes;
- fragrances;
- other non-natural ingredients.
Because of this composition, paraffin candles are harmful to health. When burning, they emit benzene and toluene into the air, which do not have time to burn out due to the low combustion temperature. The ingestion of benzene into the human body is fraught with sleep disturbances, weakness and dizziness. With regular ingestion through the respiratory tract, the functioning of the kidneys, liver, nervous and circulatory systems is disturbed, and diseases of the blood and bone marrow begin to develop. Toluene, when inhaled, also immediately affects the nervous system, and then gets to the circulatory system.
wax candles
Wax is a waste product of bees produced by their glands to build honeycombs. The production of wax candles does not require the addition of any non-natural components, therefore it does not harm health. Such candles burn evenly, do not emit any harmful substances into the air and do not smoke.
PARAFFIN is a wax-like substance, a mixture of saturated hydrocarbons (alkanes) of composition from C18H38 to C35H72. The name comes from lat. parum - "little" and athnis - "akin" due to its low susceptibility to most reagents. Obtained mainly from oil.
The material for paraffin candles is, of course, paraffin, but mixed with stearin (stearin gives the candle softness, makes it less fragile). Dyes are used fatty: they are perfectly soluble in paraffin and give even saturated tones. The heated candle mass is poured into the metal nests of the mold, where the wick is fixed in advance. The mold is cooled with water, and after hardening, the candles can be removed. For a figured candle, the form, as a rule, is detachable: otherwise the finished product cannot be removed. 
On decorative candles, reliefs are made overhead, they are made separately. You can insert metal inserts into candles, decorate with metal filings or shavings, sprinkle with colored crumbs.
Sometimes multi-colored candles consist of bright alternating bands. The shubirovanie method is used - when the relief is made in the form of a separate plate, and then it is welded to the body of the candle. The original fur coat is molded from plasticine: a plaster mold is made from the cast, and then a metal or rubber matrix into which the molten mass is poured, usually of a different color than the candle itself. The cooled plate or relief is welded to the blank using an electric needle - like the one that is burned on wood. Sometimes the candle is painted and varnished.
For work, we need: paraffin, wicks, porcelain or metal cups for melting paraffin, a thermometer up to 100 ° C, several large paper clips, molds for casting, glass rods (sold in a pharmacy) and cylindrical vitamin jars. 
Any form can be made like this: a conceived candle is molded from plasticine. Where the mold connector is supposed to be, safety razor blades are shallowly stuck into the plasticine. The whole structure is covered with plaster. Blades will help to quickly separate the form.
Start with the simplest: a truncated plastic cup. Drill a small hole in its bottom. Tie a knot at one end of the wick. Pull the wick through the hole and secure it taut with a paper clip.
Pour melted paraffin into the mold (temperature not higher than 70°C). When it hardens, untie the knot and the candle will easily come out of the mold. 
When the wick is twisted, it must be soaked in melted paraffin. It is preferable to paint the candle with actor's makeup. Dip some make-up in melted paraffin and stir well - the candles will turn out to be soft pastel colors.
In addition to makeup, you can use the usual dyes: methylene blue, auramine, rhodamine. Attention: you can not enter a lot of dyes. When they are burned, toxic products can be released, and carbon deposits form on the wick.
Candles can also be scented, but fragrant substances sometimes present us with "surprises": the property to acquire a disgusting smell when burned is inherent, for example, in rose oil, nitro-musks.
A pleasant "gastronomic" smell will give the candle vanillin, good results are obtained with lavender oil.
PARAFFIN-hydrocarbon; obtained from oil. Paraffin wax (or hard paraffin) is a mixture of white solid hydrocarbons, which melts at a temperature of 45-60 ° C and is used in medicine mainly as a basis for the preparation of various ointments; in addition, it is used for filling tissue samples in preparation for histological studies. Liquid paraffin is a mineral oil commonly used as a laxative.
PARAFFIN - Produced from the bowels of the earth, crude oil is a product of the decomposition of microorganisms and plant residues that lived in the relict seas millions of years ago. This name was given for the first time by Reichenbach (1830) to a solid mass obtained by him during the distillation of wood resin. 
One of the many products obtained in the process of processing is lubricating oil, from which a raw material called slack is extracted by dewaxing. Gach is a mixture of liquid, soft and solid hydrocarbons. This is the product from which paraffin is subsequently produced. In the process of deoiling slack slack, fractions of soft and hard paraffins with different melting points, penetration rates and oil content are obtained from it.
For the production of purified paraffin, it is passed through a percolator to remove color-forming particles and deodorized by blowing through a vacuum column.
Fully purified paraffins are blended with each other and with various polymers to achieve the desired properties such as melting point, flexibility, strength and color. Such paraffin is further sold in a liquid state (in bulk) or in solid form.
It is used for the preparation of paraffin paper, impregnation of wood in the match and pencil industries, for finishing fabrics, as an insulating material, chemical raw materials, etc. In medicine, it is used for PARAFFIN THERAPY.
Wax and paraffin candles can be found in temples. Ceteris paribus, wax candles are preferable. Why this is so, and how to distinguish one from the other - I will tell below.
natural vs artificial
Wax is a product that bees produce to build honeycombs. For the production of wax, special glands located in the bee body are responsible.
In contrast, paraffin is a synthetic substance obtained mainly from oil, a mixture of hydrocarbons. In the production of candles, chemical wax substitutes, fragrances and other components are added to paraffin.
That is, unlike wax, paraffin is an artificial chemical. From here you can see the difference between wax and paraffin candles. Firstly, paraffin candles burn for a maximum of 15 minutes, and wax candles burn 2-3 times longer. In addition, the wax candle does not go out, but burns out to the end. Also, if you look closely, we will notice that paraffin and wax candles do not look alike. Paraffin candles are light yellow, while wax candles are darker. And as they burn, they can gradually turn orange.
The candles on the left are suspiciously light. Most likely paraffin. The candles on the right are made of wax.
Smell when burning
Beeswax candles have a rich, warm honey scent.
Currently, natural wax candles are included in the list of natural aroma candles. This is due to the fact that the aroma of wax candles comes essentially from their material itself, and is not introduced by extraneous additives, as, for example, with paraffin candles.
Physical Properties
Differences between wax and paraffin candles are easily noticeable when performing physical actions on them. If we try to bend a wax candle, it will remain intact with only a slight change in shape. A paraffin candle will fall apart with a similar procedure. In addition, a wax candle is easily cut with a knife, and a paraffin one will again fall apart or crumble.
Almost the only value of paraffin candles is their shelf life. Unlike wax candles, which become covered with a white coating over time, paraffin candles do not change color and shape over time. This is due to the chemical composition of paraffin candles. Some also see the value of paraffin candles in their cost. As a rule, the price of a donation for a paraffin candle in a temple is 2-3 times less than for a wax one.
However, at the same time, the significant harm that paraffin candles bring to people, and even to the temple, is forgotten. You need to know that cheap paraffin candles are artificially produced from ceresin or Austrian resin, as it is also called. Smoke, soot and fumes from such candles smoke iconostases and affect the health of Christians. The reason for this is that ceresin is, in fact, condensed oil. According to geologists, low-purified varieties of ceresin have a strong smell of oil, which is very similar to the smell of kerosene. From the soot and burning of such candles, a person has a headache, sometimes severe, which can turn into nausea or dizziness.
Doctors have found that the smoke of paraffin candles affects not only the physical, but also the psychological health of people, which various psychics like to use. So, from the stable soot of paraffin candles, subconscious fear may appear.
Holy fathers about the church candle
We examined the differences between wax candles and paraffin candles. It remains to remember that we know about candles from the saints and apostles. The 72nd and 73rd Apostolic Canons point directly to the constant use of wax in the church life of the first centuries:
If one of the clergy, or a layman, steals wax or oil from the holy church: let him be excommunicated from the communion of the church, and add five to what he took.
Later, a 15th-century saint writes about the need to light wax candles:
Wax, as the purest substance, means our purity and the sincerity of the offering; wax, as a substance on which objects can be imprinted, means the seal or sign of the cross, which is placed on us in baptism and chrismation; wax, as a soft and bendable substance, means our obedience and readiness to repent of our sinful life; wax, collected from fragrant flowers, means the grace of the Holy Spirit, wax, composed of many flowers, means an offering made by all Christians; wax, as a burning substance, means our burning (that is, our nature, purified by divine fire); and finally wax, in which fire burns, and this very light, constantly burning, means the union and strength of our mutual love and peace ”(see New Tablet. Ch. 134. C. 40).
And here is the opinion of practically our contemporaries, bishops who served in the Russian Empire before the Revolution of 1917:
On May 4, 1882, the Holy Synod determined that only candles made from pure beeswax should be used in churches.
In the end, I would like to say that it is not the material of the candle that is the main thing in prayer. And if the prayer is done sincerely, then it does not matter whether the paraffin candle burns in front of the icon or the wax one. Do not forget about the main thing, and the rest will follow.
