Wax

:Wax is also the name of several bands, an American, a British, and a Korean one.

Related Topics:
An American - A British - A Korean one

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Wax has traditionally referred to a substance that is secreted by bees (beeswax) and used by them in constructing their honeycombs.

Related Topics:
Bee - Beeswax - Honeycomb

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In modern terms, wax is an imprecisely defined term generally understood to be a substance with properties similar to beeswax, namely

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• plastic (malleable) at normal ambient temperatures
• a melting point above approximately 45 °C (which differentiates waxes from fats and oils)
• a relatively low viscosity when melted (unlike many plastics)
• insoluble in water
• hydrophobic

Waxes may be natural or artificial. In addition to beeswax, carnauba (a vegetable wax) and paraffin (a mineral wax) are commonly encountered waxes which occur naturally. Ear wax is a sticky substance found in the human ear. Some artificial materials that exhibit similar properties are also described as wax or waxy.

Related Topics:
Beeswax - Carnauba - Paraffin - Ear wax - Ear

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Chemically, a wax may be an ester of ethylene glycol (ethan-1,2-diol) and two fatty acids, as opposed to a fat which is an ester of glycerin (propan-1,2,3-triol) and three fatty acids. It is a type of lipid.

Related Topics:
Ester - Ethylene glycol - Fatty acid - Fat - Glycerin - Lipid

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Wax: See also ►