Paraffin wax refers to a white or colourless soft solid that is used as a lubricant and for other applications. It is derived from petroleum and consists of a mixture of hydrocarbon molecules containing between twenty and forty carbon atoms. It is solid at room temperature and begins to melt above approximately 37 °C . In chemistry, paraffin is used synonymously with “alkane”, indicating hydrocarbons with the general formula CnH2n+2.
