Editing Wax (section)

=== Plant and animal waxes ===
Waxes are [[biosynthesis|synthesized]] by both plants and animals.  Those of animal origin typically consist of [[wax ester]]s derived from a variety of fatty acids and carboxylic alcohols.  In waxes of plant origin, characteristic mixtures of unesterified hydrocarbons may predominate over esters.<ref name=Baker/> The composition depends not only on species, but also on geographic location of the organism.

==== Animal waxes ====
The best-known animal wax is [[beeswax]], used in constructing the [[honeycomb]]s of beehives, but other insects also secrete waxes.  A major component of beeswax is myricyl palmitate which is an [[ester]] of [[triacontanol]] and [[palmitic acid]].  Its melting point is {{Convert|62-65|C}}. [[Spermaceti]] occurs in large amounts in the head oil of the [[sperm whale]]. One of its main constituents is [[cetyl palmitate]], another ester of a [[fatty acid]] and a [[fatty alcohol]]. [[Lanolin]] is a wax obtained from wool, consisting of esters of [[sterol]]s.<ref name=Ull>Wilhelm Riemenschneider1 and Hermann M. Bolt (2005). "Esters, Organic". ''Ullmann's Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry''. Wiley-VCH, Weinheim. {{doi|10.1002/14356007.a09_565.pub2}}.</ref>

==== Plant waxes ====

Plants secrete waxes into and on the surface of their [[plant cuticle|cuticles]] as a way to control evaporation, wettability and hydration.<ref name=Ullmann/> The [[epicuticular wax]]es of plants are mixtures of substituted long-chain aliphatic hydrocarbons, containing alkanes, alkyl esters, fatty acids, primary and secondary alcohols, [[diol]]s, ketones and aldehydes.<ref name=Baker>EA Baker (1982) Chemistry and morphology of plant epicuticular waxes. In The Plant Cuticle. Ed. DF Cutler, KL Alvin, CE Price. Academic Press. {{ISBN|0-12-199920-3}}</ref> From the commercial perspective, the most important plant wax is [[carnauba wax]], a hard wax obtained from the Brazilian palm ''[[Copernicia prunifera]]''. Containing the ester myricyl cerotate, it has many applications, such as confectionery and other food coatings, car and furniture polish, floss coating, and [[surfboard wax]]. Other more specialized vegetable waxes include [[jojoba oil]], [[candelilla wax]] and [[ouricury wax]].

==== Modified plant and animal waxes ====
Plant and animal based waxes or oils can undergo selective chemical modifications to produce waxes with more desirable properties than are available in the unmodified starting material.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Floros|first1=Michael C.|last2=Raghunanan|first2=Latchmi|last3=Narine|first3=Suresh S.|date=2016-11-01|title=A toolbox for the characterization of biobased waxes|journal=European Journal of Lipid Science and Technology|volume=119|issue=6|language=en|pages=n/a|doi=10.1002/ejlt.201600360|issn=1438-9312}}</ref> This approach has relied on green chemistry approaches including olefin metathesis and enzymatic reactions and can be used to produce waxes from inexpensive starting materials like vegetable oils.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Schrodi|first1=Yann|last2=Ung|first2=Thay|last3=Vargas|first3=Angel|last4=Mkrtumyan|first4=Garik|last5=Lee|first5=Choon Woo|last6=Champagne|first6=Timothy M.|last7=Pederson|first7=Richard L.|last8=Hong|first8=Soon Hyeok|date=2008-08-01|title=Ruthenium Olefin Metathesis Catalysts for the Ethenolysis of Renewable Feedstocks|journal=CLEAN – Soil, Air, Water|language=en|volume=36|issue=8|pages=669–673|doi=10.1002/clen.200800088|bibcode=2008CSAW...36..669S |issn=1863-0669}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Petersson|first1=Anna E. V.|last2=Gustafsson|first2=Linda M.|last3=Nordblad|first3=Mathias|last4=Börjesson|first4=Pål|last5=Mattiasson|first5=Bo|last6=Adlercreutz|first6=Patrick|date=2005-11-17|title=Wax esters produced by solvent-free energy-efficient enzymatic synthesis and their applicability as wood coatings|url=http://xlink.rsc.org/?DOI=b510815b|journal=Green Chemistry|language=en|volume=7|issue=12|pages=837|doi=10.1039/b510815b|issn=1463-9270|access-date=2016-12-06|archive-date=2019-12-09|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191209163653/https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlelanding/2005/GC/b510815b|url-status=live}}</ref>