Especially during the Christmas and New Year candles again becoming more prevalent around us, than other times of the year, giving us the magical atmosphere that only they can send in the form of flame, hot and dancing as well as colors, shapes and fragrances.
As we all know the candle is technically a light source usually consisting of a cotton wick protruding from a cylinder made of solid fuel.
Before the discovery and distribution of electricity, candles were one of the primary sources illumination of the human race along with oil lamps. The candles were commonly used in northern Europe, while the olive oil lamps were more common in Mediterranean Europe.
A candle typically produces about 12.6 lumens of visible light for 40 watts of heat, although these values \u200b\u200bare subject to variability due mainly to the type of wick used. Just for a comparison of light, a 40-watt incandescent bulb produces about 500 lumens. The flame of a candle was also used as a measure originally defined to match the brightness of a light bulb equivalent.
Originally the creation of the candles took place only con elementi naturali quali la cera d'api o le cere vegetali (es. soia, palma, carnauba), mentre alcuni tipi di candela di fattura più pregiata utilizzavano la stearina, di origine non minerale, affinché la candela non colasse durante il suo consumo.
Oggigiorno invece le candele sono principalmente realizzate in paraffina che purtroppo è un sottoprodotto della raffinazione del petrolio .
La paraffina è il nome comune che viene dato ad una particolare miscela di idrocarburi solidi, in prevalenza alcani, le cui molecole presentano catene composte da più di 20 atomi di carbonio. È ricavata, come dicevamo precedentemente, dal petrolio and looks like a mass of waxy, white, insoluble in water and in acids.
was produced for the first time by the German Karl von Reichenbach in 1830 and its industrial preparation is now a fundamental part of the treatment of petroleum oils in the dewaxing operation is essential.
As regards its use in the manufacture of candles, the wax is usually added (up to 10%) with stearic acid (which is a carboxylic acid) in order to make it less fuse, to harden and to whiten.
Fortunately, though more rare on the market, you can still find the candles made with natural beeswax, stearin and vegetable waxes (usually palm, soy or carnauba) or, more rarely, tallow (but is a byproduct of animal fats).
The simplest method of production (also wanting to create do-it-yourself and home) is obtained by liquefaction of the wax through the controlled application of heat. The molten substance is then poured it into molds of various shapes, or is allowed to solidify around the wick into cotton for repetitive dives.
essences can be added to the wax to make scented candle.
As we all know the candle is technically a light source usually consisting of a cotton wick protruding from a cylinder made of solid fuel.
Before the discovery and distribution of electricity, candles were one of the primary sources illumination of the human race along with oil lamps. The candles were commonly used in northern Europe, while the olive oil lamps were more common in Mediterranean Europe.
A candle typically produces about 12.6 lumens of visible light for 40 watts of heat, although these values \u200b\u200bare subject to variability due mainly to the type of wick used. Just for a comparison of light, a 40-watt incandescent bulb produces about 500 lumens. The flame of a candle was also used as a measure originally defined to match the brightness of a light bulb equivalent.
Originally the creation of the candles took place only con elementi naturali quali la cera d'api o le cere vegetali (es. soia, palma, carnauba), mentre alcuni tipi di candela di fattura più pregiata utilizzavano la stearina, di origine non minerale, affinché la candela non colasse durante il suo consumo.
Oggigiorno invece le candele sono principalmente realizzate in paraffina che purtroppo è un sottoprodotto della raffinazione del petrolio .
La paraffina è il nome comune che viene dato ad una particolare miscela di idrocarburi solidi, in prevalenza alcani, le cui molecole presentano catene composte da più di 20 atomi di carbonio. È ricavata, come dicevamo precedentemente, dal petrolio and looks like a mass of waxy, white, insoluble in water and in acids.
was produced for the first time by the German Karl von Reichenbach in 1830 and its industrial preparation is now a fundamental part of the treatment of petroleum oils in the dewaxing operation is essential.
As regards its use in the manufacture of candles, the wax is usually added (up to 10%) with stearic acid (which is a carboxylic acid) in order to make it less fuse, to harden and to whiten.
Fortunately, though more rare on the market, you can still find the candles made with natural beeswax, stearin and vegetable waxes (usually palm, soy or carnauba) or, more rarely, tallow (but is a byproduct of animal fats).
The simplest method of production (also wanting to create do-it-yourself and home) is obtained by liquefaction of the wax through the controlled application of heat. The molten substance is then poured it into molds of various shapes, or is allowed to solidify around the wick into cotton for repetitive dives.
essences can be added to the wax to make scented candle.
The candles can also be colored by the addition of appropriate coloring, but usually in Candles are used in industrial dyes based on aniline (also known as phenylamino or Aniline is an aromatic compound whose basic structure is that of a benzene ). L ' aniline also is a substance with possible carcinogenic effects and is a poison . It appears as an oily liquid, characteristic odor and colorless-looking, but over time it oxidizes impurities and produces resinous, reddish-brown.
E 'to remember that the type of wick and the addition of scents and colors ( chemical-based and non-natural ) affect a lot, along with material of which the candle is made in determining the amount of dust and pollutants and hazardous substances (for health and the environment) released into the air during combustion.
Candles "cleaner" will therefore in general non-scented and colored, and chemically manufactured with natural products.
So let us again to be aware of our purchases in mind also that the candles called "craft" are not always synonymous with quality and wholesomeness of the product. In general, however, always find out as much as possible about the source of materials, their composition and mode of production and transport (In fact, even the candles can come from countries far from Italy, where materials and living conditions of those who produced them are at the limit, if not worse, legality and exploitation).
