BEESWAX, a product of digestion secreted by the worker bee for constructing the cell-walls of the honeycomb; it is esti mated that about 10 lb. of honey are consumed for one pound of wax secreted. Beeswax is a yellowish solid of agreeable, somewhat honey-like odour and of a faint balsamic taste. It is insoluble in water, but soluble in carbon tetrachloride (warm ether dissolves beeswax, but it is not soluble in this solvent in the cold) and chloroform. The commercial value of beeswax for polishes is due to its texture. In early times it was preferred to tallow for candles on account of its higher-melting point and freedom from smell. The modern use of beeswax for church candles is in accordance with religious ordinance, based on mystical considerations. Euro pean and some Japanese waxes are derived from the common bee, Apis melli fica, whereas the bulk of the African and Indian waxes are from other varieties, especially Apis dorsata. Large quantities are exported from East Africa, South America and the West Indies, and considerable quantities are produced in the United States.
After removal of the honey by draining or by means of a centrifuge, the combs are melted in hot water and the wax strained from gross impurities (dead bees, cocoons, etc.) ; the residue is pressed to obtain more wax. In large-scale operation the melted honeycombs are expressed in a hydraulic press. The press-residues are boiled up with water and re-pressed. The cake still contains about Io% of wax, which is recovered by extraction with a vola tile solvent; such "extracted wax" is darker and of lower quality than that obtained by expression.
Beeswax varies in colour from golden yellow to almost black, depending on the care used in its preparation and also on the age and food of the bees. To preserve the quality and colour, bees wax must always be melted in water and never by direct heat. For some purposes the wax must be bleached; the most satis factory method is to expose the wax in the form of thin films to the action of moist air and sunlight. The addition of a little oil of turpentine accelerates the process. Ozone may be used, but bleaching by chemical oxidizers, such as chlorine, etc., is less satisfactory, as the product is unsuitable for many purposes (e.g., candles).
Beeswax consists chiefly of free cerotic acid and myricin (myricyl palmitate), with small quantities of other higher fatty acids and alcohols, and about I0% of hydrocarbons. East Indian (Ghedda) wax, like most waxes from the Far East, exhibits marked analytical differences from that of European origin.
Beeswax, besides being used for church ceremonial candles, is also employed in the manufacture of wax polishes, ointments, encaustic paints, lithographic inks, modelling wax, etc.