Preparation method of microcrystalline wax

 Microcrystalline wax is a petroleum product obtained through the refining and processing of petroleum. It has high hardness and gloss and is widely used in coatings, inks, candles, and other fields. The following are several main methods for making microcrystalline wax:

1. Conventional production method
Raw material preparation: The main raw material of microcrystalline wax is paraffin, which is a by-product of petroleum. The paraffin raw material is extracted from petroleum and then processed into blocks to facilitate the subsequent production process.
Heating and melting: Put the paraffin block into a special melting tank, pass a heat source for heating, and gradually melt the paraffin. The heating temperature should be moderate to avoid excessive deterioration of the paraffin.
Stirring evenly: Add a certain proportion of additives to the melted paraffin. These additives can be adjusted according to the needs of the product, such as increasing brightness, waterproofing, and other characteristics. Then, the paraffin and additives are fully mixed by the stirring equipment to make them evenly distributed.
Filtration and purification: In order to remove impurities and insoluble substances, the mixed paraffin is filtered through filtering equipment. This step can ensure the purity and quality of the final product.
Cooling and solidification: The filtered paraffin solution is transported to the cooling device through a pipeline. The temperature inside the cooling device is low so that the solution cools quickly and gradually solidifies into microcrystalline wax. This process is equivalent to restoring the previously melted paraffin to a hard form.
Cutting process: The microcrystalline wax after cooling and solidification is cut into the required shape and size. The cutting equipment is set according to the product requirements and can be cut into flakes, blocks, or powders.
Packaging and storage: The cut microcrystalline wax is sent to the packaging workshop and packaged in different packaging methods. Common packaging methods include bagging, canning, or boxing for more convenient transportation and storage.
2. Industrial refining method
Solvent refining: Use the solvent's selective solubility for ideal and non-ideal components in the raw material to remove non-ideal components such as colloids, asphaltene, aromatics, and heavy aromatics in short-side chains, polycyclic and heterocyclic compounds, cyclopentane acids and most sulfur-, nitrogen- and oxygen-containing non-hydrocarbon compounds. Commonly used refining solvents include furfural, phenol, or N-methylpyrrolidone (NMP).
Ketone benzene dewaxing and deoiling: Separate oil and wax to obtain the original microcrystalline wax. This is one of the main processes in the production of microcrystalline wax, which can also produce high-viscosity lubricating oil base oil.
Supplementary refining: The original microcrystalline wax is supplemented with clay or hydrogenation to remove solvents, sulfur-, nitrogen-, and oxygen-containing non-hydrocarbon compounds, and olefins and aromatics are hydrogenated and saturated to obtain microcrystalline wax products.
Among them, clay refining is an impurity separation process that utilizes the difference in adsorption capacity of each component in the wax on the surface of clay; hydrogenation refining is a series of chemical reaction processes such as hydrogenation desulfurization, denitrogenation, deoxygenation, and olefin and aromatic saturation under hydrogen conditions and catalysts.

3. Other dewaxing methods
In addition to the above methods, some other dewaxing methods can obtain microcrystalline wax, such as urea dewaxing, extraction dewaxing, bacterial dewaxing, and adsorption dewaxing. However, these methods have relatively narrow applications due to the complexity of technology or process.

In general, there are many ways to make microcrystalline wax, and the specific method to be selected depends on factors such as the nature of the raw materials, product demand, and production cost. In the actual production process, it is necessary to optimize and adjust according to the specific situation to ensure the quality and output of the product.