Spermaceti

picture info	Spermaceti Spermaceti (see also: Sperm oil) is a waxy substance found in the head cavities of the sperm whale (and, in smaller quantities, in the oils of other whales). Spermaceti is created in the spermaceti organ inside the whale's head. This organ may contain as much as of spermaceti. It has been extracted by whalers since the 17th century for human use in cosmetics, textiles, and candles. Theories for the spermaceti organ's biological function suggest that it may control buoyancy, act as a focusing apparatus for the whale's sense of echolocation, or possibly both. Concrete evidence supports both theories. The buoyancy theory holds that the sperm whale is capable of heating the spermaceti, lowering its density and thus allowing the whale to float; for the whale to sink again, it must take water into its blowhole, which cools the spermaceti into a denser solid. This claim has been called into question by recent research that indicates a lack of biological structures to support this h ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu]
	Spermaceti Candle And Oil Spermaceti (see also: Sperm oil) is a waxy substance found in the head cavities of the sperm whale (and, in smaller quantities, in the oils of other whales). Spermaceti is created in the spermaceti organ inside the whale's head. This organ may contain as much as of spermaceti. It has been extracted by whalers since the 17th century for human use in cosmetics, textiles, and candles. Theories for the spermaceti organ's biological function suggest that it may control buoyancy, act as a focusing apparatus for the whale's sense of echolocation, or possibly both. Concrete evidence supports both theories. The buoyancy theory holds that the sperm whale is capable of heating the spermaceti, lowering its density and thus allowing the whale to float; for the whale to sink again, it must take water into its blowhole, which cools the spermaceti into a denser solid. This claim has been called into question by recent research that indicates a lack of biological structures to support this he ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu]
picture info	Sperm Whale The sperm whale or cachalot (''Physeter macrocephalus'') is the largest of the toothed whales and the largest toothed predator. It is the only living member of the Genus (biology), genus ''Physeter'' and one of three extant species in the sperm whale superfamily Physeteroidea, along with the pygmy sperm whale and dwarf sperm whale of the genus ''Kogia''. The sperm whale is a pelagic mammal with a worldwide range, and will migrate seasonally for feeding and breeding. Females and young males live together in groups, while mature males (bulls) live solitary lives outside of the mating season. The females cooperate to protect and Lactation, nurse their young. Females give birth every four to twenty years, and care for the calves for more than a decade. A mature, healthy sperm whale has no natural predators, although calves and weakened adults are sometimes killed by Cetacea#Social relations, pods of killer whales (orcas). Mature males average in length, with the head represent ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu]
picture info	Sperm Oil Sperm oil (see also: Spermaceti) is a waxy liquid obtained from sperm whales. It is a clear, yellowish liquid with a very faint odor. Sperm oil has a different composition from common whale oil, obtained from rendered blubber. Although it is traditionally called an "oil", it is technically a liquid wax. It is composed of wax esters with a small proportion of triglycerides, an ester of an unsaturated fatty acid, and a branched-chain fatty alcohol. It is a natural antioxidant and heat transfer agent. In the late-18th and early-19th centuries, sperm oil was prized as an illuminant for its bright, odorless flame and as a lubricant for its low viscosity and stability. It was supplanted in the late 19th century by less expensive alternatives such as kerosene and petroleum-based lubricants. With the 1987 international ban on whaling, sperm oil is no longer legally sold. The oil from bottlenose whales was sometimes called "Arctic sperm oil." It was cheaper than but inferior to true ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu]
	Spermaceti Organ The spermaceti organ is an organ present in the heads of toothed whales of the superfamily Physeteroidea, in particular the sperm whale. The organ contains a waxy liquid called spermaceti and is thought to be involved in the generation of sound. Description In the modern sperm whale (''Physeter macrocephalus''), this organ is far larger in proportion to the animal's body than can be explained by simple allometry. Its evolution has caused changes in basal skull morphology, implying a trade-off that compromised the functionality of other features. The high investment in this organ suggests that it has some adaptive advantage, although its function is not yet clearly understood. The spermaceti organ in sperm whales is shaped like an elongated barrel and sits on top of the whale's melon. Historically, spermaceti oil was used in a variety of products – including lamp oils, candles, and lubricants – providing the economic basis for the sperm whaling industry. A sperm whale ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu]
	Melon (whale) The melon is a mass of adipose tissue found in the foreheads of all toothed whales. It focuses and modulates the animal's vocalizations and acts as a sound lens. It is thus a key organ involved in communication and Animal echolocation, echolocation. Description The melon is structurally part of the nasal apparatus and comprises most of the mass tissue between the blowhole (anatomy), blowhole and the tip of the snout. The function of the melon is not completely understood, but scientists believe it is a bioacoustic component, providing a means of focusing sounds used in echolocation and creating a similarity between characteristics of its tissue and the surrounding water so that acoustic energy can flow out of the head and into the environment with the least loss of energy. It was once hypothesized that the melon had functions in deep diving and buoyancy, but these ideas are no longer considered valid by cetologists. The varying composition of the melon creates a sound velocity ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu]
picture info	Candle A candle is an ignitable candle wick, wick embedded in wax, or another flammable solid substance such as tallow, that provides light, and in some cases, a Aroma compound, fragrance. A candle can also provide heat or a method of keeping time. Candles have been used for over two millennia around the world, and were a significant form of indoor lighting until the invention of other types of light sources. Although electric light has largely made candle use nonessential for illumination, candles are still commonly used for functional, symbolic and aesthetic purposes and in specific cultural and religious settings. Early candles may be made of beeswax, but these candles were expensive and their use was limited to the elite and the churches. Tallow was a cheaper but a less aesthetically pleasing alternative. A variety of different materials have been developed in the modern era for making candles, including paraffin wax, which together with efficient production techniques, made can ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu]
	Cerate Cerate, historically simple cerate, (from Latin "wax") is an unctuous preparation for external application, of a consistency intermediate between that of an ointment and a plaster. It can be spread upon cloth without the use of heat, but does not melt when applied to the skin. Cerate consists essentially of wax (for which resin, lead acetate or spermaceti is sometimes substituted) mixed with oil, lard, and various medicinal ingredients. The cerate of the United States Pharmacopoeia is a mixture of three parts of paraffin and seven parts of lard Lard is a Quasi-solid, semi-solid white fat product obtained by rendering (animal products), rendering the adipose tissue, fatty tissue of a domestic pig, pig. . References ''The Century Book of Facts'', 1901, p. 398 ''Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary'', 1913 Edition. * [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu]
	Cetyl Alcohol Cetyl alcohol , also known as hexadecan-1-ol and palmityl alcohol, is a C-16 fatty alcohol with the formula CH3(CH2)15OH. At room temperature, cetyl alcohol takes the form of a waxy white solid or flakes. The name cetyl refers to whale oil (''cetacea'' oil, from , from ) from which it was first isolated. Preparation Cetyl alcohol was discovered in 1817 by the French chemist Michel Chevreul when he heated spermaceti, a waxy substance obtained from sperm whale oil, with caustic potash (potassium hydroxide). Flakes of cetyl alcohol were left behind on cooling. Modern production is based around the chemical reduction of ethyl palmitate. Occurrence and uses The ether chimyl alcohol, derived from cetyl alcohol and glycerol, is a component of some lipid membranes. Cetyl alcohol is used in the cosmetic industry as an opacifier in shampoos, or as an emollient, emulsifier or thickening agent in the manufacture of skin creams and lotions. It is also employed as a lubricant for ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu]
	Cetyl Palmitate Hexadecyl hexadecanoate, also known as cetyl palmitate, is the ester derived from hexadecanoic acid and 1-hexadecanol. This white waxy solid is the primary constituent of spermaceti, the once highly prized wax found in the skull of sperm whales.Wilhelm Riemenschneider and Hermann M. Bolt "Esters, Organic" Ullmann's Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry, 2005, Wiley-VCH, Weinheim. Cetyl palmitate is a component of some solid lipid nanoparticles. Stony corals, which build the coral reefs, contain large amounts of cetyl palmitate wax in their tissues, which may function in part as an antifeedant. Applications Cetyl palmitate is used in cosmetics as a thickener and emulsifier An emulsion is a mixture of two or more liquids that are normally immiscible (unmixable or unblendable) owing to liquid-liquid phase separation. Emulsions are part of a more general class of two-phase systems of matter called colloids. Althou .... References Fatty acid esters Palmitate esters ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu]
	Candlepower Candlepower (abbreviated as cp or CP) is a unit of measurement for luminous intensity. It expresses levels of light intensity relative to the light emitted by a candle of specific size and constituents. The historical candlepower is equal to 0.981 candelas. In modern usage, ''candlepower'' is sometimes used as a synonym for ''candela''. History The term candlepower was originally defined in the United Kingdom, by the Metropolitan Gas Act 1860, as the light produced by a pure spermaceti candle that weighs and burns at a rate of . Spermaceti is a material from the heads of sperm whales, and was once used to make high-quality candles. At the time the UK established candlepower as a unit, the French standard of light was based on the illumination from a Carcel burner, which defined the illumination that emanates from a lamp burning pure colza oil (obtained from the seed of the plant '' Brassica campestris'') at a defined rate. Ten standard candles equaled about one Carcel burner. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu]
	Palmitic Acid Palmitic acid (hexadecanoic acid in IUPAC nomenclature) is a fatty acid with a 16-carbon chain. It is the most common saturated fatty acid found in animals, plants and microorganisms.Gunstone, F. D., John L. Harwood, and Albert J. Dijkstra. The Lipid Handbook, 3rd ed. Boca Raton: CRC Press, 2007. , Its chemical formula is , and its C:D ratio (the total number of carbon atoms to the number of carbon-carbon double bonds) is 16:0. It is a major component of palm oil from the fruit of '' Elaeis guineensis'' ( oil palms), making up to 44% of total fats. Meats, cheeses, butter, and other dairy products also contain palmitic acid, amounting to 50–60% of total fats. Palmitates are the salts and esters of palmitic acid. The palmitate anion is the observed form of palmitic acid at physiologic pH (7.4). Major sources of C16:0 are palm oil, palm kernel oil, coconut oil, and milk fat. Occurrence and production Palmitic acid was discovered by saponification of palm oil, which process ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu]

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