Material

Carnauba palm

By

Made in

Plant-based 172 Vegan 89 Wax 4

Carnauba palm

Carnauba wax

Carnauba wax is one of the strongest waxes widely available. It's also known as Brazilian wax, Cearawax or palm wax. The wax comes from the leaves of the carnauba palm tree native to north-eastern Brazil.

The wax is wear-resistant, has a glossy polish and a melting point of approximately 90 °C. It can be used as a lubricant for sliding wooden parts and as corrosion protection for metal surfaces. It is used across industries from automotive to cosmetics.

The name comes from the Brazilian-Portuguese Carnahuba and the old Tupi karana'iwa . It was first mentioned in 1648. The wax is used on a larger scale in Brazil since 1810. It has been in use in Europe since the mid-19th century, in 1846 the wax was exported from Brazil for the first time in large quantities, and from 1890 the first plantations were created.

Information submitted by the maker and edited by the Future Materials Bank.

Ingredients

Carnauba palm

Physical samples

  • 0120-1

Accessible to participants at the Jan van Eyck Academie and during Open Studios.

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