Sumac Wax

About This Product

Sumac wax is obtained by pressing and steaming the berries of Rhus succedanea, the Japanese wax tree, a practice that dates back centuries in Japan and China where it was used for candles and hair dressing. It carries CAS number 8001-39-6 and the INCI name Rhus Succedanea Fruit Wax, and is supplied as a pale yellow soft wax melting at 48 to 53 degrees Celsius. The name is a misnomer with practical consequences. A true wax is an ester of a long-chain acid and a long-chain alcohol; sumac wax is mostly triglyceride, chiefly tripalmitin, which makes it chemically a fat. That is why it behaves so differently from beeswax or carnauba at similar hardness: it is soft, notably tacky and plastic, it has a low melting point, and it is prone to slow crystalline change on storage, developing graininess unless it is tempered. Formulators use exactly those properties deliberately. Its stickiness gives adhesion and cling that a crystalline wax cannot, which is why it appears in traditional pomades and in modern lipsticks and balms where a plastic, malleable texture is wanted. It is used in lipsticks, balms and pomades, in hair wax and styling products, in candles as a plasticising component, in polish and in wax crayons. Bio Green Wax supplies sumac wax to specification on melting point, acid and saponification value, iodine value, colour and consistency.