The wax fraction of soils: Separation and determination of some components

✍ Scribed by R. I. Morrison; W. Bick

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1967
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 499 KB
• Volume: 18
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0022-5142
• DOI: 10.1002/jsfa.2740180806

✦ Synopsis

Resin-and asphalt-free wax components from a mineral soil and from a peat were separated into free acids, esterified acids and unsaponifiable material. The acids, as methyl esters, were fractionated by column chromatography on magnesium trisilicate to yield n-alkanoic-and hydroxy-acid fractions. The un- saponifiable material was fractionated on activated alumina, and fractions consisting of n-alkanes, n-alkan-2-ones (methylalketones) and primary n-alkanols were obtained. Gas chromatography was used to separate and determine individual components. The n-alkanoic acid fractions contained members with both odd and even numbers of carbon atoms ranging from c l 8 to C34. but with the latter predominating (80-90%). The carbon number of the n-alkanes and n-alkan-2-ones covered a similar range in which the odd-numbered members predominated (80-90 %). The primary alcohols had a slightly lower average chain length (C16-c30) and 90 % consisted of even-numbered members. These fractions together accounted for 25-30% of the resin-and asphalt-free wax.