Jojoba oil
Jojoba oil (/həˈhoʊbə/ ⓘ) is the liquid produced in the seed of the Simmondsia chinensis (jojoba)[1] plant, a shrub, which is native to southern Arizona, southern California, and northwestern Mexico. The oil makes up approximately 50% of the jojoba seed by weight.[2] The terms "jojoba oil" and "jojoba wax" are often used interchangeably because the wax visually appears to be a mobile oil, but as a wax it is composed almost entirely (~97%) of mono-esters of long-chain fatty acids (wax ester) and alcohols (isopropyl jojobate), accompanied by only a tiny fraction of triglyceride esters. This composition accounts for its extreme shelf-life stability and extraordinary resistance to high temperatures, compared with true vegetable oils.
History
The O'odham Native American tribe extracted the oil from jojoba seeds to treat sores and wounds. The collection and processing of the seed from naturally occurring stands marked the beginning of jojoba domestication in the early 1970s.[2]
In 1943, natural resources of the U.S, including the jojoba oil, were used during war as additives to motor oil, transmission oil, and differential gear oil. Machine guns were lubricated and maintained with jojoba.[3]
Appearance
Unrefined jojoba oil appears as a clear golden liquid at
.Chemistry
Freezing point
|
7-10.6 °C[8][9] |
---|---|
Refractive index | 1.5650 at 25 °C[8] |
Specific gravity
|
0.863 at 25 °C[8] |
Smoke point | 195 °C[9] |
Flash point | 295 °C[8] |
Iodine number
|
82[8] |
Viscosity | 48 SUS at 99 °C[9]
127 SUS at 37.8 °C[9] |
Viscosity index | 190-230[10] |
Fatty acid | Carbon atoms:double bonds | Position(s) of double bond | Percentage (mole fraction) |
---|---|---|---|
Palmitic acid | C16:0 | - | 0.3 |
Palmitoleic acid | C16:1 | 9 | 0.3 |
Stearic acid | C18:0 | - | 0.2 |
Oleic acid | C18:1 | 9 | 9.3 |
Arachidic acid | C20:0 | - | - |
11-Eicosenoic acid | C20:1 | 11 | 76.7 |
Behenic acid | C22:0 | - | trace |
Erucic acid | C22:1 | 13 | 12.1 |
Lignoceric acid | C24:0 | - | 0.1 |
Nervonic acid | C24:1 | 15 | 1.0 |
The fatty acid content of Jojoba oil can vary significantly depending on the soil and climate in which the plant is grown, as well as when it is harvested and how the oil is processed. In general, it contains a high proportion of mono-unsaturated fatty acids, primarily 11-Eicosenoic acid (gondoic acid).
Uses
Being derived from a plant that is slow-growing and difficult to cultivate, jojoba oil is mainly used for small-scale applications such as pharmaceuticals and cosmetics.[12] Overall, it is used as a replacement for whale oil and its derivatives, such as cetyl alcohol. The ban on importing whale oil to the U.S. in 1971 led to the discovery that jojoba oil is "in many regards superior to sperm whale oil for applications in the cosmetics and other industries".[2]
Jojoba oil is found as an additive in many
Like olestra, jojoba oil is edible but non-caloric and non-digestible, meaning the oil will pass out of the intestines unchanged and can mimic steatorrhea—a health condition characterized by the inability to digest or absorb normal dietary fats. Thus, this indigestible oil is present in the stool, but does not indicate an intestinal disease. If consumption of jojoba oil is discontinued in a healthy person, the indigestible oil in the stool will disappear. Jojoba oil also contains approximately 12.1% of the fatty acid erucic acid that would appear to have toxic effects on the heart at high enough doses, if it were digestible.[14]
See also
- Oleochemical
- Simmondsia chinensis (jojoba) seed powder
Photo gallery
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Plant
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Female flower
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Male flower
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Fruits
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Seed
References
- PMID 32195345.
- ^ a b c Undersander DJ, Oelke EA, Kaminski AR, Doll JD, Putnam DH, Combs SM, Hanson CV (1990). Jojoba. Alternative field crops manual (Report). University of Wisconsin-Exension, Cooperative Extension.
- S2CID 20974482.
- ^ "AOCS Method Cc 18-80". The American Oil Chemists' Society (AOCS). Archived from the original on 13 March 2007. Retrieved 13 October 2006.
- ^ "AOCS Method Cd 1-25". The American Oil Chemists' Society (AOCS). Archived from the original on 13 March 2007. Retrieved 13 October 2006.
- ^ "Acute Effects of Transdermal Administration of Jojoba Oil on Lipid Metabolism in Mice". National Center for Biotechnology Information. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
- ^ "AOCS Method Cd 12b-92". The American Oil Chemists' Society (AOCS). Archived from the original on 13 March 2007. Retrieved 13 October 2006.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-935315-17-2.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-873936-75-7.
- ISBN 978-0-935315-22-6.
- S2CID 85377122.
- ISBN 3527306730..
- ^ "Jojoba Oil - an overview". ScienceDirect. Retrieved 26 April 2022.
- PMID 1415629.
External links
- International Jojoba Export Council
- Naqvi, H.H.; I.P. Ting (1990). "Jojoba: A unique liquid wax producer from the American desert". Advances in new crops. Timber Press, Portland, OR. pp. 247–251.
- Description and chemical structure of jojoba oil
- Can This Unassuming Little Desert Shrub Really Save The World? - The first article from 1977