Castor oil has a wide range of applications and the industry is developing well

Castor oil is a stout annual herb or herbaceous shrub of the genus Ricinus of the Euphorbiaceae family. Castor oil is a vegetable oil extracted from castor seeds. It is a colorless or light yellow transparent viscous liquid with a special odor. It is easily soluble in ethanol, slightly soluble in aliphatic hydrocarbons, almost insoluble in water, and difficult to dissolve in petroleum. Ether, the main components are oleic acid, linoleic acid, stearic acid, palmitic acid, and ricinoleic acid. Among them, ricinoleic acid is the main component, accounting for more than 80% of the quality of castor oil.

Castor oil has good fluidity, color retention, optical rotation, flexibility, lubricity, wettability, viscosity, stability, electrical properties, low temperature properties, biological properties, pigment dispersion and other properties, and is widely used In ink, stationery, spices, coatings, medicine, sealants, lubricants, cosmetics, artificial leather, insulation materials, aerospace, shipbuilding, automobile manufacturing, high-precision lathes and other fields. Castor oil can be divided into oxidized castor oil, hydrogenated castor oil, dehydrated castor oil and other types according to different processing techniques.

Castor oil contains carboxyl groups and unsaturated double bonds, and has a special molecular structure. It can produce a variety of industrial raw materials or chemical derivatives through lipidation, sulfonation, sulfurization, hydrolysis, oxidation, cracking and other processing methods, and has a very wide range of applications. The hydrogenation reaction of castor oil can produce hydrogenated castor oil, which is used to make lubricants, plasticizers, sealants and other products; the dehydration reaction can produce dehydrated castor oil, which is used to make coatings, waterproof cloths, alkyd resins and other products; The sulfonation reaction can generate sulfonated castor oil, which is used to manufacture shampoo oil, refrigerants, artificial fiber softeners and other products; the pyrolysis reaction generates sebacic acid, which is used to manufacture industrial plastics, cold-resistant rubber and other products.

According to the “In-depth Market Research and Investment Strategy Suggestions Report on the Castor Oil Industry 2023-2027” released by the Industrial Research Center, overall Look, my country’s castor oil industry is developing well, which is mainly affected by the following factors. First, castor oil is currently the only renewable green oil resource that can replace petroleum. Castor oil is commonly used in industry to replace petroleum in the production of chemical products and biodiesel. It has extremely high economic and industrial value, and the market demand continues to rise. .

Secondly, castor has the characteristics of drought resistance, barrenness resistance, salt-alkali resistance, strong adaptability, strong stress resistance, high oil yield, low investment, high efficiency, and is easy to plant. my country is a major producer of castor oil and has a vast castor planting area. As the government continues to increase support for castor planting, my country’s castor oil production will gradually increase, providing sufficient raw materials for the development of downstream applications of castor oil.

Industry analysts said that in recent years, my country’s castor oil application research and development technology has continued to make breakthroughs, and the application value of castor oil has gradually increased. In addition to cosmetics, In addition to traditional application fields such as rubber, coatings, and inks, castor oil is also used in emerging application fields such as serum separators, medicinal adhesives for rocket propulsion, and ethanol fuel ignition accelerators for diesel engines. The scope of applications continues to expand, and the market demand further increases. High, the industry has broad prospects for development.