chemistry

Jojoba ester

Jojoba ester is a chemistry topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Jojoba ester rather than just read about it. In short: Jojoba esters are the hydrogenation or transesterification product of Jojoba oil. Jojoba Esters are commonly used in cosmetic formulations as an emollient, due to its remarkable similarity to the natural oils produced by the human skin, and its high oxidative stability.

Key takeaways

Jojoba ester belongs to chemistry; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Jojoba ester to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Jojoba ester from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Jojoba esters are the hydrogenation or transesterification product of Jojoba oil. Jojoba Esters are commonly used in cosmetic formulations as an emollient, due to its remarkable similarity to the natural oils produced by the human skin, and its high oxidative stability. Fully hydrogenated jojoba esters are most often small beads used to exfoliate the skin.

Chemical structure Jojoba esters are proper waxes; there is no triglyceride component of jojoba esters. Chemically, jojoba esters are a complex mixture of long chain fatty acids and fatty alcohols joined by an ester bond, resulting in a total length of 36 to 46 carbon atoms. Jojoba esters are produced by the interesterification of jojoba oil, hydrogenated jojoba oil, or a mixture of the two. Pure jojoba oil and pure hydrogenated jojoba oil are also correctly described as jojoba esters. The CTFA does not regard partially-hydrogenated jojoba oil as jojoba esters. For this reason, jojoba esters must not contain any trans-unsaturation. Jojoba esters' chemical structure is very similar to that of human sebum and of whale oil.

Physical properties Physically, jojoba esters are an odourless, colourless liquid, white cream, or hard white wax, with melting points ranging from 15 °C to 70 °C. Their texture and crystallinity may be modified by rapid cooling, thus altering their cosmetic properties. Jojoba esters are very resistant to oxidation, more so than castor oil, coconut oil, macadamia oil, even many fractions of mineral oil.

Uses Jojoba esters are mainly used as emollients in cosmetics such as lipsticks, shampoos and moisturizing lotions. Jojoba esters may be ethoxylated to form such water-soluble materials as PEG-150 Jojoba, PEG-120 Jojoba, or PEG-80 Jojoba. Jojoba esters are excellent botanical substitutes for whale oil and its derivatives, such as cetyl alcohol and spermaceti. Hydrolyzed jojoba esters (HJEs) are created via a saponification reaction which liberates more than 12 long chain fatty alcohols.

See also Jojoba alcohol Jojoba wax esters

References

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Jojoba ester

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Jojoba ester claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In chemistry, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Jojoba ester before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Jojoba ester ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Jojoba ester

In research: Jojoba ester appears in chemistry research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Jojoba ester in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Jojoba ester is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Components and derivatives of jojoba, Cosmetics chemicals, Waxes, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Jojoba ester outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

Affiliate

Preply — study more efficiently by working with a personal tutor. 50% off.

How to study Jojoba ester in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Jojoba ester means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Jojoba ester out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Jojoba ester in simple terms?

Why does Jojoba ester matter?

Because it connects several chemistry ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Jojoba ester?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Jojoba ester.