Study of crystallization and melting of solid waxes by photometric and thermal methods

The crystallization temperature and melting point of individual waxes and mixtures of them were determined by the regular reflection (RR) photometric method combined with a thermal method. In the region of phase transitions, plateaus are observed on the heating curves of the individual waxes and steps were observed on the RR curve. In the case of mixtures of waxes, there were no plateaus on the heating curves and the steps on the RR curves persisted. The high sensitivity of the photometric method allowed determining the indicated temperatures with sufficiently high accuracy and with no plateaus on the heating curves. The RR principle on which the method is based allows investigating a wide range of objects of different natures: transparent and opaque, mixtures and dilute solutions. Rapid processing of the data and their graphic representation and archiving are possible due to automation of the method.