Hydrogenated jojoba oil is the end product of the complete hydrogenation

Hydrogenation

Hydrogenation, to treat with hydrogen, also a form of chemical reduction, is a chemical reaction between molecular hydrogen and another compound or element, usually in the presence of a catalyst. The process is commonly employed to reduce or saturate organic compounds. Hydrogenation typically...

 of jojoba oil

Jojoba oil

Jojoba oil is the liquid wax produced in the seed of the jojoba plant, a shrub native to southern Arizona, southern California, and northwestern Mexico. The oil makes up approximately 50% of the jojoba seed by weight....

.

Chemical structure

Hydrogenated jojoba oil is a straight-chain wax ester

Wax ester

An ester of a fatty acid and a long-chain alcohol. These oils have similar properties as triglycerides, but are indigestible. They are found in some fish such as orange roughy, oilfish, escolar, black oreo, smooth oreo and other deep water fish. They are also present in marine copepods. Wax...

 of 36 to 46 carbons in length, an ester bond in the approximate middle of the chain, no branching, no points of unsaturation, and terminal methyl groups at each end. As with jojoba oil, there is no triglyceride

Triglyceride

A triglyceride is an ester derived from glycerol and three fatty acids. There are many triglycerides, depending on the oil source, some are highly unsaturated, some less so....

 component of hydrogenated jojoba oil.

Physical properties

Hydrogenated jojoba oil is a hard, crystalline wax ester. The melting point is 68-70 °C and the iodine value is < 2.0, making it one of the very few commercially available, high-melting-point wax esters of botanical origin. Hydrogenated jojoba oil is relatively colourless and odourless. Hydrogenated jojoba oil contains no trans isomers.

Uses

Hydrogentated Jojoba Oil has particular functionality in cosmetics, due to its ability to strengthen the wax matricies of "stick" formulations such as lipstick, eyeliner, lip balm et al. Hydrogenated jojoba oil is often used as a material for exfoliation

Exfoliation (cosmetology)

Exfoliation involves the removal of the oldest dead skin cells on the skin's outermost surface, and has been used for many years to help maintain skin. Exfoliation is involved in the process of all facials, during microdermabrasion or chemical peels at medical spas...

particles due to its uniform color, hardness, and controllable crystalinity.