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Mineral Spirits

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Mineral spirits



 
 
Mineral Spirits, also called Stoddard solvent [CAS 8052-41-3], is a petroleum distilate commonly used as a paint thinner and mild solvent
Solvent

A solvent is a liquid or gas that dissolves a solid, liquid, or gaseous solute, resulting in a solution.The most common solvent in everyday life is water....
. Outside of the United States and Canada, it is referred to as white spirit
White spirit

White spirit, also known as Stoddard solvent, is a paraffin-derived clear, transparent liquid which is a common organic solvent used in painting and decorating....
. In industry, mineral spirits is used for cleaning and degreasing machine tools and parts. According to , a supplier of solvents and cleaning equipment, mineral spirits "are especially effective in removing oils, greases, carbon, and other material from metal." Mineral spirits may also be used in conjunction with cutting oil as a thread cutting and reaming lubricant
Lubricant

A lubricant is a substance introduced between two moving surfaces to reduce the friction between them, improving efficiency and reducing wear....
.

Artists use mineral spirits as an alternative to turpentine
Turpentine

Turpentine is a fluid obtained by the distillation of resin obtained from trees, mainly pine trees. It is composed of terpenes, mainly the monoterpenes alpha-Pinene and beta-Pinene....
, one that is both less flammable and less toxic.






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Mineral Spirits, also called Stoddard solvent [CAS 8052-41-3], is a petroleum distilate commonly used as a paint thinner and mild solvent
Solvent

A solvent is a liquid or gas that dissolves a solid, liquid, or gaseous solute, resulting in a solution.The most common solvent in everyday life is water....
. Outside of the United States and Canada, it is referred to as white spirit
White spirit

White spirit, also known as Stoddard solvent, is a paraffin-derived clear, transparent liquid which is a common organic solvent used in painting and decorating....
. In industry, mineral spirits is used for cleaning and degreasing machine tools and parts. According to , a supplier of solvents and cleaning equipment, mineral spirits "are especially effective in removing oils, greases, carbon, and other material from metal." Mineral spirits may also be used in conjunction with cutting oil as a thread cutting and reaming lubricant
Lubricant

A lubricant is a substance introduced between two moving surfaces to reduce the friction between them, improving efficiency and reducing wear....
.

Artists use mineral spirits as an alternative to turpentine
Turpentine

Turpentine is a fluid obtained by the distillation of resin obtained from trees, mainly pine trees. It is composed of terpenes, mainly the monoterpenes alpha-Pinene and beta-Pinene....
, one that is both less flammable and less toxic. Because of interactions with pigments, artists require a higher grade of mineral spirits than many industrial users, including the complete absence of residual sulphur. Odorless Mineral Spirits are mineral spirits that have been further refined to remove the more toxic aromatic compounds
Aromaticity

Aromaticity is a chemical property in which a conjugated system ring of unsaturated bonds, lone pairs, or empty orbitals exhibit a stabilization stronger than would be expected by the stabilization of conjugation alone....
, and are recommended for applications such as oil painting, where humans have close contact with the solvent.

In screen printing (also referred to as silk-screening), mineral spirits are often used to clean and unclog screens after printing with oil-based textile and plastisol inks.

A typical composition for mineral spirits is the following: aliphatic solvent hexane
Hexane

Hexane is an alkane hydrocarbon with the chemical formula CH34CH3 or C6H14. The "hex" prefix refers to its six carbons, while the "ane" ending indicates that its carbons are connected by single bonds....
 having a maximum aromatic hydrocarbon
Aromatic hydrocarbon

An aromatic hydrocarbon or arene is a hydrocarbon, of which the molecular structure incorporates one or more planar sets of six carbon atoms that are connected by delocalised electrons numbering the same as if they consisted of alternating single and double covalent bonds....
 content of 0.1% by volume, a kauri-butanol
Kauri-butanol

The Kauri-butanol value is an international, standardized measure of solvent power for a hydrocarbon solvent, and is governed by an ASTM International standardized test, ASTM D1133....
 value of 29, an initial boiling point of , a dry point of approximately , and a specific mass of 0.7 g/cc. In the European Community, the composition of mineral spirits comes from Article 11(2) of Directive 2002/96/EC (WEEE).

See also

  • Turpentine substitute
  • White spirit
    White spirit

    White spirit, also known as Stoddard solvent, is a paraffin-derived clear, transparent liquid which is a common organic solvent used in painting and decorating....