What is glycerin?
Glycerin, sometimes spelled glycerine, is a commercial product whose principal component is glycerol. The terms glycerin, glycerine, and glycerol are often used interchangeably in the literature. Glycerin is one of the most versatile and valuable chemical substances known to man. It possesses a unique combination of physical and chemical properties that are utilized in myriad products. Glycerin has over 1,500 known end uses, including many applications as an ingredient or processing aid in cosmetics, toiletries, personal care, drugs, and food products. In addition, glycerin is highly stable under typical storage conditions, compatible with many other chemical materials, virtually non-toxic and non-irritating in its varied uses, and has no known negative environmental effects. A water clear, odorless, viscous liquid with a sweet taste, glycerin is derived from both natural and petrochemical feedstocks. It occurs in combined form (triglycerides) in all animal fats and vegetable oils and
Glycerin is a sweet tasting, colorless, thick liquid that has a high boiling point and freezes to a paste. Cold process soap makers use it because it is a humectant. This means that it attracts moisture to your skin. It is a natural by-product in the soap making process. Commercial manufacturers remove glycerin to be used in more expensive lotions and creams but an amount remains in every soap bar made. Extra glycerin added to a soap bar produces a clear finish and extra moisturizing qualities. It is also a good solvent. Many things will dissolve into glycerin easier than they do into alcohol or water. Glycerin can be dissolved easily into alcohol and water but not into oils. The pure chemical element is called Glycerol, which indicates that it is an alcohol. The impure commercial product is called glycerin. Glycerin is also highly hygroscopic. This means that it easily absorbs water from the air. If you were to leave a bottle of pure glycerin in the open, it would absorb water from th
Glycerin is a neutral, sweet-tasting, colorless, thick liquid which freezes to a gummy paste and which has a high boiling point. Glycerin can be dissolved into water or alcohol, but not oils. On the other hand, many things will dissolve into glycerin easier than they do into water or alcohol. So it is a good solvent. Glycerin is also highly “hygroscopic” which means that it absorbs water from the air. Example: if you left a bottle of pure glycerin exposed to air in your kitchen, it would take moisture from the air and eventually, it would become 80 per glycerin and 20 percent water. Because of this hygroscopic quality, pure, 100 percent glycerin placed on the tongue may raise a blister, since it is dehydrating. Diluted with water, however, it will soften your skin. (Note: While people say this softening is the result of the glycerin attracting moisture to your skin, there is heated debate as to whether or not the glycerin has some other properties all its own which are helpful to the s
Glycerin is a sweet-tasting, clear, viscous, odorless liquid with three hydrophilic alcoholic hydroxyl groups (OH-). Because of its chemical structure, glycerin is highly versatile and has thousands of end uses including use in medical and pharmaceutical preparations, personal care applications and food ingredients applications (as a humectant, solvent and sweetener and preservative in foods, solvent for flavors and food coloring, softening agent in candy, cakes and casings for meat and cheeses, and filler in low fat foods). This highly-stable ingredient dissolves in water and alcohol but not in oils and makes an excellent solvent as many other substances are more easily dissolved in glycerin than water or alcohol. It is one of the best water binding agents. Glycerin is highly stable and compatible with many other chemical materials. Glycerin can be derived from natural or petrochemical sources. It is found in the combined form as glycerides in all animal fats and vegetable oils. The p
