Mineral oil

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Mineral oil is any of various colorless, odorless, light mixtures of higher alkanes from a mineral source, particularly a distillate of petroleum, as distinct from usually edible vegetable oils. The name 'mineral oil' by itself is imprecise, having been used for many specific oils since 1771. Other names, similarly imprecise, include 'white oil', 'paraffin oil', 'liquid paraffin' (a highly refined medical grade), paraffinum liquidum (Latin), and 'liquid petroleum'. Most often, mineral oil is today a liquid obtained from refining crude oil to make gasoline and other petroleum products. Mineral oils used for lubrication are known specifically as base oils. More generally, mineral oil is a transparent, colorless oil, composed mainly of alkanes and cycloalkanes, related to petroleum jelly. It has a density of around 0.8–0.87 g/cm3 (0.029–0.031 lb/cu in).

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