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Can I increase the melting point of paraffin wax over 100 degrees celsius at room temperature and pressure.

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    $\begingroup$ "…over 100 degrees celsius at room temperature…" — not sure how this makes sense. Also, it's degrees Celsius, and a question is usually supposed to end with a question mark. $\endgroup$
    – andselisk ♦
    May 26, 2022 at 17:31
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    $\begingroup$ I think you need to try to read about polymer processing and polymer chemistry, look at processing methods for the cross linking of HDPE and LDPE. I think that the question might look like a super simple one but I think it is a hidden gem. It touches on radiation chemistry, radicals and polymer processing. $\endgroup$
    – Nuclear Chemist
    May 26, 2022 at 17:40
  • $\begingroup$ I'm rolling the question back to the original state because the edit conflicts with OP's intent (which already was unclear enough) and appears to be produced to retrofit an existing answer. $\endgroup$
    – andselisk ♦
    May 27, 2022 at 9:16

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Well if you were to cross link the parafin wax then it would be possible to increase the melting point.

Sadly I doubt if you will have the equipment needed, if you were to put a parafin wax in a glass ampoule and then stick it is a gamma irradation machine such as a gamma cell 220 and give it a mighty dose of gamma rays. I think you would need megagray doses then you would change the parafin into a different material. You would have a combination of chain breaking and chain cross linking. This will alter the properties of the parafin.

You can regard parafin as a shorter version of high density polyethene, it is well known that radiation will cross link polyethene. The cross linked polymer is much harder to set fire to than the untreated product. It also is harder to melt.

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    $\begingroup$ The simplest answer is NO ! By definition, a paraffin is a mixture of rather heavy alcanes (more than $\ce{20 C}$ atoms), with some alkenes. If the gamma irradiation is able to polymerize alkenes, it is much more efficient in breaking $\ce{C-C}$ bonds, producing a mixture of low molecular substances, some of which are alkenes. Mixtures have melting points lower than their constituants. So the obtained irradiated mixture will have a lower melting point than the original paraffin wax. $\endgroup$
    – Maurice
    May 26, 2022 at 19:11
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    $\begingroup$ I think you are wrong, if you read A.J. Swallow's book on organic radiation chemistry or Radiochemistry and Nuclear Chemistry (G Choppin, Jan-Olov Liljenzin, J. RYDBERG, C. Ekberg) you will find that the irradation of alkanes / polyethene does cause molecules to grow. I have irradated alkanes myself and then done GCMS, I found that the size of the molecules goes up. Decane will tend to form C20 alkanes $\endgroup$
    – Nuclear Chemist
    May 27, 2022 at 8:14
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    $\begingroup$ It is right that dimerization occurs in the radiolysis of alcanes. But degradation occurs simultaneously producing plenty of simpler hydrocarbons, and also some gasous Hydrogen $\ce{H2}$. The resulting mixture contains a lot of dimers, of course, but it also contains lighter hydrocarbons in $\ce{C2, C3}$ , etc. The resulting mixture is melting at a lower temperature than the original paraffin. $\endgroup$
    – Maurice
    May 27, 2022 at 14:58
  • $\begingroup$ Surely crosslinking with peroxides would be more realistic than gamma rays $\endgroup$
    – electronpusher
    May 28, 2022 at 11:35

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