From my notes on Linseed OIl...
The product sold as "Boiled Linseed Oil" is not really boiled. The actual boiling of some oils changes their drying characteristics, true. With linseed oil, though, it is the addition of certain solvents that causes linseed oil to dry more quickly, acting as if it were boiled.
Linseed oil is extracted from the seeds of the flax plant by exposing them to steam and passing them through a crusher. The oil is filtered to remove any plant waste from the crush and is known as "raw linseed oil". The "boiled linseed oil" of common use is not really boiled but rather simply raw oil combined with a metallic salt as a drier. Usually this drier is cobalt octoate.
Linseed Oil is a drying oil, that is, it will convert under the proper conditions from a liquid to a solid. In its raw and processed forms the oil is soluble in mineral spirits, turpentine and similar solvents. As a solid it is a very insoluble substance. It is impervious to water, resists ordinary solvents, mild acids, and mild alkalis. The polymerization of the oil is the process of curing which moves the oil from a liquid to a solid phase.
Thin with mineral spirits, not turpentine to allow it to dry more completely.
The primary sources of Flax or Linseed are Canada, Europe, USA and Argentina. Produced either by cold press or solvent extraction, the oil has some uses (e.g. paint and putty manufacture) in its crude state, but otherwise is the starting oil for many processes.
Spontaneous combustion danger - When linseed oil dries, it releases heat. The more linseed oil, the greater the heat. A pile of rags or paper towels soaked with linseed oil can actually start burning without warning.
The product sold as "Boiled Linseed Oil" is not really boiled. The actual boiling of some oils changes their drying characteristics, true. With linseed oil, though, it is the addition of certain solvents that causes linseed oil to dry more quickly, acting as if it were boiled.
Linseed oil is extracted from the seeds of the flax plant by exposing them to steam and passing them through a crusher. The oil is filtered to remove any plant waste from the crush and is known as "raw linseed oil". The "boiled linseed oil" of common use is not really boiled but rather simply raw oil combined with a metallic salt as a drier. Usually this drier is cobalt octoate.
Linseed Oil is a drying oil, that is, it will convert under the proper conditions from a liquid to a solid. In its raw and processed forms the oil is soluble in mineral spirits, turpentine and similar solvents. As a solid it is a very insoluble substance. It is impervious to water, resists ordinary solvents, mild acids, and mild alkalis. The polymerization of the oil is the process of curing which moves the oil from a liquid to a solid phase.
Thin with mineral spirits, not turpentine to allow it to dry more completely.
The primary sources of Flax or Linseed are Canada, Europe, USA and Argentina. Produced either by cold press or solvent extraction, the oil has some uses (e.g. paint and putty manufacture) in its crude state, but otherwise is the starting oil for many processes.
Spontaneous combustion danger - When linseed oil dries, it releases heat. The more linseed oil, the greater the heat. A pile of rags or paper towels soaked with linseed oil can actually start burning without warning.
