Stillingia oil
Oil from the seeds of Stillingia sebifera / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Stillingia oil is an oil extracted (by solvents) from the seeds of plants of the Triadica genus such as Triadica sebifera (Chinese tallow tree) and Triadica cochinchinensis (Mountain tallow tree).[1][2][3] It is a drying oil used in paints and varnishes,[4] and it is believed to be toxic in China.[5] It must be distinguished from stillingia tallow, a fatty substance that surrounds the seeds in the fruit and must be removed before extracting the oil.[2][5]
The name of the oil was given when the two plants were classified in the genus Stillingia, with binomial names "Stillingia sebifera" and "Stillingia discolor". Sometime prior to 1950 the species were reclassified in the genus Sapium, and articles from the 1950s still use the names "Sapium sebiferum" and "Sapium discolor" However, since about 2002 the plants have been reclassified again in the genus Triadica, and the second one had its species name changed to "cochinchinensis".[6]
Stillingia oil has a typical drying time of 4–6 hours. The seeds produce 20-30% w/w of tallow fat and 10-17% w/w of stillingia oil.[5] It has iodine number 127,[7] a saponification value of 206,[7][8] and a thiocyanogen value of 100.7.[8]