A crayon, a word that comes from French and means pencil, is a coloured wax bar that is used for drawing and colouring. Crayons are made of a mixture of ingredients, in containers at high temperature, more than 100ºC, which allows the wax, made of paraffin, to stay melted and to mix by agitation the pigments and other necessary additives. Once the mixture is made, it is poured over metal molds that will form the crayons, and it is then cooled using water as a coolant.
It is at that point when crayons are visually inspected to see if they are broken, in which case they are sent back to being cast and molded. This is the main problem with crayons: their high breakage rate. For this reason, it is necessary to use a good mold release agent to facilitate the extraction of crayons, which together with ejectors at the time of extraction prevent them from breaking and having to repeat the process, which would decrease productivity. The release agent, applied with a hand sprayer, acts as a non-stick coating forming a lubricating grease film on the mold, making the extraction of crayons require less effort and avoiding breakage.
Another challenge posed by the manufacture of crayons is the need for the demolder to contain ingredients suitable for food contact, since, although crayons are not edible, the chances are that children will put them in their mouth.
In the face of these challenges, Concentrol developed the product PROTILAT ADP-8 L, a product formulated with 100% GRAS (Generally Recognized as Safe Substances by the FDA), which is a release agent that helps to prevent cracking of the crayons and is fit for food contact. This solution is a non-stick shine coating product for jelly and liquorice sweets, as well as being used as a mold release agent in the production of confectionery and crayons, whose high effectiveness has already been proven.
The creation of this product is another example of Concentrol’s innovative spirit. In a new area and without it being a strategic sector, we have been able to provide the ideal custom solution to our clients’ needs, responding to their challenge. And just as crayons give wings to the little ones’ creativity, Concentrol finds the solutions that best adapt to its customers’ needs and allows them to reach their maximum productivity.
