Soy could replace the main ingredient in candles, which would benefit the state of Iowa significantly, thanks to the research of an ISU professor.

Tong Wang, assistant professor of agricultural food science and human nutrition, has headed the investigation into a fairly new soy product for more than a year. The product, hydrogenated soy wax, may replace paraffin wax in the production of candles.

Wang said the original idea of replacing paraffin wax with soy wax transpired 10 to 15 years ago, but only in the last four to five years has hydrogenated soybean oil been patented for use.

Candle Works, a company based in Cedar Rapids, makes soy candles and claims soy wax is more environment-friendly and healthy for the consumer than paraffin wax. The claims, however, lacked scientific backing, Wang said.

“I knew of this company that was having some trouble supporting their claims,” he said. “So, we proposed research to change and modify the chemical composition to improve physical and functional properties of the candle and to provide the data to back up their claims.”

Wang teamed up with Larry Johnson, director of the ISU Center for Crops Utilization Research, and approached the Iowa Soybean Promotion Board with the idea. The board is now funding the research, along with the Center for Advanced Technological Development.

Karen Andersen, marketing manager for the Iowa Soybean Promotion Board, said there were a number of reasons they chose to fund the project.

“Because the marketplace was saying they wanted a healthier alternative to petroleum wax, it provided us with a great market-driven opportunity,” she said. “It’s not often the market comes to us. The public was saying they were not satisfied with the current product and this provided the opportunity for ISU to become involved.”

Wang said the main objectives include not only providing scientific data to verify the claims, but to improve physical and functional properties, such as texture, melting and crystallization.

“We have completed the combustion characterization aspect of their study, and [we’re] now beginning work on the composition modification,” Wang said.

Theoretically, the price of soy candles would be comparable to that of “normal” candles. The price, however, will remain approximately 15 to 20 percent higher until the candles are produced by a larger, more up-to-date automated system, he said.

The candles initially will cost more, he said, but most people would not mind paying extra for a cleaner-burning candle.

The future may hold other applications for soy wax, Wang said. Potentially, hydrogenated soy wax could replace paraffin in products such as paper cups, paper plates and fruit and vegetable coating.

“The potential economic benefit for the soybean-producing states would be an increase in the utilization of soybeans,” he said. “In the U.S. every year, 1 billion pounds of paraffin is used in the production of candles.”