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Cohune oil facts for kids

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Cohune oil
IUPAC name Cohune oil
Other names Cohune nut oil
Cohune palm oil
Properties
Density 1000 kg/m3, liquid (4 °C) (62.4 lb/cu. ft)
917 kg/m3, solid
Melting point

28 °C

Except where noted otherwise, data are given for materials in their standard state (at 25 °C, 100 kPa)

Cohune oil is pressed from the seeds of the cohune palm, which is native to Central and South America.

Along with other byproducts of the palm, cohune oil is believed to have been used by cultures in southern Mesoamerica since the pre-Columbian era, in particular by the Maya. Uses of the oil include as a lubricant, for cooking, soapmaking and lamp oil. For this latter purpose the oil was placed in earthenware or soapstone lamps and lit with a wick, for cooking and illumination.

Cohune oil is made up of the following portions of fatty acids:

Fatty acid Percentage
Caprylic 7.5%
Capric 6.5%
Lauric 46.5%
Myristic 16.0%
Palmitic 9.5%
Stearic 3.0%
Oleic 10.0%
Linoleic 1.0%

Commercialization

Cohune oil is generally not used commercially because the cohune palm is very difficult to break open. However, the manufacture and usage of the oil continues among certain contemporary Maya communities in Belize, Guatemala and Honduras.

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