Mineral oil or liquid petroleum is a by-product in the distillation of petroleum to produce gasoline and other petroleum based products from crude oil. It is a transparent , colorless oil composed mainly of alkanes (typically 15 to 40 carbons) [ 1 ] and cyclic paraffins , related to white petrolatum . more

Mineral oil or liquid petroleum is a by-product in the distillation of petroleum to produce gasoline and other petroleum based products from crude oil. It is a transparent , colorless oil composed mainly of alkanes (typically 15 to 40 carbons) [ 1 ] and cyclic paraffins , related to white petrolatum . It has a density of around 0.8 g/cm 3 . [ 2 ] Mineral oil is a substance of relatively low value, and it is produced in very large quantities. Mineral oil is available in light and heavy grades, and can often be found in drug stores. less