Reference no: EM131714851

A case study of a candle-making process.

Candles have been providing light for mankind for thousands of years and have always been central to religious festivals and ceremonies the world over. Their origins have been traced back to the ancient Romans, who developed wicked candles using papyrus dipped in animal fat or beeswax. The Egyptians used forms of wicked candles over 3,000 years ago and early civilizations in China, Japan and India used various forms of paper and wax to form their candles.

Rendered animal fat or tallow candles were used commonly in Europe in the middle ages, with the clean-burning, sweet-smelling beeswax candles reserved for only those rich families who could afford them. Candlemakers – or chandlers – made and sold candles. More significant developments came only in the 19th century when the extraction of stearic acid from animal fatty acids was discovered in France, leading to the development of stearin wax to provide hard, durable and clean-burning candles. Candle production became mechanized, bringing down the costs. Paraffin wax became available in the mid 19th century, providing a high-quality wax that was cheap to produce. Combining the paraffin wax and stearin provided economical, durable and clean-burning candles.

Interestingly, although the light bulb quickly replaced the humble candle, new demand surged in the 20th century for candles as decorative pieces and to provide atmosphere. Candles produced in many different shapes and colors and new types of wax were developed. Today we enjoy candles for many reasons.

Situation 1 (Tom's Mountain Hut)

Tom owns a hut in the mountains with no electric lights, he wants to use candles for lighting purposes during nights. As the hut is made of wood, he doesn't want to light more than one candle, which should illuminate the whole hut. Tom spends several weeks on the hut without the possibility to go shopping in the meantime, he has to carry the candles to the hut by himself.

Select the quality criteria described in this situation. Choose one or two (limit to two) answers from the options below.  Share your reasoning for the selection you made in 50 – 100 words. Explain your response to this question in the answer text provided below this question.

-Luminous Emittance

-Size

-Color

-Wick Length

-Weight

-Burning Duration