Tung Oil: Efficacy and Usage
【Botanical Description of Tung Oil】
Tung oil is derived from the seeds of the Tung tree, a deciduous tree that can grow up to 10 meters tall. The bark of the tree is gray and smooth, and the branches are thick and hairless with visible lenticels. The leaves of the Tung tree are oval-shaped, measuring 8-18 centimeters in length and 6-15 centimeters in width. The top of the leaf is short and pointed, while the base is flat or slightly heart-shaped. The leaves have smooth edges with occasional shallow lobes, and the young leaves are covered in fine, easily shed hair on the upper surface and brownish hair on the lower surface. Mature leaves are dark green on the upper surface, hairless, and grayish-green on the lower surface with a fine, flat-lying hair. The leaves have 5-7 palmate veins, and the leaf stalk is almost the same length as the leaf blade, with few hairs and 2 flat, stalkless glands at the tip.
【Efficacy and Usage of Tung Oil】
1. Medicinal Value of Tung Oil
In Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tung oil is believed to have the following effects: expectorant, heat-clearing, detoxifying, moisture-absorbing, insecticidal, and skin-nourishing. It is commonly used to treat throat discomfort, abscesses, scabies, carbuncles, burns, frostbite, and chapped skin.
Tung oil is native to China and has traditionally been used to protect wooden objects, produce oilcloth, and make oil paper for waterproofing. It is also used in traditional Chinese medicine for external applications such as mixing with ointments.
Tung oil is an excellent semi-drying vegetable oil with characteristics such as fast drying, light weight, good gloss, strong adhesion, heat resistance, acid resistance, alkaline resistance, preservation, rust prevention, and non-conductivity. It has a wide range of applications and can be used to make oilcloth, oil paper, soap, pesticides, emetics, and insecticides.
2. Industrial Value of Tung Oil
Tung oil is obtained from the seeds of the Euphorbiaceae Tung tree and undergoes oxidation and polymerization reactions in the air to form a dense lacquer film. It is a natural vegetable oil that is mainly used as a raw material for manufacturing paints and inks. It is widely used in the construction, machinery, weapons, transportation, fishing, and electrical industries for waterproofing, preservation, and rust prevention coatings.
Tung oil is commonly used in the production of wood paints, inks, and synthetic resins. It has excellent waterproof properties and is widely used in construction, paints, printing (inks), agricultural machinery, and the electronics industry.
【Compatibility and Usage of Tung Oil】
1. Treatment of stroke-induced aphasia, sputum stagnation, and loss of consciousness: Dip a chicken feather in Tung oil, sweep it on a towel, and the patient will recover upon expectoration. (From "Revival of All Diseases")
2. Treatment of all kinds of ulcers and abscesses: Take one pound of Tung oil and heat it in a pot until it starts to bubble. Add five liang of roasted cinnabar and sift it finely. It will become a paste. Apply it to the affected area. (From "Complete Compendium of Ulcer Medicine")
3. Treatment of chronic ulcers: Take an appropriate amount of Tung oil and fresh mulberry bark, mash them, and apply to the wound. Change it when dry, until complete healing. (From "Compilation of Simple and Convenient Prescription for Herb Medicine")
4. Treatment of blood wind-induced carbuncles: (1) Mix burnt talc powder and Tung oil and apply it with a barrier paper. (2) Crush burnt Tung oil and human hair into powder, then mix with Tung oil to make a paste. Apply it to paper and pierce holes in it before applying. (From "Simple Single Formula")
