INTERNATIONAL PUBLIC SCHOOL

BHOPAL

INVESTIGATORY PROJECT 2022-23: -

Chemistry
SUBMITTED

IN PARITIAL FULFILLMENT OF REQUIREMENT FOR

THE

ALL INDIA SENIOR SCHOOL CERTIFICATE EXAMINATION

Class-XII A Session- 2022-2023

Foaming Capacity of Soaps

Guided By: - Vineeta Asati Submitted By: - Vansh Chouhan

Board Roll Number: -

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 CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that Chemistry project titled foaming

capacity of soaps has been successfully completed by of
class as prescribed by the CBSE course during the academic
year 2022-23

Principal’s Signature Teacher’s Signature

External Examiner’s Signature

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 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I owe a great many thanks to many people who helped and
supported me during the completion of this project. First of
all, I would like to thank Mrs. Vineeta Asati for her guidance
throughout this project. She has taken pain to go through the
project and made necessary corrections as and when
required. I express my thanks to Mrs. Deepti Singh,
Principal, International Public School, Bhopal for extending
her support. I would also thank our institution and our
faculty members, without whom this project would have
been a distant reality. I also extend my heartfelt gratitude to
my family and friends. Last but not the least, I would like to
thank God almighty, without whose invaluable support this
project would not have been materialized.

Vansh Chouhan

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 Preface
Soaps and detergents remove dirt and grease from skin and clothes. But all soaps
are not equally effective in their cleaning action. Soaps are the Na and K salts of
higher fatty acids such as Palmitic acid, Stearic acid and Oleic acid.

The cleansing action of soaps depends on the solubility of the long alkyl chain in
grease and that of the -COONa or the -COOK part in water.

Whenever soap is applied on a dirty wet cloth, the non-polar alkyl group
dissolves in grease while the polar -COONa part dissolves in water. In this
manner, an emulsion is formed between grease and water which appears as
foam.

The washing ability of soap depends on foaming capacity, as well as the water
used in cleaning. The salts of Ca and Mg disrupt the formation of micelle
formation. The presence of such salts makes the water hard and the water is
called hard water. These salts thus make the soap inefficient in its cleaning action.

Sodium Carbonate when added to hard water reacts with Ca and Mg and
precipitates them out. Therefore, sodium carbonate is used in the treatment of
hard water.

This project aims at finding the foaming capacity of various soaps and the action
of Ca and Mg salts on their foaming capacity.

Introduction
Soap is an anionic surfactant used in conjunction with water for washing
and cleaning, which historically comes either in solid bars or in the form of a
viscous liquid. Soap consists of sodium or potassium salts of fatty acids and is

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obtained by reacting common oils or fats with a strong alkaline in a process
known as saponification. The fats are hydrolyzed by the base, yielding alkali salts
of fatty acids (crude soap) and glycerol.

The general formula of soap is

Fatty end water soluble end -

CH3-(CH2) n -              COONa

Soaps are useful for cleaning because soap molecules have both a hydrophilic
end, which dissolves in water, as well as a hydrophobic end, which is able to
dissolve non polar grease molecules. Applied to a soiled surface, soapy water
effectively holds particles in colloidal suspension so it can be rinsed off with clean
water. The hydrophobic portion (made up of a long hydrocarbon chain) dissolves
dirt and oils, while the ionic end dissolves in water. The resultant forms a round
structure called micelle. Therefore, it allows water to remove normally-insoluble
matter by emulsification.

Commercial production of soap

The most popular soap making process today is the cold process method, where
fats such as olive oil react with strong alkaline solution, while some soapers use
the historical hot process. Handmade soap differs from industrial soap in that,
usually, an excess of fat is sometimes used to consume the alkali (super fatting),
and in that the glycerin is not removed, leaving a naturally moisturizing soap and
not pure detergent. Often, emollients such as jojoba oil or Shea butter are added
'at trace' (the point at which the saponification process is sufficiently advanced
that the soap has begun to thicken), after most of the oils have saponified, so
that they remain unreacted in the finished soap.

Fat in soap

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Soap is derived from either vegetable or animal fats. Sodium Tallowate, a
common ingredient in much soap, is derived from rendered beef fat. Soap can
also be made of vegetable oils, such as palm oil, and the product is typically
softer.

An array of saponifiable oils and fats are used in the process such as olive,
coconut, palm, cocoa butter to provide different qualities. For example, olive oil
provides mildness in soap; coconut oil provides lots of lather; while coconut and
palm oils provide hardness. Sometimes castor oil can also be used as an ebullient.

Smaller amounts of unsaponifiable oils and fats that do not yield soap are
sometimes added for further benefits.

Preparation of soap

In cold-process and hot-process soap making, heat may be required

for saponification.

Cold-process soap making takes place at a sufficient temperature to ensure

the liquification of the fat being used.

Unlike cold-processed soap, hot-processed soap can be used right away because
the alkali and fat saponify more quickly at the higher temperatures used in hot-
process soap making. Hot-process soap making was used when the purity of
alkali was unreliable.

Cold-process soap making requires exact measurements of alkali and fat

amounts and computing their ratio, using saponification charts to ensure that the
finished product is mild and skin-friendly.

Hot process

In the hot-process method, alkali and fat are boiled together at 80–100 °C until
saponification occurs, which the soap maker can determine by taste or by eye.

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After saponification has occurred, the soap is sometimes precipitated from the
solution by adding salt, and the excess liquid drained off. The hot, soft soap is
then spooned into a mold.

Cold process

A cold-process soap maker first looks up the saponification value of the fats
being used on a saponification chart, which is then used to calculate the
appropriate amount of alkali. Excess unreacted alkali in the soap will result in a
very high pH and can burn or irritate skin. Not enough alkali and the soap are
greasy.

The alkali is dissolved in water. Then oils are heated, or melted if they are solid at
room temperature. Once both substances have cooled to approximately 100-
110°F (37-43°C), and are no more than 10°F (~5.5°C) apart, they may be
combined. This alkali-fat mixture is stirred until "trace". There are varying levels of
trace. After much stirring, the mixture turns to the consistency of a thin pudding.
"Trace" corresponds roughly to viscosity.

Introduction to the experiment

Soap samples of various brands are taken and their foaming capacity is noticed.

Various soap samples are taken separately and their foaming capacity is
observed. The soap with the maximum foaming capacity is thus, said to be
having the best cleaning capacity.

The test requires to be done with distilled water as well as with tap water. The
test of soap on distilled water gives the actual strength of the soaps cleaning
capacity. The second test with tap water tests the effect of Ca2+ and Mg2+ salts
on their foaming capacities.

Objective: To compare the foaming capacity of various soaps.

Theory
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The foaming capacity of soap depends upon the nature of the soap and its
concentration. This may be compared by shaking equal volumes of solutions of
different samples having the same concentration with same force for the same
amount of time. The solutions are then allowed to stand when the foam
produced during shaking disappears gradually. The time taken for the foam to
disappear in each sample is determined. The longer the time taken for the
disappearance of the foam for the given sample of soap, greater is its foaming
capacity or cleansing action.

Requirements: Five 100ml conical flasks, five test tubes, 100ml measuring
cylinder, test tube stand, weighing machine, stop watch.

Chemical Requirements: Five different soap samples, distilled water, tap water.

Procedure:
1. Take five 100ml conical flasks and number them 1, 2,3,4,5. Put 16ml of water in
each flask and add 8 grams of soap.

2. Warm the contents to get a solution.

3.Take five test tubes; add 1ml of soap solution to 3ml of water. Repeat the
process for each soap solution in different test tubes.

4. Close the mouth of the test tube and shake vigorously for a minute. Do the
same for all test tubes and with equal force.

5. Start the timer immediately and notice the rate of disappearance of 2mm of
froth.

Observations
The following outcomes were noticed at the end of the experiment:

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 Test Tube no. Vol. of soap Vol. of water Time taken for
solution added disappearance of 2mm

1. Dove 8ml 16ml 11’42”

2. Lux 8ml 16ml 3’28”
3. Tetmosol 8ml 16ml 5’10”
4. Santoor 8ml 16ml 15’32”
5. Cinthol 8ml 16ml 9’40”

Result
The cleansing capacity of the soaps taken is in the order:

Santoor > Dove > Cinthol > Tetmosol > Lux

From this experiment, we can infer that Santoor has the highest foaming capacity,
in other words, highest cleaning capacity.

Lux, on the other hand is found to have taken the least amount of time for the
disappearance of foam produced and thus is said to be having the least foaming
capacity and cleansing capacity.

Test for hardness in water

Test for Ca2+ and Mg2+ salts in the water supplied:

1. Test for Ca2+ in water-

H2O +NH4Cl + NH4OH + (NH4)2CO3

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 No precipitate

2. Test for Mg2+ in water-

H2O +NH4Cl + NH4OH + (NH4)3PO4

No precipitate

The tests show negative results for the presence of the salts causing hardness in
water. The water used does not contain salts of Ca 2+ and Mg2+. The tap water
provided is soft and thus, the experimental results and values hold good for
distilled water and tap water.

Bibliography
Books:

Together with Lab Manual Chemistry-XII

Comprehensive Chemistry - 12

Internet sources:

www.wikipedia.org

www.google.com

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