CHEMISTRY

PROJECT
ON FOAMING
CAPACITY OF
SOAPS
 BY: SANSHRITA KHAMESRA
CLASS : 12B
ROLL NUMBER:32
INDEX
Sr. no topic Page no.

1 Certificate 3

2 Acknowledgement 4

3 Aim 5

4 Introduction 6-11

5 Materials required 12

6 Procedure 13

7 Observation 14

8 results 15

9 precautions 16
 NAVRACHANA SCHOOL, SAMA
VADODARA

CERTIFICATE
This is to certify that
________________________________________
of Class XII (2021-22) with CBSE Roll No.
_________has completed the Chemistry
Project titled
_______________________________________________
____________________ under my guidance and
this project may be considered as the
part of the practical exam of AISSCE
conducted by CBSE.

______________________________________
Signature of Internal Examiner
______________________________________
Signature of External Examiner

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I wish to express my deep gratitude and sincere thanks to Principal, Mrs. Suprabha Menon,
Navrachana Higher Secondary School, Vadodara, for her encouragement and for all the
facilities that she provided for this project work. I sincerely appreciate this magnanimity by
taking me into her fold for which I shall remain indebted to her.
I extend my hearty thanks to my chemistry teacher, Mr. Zaid Mansuri, who guided me to
the successful completion of this project. I take this opportunity to express my deep sense
of gratitude for his invaluable guidance, constant encouragement, constructive comments,
sympathetic attitude and immense motivation, which has sustained my efforts at all stages
of this project work.
I am also thankful to my parents who have helped in each step of my project work and
catered to my every requirement for the successful completion of the project. I can’t forget
to offer my sincere thanks to CBSE as it gave me an opportunity to learn extensively and also
provided the information on the project.
-SANSHRITA KHAMESRA (12-B)
 AIM
1. To study and compare the
foaming capacity of various
soaps
2.To determine which soap
has the best cleaning
capacity.
 INTRODUCTION
During covid times, soap is an essential requirement. In order to maintain hygine and
health and prevent the spread of diseases it is essential that we use soaps that are of good
quality and cleaning capacity.

Hence this experiment is conducted to find out the best soap for daily use that has the best
cleaning capacity so that we can prevent covid effectively.

Ordinary water does not remove dirt from clothes or skin because the dirt present is oily or
greasy in nature. Soaps are one of the most commonly used cleansing agents and are
capable of reacting with water to remove dirt. They are either animal origin or plant in
origin.

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. Fatty
acids are found in fats and oils. When fat or oil is treated with alkali such as caustic soda or
caustic potash soap and glycerin are produced. 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.
Oil/fat + alkali  soap+ glycerin+ heat
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

SOAPS:
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
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.

CLEANSING ACTION OF SOAP:

The soap molecule is generally represented as RCOONa. In solution, it ionizes to form

RCOO- and Na+. Each soap molecule has a polar head group (carboxylate ion, COO- group)
and a long non-polar hydrocarbon tail (R group from long chain fatty acid). The polar head
attracts the polar water molecule and is called hydrophilic end and the non-polar tail
attracts the water insoluble oily or greasy dirt particles

When a dirty cloth is placed in soap solution, the long non-polar hydrocarbon tail of soap
molecules points towards the oily dirt particles and the polar heads point towards the
water. This forms a spherical structure with polar parts of the molecule on the surface and
non-polar parts in the center. This spherical structure is called micelle. This micelle is
attracted towards water and carries the oily dirt particles along with it. This causes the dirt
particles to detach from the fibres of the cloth. In this manner, clothes become free from
dirt or dust.

Other important cleansing agents are synthetic detergents. These are sodium salts of long
chain sulphonic acids and are generally represented as RSO3Na. The cleansing action of
soaps and detergents are same.

Rubbing of clothes with brush or agitation in a washing machine loosens the bond
between the dirt particles and the fibres of clothes. This supports the cleansing action of
soaps and detergents

CLASSIFICATION OF WATER:

Water, along with soap, is used for washing purposes. On the basis of effective washing
with soap, water has been classified as soft water and hard water.

Soft water: Water which produces good lather with soap is called soft water. When water
falls as rain, it is naturally soft. Washing with soap is easy in soft water.

Hard water: Water which does not produce good lather with soap is called hard water. It is
difficult to wash with soap in hard water. Water seeping through the ground becomes hard
water. It is not useful for laundry and laboratory purposes.

CLEANING CAPACITY OF SOAP IN SOFT AND HARD WATER

Although soap is a good cleaning agent, its cleaning capacity is reduced when used in hard
water. Hardness of water is due to the presence of sulphates, chlorides or bicarbonate salts
of Ca2+ or Mg2+ ions. Soaps are sodium or potassium salts of long chain fatty acids. When
soap is added to hard water, the Ca2+ and Mg2+ ions present in hard water react with
soap. The sodium salts present in soaps are converted to their corresponding calcium and
magnesium salts which are precipitated as scum. The insoluble scum sticks on the clothes
and so the cleaning capacity of soap is reduced.
The cleaning action of soap is very effective in soft water because it contains negligible
calcium and magnesium ions.

Synthetic detergents are used in the case of hard water also because the calcium and
magnesium salts of detergents are soluble in water. Detergents are more soluble than
soaps and hence form more lather than soaps

Types of Water Hardness:

There are two types of water hardness.

 Temporary hardness:It is a type of water hardness caused by the presence of

dissolved bicarbonate salts of calcium or magnesium. Temporary hardness can be
removed by boiling. When temporary hard water is boiled, the bicarbonates of
calcium and magnesium undergo decomposition to form insoluble carbonates.

The insoluble carbonates of calcium and magnesium can be removed by filtration and the
water thus obtained is free from calcium and magnesium ions and is soft.

 Permanent hardness:This type of water hardness is due to the presence of calcium

or magnesium sulphates or chlorides. Permanent hardness cannot be removed by
boiling. It can be removed by using water softeners.

Cleaning with soap is effective in soft water. Soap lathers better in soft water and is scum
free. Things become cleaner and time, money and energy are saved.

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:

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 unsaponifable 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.
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. Essential and fragrance oils are added at light trace.

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 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
 MATERIALS REQUIRED
 Five 100ml conical flasks

 five test tubes

 stop watch.

 Five different soap samples

 water
 PROCEDURE
1. Take five 100ml conical flasks and number them 1,2,3,4,5 with the
names of the various soaps on them. Put 40ml of water in each flask
and add equal amounts of the respective soap in each

2. Warm the contents to get a solution.

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

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

6. Start the timer immediately and notice the rate of disappearance of

2mm of froth.
 OBSERVATIONS
TEST TUBE VOLUME OF VOLUME OF TIME TAKEN
NUMBER AND SOAP WATER ADDED FOR FROTH
SOAP NAME SOLUTION DISSAPERANCE

1. JUICY 20ML 40ML 1 min 55 sec

CHEMISTRY
SOAP

2. BODY SHOP 20ML 40ML 50 sec

SOAP

3. PATANJALI 20ML 40ML 45 sec

4. LUX 20ML 40ML 54 sec

5. SANTOOR 20ML 40ML 2 mins

The cleaning capacities of the soap are directly proportional to the time taken by
froth to disappear.

Hence the cleaning capacities of the soaps are in the following order-

Santoor> juicy chemistry> lux> body shop> patanjali

 RESULTS
Hence we conclude that the best soap to use is santoor as it has the maximum cleaning
capacity.

With the covid pandemic at large it is essential that we maintain hygiene and keep
ourselves free of germs. Therefore it is important for us to use the right soap.

With the experiment done it is advised to use santoor rather than Patanjali soap.
 PRECAUTIONS
1. Measure the foaming time accurately
2. Take equal amounts if soap and water

BIBILOGRAPHY
1. Science ncert class 10
2. Chemistry ncert class 12
3. Wikipedia
4. https://www.icbse.com/projects/chemistry-project-on-foaming-capacity-
of-soaps-mm1