CHEMISTRY INVESTIGATORY

PROJECT

TOPIC:- “Foaming capacities of different

soaps”

Name:- Alonkrita Bose

Class:- XI B4
Roll:- 03
Session:- 2018-19

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 Acknowledgement

I wish to express my deep gratitude and sincere thanks to our Principal

Madam for her encouragement and all the facilities that she has
provided for this project. l extend my thanks to our Chemistry Teacher
Ms. Priyanka Mukherjee who guided me for the successful completion
of this project.
I am also thankful to Mr. Pijush Kanti Sir and Mr. Bijay Karmakar who
helped me in each step of my project. Last but not the least, I also
extend my gratitude to my parents for their valuable support and co-
operation. Also, thanks to my fellow group members who helped me
during the course of this project and made the working of the project
interesting and enjoyable.

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 INDEX
Contents Page No.

Introduction 4

Some facts 9

Experiment 10

Conclusion 13

Bibliography 14

Note of certificate 15

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 Introduction:-

Soap is the term for a salt of a fatty acid or for a variety of cleansing and
lubricating products produced from such a substance. Household uses
for soaps include washing, bathing, and other types of housekeeping,
where soaps act as surfactants, emulsifying oils to enable them to be
carried away by water. In industry, they are used as thickeners,
components of some lubricants, and precursors to catalysts.

Since they are salts of fatty acids, soaps have the general formula
(RCO2−)nMn+ (R is an alkyl). The major classification of soaps is
determined by the identity of Mn+. When M is Na or K, the soaps are
called toilet soaps, used for handwashing. Many metal dications (Mg2+,
Ca2+, and others) give metallic soap. When M is Li, the result is lithium
soap (e.g., lithium stearate), which is used in high-performance greases.

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Kinds of soaps-:

Non-toilet soaps
Soaps are key components of most lubricating greases and thickeners.
Greases are usually emulsions of calcium soap or lithium soap and
mineral oil. Many other metallic soaps are also useful, including those
of aluminium, sodium, and mixtures thereof. Such soaps are also used
as thickeners to increase the viscosity of oils. In ancient times,
lubricating greases were made by the addition of lime to olive oil.[5]
Metal soaps are also included in modern artists' oil paints formulations
as a rheology modifier.

Production of metallic soaps

Most heavy metal soaps are prepared by neutralization of purified fatty
acids:
2 RCO2H + CaO → (RCO2)2Ca + H2O

Toilet soaps
In a domestic setting, "soap" usually refers to what is technically called
a toilet soap, used for household and personal cleaning. When used for
cleaning, soap solubilizes particles and grime, which can then be
separated from the article being cleaned. The insoluble oil/fat
molecules become associated inside micelles, tiny spheres formed from
soap molecules with polar hydrophilic (water-attracting) groups on the
outside and encasing a lipophilic (fat-attracting) pocket, which shields
the oil/fat molecules from the water making it soluble. Anything that is
soluble will be washed away with the water.

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Liquid soap
Liquid soap was not invented until the nineteenth century; in 1865,
William Shepphard patented a liquid version of soap. In 1898, B.J.
Johnson developed a soap derived from palm and olive oils; his
company, the B.J. Johnson Soap Company, introduced "Palmolive"
brand soap that same year. This new brand of soap became popular
rapidly, and to such a degree that B.J. Johnson Soap Company changed
its name to Palmolive.
In the early 1900s, other companies began to develop their own liquid
soaps. Such products as Pine-Sol and Tide appeared on the market,
making the process of cleaning things other than skin, such as clothing,
floors, and bathrooms, much easier.
Liquid soap also works better for more traditional or non-machine
washing methods, such as using a washboard.
Soaps and detergents are those substances which are used for cleaning
purposes. Soaps are sodium or potassium salts of higher fatty acids
containing long chains of 15-18 carbon atoms. Some common examples
are sodium stearate, sodium palmitate, sodium oleate, etc. When soap
gets dissolved in water, it forms foam or lather which carries away dirt
and grease by forming emulsion then excess of water is added.

Cleansing action of soap

The cleansing action of soap basically depends upon the foaming

capacity of soap that is the extent to which it forms lather. The foaming
capacity of different soaps can be easily compared by considering the
time taken for the disappearance of foam produced in different soap
solutions of same concentration. Lesser is the time taken for the foam
to disappear, the lower will be the foaming capacity of a soap sample.
Limitations of usage of soap is that it cannot be used in hard water

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because hard water contains certain metal ions like Mg2+and Ca2+.
These ions react with soap and form a curdy white ppt. known as scum.

This scum does not form emulsions and hence, are not able to remove
oil, fat or grease from cloths thus, reducing the cleansing capacity of
the soap.

Na2CO3 can be used to remove hardness of water as it causes the

precipitation of Ca2+ and Mg2+ ions in the form of their carbonates.

Ca2+ + Na2CO3 CaCO3 + 2Na+

Mg2++ Na2CO3 MgCO3 + 2Na+

Therefore, addition of sodium carbonate to the soap solution removes

Ca2+ and Mg2+ ions and finally, increases the foaming capacity of soap.

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Uses of soap:-

1. Drive nails easier with less risk of splitting the wood, by first rubbing
it on the nail shank.

2. Smooth caulk beads with a moistened finger.

3. Remove wallpaper glue by mixing with warm water and sponging it

on the walls.

4. Lubricate the metal rails of sticking desk drawers.

5. Clean dirty windowsills by running the wet edge of a bar along them.

6. Turn screws more easily by dabbing it onto the threads.

7. Keep garden bugs off plant leaves by mixing it with water and
spraying the solution on the leaves' undersides.

8. Cut a straighter line with a hand saw by coating the blade with it.

9. Detect gas leaks by mixing it with with water and rubbing it on

suspect pipe joints; if bubbles form, you have a problem.

10. Snap aluminum or vinyl siding into place easier with a zip tool that's
been dapped with the liquid.

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 Some facts about soaps

 The first record of soap use was around 3000 BC. Sumerians were
using soap solutions of water and ash mixed with animal fat to
clean dishes and wool (in preparation for dyeing).
 Ancient Roman legend suggests soap derived its name from
Mount Sapo. From here, rainwater washed melted animal fats
and wood ash (both from sacrifices) into the river below, where
the soapy mixture was found to benefit the washing of clothes.
 Soap is thought to have arrived in England around the 13th
century, to be used for preparing wool and cloth for dyeing,
rather than for personal hygiene.
 1868 BJ Johnson developed the first formula for liquid soap, made
from palm and olive oils. He called it, Palmolive. The first liquid
soap for household cleaning soon followed, made from pine oil.

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 Experiment

Aim:-
To study the foaming capacity of different washing soaps.

Materials required:-

 Test tube :4
 Glass Rod :1
 Beakers :4
 Graduated cylinder :1
 Stopwatch :1
 Burner :1
 Tripod Stand :1
 Different brands of soap :4
 Distilled water : 500 ml

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Procedure:-

Investigation of foaming capacity of different washing soaps

1. 1 g of each of the different samples of soap were weighed.

2. These samples were dissolved separately in 100 mL of distilled water
taken in different beakers labelled as A,B,C,and D.
3. The solutions were warmed to dissolve the soap completely.
4. 2 mL of the soap solution was taken from the beakers A, B, C, D in
separate 20 mL test tubes labelled as A', B',C', and D' respectively. All
these four test tubes were arranged on a test tube stand.
5. 10 ml of distilled water was added to the test tube A' and the mouth
of the tube was closed with the help of a cork and etc. and it was
shaked upside down for 2 mins and that foam increased uniformly. It
was kept.
6. Foams were produced in the test tube A'. The time taken for the
foam to settle down was noticed.
7. The steps were repeated with other samples of soaps and the
observations were noted in table.

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OBSERVATION:-

The following observations were made-

Amount of soap taken = 1.0 g
Volume of distilled water added = 100 mL
Volume of soap solution taken in each test tube = 2 mL
Volume of distilled water added to the soapsolution = 10 mL
Time for which each test tube shaken = 2 min

S. NO Soap Sample Time taken for disappearance

of foam of 2mm (in min and
sec)
1. Lux 3’28”

2. Santoor 16’32”

3. Dove 11’42”

4. Cinthol 9’40”

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 CONCLUSION
This is the order of the cleansing capacity of the soaps taken into
account:-
Santoor>Dove>Cinthol>Lux

The soaps for which the time taken for the disappearance of foam is
highest has maximum foaming capacity and is the best quality soap
among the soaps tested. Also foaming capacity of soap is maximum in
distilled water and is least in hard water because in hard water scum
formation takes place.

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 Bibliography

 Chemistry LAB MANUAL class-11

 www.google.com
 www.wikipedia.org
 www.thechemistryguru.com

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 NOTE OF CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that ______________________ of class XI B4 of

HARIYANA VIDYA MANDIR has completed his chemistry investigatory
project entitled “FOAMING CAPACITIES OF SOAPS” under my
supervision for the session 2018-19.

__________________

Signature of Examiner

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