Soap Is A Salt Of A Fatty Acid

Published Date: 02 Nov 2017

Soap is a salt of a fatty acid. Soaps have many uses but mainly the use of removing uncleanly entities from surfaces such as the human body, textiles and other inanimate objects. It can also be used as lubricants for equipment and machinery. As Wikipedia explains: �Soaps for cleansing are obtained by treating vegetable or animal oils and fats with a strongly�alkaline�solution. Fats and oils are composed of triglycerides; three molecules of fatty acids are attached to a single molecule of�glycerol.�The alkaline solution, which is often called�lye�(although the term "lye soap" refers almost exclusively to soaps made with�sodium hydroxide), brings about a�chemical reaction�known as�saponification. In saponification, the fats are first hydrolyzed into free fatty acids, which then combine with the alkali to form crude soap. Glycerol (glycerine) is liberated and is either left in or washed out and recovered as a useful byproduct, depending on the process employed.�

Soap was first discovered in ancient Babylon in 2800 BC where the production of soap type materials was seen on a clay tablet. Their formula for soap consisted of water,�alkali, and�cassia�oil. The Ebers Papyrus which is an�Egyptian medical terminology paper, found in 1550 BC, recorded that the Egyptians bathed regularly using a soap-like substance that contained the combination of animal and vegetable oils with alkaline. In the reign of�Nabonidus, 556�539 BC, a recipe for soap contained�uhulu�(ashes), cypress (oil) and sesame (seed oil).

The word�sapo, Latin for soap, appears in some ancient roman inscriptions however it was originally used for the cleansing of woman�s hair. A popular belief claims soap takes its name from a supposed�Mount Sapo, where animal sacrifices were supposed to have taken place; tallow from these sacrifices would then have mixed with ashes from fires associated with these sacrifices and with water to produce soap. This cannot be substantiated as there is no reference of this in the main roman history books. Later on in circa�300 AD, Zosimos of Panopolis describes soap and soap making. He mainly used it for cleaning items and animals rather than humans.

A 12th century Islamic document describes the process of soap production.�It mentions the key ingredient,�alkali, which later becomes crucial to modern chemistry, derived from�al-qaly�or "ashes". In medieval times there were a group of soap makers in Naples in the late sixteenth century and in the eighth century, soap making was well known in Italy and Spain. From the fifteenth century soap production was a semi-industrialized industry in France and was only made in a few big cities. From the 16th century onwards the finer soaps were being produced in Europe from vegetable and animal fats with alkaline. From there it has been soap as we know it today. Since then there have six types of main soaps found today: Novelty soaps, perfumed soaps, guest soaps, medicated soaps, laundry soaps and kitchen soaps.

There are quite a few differences between soaps and detergents as well. As a start Soap is a substance called a surfactant that is used with water for washing and cleaning a variety of objects and detergent refers to any substance, soapy or not, that aids in cleaning. Soaps refer to things like bar soap, liquid hand soap, etc. Detergents refer to water, ammonia based cleaners, etc. Soap is vegetable or animal fat and alkali combined at high temperatures then cooled to make the bar. Detergents are anything that can be used to make something cleaner. Soap comes in bar and liquid form. It is mainly used to clean the human body. Soap is good for removing oils and dirt due to its molecular structure. One end of the soap foams and captures dirt while the other can be washed away by water which easily removes the dirt from the soap. Detergents are used for almost any cleaning purpose as they can be used to break down the chemical compounds of dirt or removing it through thorough scrubbing. Soap is technically classified as a detergent so in essence they both have the same person for cleaning but they just have different ways of achieving their goals.

When soap was originally used it did not have a major economic impact as it was mainly used for the purpose of cleanliness amongst the Babylon items and textiles. As time progressed soap was focused on for cleanliness rather than profit as the earlier civilizations weren�t entirely focused on economic control. Soap was not even widely accepted until about the fifteenth century as people in the dark ages were not the biggest fans of cleanliness. Soap was being sold from about the fifteenth century where factories were built in France to mass produce it and to cover costs the French sold it for a profit. In colonial America it was rural, soap making remained widely dispersed, and no large producers emerged. By the eve of the American Revolution, however, the colonies had developed a minor export market; in 1770 they sent more than 86,000 pounds of soap worth �2,165 to the West Indies. The Revolution interrupted this trade, and it never recovered. The growth of cities and the textile industry in the early nineteenth century increased soap usage and stimulated the rise of soap-making companies. Around 1840 Cincinnati had taken advantage of the soap and trade and had established seven soap factories within the town.

A major change in soap making occurred in the 1840s when manufacturers began to replace lye made from wood ashes with soda ash, a lye made through a chemical process. Almost all soap makers also produced tallow candles, which for many was their major business. Around then there were no brands, no advertising was directed at consumers, and most soap factories remained small before the Civil War. Around the 1900s the candle making Industry diminished and so soap makers stopped it. Major competition was now taking place as soap manufacturers were beginning to brand their soaps and sell them off as being better as others. Around this time companies started infusing scents with their candles in order to promote them as �bathroom soaps�. By 1962 major soap firms spent approximately $250 million per year for advertising, of which 90 percent was television advertising. From then on soap has been sold widely as it is seen as a basic human need, the need for hygiene.

The positive effects of soap are:

* Keeps your body hygienic

* Prevents the spread of harmful germs

* Prevents diseases such as

a. Diarrhoeal disease (which can include shigellosis, typhoid and cholera)

b. Acute respiratory infections

c. Helminth infections (especially ascariasis)

d. Eye infections

* Prevents body odor

The negative effects of soap are:

* The use of alkali as a product of making soap is detrimental to the environment

* Due to soap capturing and removing germs it could potentially remove germs that are actually helpful.

* Due to soap spreading in water it kills some aquatic life due to its high alkali contained within

Soap had a huge impact on the general public as it increased hygiene. Good hygiene increases a lifespan and overall keeps a person and the people around them happier. At first the general public weren�t too accepting towards a massive change and a new idea as common society is. As the benefits of soap became obvious people started to accept and enjoy its benefits. The spread of diseases was decreased and general populous health and lifespan increased. Soap was now being used for many purposes, such as lubricant, cleaning humans and cleaning textiles. The demand for soap increased as the population grew and as the human mind developed, learning that cleanliness is the way to go. The population was growing much quicker now as there were not as many diseases that could be spread quickly around to kill some of the population.

Soap was used without a doubt for many years until humans became environmentally conscious and started questioning everything�s environmental impact. Soap was criticized for using alkali as some argue it and the chlorine-alkali industry such as chlorine bleaching of wood pulp and dioxin emissions to the environment and Mercury emissions are harmful to the environment. They contribute harmful chemicals that negatively the wildlife and humans within the environment. Even so People still use soap as it serves its purpose and keeps everyone clean without any detrimental side effects.

Soap has two main raw components: Fat and alkali. Fat is off any animals and their byproducts. In�chemistry, an�alkali is a�basic,�ionic�salt�of an�alkali metal�or�alkaline earth metal�element. Fat is always in constant supply as it is a product of animals. As long as we have animals we have fat. If the animals were to go extint then the fat would become in shortage and the soap making industry would be in danger. As the population increases the constant need for food is increasing and our domestic animal populations, such as cows, sheep and chickens, are being deteriorated because their reproduction cannot keep up with human reproduction.

Alkali is in danger anyway. Alkaline is one of the many earth metals that are being used up too quickly. Alkali is just a byproduct of alkaline so if alkaline is finished so is the alkali. Alkaline is used in batteries to power electronics. The constant need for humans to utilize electronics requires more alkaline which puts pressure on the supplies. This limits the supply of alkali available to utilize for soap making. It is said that some alkali was used from plant ashes from the past but that wold make matters worse as people would start burning the environment for some alkali to make soap.

The chlorine-alkali industry is an important part of the chemical industry, and produces�chlorine�and�sodium hydroxide�through the electrolysis of table salt (NaCl). The main raw material is�brine�which is a saturated solution of sodium chloride (NaCl) that is obtained from natural salt deposits. Electrolytic cells are used to transform reactants into products by using electric current. They are made up of an�electrolyte�and two electrodes, the�cathode�and the�anode. An electrolytic cell is activated by applying an external electrical current. This creates an electrical potential across the cathode and anode, and forces a chemical reaction to take place in the electrolyte. Cations flow towards the cathode and are reduced. Anions flow to the anode and are oxidized. Two new products are formed, one product at the cathode and one at the anode.

Sodium hydroxide has a number of uses, which include making soap and other cleaning agents, purifying bauxite (the ore of aluminium), making paper and making artificial silk. It is due to this that some materials are then used to make soap. The sodium hydroxide is a component in making the actual soap. The industry does some environmental damage such as chlorine bleaching of wood pulp due to its processing. This is just the byproduct of this as the actual process does not damage the environment. Without the chlor-alkali industry soap makers would be without sodium hydroxide which is a component in making the actual soap.

As we can see soap is an interesting topic. IT has origins dating back to the Babylon�s in 2800BC and has been used up until today. The soap is helping humanities health and life span while not detrimentally hurting the environment. Its uses are known throughout and it gets help from the chlorine-alkali industry. Without soap we would be quite dirty.