The Effect of Coconut Oil Concentrations on Soap

1. The Effect of Coconut Oil Concentrations on Soap Sara Sheridan

2. Question • How do different concentrations of coconut oil used in the saponification process affect the cleaning abilities of soap?

3. Background Information • First records of soap were found in Egyptian ruins • Soap: salt of a fatty acid • Saponification: process through which soap is made • Natural saponification: glycerin is not removed • Purification of soap requires sodium hycroxide • Curds are washed with water • Soap molecules are essentially fatty acid chains • Soap is used to remove dirt and oils from other solutions and surfaces • There are many different types of soap: vegetable oil, sodium tallowate, etc.

4. Hypothesis • If three different concentrations of coconut oil are used during saponificationthen the highest concentrated soap will be the most effective and produce the most amount of suds.

5. Materials • Coconut oil • Sodium hydroxide solution, 3 M • Distilled water • Stirring rod • Supersaturated sodium chloride solution • Cheesecloth • Filter paper • Soap mold • Peppermint oil • (1) 500 mL graduated cylinders • 3 (50) mL graduated cylinders • 3(200) mL graduated cylinders • Stirring rods • Beaker tongs • Hot plate • Parafilm

6. Procedure (Saponification) • Place 10 mL coconut oil and 15 mL of 3 M sodium hydroxide into a 100-mL beaker • Using a hot plate, heat the mixture to a gentle boil. Stir constantly for twenty minutes. • Wash this crude soap mixture with 15 mL of distilled water and 5 mL of hot saturated sodium chloride (“salting out” the soap). • Break up lumps of soap with a stirring rod • Decant the wash solution by pouring it through the cheesecloth. • Repeat the washing procedure twice. • After the last washing, press the soap between two pieces of filter paper to expel as much water as possible • Add a few drops of peppermint oil, pack it into the soap mold, and let it dry overnight. • Unmold the soap and test its sudsing ability.

7. Procedure (Sudsing) • Mix .5 grams of each variation of soap with 10 mL of water in a 50 mL graduated cylinder • Cover the graduated cylinder with Parafilm • Shake consistently for 2 minutes straight • Measure volume of suds

10. Variables • Temperature of water during saponification process • Temperature of water during testing process • Consistency of shaking • Purity of coconut oil • Temperature of coconut oil solution • 10 mL of coconut oil did not produce enough soap for sufficient or equal trials

11. Conclusion • It can be concluded that the soap with the highest concentration of coconut oil produced the most suds. This suggests that the fattier a soap is, the more able it is to dissolve oils and dirt from other solutions. The 30 mL concentration produced the most suds therefore making the hypothesis accepted. • To further this experiment, the sodium hydroxide solution could be boiled at different increments and/or the crude soap could be washed more or less times. • The qualitative results also suggest that the more oil in soap, the more moisturizing it is.