GHULAM ISHAQ KHAN INSTITUTE OF
ENGINEERING
SCIENCES AND TECHNOLOGY (GIKI)
Faculty of Materials and Chemical Engineering
CHEMICAL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT
Fall Semester-2024
Applied Chemistry and Process Industry Lab (CH-251-L)
“Soap analysis”
Lab report
Done by: Fatima 2023203, Khadija Javed 2023275
Experiment Date: Tuesday, 26th, Nov. 2024
Submission Date: Tuesday, 3rd Dec. 2024
Lab. Engineer: Engr. Muhammad Amad Ud Din
Lab. Instructor: Lec. Hamza Nasir
Table of Contents
Introduction 2
Theory 2
Objective 2
Variables 2
Instruments / Apparatus 3
Safety 3
Procedure 4
Results 4
Calculations 5
Conclusion 5
Contributions 6
References 7
1
Introduction
Soap has been a commodity since the ancient Babylonians first discovered it in 2800 BC.
Saponification is the chemical process that produces soap from fats, oils, or base. The
saponification process has remained fairly unchanged over the centuries. Soap production mainly
consists of oils, fats and basic (alkaline) solutions. Animal and vegetable fats, both could be used
to create the soap. Although different fats and oils have different melting temperatures as well as
cooling temperatures which means their cooking processes can differ slightly. The experiment
below will be creating soap with caster oil and sodium hyrdoxide, specifically castor oil,
coconut oil and almond oil, to test which will create the best soap.
Theory
Soap is a salt, more specifically it is a a fatty acid. A fatty acid is a molecule composed of
a long hyrdocarbon chain with a carboxyl group at one end. (-COOH). Saturated fatty acids are
soild in room tempreture. The soap molecules have two parts a hydrophobic tail which is
nonpolar and repels water but attracts oils and fats. Hydrophilic heads which is polar and
interacts with the water. When soap interacts with water the hydrophobic tails of the soap
molecules are attracted to the oils and or dirt while the hydrophilic heads stay in the water. They
form tiny structures micelles where the oily substances are trapped inside the core.
Objective
The experiment's objectives are to teach participants how to make soap and analyze the
fat content of the soap.
Variables
Table 1: Independent, dependent, and controlled variables
Independent variables The amount of sodium hydroxide solution
Dependent variables The stability and amount of fat and soap created.
Controlled variables
2
Temperature: Lab and burner. The temperature of the lab should be set to room temperature
or cool environment to prevent the saponification process
before it is required. As the temperature increases the rate of
saponification and in turn creates soap much more quickly.
The temperature of the burner also needs to be controlled,
and kept high so as not to slow down the process and let the
soap completely mix and infuse together. So the temperature
should be high and about 76-95℃
Amount of oil The amount of oil and the ratio of it added needs to be
controlled to make sure the soap won't be too oily in the end
or mostly end up being more oil than any soap. The castor oil
will be the controlled with having at least 20 ml.
The amount of sodium The solution cannot be over concentrated or too less it needs
hydroxide solution to be the right amount as to not affect the soap making
process poorly
Instruments / Apparatus
(i) Castor Oil
(ii) Sodium Hydroxide
(iii) 40 % Sodium chloride
(iv) Distilled Water
(vi) Beakers; two (50 ml) beakers + stirrer
(viii) Weight machine
(ix) Burner
Safety
When handling sodium hydroxide it is important to wear gloves and protective gear and
handle it carefully once added to water. Sodium hydroxide tends to react with water creating a lot
of excess heat and it can damage the skin if the solution touches it. Also while handling the heat
3
bath it is also important to stay safe from the boiling water and its stream so as to not damage
your skin. contamination. Perform in a well-ventilated area or in a fume hood if fumes are
produced. Know the locations of emergency equipment like eye wash stations and fire
extinguishers.
Procedure
Step 1:Preparation of NaOH Solution
1. Pour 10 ml castor oil in a 50 ml beaker.
2. Take 4 grams of NaOH in a separate beaker and add water til its total solution is 100 ml.
3. Mix it with the caster oil and quickly put it on the busen burner. Stir thoroughly until
mixed so that the mixture is thick. Minimum 5 mins.
4. Add NaCl to remove the moisture.
5. After a solid soap is formed test the weight, check if it suds and dehydrate it to check its
fat level.
Results
Table 2: data table of results.
4.45g NaOH + Distilled water 6g = 11.9g total solution
Total weight of soap = 21.8g
Oven at 105 C for 2 hrs 48.9- 42.8= 6.1g
Volume of caster oil 10 ml
Empty dish= 42.8g
4
Calculations
Using the formula of
M1V1=M2V2 -- (formula 1)
We can use this try to find the theoretical weight of the soap.
Knowns:
Mass of Castor oil (𝑀1) = 932 𝐷𝑎
932×1.660539×10−24=1.547722×10^−21 grams
Density of Castor oil (𝜌) = 0.969 𝑔/𝑚𝐿
So,
Mass of Castor oil used (𝑚) =𝑉×𝜌 = 9.69𝑔
Moles of Castor oil (𝑥1) = m1/M2 = 0.010397 𝑚𝑜𝑙
Moles of 𝑁𝑎𝑂𝐻 required (𝑥2) = 3 × 0.010397 = 0.031190𝑚𝑜𝑙
Molar mass of 𝑁𝑎𝑂𝐻 (𝑀2) = 40 𝑔/𝑚𝑜𝑙
Mass of 𝑁𝑎𝑂𝐻 (𝑚2) = 0.031190 × 40= 1.2476𝑔
Theoretical yield of soap = 9.69 + 1.2476= 10.9376𝑔
Actual yield of soap = 6.1g
Percentage yield = (6.1/ 10.9376) x 100= 55.7%
5
Conclusion
The results of the soap-making experiment show that while the actual yield was 6.1g the
theoretical yield, the expected amount of soap produced based on stoichiometry of the reaction,
being 10.93g. Using the formula we find the percentage yield as 55.7%. There are many reasons
as to why this could have happened, an incomplete reaction, maybe the caster oil or hydroxide
wasnt mixed correctly, incorrect ratio, the reaction conditions such as it might have been left on
the bunsen burner. Hydrolysis or soap demcompostion might have occurred reducing the yield.
Other human errors could be the measuring or purity of the oil.
Further discussion
If the experiment is repeated, the ratio could be altered and the batch sizes could also be
increased. Adding ethanol to see what it would do. Other additives can also be added to see their
effect on the soaps. Some improvements can be to minimize human errors make sure the
materials used were pure and of course minimize any errors.
Contributions
Fatima (2023203): Results, Conclusion and further discussions, Molarity and Graph calculations
references introduction Theory
Khadija (2023275): Procedure Instruments safety objective Variables
6
REFERENCES
1 The castor bean (no date) Castor Bean Plant. Available at:
https://web.archive.org/web/20211115044547/https://www2.palomar.edu/users/warmstron
g/plmar99.htm (Accessed: 03 December 2024).
2 A explain the process of preparation of soap in the laboratory. B why is common salt
sodium chloride added during the preparation of soap? C why is soap not suitable for
washing clothes when the water is hard? (no date) byju. Available at:
https://byjus.com/question-answer/a-explain-the-process-of-preparation-of-soap-in-the-lab
oratory-b-why-is-common/ (Accessed: 03 December 2024).
3 Jabr, F. (2020) Why soap works, Yale School of Medicine. Available at:
https://medicine.yale.edu/news-article/why-soap-works/ (Accessed: 03 December 2024).
4 Theenglishsoapcompany.com (no date) Robot Challenge Screen. Available at:
https://theenglishsoapcompany.com/.well-known/sgcaptcha/?r=%2Fhow-does-soap-work
%2F&y=ipr%3A182.176.222.244%3A1733217199.120 (Accessed: 03 December 2024).
5 “Applied Chemistry and Process Industry applied chemistry Lab Manual (CH-251-L)”
Sept. 2024 GHULAM ISHAQ KHAN INSTITUTE OF ENGINEERING SCIENCES
AND TECHNOLOGY (GIKI) Faculty of Materials and Chemical Engineering
CHEMICAL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT
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TECHNOLOGY (GIKI) logo
