Soft soap

Soft soap - potassium salts of fatty acids

Potassium oleate, the potassium salt of oleic acid.

Potassium palmitate, the potassium salt of palmitic acid.

Potassium stearate, the potassium salt of stearic acid.

Soft soaps, also known as green soaps , are pasty and liquid soaps that are made from mostly inferior fats with potassium hydroxide . They therefore belong to the potassium soaps . In contrast, the sodium salts of the higher fatty acids are solid and are called sodium soaps . During production, the raw soaps contain glycerine, alkali and salts. For cleaning, the raw soaps are separated from the aqueous phase. The raw soaps are mixed with hot water and a homogeneous liquid is formed. While the curd soaps are precipitated by adding sodium chloride , this salting out does not occur with the soft soaps. For use, additives such as cellulose ether , potassium carbonate and flavorings are often added to the soft soap solution.

Both types of soap are surface-active as anionic surfactants and reduce the surface and interfacial tension in an aqueous solution. The washing effect is based on the fact that the surfaces of the substances to be cleaned are wetted and the dirt and oily substances are emulsified and distributed in the washing solution.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ JG Krünitz: Economic Encyclopedia (1773-1858), online version, keyword soap, "The soft, green, black or smear soap".
2. ↑ LF Fieser, M. Fieser; in: Textbook of Organic Chemistry ; Verlag Chemie, 1957, 3rd edition, p. 479.
3. ^ Bassermann; in: The new large colored lexicon ; 1988, ISBN 3-8094-0002-5 , p. 640.
4. ↑ LF Fieser, M. Fieser; in: Textbook of Organic Chemistry ; Verlag Chemie, 1957, 3rd edition, p. 480.

literature

• A. Wollrab: Organic Chemistry: An Introduction for Teacher and minor students . Springer, 2002, p. 546.

Web links

Wiktionary: Schmierseife  - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations