Soap Dissintegration

This experiment is going to be testing the type of soap that dissolves the most in water. The experiment could help consumers by allowing them to choose a soap that doesn’t dissolve as much. This experiment is going to test the type of soap that dissolves the most in water by placing a cube of soap in the bottle with water. This bottle is going to be shaken for a minute and a half. Then the cube will be weighed and tested. This will be repeated ten times or each type of soap. When tested the results in this experiment varied from ¼ ounces and 1/8 ounces. If the soap cube ended as ¼ ounce, that means the soap didn’t dissolve in a minute and thirty seconds. This experiment proved my hypothesis to be correct because ivory soap did dissolve more.

Research

This experiment is testing the speed of which bar of soap will dissolve the fastest in water. To test this experiment, I would need to know the ingredients in soap, why soap disintegrates, and how long it takes for soap to dissolve. The independent variable in this experiment is the brand of soap. The dependent variable in this experiment is how fast the soap will dissolve. This report will answer all these questions and explain the independent and dependent variables.

“Soap - The History of Soap” says, “It is unknown exactly when soap was discovered. Ancient writings suggest it was known to the Phoenicians as early as around 600 B.C…” Soap in 600 B.C was less sophisticated than now. Also, in 600 B.C (and later) soap was only for the opulent people. People in the Middle Ages were using soap, too. “Today I Found Out” states, “…the Crusaders developed a taste for soap and brought the recipe to make Aleppo soap from olive oil back to Europe from the Middle East…” After this happened, many people wanted to make soap all over Spain.

The definition of soap is, “A substance that is used for washing something” according to Merriam-Webster. Soap helps free your body from harmful bacteria. The cleansing action of soap comes from soaps ability to surround oil particles then the oil particles distribute in water. Water then washes the oil away. Soap is technically a salt. When grease and dirt are mixed with soap and water, the molecules in soap cluster up and become micelles (How Does Soap Work, Chargin Valley). Sometimes soap is insoluble. This happens when hard water and soap are mixed.

Many soap companies spend lots of money on advertising and building their soap products perfectly. According to “Today I Found Out”, “P&G spent more than $400,000 a year on advertising in the early 1900s, an amount equivalent to $10,000,000 today.” These companies are willing to spend so much money because customers will buy their products and continue buying. Bar soap is cheaper than liquid soap which is more appealing to customers.

On Walmart’s website, Irish spring is 3.97 U.S dollars for 8, 3.75 ounce bars. Dial White is 4.39 U.S dollars for 10, 4 ounce bars. Lever 2000 Original is 3.97 U.S for 8, 4 ounce bars. All these prices vary and same as the size of each bar. Earlier in time, soap manufacturers had to pay a tax on soap. Soap was way more expensive than it is nowadays. “Global Soap” says, “1.4 million deaths can be prevented each year by handwashing with soap…Children under 5 who wash with soap can reduce their risk of pneumonia by 46%.” Hand washing is a major benefit of soap.

Soap does dissolve in water. Soap has a molecular structure and some of that structure is attracted to water. When soap enters water the molecules that are attracted to water separate from the bonding soap molecules. The other molecules (disinfecting part) then dissolves in the water. The fatty acids in soap bond with dirt, grease and bacteria molecules which are removed when rinsed.

There are ways to make bar soap from home. Soap is not complicated to create. The makers of soap did not have any sophisticated soap making technology. Soap consists of fatty acids and a type of salt. Bar soaps are normally in the shape of a rectangle. Liquid soaps are a gel-like substance.

Overall, bar soaps have been used for a while. Bar soaps are sometimes beneficial. Bar soaps also include fatty acids, salt and many other ingredients. Bar soaps are helpful to everyone to protect them from harmful bacteria.

Hypothesis

If Ivory soap is shaken in a bottle for one minute and thirty seconds then it will dissolve faster than Lever 2000 because there