CHAPTER ONE
1.0 INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND
Soap is the earliest detergent know to man and
apparently was first made by the Romans from animal fats and oil and wood ash
which is an alkali that contains potassium carbonate, sodium, potassium
hydroxide called potash leached from the wood ash (Robert, 1994). It is also an unsaturated ester since an
ester can be split into an alcohol and a carboxylic acid by hydrolysis. Meaning that it does not contain all the
solutes that can be dissolve at a particular temperature (Kirt Othmer, 1994). Also soap is a metallic salt of a fatty acid
because if a metallic base is used in the hydrolysis instead of water, the
metallic salt of the carboxylic acid is obtained, not the acid because
carboxylic acid are weak acid which dissociates only slightly in solution
(Hou, 1992).
1.2 Soap can be defined as the sodium or potassium salt of fatty
acids, made by heating fats and oil with caustic soda or caustic potash
respectively (Cook 1990).
Most soap was manufactured by an alkaline hydrolysis
reaction called the Saponification, which is the reaction of fats and oil with
alkali.
C3H5
(COOR)3 + 3KOH 3KOOCR + C3H5 (OH)
(where R – represent the
hydrocarbon chain) also according to the equation above, soaps was made in huge
keittes into which fat and oil and alkali were piped and heated until it boils
vigorously.
Saponification is the process used in making soap
since ancient times, soaps have been made from vegetable and animal oil and
fats looked in alkali (Kott, NaoH) (Steiner, 1990). Soap and detergent are both cleaning agents
and both work in the same way, but soap cleanse with the natural occurring
materials such as animal fat and wood ash.
1.3 TYPES OF SOAP
In the world of soap manufacturing, there are
basically three types of soap, under them they are classified according to
their categories:
(1) Foreign Soap
These
are soap that is medically investigated to cure a skin diseases. Examples:
(a) Medicated soap
i. Antiseptic
soap
ii. Germicidic
soap
iii. Herbal
soap
(b) Tablets Soap
These are soap that is operated and purified, dyes
and perfumed added, to make the skin mild.
Example: i. Toilet Soap
ii. Bar Soap
(c) Local Soap
These are meant for a purpose not medically
investigated but meant for cleaning ability.
a. Black soap
b. Sida Soap.
But here we are basically on the one made from Local
raw material, which is the black soap (Ncha Nkota).
1.4 AIM AND OBJECTIVES
I. AIM
Preparation of soap using local raw
materials.
II. OBJECTIVES
1. To prepare
local soap with woodash derived from the calyx and the corolla of palm flower (Ejeasis
Guineensis), which serves as an alkali.
2. To know the
trees in which caustic alkali can be obtained apart from palm tree (Eleasis
Guineensis).
3. To improve the
properly preparation of local soap and high quality local soap.
4. To educate some
illiterate local soap producers on how to set a standard in the production of
local soap and still retain its effectiveness and for a wider acceptability.
5. To create
awareness on the need and importance of locally made soap analysis.
6. To make known
to or enlighten especially the local soap producers (both urban and rural
manufacturers) on the best and exact quantity or raw materials and methods to
use to achieve better results in their products.
7.
This research project could as well as form basis for
further research work on local soaps analysis in this institution.
1.5 STATEMENT OF PROBLEMS
The problems why people are no longer interested in
the local soap is because it causes irritation of the skin; Reason, because
they are not medically investigated and are not dirtiness causes dust, grief
and stiffs on fabrics in the heading process becaus3 of the inaccurate
measurement of the alkali and inability to bring out the purest form of the
alkali. Also some smokes and wood particles
enter into the pot of soap on stirring because of inability to maintain a
hygienic on cooking and on stirring.
1.6 HYPOTHESIS
H1 : Raw
Materials can be used in making local soaps
Ho : Raw
materials can not be used in making local soap.
1.7 SIGNIFICANCE
This soap includes “Builders” as alkaline compound,
which improve the cleansing efficiencies, example, in washing of cloth, washing
of plate and washing of kitchen utensils.
1.8 LIMITATION OF THESE STUDIES
This research work is limited by the extraction of
alkali to manufacture good quality local soap with the leaching process and
filtration method and it’s cr6stallization.