If you have ever wondered how does soap clean, you have found out that you need to learn a bit of molecular chemistry first. Here is a short version of the process.
Molecules are groups of two or more similar atoms that are electrically bonded together. It was once thought that molecules were part of a neat orderly progression from atoms upward to visible matter, but that is not completely true. Some substances such as rocks do not have molecules at all. Most things do though including grease and oils that tend to adhere to the skin of the body.
Another thing that consists of molecules is soap. Now, when you get dirt on your hands, for example, you can take water and wash your hands. This will remove much of the dirt because much of the dirt is water soluble. This means that the dirt molecules get mixed up with the water molecules and just float away right off your hands. The grease and oil molecules are not water soluble. In fact, they have a tendency to cling with tenacity to the molecules of the skin.
The molecules of soap, due to their unique chemical and electrical makeup, act as handles or connectors between the grease and oil and the water. It might be said that the soap is making the not-water-soluble soluble, but it is actually more complicated. The soap molecules are actually attaching to the molecules of the grease and to the molecules of the water. Therefore, they all just float away together like the soluble dirt.
One of the problems with soap is that this process sometimes gets carried away. Natural body oils are also attached to the soap and water and are removed. This leads to dry, chapped, but very clean skin. This is why many soaps have certain oils added to them to replace the natural oil that might be removed. The glycerol that was a part of the soap making process in olden times went a long way toward keeping the skin soft and oiled, but today, glycerol is mostly removed to be used for other things.
This answers the question of how does soap clean in the simplest terms. The actual chemical processes involve a lot of letters and numbers of the kind that baffled many of us in Chemistry class. Although in recent years, detergents of various types have replaced soap in many cleaning applications, soap is much more environmentally friendly. It is also a boon to our health as a lot of microorganisms that are not really good for us like to hang out in that grease and oil clinging to our skin. Luckily, the same chemical bond that makes the process work removes them as well.
Molecules are groups of two or more similar atoms that are electrically bonded together. It was once thought that molecules were part of a neat orderly progression from atoms upward to visible matter, but that is not completely true. Some substances such as rocks do not have molecules at all. Most things do though including grease and oils that tend to adhere to the skin of the body.
Another thing that consists of molecules is soap. Now, when you get dirt on your hands, for example, you can take water and wash your hands. This will remove much of the dirt because much of the dirt is water soluble. This means that the dirt molecules get mixed up with the water molecules and just float away right off your hands. The grease and oil molecules are not water soluble. In fact, they have a tendency to cling with tenacity to the molecules of the skin.
The molecules of soap, due to their unique chemical and electrical makeup, act as handles or connectors between the grease and oil and the water. It might be said that the soap is making the not-water-soluble soluble, but it is actually more complicated. The soap molecules are actually attaching to the molecules of the grease and to the molecules of the water. Therefore, they all just float away together like the soluble dirt.
One of the problems with soap is that this process sometimes gets carried away. Natural body oils are also attached to the soap and water and are removed. This leads to dry, chapped, but very clean skin. This is why many soaps have certain oils added to them to replace the natural oil that might be removed. The glycerol that was a part of the soap making process in olden times went a long way toward keeping the skin soft and oiled, but today, glycerol is mostly removed to be used for other things.
This answers the question of how does soap clean in the simplest terms. The actual chemical processes involve a lot of letters and numbers of the kind that baffled many of us in Chemistry class. Although in recent years, detergents of various types have replaced soap in many cleaning applications, soap is much more environmentally friendly. It is also a boon to our health as a lot of microorganisms that are not really good for us like to hang out in that grease and oil clinging to our skin. Luckily, the same chemical bond that makes the process work removes them as well.
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