Soap helps in better cleaning of clothes because____________.
Answers
The soap molecule has two different ends, one that is hydrophilic (polar head) that binds with water and the other that is hydrophobic (non-polar hydrocarbon tail) that binds with grease and oil. When greasy dirt or oil is mixed with soapy water, the soap molecules arrange themselves into tiny clusters. And as clothes are cleaned with water, dirt is washed away.
It reduces the surface tension of water.
Explanation: The soap is the common product used for cleaning. The soap is from a chemical process called saponification. The soap has both hydrophilic and hydrophobic compound. This dual quality helps to remove dirt by reducing surface tension. When one rubs the soap on a dirty cloth, the hydrophobic molecule of the soap holds the dirt molecule on cloth, and the hydrophilic molecule holds the water. On rubbing, the hydrophobic molecule pulls the dirt and forms a micelle. The micelle is a shell of the soap compounds with dirt in its centre. The hydrophilic molecules are mostly present in the outer layer of the micelle. When one the cloth dips in the water, the hydrophilic molecules in micelle holds water and pulls the dirt out. In this process, since all the soap compounds are from fats and oils, it reduces the surface tension.