What is the difference between soaps and detergents? State in brief the cleansing action of soaps in removing an oily spot from a fabric. Why are soaps not very effective when a fabric is washed in hard water? How is this problem resolved?
Answers
the soap is in solid form and the detergent is present in solid but it is bread
Soaps
Explanation:
The Difference between the chemical composition of soaps and detergents are as follows:
- Soaps are sodium (Na) salts or Potassium (K) salts of some long chain carboxylic acids (COOH) but detergents are ammonium or sulphurated salts of COOH.
- Soaps don't lather with hardwater but detergents can.
- Soaps are biodegradable, but detergents are not.
- Soaps are mild cleansing agents, while detergents are strong cleansing agents.
When a dirty cloth with an oily spot is put in water containing dissolved soap, the oil is not dissolved in water. The soap molecules are salts of sodium and potassium of long chain carboxylic acid. The acid end of soap is hydrophilic and gets dissolved in water and the carbon chain dissolves in oil. Soap forms a micelles structure in which one end of the soap molecule is attached to the oil droplet and the other end towards the water. The formation of soap micelles thus removes oil from the shirt.
The hardwater reacts with soap and results in formation of calcium and magnesium salts. So, soaps don't lather in hardwater. Hence the dirt won't be removed from the clothes.
Sodium carbonate (Na2CO3), also known as washing soda, can soften both temporary and permanent hard water. You can also use a water softener to solve this problem.