The preparation of soap from fat and lye
has been, historically, a household task. Only in
the last century has the making of soap become
a commercial undertaking. Our ancestors made
soap by boiling animal fats with the lye obtained
from leaching wood ashes. In this experiment,
we will make soap by the same process, called
sponification, but will use modern ingredients.
In the process of making soap, animal fat, which is a triglyceride, is hydrolyzed by the action of a strong base, such as sodium hydroxide and heat. The resulting products are soap and glycerol.