soap question (1 Viewer)

[*sarah*]

Could anyone help me with the following dot point?

distinguish between soaps and synthetic detergents in terms of the structure of the molecule, chemical composition, effect in hard water

thanks heaps

 

[Heinz]

Synthetic detergents use the SO₃- (anionic detergent) as the hydrophilic part of the molecule, while soaps use a carboxyl COO- group. Soaps are ineffective in hard water as they form an insoluble precipitate with calcium or magnesium ions. Synthetic detergents however do not form a precipitate and so are effective for cleaning in hard water.