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Sodium Carbonate in liquid soap
Hello everyone,
I am getting a reaction/result that I have extreme difficulty finding information about online. I only read that perhaps superfatting may be the cause.
I was trying to make a simple spot cleaning liquid soap and wanted to add the cleansing power of sodium carbonate to my liquid soap.
Please bear with me I am not a chemist but I am really curious and love to learn!
First I made this:
100% coconut oil liquid soap with potassium hydroxide with a superfat of 5%.
I diluted it to 1 part soap paste, 3 parts water.
I made a solution of sodium carbonate with water to maximum solubility.
When I combined 1 part diluted soap with one part sodium carbonate solution, it started thickening and becoming gel-like. Within 3 minutes, it turned into an opaque paste. When I spread the paste on a surface, there are still tiny bits that are more gelled.
I tried the same process using a castile soap from creatingcosmetics, also 100% coconut oil without superfat. I got the same reaction with this store bought diluted potassium cocoate 40%.
My questions are:
1. What is the thick white paste that results from this combination? Is it some form of soap? What is being transformed into what?
2. I really want to know if liquid soap and sodium carbonate are ever mixed together intentionally for any application? Any uses or precedents?
3. I actually find the resulting thick paste interesting and it can be cosmetically elegant. When mixed thoroughly it becomes a fluffy light cream paste that blends well with exfoliants to make a scrub and holds additional oils well. Should I stay away from using sodium carbonate in a body scrub?
Thank you in advance, any help would be so greatly appreciated!
Syl
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