The reaction that takes place in soap making is called saponification. Basically soap is sodium or potassium salts of

Saponification is the chemical process used in soap making where triglycerides (fats and oils) react with an alkali like sodium hydroxide or potassium hydroxide [c1, t3]. Triglycerides consist of one glycerol molecule bound to three fatty acid chains [t3, t4]. During the reaction, the ester bonds are hydrolyzed, releasing glycerol as a byproduct and forming the sodium or potassium salts of the fatty acids [c1, t4]. These fatty acids are long-chain monocarboxylic acids, characterized by a single carboxyl group (-COOH) at one end of a long hydrocarbon chain [c1, t6]. While dicarboxylic acids exist in other industrial contexts, soap specifically consists of the salts of long-chain monocarboxylic acids (fatty acids) such as palmitic, stearic, or oleic acid [c1, t2, t8].

Sources

1. [1] Science , class X (NCERT 2025 ed.) > Chapter 4: Carbon and its Compounds > CH COOH CH CH OH CH C C CH CH H O 3 3 2 3 2 3 2 Acid O (E - + - - - - - + thanoic acid) (Ethanol) (Ester) O > p. 73