Glycerin soaps are soaps that contain glycerin, a component of fat or oil. The soap is recognizably different from other soaps because it is translucent. The clarity of the soap is due to the particular alignment of the soap molecules in this type of soap, which can be induced through the addition of alcohol and sugar. This is usually done for homemade glycerin soaps which are not remeltable.
The process for making glycerin soaps was well known as of 1857 in the Western world. In modern industrial soap-making, the glycerin is then usually separated from the soap to be resold and used in a wide variety of areas such as for personal care products, pharmaceuticals, chemical intermediates, and food processing.
Famous quotes containing the word soap:
“I’ve finally figured out why soap operas are, and logically should be, so popular with generations of housebound women. They are the only place in our culture where grown-up men take seriously all the things that grown-up women have to deal with all day long.”
—Gloria Steinem (b. 1934)