Question

As you may have experienced yourself, water alone will not remove oil from a dirty dish. Why does soap work to remove oil

Answer 1

Soap breaks up the oil into smaller drops, which can mix with the water. It works because soap is made up of molecules with two very different ends (one end of molecules are hydrophilic, so they love water; the other end of molecules is hydrophobic, so they hate water).

Answer 2

The combination of the two, water and soap, form bubbles that make a compound capable of removing the oil. The soap lifts the oil and dirt and becomes suspended in the water then we rinse off the soapy water and down goes the oil with it.

Step-by-step explanation: