Final answer:
Saponification is the process of making soap by reacting fats or oils (triglycerides) with a strong base like sodium hydroxide (NaOH) or potassium hydroxide (KOH). The products are glycerol and the salts of fatty acids (soap molecules). The reaction is complete when the base is entirely consumed.
Step-by-step explanation:
Description of Saponification
Saponification is a chemical process that produces soap from fats and oils. The starting reactants are a fat or oil (which are triglycerides) and a strong base, typically sodium hydroxide (NaOH) or potassium hydroxide (KOH). During the reaction, the triglycerides react with the base, resulting in the formation of glycerol and the salts of fatty acids (soap molecules). This happens when the ester bonds in triglycerides are hydrolyzed, leading to the fatty acids, which then form their sodium or potassium salts. These salts are what we describe as soap, with properties varying depending on whether sodium or potassium is used - sodium soaps being hard and potassium soaps being soft. The reaction takes place under high temperature and pressure, which facilitates the transformation. An important side product of this reaction is glycerol, which is also recovered during the process.
In terms of titration calculations, the saponification number is crucial because it indicates how much base is needed to hydrolyze a specific quantity of fat. After the process is complete, the excess base is titrated to figure out the exact amount that was consumed during the reaction. The saponification reaction goes to completion, meaning that the base is fully used up and is not simply acting as a catalyst.