This word has its origin in Latin. Sapo / Sapon means soap in Latin. Saponification is the process of making soap through the hydrolysis of esters (fats and oils) using akali (such as sodium hydroxide solution).

Saponification can be represented as such

fats (oils) -----> fatty acid + glycerol (hydrolysis with alkali as a catalyst)

fatty acid + sodium hydroxide ---> salt of a fatty acid (soap) + water

     
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