1.1 Introduction
The emergence of soap remains a mystery, but one legend takes us to an ancient site on Mount Sapo that was the setting for many animal sacrifices in the early days of Rome. Over time, residual animal fat and ash collected under the ceremonial altars. Fat and ash just happen to be the key ingredients of soap. Supposedly one day a heavy rain saturated the slopes of Mount Sapo, causing the fat and ash to mix with the rain.
The mixture flowed down the slopes to the banks of the Tiber River where washerwomen were cleaning clothes. Inexplicably, their clothing cleaned easier and more quickly once mixed with this unknown substance, which we now know as soap. Lemongrass soap is a natural healing agent that is richly scented with lemongrass essential oils and embedded with lightly exfoliating real lemongrass. In addition, to being refreshing, invigorating and a mild astringent, lemongrass soap is a soothing skin soap made from the gentlest of oils, moisturizing butters and works great for all skin types and has an uplifting scent.
This natural healing agent is a skin care product utilized to smooth fine lines & wrinkles while being silky soft on your skin. Lemongrass soap opens pores, tones tissues, and balances excess oil production and is great for people with acne or oily skin, fungicidal/bactericidal aliments, as well as athlete's foot and excessive perspiration. Lemongrass is a wild grass native to Southeast Asia, and is used extensively in handmade soaps, perfumes and cosmetics. 100% all-natural, organic soap that is vegetable based, dye free and will not clog your pores it's hand made from a blend of olive, vegetable, lemon, castor oils organic Coconut, Palm, Olive and Palm Kernel oils. This natural healing agent soap produces a rich, creamy lather that envelops your skin in nourishing, healthy ingredients and release a refreshing aroma that delivers a spa experience in your shower or tub.
There is no doubt that properly moisturized skin looks and feels better, especially during the chilly winter months when it is prone to flaking and itchiness. The problem is that it can cost a fortune to keep a supply of liquid soap on hand. From the price, it is easy to wonder if the secret ingredients in some moisturizers are gold dust. What few people realize is that the basic recipe for any liquid soap is incredibly simple. Oil and water are combined and bonded together with Potassium hydroxide to produce liquid soap. In fact anyone can create a month's supply of luxurious liquid soap in his or her bedroom. Even more exciting is the fact that you can make a moisturizer that is perfectly suited to your skin type with fragrance of your choice.
In chemistry, liquid soap is a salt of a fatty acid. Liquid soaps are mainly used as surfactants for washing, bathing, and cleaning, but they are also used in textile spinning and are important components of lubricants. Soaps for cleansing are obtained by treating vegetable or animal oils and fats with a strongly alkaline solution. Fats and oils are composed of triglycerides; three molecules of fatty acids are attached to a single molecule of glycerol. The alkaline solution, which is often called lye (although the term “lye soap” refers almost exclusively to soaps made with sodium hydroxide), brings about a chemical reaction known as saponification. In this reaction, the triglyceride fats are first hydrolyzed into free fatty acids, and then these combine with the alkali to form crude soap, an amalgam of various soap salts, excess fat or alkali, water, and liberated glycerol (glycerin).
The glycerin is a useful by-product, which can be left in the soap product as a softening agent, or isolated for other uses. Soaps are key components of most lubricating greases, which are usually emulsions of calcium soap or lithium soaps and mineral oil. These calcium- and lithium-based greases are widely used. Many other metallic soaps are also useful, including those of aluminum, sodium, and mixtures of them.
Such soaps are also used as thickeners to increase the viscosity of oils. In ancient times, lubricating greases were made by the addition of lime to olive oil. Experts (beauty experts and reader surveys, dermatologists) agree that skin on every part of the body has virtually the same needs, in that it should be cleansed, exfoliated, moisturized and protected from the sun. They also agree that some ingredients like vitamin E can help to provide healthier and softer skin. For the purpose of this seminar, it x-rays the production of liquid soap using lemon grass as a fragrance.
1.2 Statement of Problems
Lemongrass extract usage in folk medicine for the treatment of certain ailment was disputed, but recent findings have confirmed its efficacy (Adejuwon and Esther, 2007; Celso et al., 2011a). Despite this, lemongrass tea and its essential oils is becoming unpopular especially among developing nations. This might be due to lack of awareness of published results on the efficacy of the extracts on several health related issues. Hence, the focus of this review is to concisely document all reported biological properties of lemongrass extracts (infusion and decoction) and essential oils. Similarly, suggestions regarding future directions in this area of study were thoroughly prepared to ease the path towards elucidation of inherent medicinal properties of lemongrass.
1.3 Aim and Objectives of Study
The aim of the study is to explore the Production of Liquid Soap using Lemon Grass as a Fragrance. In achieving this aim, the following specific objectives were laid out as follows:
- To formulate natural liquid hand soap with neem oil and lemongrass essential oil at various concentration.
- To identify the medicinal properties of lemon grass
- To assess the physico-chemical properties and antibacterial activity was evaluated to determine the quality of the liquid hand soap.
