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MODULE 6 – PhySci Subject Teacher:

LESSON

6 APPLICATION OF CHEMISTRY
Lesson Content
1.1 Chemistry behind common cleaning materials
1.2 Common household cleaning materials
1.3 Active and inert components

Objectives:
• From product labels, identify the active ingredient(s) of cleaning products used at home.
• Give the use of the other ingredients in cleaning agents.

Chemistry Behind Common Cleaning Materials

✓ What properties of chemical ingredients must be
considered carefully in commercial products?

- People nowadays rarely use herbal or natural products

such as lemon, oregano, basil, vinegar, and baking soda for
cleaning. Most cleaning agents and cosmetic products are
made up of synthetic chemicals. A synthetic chemical is a
prepared or purified substance whose properties best suit a
specific purpose.

- Chemicals, synthetic or not, have both desirable and undesirable properties that must be considered
when choosing cosmetics and cleaning materials. The safety and health of consumers depend much
on the ingredients these products contain. It is important to note that some chemicals in cleaning
agents and cosmetics are toxic.

❌ Toxicity, acidity or basicity, dehydrating property, and the

ability to act as surfactants are some of the important properties
of chemical ingredients that must be considered before buying
products such as detergents, soap, muriatic acid, and
disinfectants. These products are some of the widely used
cleaning materials.

Common Household Cleaning Materials

1. Detergents

- Detergents are synthetic, water-soluble cleansing agents with wetting and emulsifying
properties. They contain sodium salts of strong acids derived from petroleum or coal. Unlike soaps,
detergents are not prepared from fats and oils, and are not inactivated by *hard water; therefore, their
cleansing action is better than soap.

*hard water does not mean the water is literally hard, but because it does not easily lather.
 - The most common essential components of a detergent are the surface-active agents, a term
that can be shortened to surfactants. Since water molecules exhibit surface tension, they tend to stick
together and form droplets. To increase the cleaning ability of water, one must reduce its surface
tension by using a surfactant. Surfactants have two ends, a polar head and a nonpolar tail. Because
the polar head is attracted to water molecules, the
interaction of water molecules with one another is
reduced. In contrast, the nonpolar tails are attracted
to grease and dirt. Surfactants keep water molecules
from interacting with each other. Thus, in detergents,
surfactants reduce the surface tension of water,
enhancing its ability to wet objects, spread over
more surfaces, and seep into dirt and grease.

- Another important property of surfactants is their ability to form micelles, which consequently
trap dirt or hold grease. In the figure, it shows the formation of a detergent micelle when it encounters
nonpolar materials such as grease or dirt. Since nonpolar materials are trapped inside the micelle, they
will also be washed away during rinsing, when micelles go with water. Detergents can also be acidic
or basic. Basic or alkaline detergents are the most common since they are more effective in removing
starches, oil, and fats.

2. Soaps

- Soap is a salt composed of sodium or potassium ions paired with long hydrocarbon chain fatty
acids, which are prepared from vegetable oils or animal fats. The cleansing mechanism of soap is
exactly the same as that of detergents since both soaps and detergents have the same type of
molecular structure. However, when potassium or sodium soaps are submerged in water that has an
abundance of calcium or magnesium ions, a curd or an insoluble solid form and the solution turns
cloudy or turbid. Because of this, the cleansing action of soap is weaker than that of detergents.

- In contrast, detergents contain soluble sodium or potassium salts of strong acids (sulfonic acid
or alkyl hydrogen sulfate) that form soluble calcium or magnesium salts upon reacting with calcium
ions or magnesium ions in water. This gives detergents an advantage over soap, but offers a major
drawback: detergents can cause skin rashes or allergies because the oils from which they are made
are petroleum-derived.

3. Muriatic Acid

- The word "muriatic acid" came from the Latin word muriaticus, which means "brine or "salt. " It
is an industrial grade of concentrated hydrochloric acid (HCI) and is used to remove heavy dirt.

- The presence of stains and the inability to completely remove them through ordinary cleaning
agents are caused by the hard water and lime buildup. This is common in areas where water has high
mineral content. Calcium, magnesium, and some elements in water can generate multilayered
deposits on toilet and sinks, Flushing will thus be more sluggish and less effective. Dirt trapped between
layers of hard water mineral deposits stains the sink and toilet bowl, especially under the rim and along
the sides above the water line. These areas get wet each time the toilet is flushed; and when water
evaporates, an ultrathin layer of minerals is left. More dust can then attach to the film, giving white,
yellow, orange, or brown color buildup.

- The properties of HCl or muriatic acid are ideal for cleaning since it is a strong acid that can
remove dirt and grime from toilets and sinks, and can even remove rust from metals. Since majority of
ions that stick to the sink or bowl include calcium and magnesium, when muriatic acid is in contact
with lime and hard water deposits, HCI rapidly dissolves them, a process accompanied by bubble
formation. After the mineral deposits are dissolved, the toilet or sink would look clean and shiny.
4. Disinfectants

- Disinfectants can rapidly inactivate or destroy various types of microorganisms on surfaces of

nonliving objects. It differs from an antiseptic, which kill microorganisms on the skin of living things. Most
disinfectants are mixtures of substances that include water, detergents (surfactants), and fragrances.

- The main ingredient in disinfectants is the chemical in the mixture that can kill microorganisms.
Examples include alcohols, aldehydes, acids, bleach or sodium hypochlorite (NaCIO), quaternary
ammonium, and metal ions like silver. The choice of disinfectant depends on the intended purpose,
the particular scenario, the presence of other chemicals, the value of the object to be
decontaminated, and health and safety considerations. Some disinfectants encompass a broad
spectrum and target several types of microorganisms; others lie on a narrow range but are still preferred
because of other factors such as cost, non-corrosiveness, and none or less toxicity.

- There are two main mechanisms to inactivate microorganisms: (1) to kill the microbes directly
or (2) to make the environment unsuitable for them to thrive.

Common Active Ingredients in Disinfectants

Chemical Components: Active and Inert

What are the active and inert components of common cleaning products?

- The ingredients of commercial chemical products are listed in their respective containers.
Before purchasing any product, a responsible, health-conscious consumer must be able to identify the
active ingredient of the product, its benefits, and its toxicities. One must note that other substances in
the product have purposes, too; these include the inactive or inert ingredients.

- The active ingredient is the component of a product which, regardless of quantity, directly
enables it to serve its purpose (e.g., clean and disinfect). In contrast, the inert ingredient refers to all
the other substances in a product. An inert ingredient does not affect the action of the active
ingredient. Being inert does not mean it has no reactions at all; it only entails that it may or may not
undergo chemical reactions, but it does not carry out or alter the function of the active ingredient.
 - Inert ingredients are only added for stability, compatibility, and desirability. Examples of inert
ingredients include dyes, preservatives, and fragrance. To determine the active ingredient, know first
the intended purpose of the commercial product. Soaps and detergents, for instance, remove oil and
grease; hence, the active ingredient should attract oil and grease, and is at the same time washable
by water. This ingredient would be fatty acid salts and anionic surfactants for soap and detergents,
respectively.

Common Active and Inert Components of Common Cleaning Products

*For the active ingredients of disinfectants, refer to the previous table.

- The figure below is an example of a product label of soap showing the active and inactive
ingredients.

Reference:

Monserrat, R.C. and Punzalan, [Link] [Link] Publishing House, Inc., Quezon City