A triglyceride is a molecule possessing three fatty acid molecules connected to a glycerol molecule through ester bonds.
A saturated fatty acid has only single bonds in the carbon chain, whereas unsaturated fatty acids possess one or more double bonds in the carbon chain. The presence of double bonds affects the structure of the fatty acid.
In a hydrolysis reaction, water acts as a nucleophile to break a bond. In the case of an ester, the water molecule attacks the carbonyl carbon. One fragment of the ester gains the hydrogen ion from water to form an alcohol, and the other fragment gains the hydroxide group to form a carboxylate salt.
Very few hydrolysis reactions occur spontaneously under normal conditions; thus, a strong base is added to act as a catalyst to speed up the reaction.
A soap molecule has a long hydrophobic carbon chain with a hydrophilic carboxylate anion at one end. Due to the differing solubility properties of the molecule, soap molecules cluster together to form micelles. The hydrophobic tails of the soap are at the center of the micelle, and the hydrophilic heads are oriented outwards and in contact with water.
繁體中文
