Argan Oil
Saponification values, fatty acid makeup, and what this oil does in a bar of soap.
Use Argan Oil in a recipe → Added at 0%, you set the amount
Saponification values
Grams of lye needed to saponify one gram of argan oil. Multiply by your oil weight, then apply your superfat.
- NaOH (bar soap)
- 0.136
- KOH (liquid soap)
- 0.191
- Iodine
- 95
- INS
- 95
INCI: Argania Spinosa Kernel Oil
Where to buy argan oil on Amazon → Affiliate link. It costs you nothing extra and helps keep Lye.rs free.
Fatty acid profile
| Fatty acid | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Oleic | 46% |
| Linoleic | 34% |
| Palmitic | 14% |
| Myristic | 1% |
| Linolenic | 1% |
Soap qualities at 100%
What a bar made entirely of argan oil would score. Almost nobody soaps a single oil at 100% - this is here so you can see what the oil contributes to a blend. The shaded band is the range most makers aim for in a finished recipe.
What that means in a recipe
Almost no cleansing contribution (1) against high conditioning (81). Gentle on skin, but a bar built mainly on this will be slow to trace, slow to harden, and low on bubbles without something to balance it.
Very little hardness (15). Expect a soft bar and a longer cure unless it is combined with a harder fat or butter.
Derived from the numbers above rather than written by hand, so it stays in step with the data. Tendencies, not guarantees - your oils, water, and technique all move the result.
Oils that behave similarly
Closest matches by fatty acid makeup - the usual starting point when you have run out of argan oil and need a substitute. Check the lye maths again after swapping: SAP values differ even between oils that behave alike.
- Yangu Oil (cape chestnut)SAP 0.137 NaOH
- Oat OilSAP 0.135 NaOH
- Pecan OilSAP 0.135 NaOH
- Jatropha Oil, soapnut seed oilSAP 0.138 NaOH
- Cherry Kernel Oil, sour (Prunus cerasus)SAP 0.137 NaOH
Use Argan Oil in a recipe → Added at 0% - you set the amount