Question

Why does detergent cause more water pollution than soap ?
a.) Ingredients by detergent are biodegradable and ingredients of soaps are not biodegradable
b.) Ingredients by soap are biodegradable and ingredients of detergents are not biodegradable
c.) Both have same type of ingredients but still detergent causes more water pollution than soap
d.) None of these

Answer 1

Hint: The soaps are formed from the natural products of plants and animals. Thus, these could be easily disposed of while the detergents are composed of phosphates. These are synthetically made. The components being non-biodegradable can not be disposed of easily leading to water pollution.

Complete step by step answer:
Let us start by knowing what detergents are. And what are the components that make them and how they lead to water pollution.
Detergents are the organic molecules that have a polar group and a non-polar group attached on two ends. They exist at boundaries between the polar and nonpolar media.

The detergents are of two kinds -
Phosphate detergents : The phosphate detergents are highly caustic in nature. These are used to soften the hard water and help suspend dirt in water.
Surfactant detergents : The surfactant detergents are toxic in nature. These help in enhancing wetting, foaming and emulsification etc.

The soaps are made from natural ingredients such as plant oils or the acids derived from animal fats. These all products are natural and are biodegradable in nature.
While the detergents are all synthetic in nature. These are potassium or sodium salts of long alkyl chains that end with a sulfonate group. These are all man-made; engineered to get the desired properties.
The components of detergents are non- biodegradable in nature. So, when any detergent is used during washing; its components can not be later disposed of and remain in water for long. This leads to heavy water pollution. So, the correct answer is “Option B”.

Note: The detergents contain phosphates which result in fresh water algal blooms that can release toxic materials which deplete the oxygen in the water. The depletion of oxygen level in the water could lead to harm to aquatic animals. The soaps are environment friendly in nature while the detergents are not. The thick foam formed by detergents lowers oxygen level in water.