Jojoba oil (liquid wax): SAP value and fatty acids
Jojoba oil (liquid wax) has a saponification value of 91.8 mg KOH/g. One gram needs 0.065 g of sodium hydroxide (NaOH) for bar soap or 0.092 g of potassium hydroxide (KOH) for liquid soap to turn fully into soap, before any superfat.
Key numbers
- SAP, NaOH
- 0.065443 g per g oil
- SAP, KOH
- 0.0918 g per g oil
- Saponification value
- 91.8 mg KOH/g
- INCI name
- Simmondsia Chinensis Seed Oil
Example: 100 g of Jojoba oil (liquid wax) with no superfat needs 6.5 g of 100% NaOH, or 9.2 g of 100% KOH. A 5% superfat uses 5% less.
In soap
Jojoba oil (liquid wax) is left out of the soap-quality scores in Soap Ledger: it is mostly not ordinary oil (a wax, resin, blend or an oil with unusual fatty acids), so those scores would not describe it. It still counts fully in the lye calculation.
A liquid wax, not a true oil: about half of it doesn't turn into soap, so its SAP value is low. Published sources for this oil differ by more than 3%, so checking your supplier's certificate of analysis matters more than usual.
Sources
SAP value: 91.8 mg KOH/g (Median of sources), from Nasser R.M. (2023) The Vital Uses of Jojoba Oil and Its Derivatives... In: Advances in Rheology of Materials, IntechOpen. doi:10.5772/intechopen.108200 (Table 1, citing Miwa T.K., JAOCS 1984;61(2):407-410), IntechOpen (open-access chapter). Printed value: 92 (no unit printed; mg KOH/g by convention).
Published values we checked:
- 92 (no unit printed; mg KOH/g by convention) — IntechOpen (open-access chapter)
- 85–98 mg KOH/g — From Nature With Love (soap/cosmetic supplier)
- 90 mg KOH/g — The Soapery (UK soap supplier)
- NaOH 0.0695 / KOH 0.0979 g alkali per g oil — Certified Lye
NaOH and KOH values are converted from mg KOH/g with the molar masses 39.997 and 56.106 and rounded to 6 decimals, exactly as in the Soap Ledger app. Real oils vary by origin, grade and lot: check your supplier's certificate of analysis. Verify every weight before you make this, and follow lye safety. Not a safety or compliance certification.
Last updated .