Laurel berry oil (bay laurel fruit oil): SAP value and fatty acids
Laurel berry oil (bay laurel fruit oil) has a saponification value of 200.25 mg KOH/g. One gram needs 0.143 g of sodium hydroxide (NaOH) for bar soap or 0.200 g of potassium hydroxide (KOH) for liquid soap to turn fully into soap, before any superfat.
Key numbers
- SAP, NaOH
- 0.142755 g per g oil
- SAP, KOH
- 0.20025 g per g oil
- Saponification value
- 200.25 mg KOH/g
- INCI name
- Laurus Nobilis Fruit Oil
Example: 100 g of Laurel berry oil (bay laurel fruit oil) with no superfat needs 14.3 g of 100% NaOH, or 20.0 g of 100% KOH. A 5% superfat uses 5% less.
In soap
Its main fatty acids in our cited profile are lauric (27.7%) and oleic (27.2%). The eight fatty acids used in soap-quality scores make up 97.2% of the profile.
On its own it scores 47 for hardness, 29 for cleansing and 50 for conditioning, with a saturated : unsaturated split of 47 : 50.
Fixed oil from bay laurel berries (used in Aleppo soap); contains some lauric acid. Not laurel LEAF essential oil, whose SAP is tiny (15–45).
Fatty-acid profile
| Fatty acid | % of fatty acids | Counts toward |
|---|---|---|
| lauric | 27.7% | hardness, cleansing, bubbly lather |
| myristic | 1% | hardness, cleansing, bubbly lather |
| palmitic | 17.1% | hardness, creamy lather |
| stearic | 1.5% | hardness, creamy lather |
| ricinoleic | 0% | conditioning, bubbly and creamy lather |
| oleic | 27.2% | conditioning |
| linoleic | 21.5% | conditioning |
| linolenic | 1.2% | conditioning |
Basis: Marzouki et al. 2008 Molecules Table 2: fixed oil from Laurus nobilis berries (Tunisia, supercritical CO2 extraction), GC, mean of 6 samples; oleic = C18:1 n-9 only.
Soap-quality scores (this oil alone)
| Hardness | 47 |
|---|---|
| Cleansing | 29 |
| Conditioning | 50 |
| Bubbly lather | 29 |
| Creamy lather | 19 |
Each score adds up certain fatty acids, the way Soap Ledger scores a whole recipe. They are for comparing recipes; they don't predict how a bar will feel, and they say nothing about safety or skin.
Sources
SAP value: 200.25 mg KOH/g (Median of sources' mgKoh_mid), from US Patent 4,235,889 'Therapeutic agent for the external treatment of psoriasis, tinea and eczemas' (Pharmazeutische Fabrik Evers, 1980), quoting the Merck Index 9th ed. (1976) p. 707 for laurel oil, USPTO / Google Patents. Printed value: 198-199 mg KOH/g.
Published values we checked:
- 198-199 mg KOH/g — USPTO / Google Patents
- 198 - 206 mg KOH/g — From Nature With Love (soap/cosmetic supplier)
Fatty acids: Marzouki H., Piras A., Marongiu B., Rosa A., Dessì M.A. (2008) Extraction and separation of volatile and fixed oils from berries of Laurus nobilis L. by supercritical CO2. Molecules 13:1702-1711. doi:10.3390/molecules13081702, MDPI (open access, PMC6245310). Also checked: MDPI (open access, PMC9100900) (Section on Turkish genotype selection (citing ref. 50)).
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 .