Essential Oil temp?

[loudest_silence1]

I posted a question a few days ago regarding a soap recipe. After tinkering with it a bit, I got the ingredients to do 2 batches. I did one HP and one CP. For the HP, I wanted to add some tea tree oil. I read that it should be added when the soap is below the flash point of 50-60C, or about 120F.

That's where the problem begins. By the time the soap came down to 140 is was already stiff, and at 125, well... I don't think this first batch is going to be a pretty batch. I got it into the mold, but it mostly seems to be lots of crumbly soap tightly packed together, at least at this point.

That's not right, is it? Any idea where I fell apart at? If it matters, the recipe I went with was 60% lard, 20% olive oil, 15% coconut oil, and 5% castor oil. All measured by grams on a digital scale.

(On a happier note, scrubbing the crock pot after I was done lathered up REALLY well and was much more pleasant on my skin than store bought)

 

[DeeAnna]

I don't pay much attention to flash point for situations like this -- flashpoint really doesn't have any meaning for the circumstances you're talking about. What is really the key is the volatility of the scent, not its flashpoint -- flashpoint is not a measurement of volatility.

The essential goal is to add the scent when the soap is as cool as possible but still warm enough so it can still be mixed and molded properly. If your soap is too firm to be handled below a given temperature, then you need to add the scent and mold the soap when the soap is warmer. And/or use more liquid so the soap remains more fluid at lower temperatures -- I'd guess your soap was a little on the dry side. And/or use sodium lactate to help the soap stay more fluid.