Maize Oil (Corn Oil)
INCI Zea Mays Oil. Saponified with NaOH it is listed as Sodium Cornate, with KOH as Potassium Cornate. CAS 8001-30-7; EC 232-281-2, as CosIng gives them. Also: Corn oil, Zea mays germ oil.
Published values
| Saponification value | 187–195 mg KOH/g |
| Used by the calculator | 191.0 mg KOH/g (midpoint) |
| SAP for NaOH | 0.1362 g/g |
| Iodine value | 103–135 g I₂/100 g |
| INS (SAP − IV) | 72 |
| Melting point | — |
| Unsaponifiable matter | ≤ 2.8 % |
Soapmaking books print about 0.136 g NaOH per g (median of 7 books), which agrees with ours to within 2 %.
A bar made of 100 % Maize Oil
Conventional qualities summed from the fatty-acid groups; a single-oil bar is a reference point, not a recipe.
How much lye
| Oil | NaOH | KOH |
|---|---|---|
| 500 g | 64.7 g(63.3–66.0) | 90.7 g(88.8–92.6) |
| 1 kg | 129.4 g(126.6–132.1) | 181.5 g(177.7–185.3) |
| 1 lb (454 g) | 58.7 g(57.4–59.9) | 82.3 g(80.6–84.0) |
| 2 lb (907 g) | 117.3 g(114.9–119.8) | 164.6 g(161.2–168.1) |
For this oil alone at 5 % superfat, with pure sodium hydroxide (NaOH) or pure potassium hydroxide (KOH); in brackets, across the published range of its saponification value. KOH is usually sold at 90 %: divide by 0.9. For a whole recipe, open the calculator.
Fatty-acid profile
Saturated : unsaturated 16 : 84
| Fatty acid | Published range, % | Used | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lauric acid | C12:0 · saturated | 0–0.3 | 0.2 |
| Myristic acid | C14:0 · saturated | 0–0.3 | 0.2 |
| Palmitic acid | C16:0 · saturated | 8.6–16.5 | 12.6 |
| Palmitoleic acid | C16:1 | 0–0.5 | 0.3 |
| Stearic acid | C18:0 · saturated | 0–3.3 | 1.7 |
| Oleic acid | C18:1 | 20–42.2 | 31.1 |
| Linoleic acid | C18:2 | 34–65.6 | 49.8 |
| α-Linolenic acid | C18:3 n-3 | 0–2 | 1.0 |
| Arachidic acid | C20:0 · saturated | 0.3–1 | 0.7 |
| Gadoleic acid | C20:1 | 0.2–0.6 | 0.4 |
| Behenic acid | C22:0 · saturated | 0–0.5 | 0.3 |
| Erucic acid | C22:1 | 0–0.3 | 0.2 |
| Lignoceric acid | C24:0 · saturated | 0–0.5 | 0.3 |
Guides that discuss it
Where these numbers come from
Verbatim mirror of the FAO file CXS_210e.pdf; the official FAO link was Cloudflare-gated at retrieval. Table 1 (Section 3.1) = mandatory GLC fatty-acid ranges, % of total fatty acids, ND = not detectable (<=0.05%). Table 2 (Appendix 'Other quality and composition factors') gives saponification value, iodine value (Wijs) and unsaponifiable matter of CRUDE oils; the Appendix is explicitly ADVISORY (a product not meeting it may still conform). This print predates the 2021-2025 amendments; the 2024 additions (avocado, camellia seed, sacha inchi, high-oleic soya bean) are not included.
JP XVIII 'Corn Oil': saponification value 187-195; iodine value 103-130; unsaponifiable matter NMT 1.5 %.
Fatty acids from CXS 210 Table 1 (mandatory GLC ranges, % of total fatty acids; 'ND' = not detectable, <=0.05%, entries that are ND-only are omitted; C17:0, C17:1, C20:2, C22:2 and C24:1 columns omitted because they are outside the acids this database records). The saponification value, the iodine value and the unsaponifiable share from Appendix Table 2 (crude oils; ADVISORY, not mandatory; unsaponifiable converted from g/kg). No 'typical' values are printed in the standard, so none are given. JP XVIII 'Corn Oil': specific gravity 0.915-0.921; acid value NMT 0.2; saponification value 187-195; unsaponifiable NMT 1.5 %; iodine value 103-130.
This record is part of the open ingredient database (ODbL), which you can download as CSV or JSON. Found an error or a better primary source? Corrections with a link to the document are welcome at support@soapformulator.com.