KOH feels soapy on touching. This is because on coming in contact with the skin, it instantly reacts with the fats present on the skin. Therefore, the fats present on the skin convert rapidly to give soap and glycerol as a product. The reaction followed is as follows:

KOH + RCOOR' → RCOOK + R'OH

Here, if R is a long chain, the product formed is called a potassium soap. Its unique quality is that it can produce lather even with seawater.