Pericarp of Sapindus mukorossi Gaertn has been used as a natural detergent and its extract is commercially utilized as a foamstabilizing
and emulsifying agent. The goal of this study is to investigate the foam properties, detergent ability and long-term preservative efficacy of the saponins from the pericarp of S. mukorossi Gaertn. The crude saponin content in the pericarp of S. mukorossi Gaertn was 14.2% and the total saponins content in the crude saponins extract was 85% (w/w). The foaming power of the 0.5% crude saponins extract solution from S. mukorossi Gaertn is 65% of 0.5% SLS solution and similar to that of 0.5% Tween 80 solution. The R5 value of 91.7% represented good foam stability of the crude saponins extracted from the pericarp of the plant. With the reduction of water surface tension from 72 mN/m to 51.7 mN/m, the 0.5% crude saponins extract solution has wetting ability. The sebum-removed experiment indicated that the crude saponins extract has moderate detergency. The results of the longterm preservative efficacy test revealed that the 0.5% crude saponins extract from the pericarp of S. mukorossi Gaertn is an effective preservative against Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 6538, but inefficacious against Escherichia coli ATCC 8739 and Aspergillus niger ATCC 16404.