FAR EASTERN UNIVERSITY DILIMAN

Sampaguita Avenue, Mapayapa Village

Diliman, Quezon City, 1101 Metro Manila

POLYSTYRENE FOAM AND ACETONE SOLUTION AS AN ALTERNATIVE

SEALANT

A Research Presented to:

Mr. Emmanuel P. Bersabe

Members:

Aguilar, Justin Clyre

Cera, Jean Patrick

Damian, Khate Chamia

Park, Soobin

Ricohermoso, Jemuel

Uy, Samuel Jedidiah

STEM 12 – Sagacity

JANUARY 2020
 INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

The population of the Philippines is about 106 million and is still growing, among those

106 million there are 4.5 million people who are homeless or living in informal settlements and

are likely residing in the slums of the Philippines (Chandran, 2018). The materials of houses in

the slums are most likely not durable due to the lack of the financial aspect of the residents living

in the slums. One of the most common items seen in these areas is the galvanized iron sheets

which is used for the roof of their houses. These iron sheets are cheap but as expected, the

quality and durability of these sheets are below average unlike costly materials such as cement,

slate, metal and wood. Since residents living in these areas are having problems financially, they

tend to prioritize other things and sacrifice their living conditions by not maintaining a durable

roofing for their houses.

The researchers will be conducting a research about an alternative roof sealant that can

profit most of these people. Roof sealant made from polystyrene that is cost - friendly which can

benefit roofing problems. The production of polystyrene in the Philippines is massive and is an

advantage in making and producing the alternative roof sealants. With the help of acetone,

dissolving the polystyrene will produce the output. With this, it can ease the struggles of living

with a non-durable roofing and will be beneficial in the long run.

Statement of the Problem

Flawed roofing in houses are common around slum areas in the Philippines. Most of the

roof holes are covered with tarpaulins, some are left gaping, some just place a bucket to catch the

rainwater. These present multiple safety hazards.

This research aims to answer the following questions:

1. Does acetone and polystyrene foam have the quality to become an effective and long-lasting

roof sealant?

2. Will the acetone and polystyrene foam sealant work just as effective as the other sealants?

3. Does the acetone and polystyrene sealant works on both rain or shine?

Objectives of the Study

This project will be an affordable alternative roof sealant that you can use at home. The

main objective of this project is for houseowners that is using a gal as their roof to have an

alternative and cheaper roof sealant using polystyrene and Acetone.

Hypothesis (Null Hypothesis)

1. Polystyrene foam when dissolved in acetone will dissolve; the ending product will then

be unable to solidify and will remain a liquid solution.

Hypothesis (Alternative Hypothesis)

 1. Polystyrene foam when dissolved in acetone will dissolve; the ending product will create

a sealant that is viable and accessible for most people.

Significance of the Study

The findings of this research Polystyrene Foam Sealant will help individuals to lessen

their expenses instead of buying and using commercial sealants. Polystyrene foams are usually

thrown out after usage and it becomes a source of pollution on earth. In this manner, the

researchers aim to use polystyrene foam as a sealant to reduce polystyrene foam pollution.

The study will benefit the following:

Environment. The findings of this study will help the environment from being polluted. It will

also help the environment lessen the trash and garbage that is being thrown away in the ocean

and land-fills wherein land and marine animals feed on it. It could teach humans to recycle by

starting from the researchers' product while benefiting from the product itself.

Residents. It can benefit the residents in a way that they may save more money in terms of

regular financial bills. As well as helping the residents to practice recycling used materials to

make a new and useful product. Lastly, the residents can be assured that this alternative sealant

works the way the branded sealants do.

Government Agencies. When it comes to the Department of Human Settlements and Urban

Development, this department includes the planning of the location, materials, and safety of the

people. This will help them lessen the costs and save some budget in building and helping the

people to build their homes. In other government agencies, for instance, the Department of

Environment and Natural Resources, it studies and prevents the Earth's resources to run out. So
in order to do their job, the “POLYSTYRENE FOAM AND ACETONE SOLUTION AS AN

ALTERNATIVE SEALAN” may help in terms of using alternative materials in creating

sealants.

Future Researchers. The data that will be presented may be used as a reference for conducting

new studies and validation of findings.

Scope and Delimitations

This research mainly focuses on the development of the final output and on gathering

data whether it will be an effective, eco-friendly, and an affordable alternative. The final output

of this research will only act as a sealant and will not be used for any other purposes.

This sealant will only be able to seal small holes on roofs and is only meant to keep rain

water from leaking and direct sunlight from piercing through the hole.

The researchers will be limited to conducting a survey only on informal settlers of

Baranggay Constabularyo. With this research, the researchers will know if the final output will

be market ready.

Theoretical Framework

The elements carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen found in the acetone may be the compound

that is effective in being a solvent because it evaporates very quickly. Acetone is found in

volcanic gases, plants, in byproducts of forest fires, and the breakdown of body fat. Acetone

evaporates very quickly, and while it is produced in nature, for commercial use it is produced by

manually combining three carbon atoms, six hydrogen atoms, and one oxygen atom to produce
the compound element (CH3)2CO, that we call acetone. In which is why the researchers thought

it would be a good idea to use acetone since it is cheap, and it can be an effective substitute to

other solvents like gasoline.

Styrofoam is a trademarked brand of closed cell extruded polystyrene foam currently

made for thermal insulation and craft application. Polystyrene can be melted by the acetone. Any

plastic material instead of polystyrene will not work because they cannot be melted by the

gasoline.

Polystyrene is made up of many smaller molecules called monostyrene. The acetone (formula

(CH3)2CO) breaks the bonds that hold the polystyrene together.

Since polystyrene is mostly pockets of air, when the bonds are broken the air can escape.

As the air escapes the volume of the polystyrene decreases. The foam doesn't disappear, it turns

into a liquid, mostly void of the air that made it so valuable as an insulator. When you mix

polystyrene with acetone, the polystyrene breaks down. polystyrene is a chemical of petroleum

base that is fluffed up like cool whip, when it dissolves in gasoline it changes back to a liquid. 

All the air inside escapes, and it becomes a wet, gooey mess.  If left out to dry, it gets

hard again, but not like before, without the air, it resembles hard plastic. Polystyrene itself is a

hydrocarbon, which means it is made up only of carbon and hydrogen atoms bound together.
 METHODOLOGY

Research Method

The researchers will be using both experimental and descriptive research method. In an

experimental research method, it is the on comparison between two or more groups

("Experimental Research Designs - Statistics Solutions", 2020) — this research including the

effect of having different ratios for the polystyrene foam and acetone for each solution. The

researchers must conduct the experiment on a controlled environment and only manipulate one

variable at a time.

On the other hand, the descriptive research method involves observing the subject

without influencing it in any way (Shuttleworth, 2020). This will allow the researchers to know if

the final output will be effective and bring any benefit to the users.

Data Gathering

The researchers prepared the ingredients and materials specifically polystyrene, acetone,

graduated cylinder, bowl, and a towel. The researchers started with, breaking the polystyrene

into small pieces and put it in the bowl, pouring the 500 ml acetone in the container with the

polystyrene. The researchers then mixed it and waited until in turned thick, then waited for a

minute to dry. The effectiveness of the roof sealant will be tested by putting the graduated

cylinder to the box then pointing the graduated cylinder to the hole to measure the amount of
water dripped from the hole, then applying the sealant into the hole then waiting for it to dry. The

researchers will also test its effectiveness by pouring 3L of water over the sealant.

Participant and Sampling Technique

In this study, the researchers will be conducting a survey with informal settlers. In that

way, the researchers will be able to gather the data that they need regarding on how convenient

this study will be for the respondents.

The researchers will be conducting a survey with twenty-five (25) informal settlers.

Confident that with this number of the respondents, the results will be accurate with the rest of

the informal settlers.

The researchers will also be using Purposive Sampling Technique wherein the

researchers will be choosing their respondents based on their own judgement on who they think

can help with the study. With this sampling technique, the researchers will be able to gather all

the data that the study needs in order for it to be a reliable and accurate study.

Reference:

 Andolong, T. (2020). Retrieved 27 January 2020, from

https://businessmirror.com.ph/2017/11/28/when-it-comes-to-roofing-quality-is-

everything/
 Chandran, R. (2020). Slum dwellers in the Philippines build homes through community

programs. Retrieved 27 January 2020, from https://www.csmonitor.com/World/Asia-

South-Central/2018/0607/Slum-dwellers-in-the-Philippines-build-homes-through-

community-programs

 Thompson, R. (2020). repurposing styrofoam. Retrieved 25 January 2020, from

http://rickthompson.com/blog/repurposing-styrofoam/

 Polystyrene. (2020). Retrieved 25 January 2020, from

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polystyrene

 Acetone. (2020). Retrieved 25 January 2020, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acetone

 Experimental Research Designs - Statistics Solutions. (2020). Retrieved 29 January 2020,

from https://www.statisticssolutions.com/experimental-research-designs/

 Shuttleworth, M. (2020). Descriptive Research Design. Retrieved 29 January 2020, from

https://explorable.com/descriptive-research-design

 Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development n.d. Government Agency

Retrieved from https://www.senate.gov.ph/lisdata/2669822928!.pdf