CHAPTER I

Background of the Study

1
Fire is a chemical reaction that gives off light and heat. Fire is also very dangerous, it can cause
houses, trees and many other things to burn into ashes. In other words, fire is an important process that
affects ecological systems around the globe.
Humans have been using fires for thousands of years. The element of fire is a significant tool for
humans in that it can be useful in a number of ways. 2It is mostly used in rituals, in agriculture for clearing
land, for cooking, generating heat and light, for signaling, propulsion
purposes, smelting, forging, incineration of waste, cremation, and as a weapon or mode of destruction.
From the very basic and primitive essentials to modern living amenities, fire plays one of the most
important roles in our daily lives. As an example, we always cook our foods before we eat it. And in
cooking, fire is needed to prepare foods in many different ways.
Making fire to generate heat and light made it possible for people to cook food, simultaneously
increasing the variety and availability of nutrients and reducing disease by killing organisms in the food.
Everyone knows how important food consumption is to an individual. Without food, one may get totally
insane and may revert to destroying people’s lives, including their own. As our country continue to battle
with the worsening poverty problems and non-stop increase in oil and 3fuel prices, many Filipino today
rely on wood charcoal for cooking to save money. As time goes by the use of fire became progressively
more sophisticated, trees are cut down to produce and provide more charcoals for everyone.
Charcoal has been considered a source of fuel for many Filipino people especially in the rural
areas. According to a survey by the Central Echo (2011), more than 90% of Filipinos are dependent on
charcoal for cooking. While only 1-2% use Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) or kerosene due to high cost
of living. However, making charcoal means cutting trees. As a result, only species of trees that do not
burn well are left in our forests. Therefore, there is a compelling need to find alternative fuel sources and
new methods that can minimize the need for charcoal.
On the other hand, paper is the major contributor of solid waste by either weight or volume. Yet it
is highly recyclable and can be manufactured into some other materials. Thus, paper charcoal was
introduced as an alternative for charcoal. Also, it will not destroy our forests and ravage mother earth but
instead, this will help minimize solid waste and reduce forest denudation due to charcoal making.
Paper charcoals are made by soaking papers overnight and forming it into fist size balls which are
left to dry in the sun. Paper charcoals serves as a good alternative fuel for cooking. Encouraging the use
of paper charcoal as an alternative for fuel is good practice. Waste papers would otherwise end up in
landfills are given new use as cooking medium. This will also help reduce dependence on forest wood for
cooking. It does not produce soot like ordinary charcoals. Paper charcoal may function differently from
the ordinary charcoal but it is very ingenious and eco-friendly.
Charcoals are often difficult to start a fire, we use gas, papers, matches, etc. to ignite a fire in instance but
we all know that it takes a lot of time and effort. In this case, we could use the seeds falling from a palm
1
https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fire&https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fire
2
https://www.hunker.com/12430778/uses-of-fire
3
https://studymoose.com/paper-charcoal-essay
tree and the paper charcoal. The palm tree seed can light up a fire longer than match sticks that are used in
starting a fire. The paper charcoal will easily ignite because of the dried palm tree seed under it. This
would lessen the time we spent on igniting a fire. Unlike using charcoals, this product will prove that it
would be much easier to light up a fire in a shorter time than usual charcoals. The use of palm oil seed in
this study is very beneficial. Palm oil seeds have certain substances that when used as a fire starter, the
seed will burn longer than a stick of match and that is better used in creating a fire. This product will also
lessen the use of regular charcoals out of trees and that would deduct the production in which, more trees
would be save. To sum it all, this study is very eco-friendly and benefits us all.

Statement of the Problem

This study aims to introduce and promote the use of palm tree seed to easily ignite a fire on a
paper charcoal. Specifically it aims to answer the following questions:
1. How long will it take to ignite a paper charcoal using the palm tree seed?
2. How long will the paper charcoal last?
3. How will we add the ground seed in the making of paper charcoal?

Hypothesis
If dried palm tree seed can easily light up a fire, then the paper charcoal will easily ignite because
of the dried palm tree seed under it.

Significance of the Study

The findings of this study aims to provide the easiest way to ignite a fire using the paper charcoal
made out of recycled papers that would be useful for cooking or other needs related in burning, heating,
lighting, etc.. The use of recycled papers, paper charcoal, is a great help in supplying the needs of most
Filipinos in terms of cooking. There are no chemicals included in this research so this would benefit all
without any side effects. Thus, it is a very eco-friendly product that would minimize the production of
commercial charcoals and could help preserve trees of our own and with the use of the palm tree seed it
would go up in flames in a shorter time. This product can be used by anyone particularly the citizens who
use charcoals instead of LPG.

Scope and Delimitations

The main focus of this study is to use a palm tree seed to easily ignite a fire on a paper charcoal.
The dried palm tree seed is capable to ignite a fire for a longer period of time. This study is beneficial to
all the people in the Philippines who are using paper charcoals or ordinary commercial charcoals. The
independent variables are the palm tree seeds and the paper charcoal. The study does not cover the people
who are using Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) on these days. This study is focused on using palm tree
seed in igniting a paper charcoal.

Definition of Terms
1. Wood: a material obtained from trees, is used to make charcoal and other paper products.
2. Charcoal: a flammable material made from bark of trees, used for heating in some areas of the world.
3. Commercial Charcoal: Charcoal sold in stores and markets, usually comes in chunks or briquettes.
4. Paper: a material also obtained from trees, used to write, print, wrap, etc., made from the bark of tress
and bleached.
5. Paper Charcoal: recycled papers made into charcoals
6. Fire: combustion or burning, in which substances combine chemically with oxygen from the air and
typically give out bright light, heat, and smoke.
7. Ignite: catch fire or cause to catch fire
8. LPG: also referred to as simply propane or butane, are flammable mixtures of hydrocarbon gases used
as fuel in heating appliances, cooking equipment, and vehicles.