Citronella (Cymbopogon nardus) Leaves as Mosquito-Repellent Fabric Conditioner

A Concept Paper Presented to the Faculty

of Senior High School Department of

STI College Caloocan

In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements in

(Work Immersion/Inquiries)

Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Strand

Submitted by:

Bornel, Nicole

Cristalino, Dayma

Gonzales, Cedric

Lopez, Christian

Mendoza, Angelo

Minoncia, Julione

Nicdao, Emmanuel

San Miguel, Christian Gil

Siagan, Christine

November 2019 – March 2020

C-Fabcon: A Mosquito Repellent Fabric Conditioner

Mosquito‐borne diseases such as malaria, dengue fever and several types of encephalitis

have been an important public health concern as they are responsible for significant morbidity

and mortality worldwide. Numerous options and solutions have been used in order to solve this

impending crisis. One of the common solutions that are widely used by the consumers is by

using mosquito repellents based on chemicals. Mosquito repellents based on chemicals has a

remarkable safety profile, but they are toxic against the skin and nervous system like rashes,

swelling, eye irritation, and worse problems, though unusual including brain swelling in children,

anaphylactic shock, and low blood pressure. Our company, Citronellant Manufacturing

Company, will approach this problem by utilizing the properties of citronella plants. Citronella

plant (Cymbopogun nardus) is one of the most effective natural ways to repel and fight

mosquitoes and different insects and pests. Aside from the environmental and health concerns,

spraying insect repellents to mosquitoes are often time-consuming and requires significant

amount of effort. It is also done by intervals, usually every night which can be very inconvenient.

The researchers can solve this problem by using the oil extracted from the citronella to also serve

as a fabric conditioner to clothes. In this way, the researchers' product can serve as an alternative

fabric conditioner to clothes and also prevent mosquito outbreaks without the inconvenience and

hassle of spraying insect repellent.

The visioon of our company is “To be the world's best leading manufacturer of the safest

mosquito repellent that is hassle-free, cheaper, and more convenient to use for the consumer.”

Our company’s mission is “To create the best mosquito repellent that will not make use of any

harmful or toxic substance that may cause damage to human health and the environment. A
product that will utilize the use of natural ingredients like citronella extract that is much safer

compared to other products that is already present in the market.”

Our company is very eager to be able to help mitigate the cases of mosquito-borne

diseases without the inconvenience of spraying insect repellent directly onto mosquitoes by

developing a product that can repel mosquitoes in the form of a fabric conditioner. The

researchers are also extremely definite to innovate and design a product that will be significantly

reliable, environment-friendly, and economically efficient to the users.

The C-Fabcon is a dual purpose product designed to repel mosquitoes as well as to

function as a fabric conditioner to garments and clothes. The product harnesses the oil extracted

from the leaves of citronella plants which components are responsible for the desirable repellent

characteristics of the plant against mosquitoes. The four main components present in the oil

extracted from the citronella plant are citronellal, eugenol, geraniol and limonene. Carbon

dioxide and lactic acid present in sweat in warm-blooded animals act as an attractive substance

for mosquitoes. C-Fabcon will mask these human scents and prevent mosquitoes from detecting

the odor through the chemoreceptors present in their antennae. By utilizing these properties and

developing it to also function as a fabric conditioner, the consumers will never have to go

through the hassle and inconvenience of spraying insect repellent every after interval.

In order to achieve our company’s goals, we are seeking for your support for our

company, as well as in our product for the upcoming Entrepreneurship Week 2020. The

researchers need citronella leaves which can be acquired from community markets present on the

vicinity of the researchers. Then the researchers will proceed on extracting the oil from the

leaves through common extraction methods such as but not limited to steam distillation and
water distillation. After acquiring the materials and accomplishing the required procedures, the

researchers will next proceed on making their own fabric conditioner. To do that, the researchers

need clean water, white vinegar, baking soda, hair conditioner, and vanilla essential oil. As young

entrepreneurs who are still currently studying, it is very difficult for us to produce our product for

a mass number of consumers and to introduce our small product into the retail market. We are

really in dire need of your support for funding the mass production and operations of our

product. Our company needs 50 pieces of 50ml bottles with a flip top cap to serve as the official

container of the product. Through your connections with the retail market and trustworthy

suppliers, you can help boost the popularity of the product which can contribute to the product’s

accessibility to the consumers.

We are quite optimistic that our values and quality of service offering will help our

business to enviable heights and also help us to attract more number of clients that will make

the business highly profitable. You can call us at 0921-861-8976 or email at us

CitronellantManufacturing@gmail.com. You can also visit our Facebook page at

www.facebook.com/C-Fabcon-102297751381651/