Balagtas National Agricultural High School

The Effectiveness of Luffa (Loofah), Eggshells, and Citrus limon (Lemon)

Waste as Oil Absorbent

By

Franz Jared Ventura

Rommelyn Dela Cruz

Angel Mae Purisima

 Summary

This text discusses the environmental impacts of oil spills, focusing on the

recent oil spill in the Philippines caused by the oil tanker MT Princess Empress. The

consequences of oil spills include the death of aquatic life, disruption of beaches, and

the contamination of seafood, which can pose health risks to consumers. Efforts to

clean up oil spills, assess contamination effects, and aid in ocean recovery require

extensive research. The demand for cost-effective oil absorbents has increased due to

the rising rate of oil pollution.

The study mentioned in the text aims to explore the potential of using eggshells,

lemon waste, and loofah as effective oil absorbents. The researchers plan to develop an

alternative to the conventional Oil Absorbent Boom by utilizing these materials.

Loofah, with its buoyant nature, will serve as a substitute for the mesh sock

commonly used in oil absorbent booms. Inside the loofah, crushed eggshells and cut

lemon peels will act as absorbent materials.

The researchers intend to create multiple samples of the loofah absorbent,

connecting them together like a chain of absorbents. To test the effectiveness of the Oil

Absorbent Boom, preliminary testing will be conducted in three large basins. These

basins will contain crude oil, colored water, and a mixture of colored water and crude

oil. The absorbent booms will be observed for five hours to determine if they absorb

only the crude oil or also the water. Red food coloring will be used to make the

absorbed liquid more visible.

After the testing period, the Oil Absorbent Booms will be examined for any

absorbed color and weighed to measure the weight difference. The researchers will use

the ASTM D570 formula, which calculates the percentage of water absorption increase
in weight, to analyze the results. Additionally, the squeezed absorbent booms will be

measured to determine the quantity of liquid absorbed.

Overall, the text highlights the environmental consequences of oil spills,

introduces the use of eggshells, lemon waste, and loofah as potential oil absorbents,

and outlines the testing process to evaluate their effectiveness as an alternative to

traditional oil absorbent booms.

 Background and Problem

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (2022), oil spills

may kill aquatic life, disrupt a beach day, and render seafood dangerous to consume.

It needs strong research to clean up the oil, assess the effects of contamination, and

aid in the recovery of the ocean. Large oil spills are also a catastrophic and hazardous

calamity.

Oil spills result from accidents or intentional discharge of oil by oil platforms,

refineries, or ships during tank cleaning. They harm coastal habitats and can reach

the seafloor (de la Huz & Lopez, 2018).

The Philippines has also experienced an oil spill recently. The oil tanker MT

Princess Empress carried 5660 oil barrels last February 28, 2023. This disaster has

affected 178,306 people, and has caused more than 200 deaths. It also affected other

things such as marine resources, which widely affected wholesalers, vendors, and

tourism operators.

However, due to the increasing rate of oil pollution, the demand for cost-

effective oil absorbent became higher. Meanwhile, previous literature has been

discussing the potential of lemon peels as oil absorbent. On the other hand, eggshell

has a high concentration of calcium carbonate that sum up its potential as a good oil

adsorbent (Misau, et al., 2022). A study also stated that loofah has big potential in

binding with oils.

This study aims to focus on the potential of eggshell, lemon waste, and loofah

as an effective oil adsorbent.

 Beneficiaries

Fishermen. If there is an oil spill, the fishermen are affected since the fish

catch will automatically be immobilized. Through this study, it will directly help

fishermen since they are affected.

People who live near the coast. This study will be a big help to those people

who live near the coastal areas. This oil absorbent will protect them from the possible

danger when they come in contact with oil-concentrated water.

Future Researchers. This study will serve as a guide for future investigations

and discovery that can be used by future researchers or research students.

 Proposed Solution and Methods

The researchers will produce an alternative for Oil Absorbent Boom as oil

absorbent.

In order to do this, the researchers will use loofah as an alternative for the

mesh sock. Mesh socks are buoyant, and loofah has the same nature. Inside the mesh

sock are the absorbents. Instead of polypropylene, the researchers will utilize the

lemon peels and eggshells, which will be the absorbents inside the loofah.

The eggshells will be crushed into small pieces, and the lemon peels will be cut

into cubes. These materials will then be put inside the loofah. The researchers plan to

make many samples of the loofah absorbent, with the eggshells and lemon peels

already inside. The loofah samples will then be connected or attached to each other,

like a chain of loofah absorbents.

The Oil Absorbent Boom will be weighed so the researchers will have a reference

for the testing. To utilize the final product, the Oil Absorbent Boom will undergo

preliminary testing by putting it into 3 large basins. The first basin would consist of 1L

crude oil only, the second basin would consist of 2 gallons of colored water, and the

other basin would consist of 2 gallons of colored water and 1L of crude oil. It will be

observed for 5 hours.

The preliminary test will be done to observe if the Oil Absorbent Boom absorbs

the crude oil only, or if it would absorb the water as well. The water would be light-

colored, because loofah has the ability to absorb colors of liquids (Yu, et al., 2018). The

researchers will use red food coloring because red food coloring is more visible

compared to other colors, and stains much easier.

 After 5 hours, the Oil Absorbent Booms will be observed to see if it has

absorbed any color. After that, the samples will be weighed to distinguish its weight

difference. The researchers will utilize the formula of ASTM D570, which expresses

water absorption increase in weight percent. The formula for the test is Percent Water

Absorption = [(Wet weight - Dry weight)/ Dry weight] x 100.

After the test, the Oil Absorbent Boom will be squeezed into another container

to see how many gallons or liters the sample had absorbed.

Figure 1. Oil Absorbent Boom

 References

Oil spills. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. (2020, August 1).

https://www.noaa.gov/education/resource-collections/ocean-coasts/oil-spills

Serrano, R. & Lastra, Mariano & Lopez, Jesus. (2011). Oil Spills.

10.1016/B978-0-444-52272-6.00568-7.

Misau, Idris & El-Nafaty, Usman & Abdulsalam, Surajudeen & Isa, Yusuf.

(2012). Removal of Oil from Oil Produced Water Using Eggshell. 2. 52-63.

Yu, Mingguang & Lin, Binbin & Chen, Shangxian & Deng, Qianjun & Liu,

Guang & Wang, Qing. (2018). Biomimetic fabrication of superhydrophobic loofah

sponge: Robust for highly efficient oil-water separation in harsh environments. RSC

Advances. 8. 24297-24304. 10.1039/C8RA04336A.