Cubicle Solutions:

An experimental comparative study of the efficacy of

natural and chemical deodorizers at the 7th floor SDA
Male Comfort Room
Añonuevo, Bacuetes, Carpio, Marquez, Orui, Purcil
Problem Identification
Foul odors may not only cause health symptoms, but also, odors
elicit emotion such that rewarding stimuli are associated with
pleasant subjective states, while punishing stimuli corresponds
to unpleasant subjective states.

The toilet facility in some of the floors in the School of Design

and Arts building has become a problem for many students and Pic d2
faculty because of its odor.

One of the most common complaints is the men’s comfort room

in the 7th floor where the odor reaches right outside and even up
to the hallways.
Problem Statement
There is a difference between using a natural and a chemical based toilet deodorizer in terms
of efficacy and impact to health and the environment.

For this research we will do an intensive comparative research and experiment between three
different deodorizers : charcoal and coffee (for the natural - based deodorizer) and a
commercially available chemical - based deodorizer.
CHARCOAL
Charcoal is a highly porous material that attracts odors in the
air. To deodorize the air, the foul odor passes through the
charcoal and the odor-causing chemical bonds with the
surface that leads to purify the air and the foul odor.
COFFEE
Coffee grounds emit a strong odor and can trap and
neutralize strong unwanted odors.

Coffee grounds is also a great option for the plants

because they act as a fertilizer in flower beds. The acidity
in the grounds breaks down the compost and manure and
helps plants grow.

It is an eco-friendly filter that removes toxic gases from

the air.
Commercially - available deodorizer
Most portable restroom deodorizers contain four main components:
biocides, dye, fragrance, detergents and Metazene, an odor-
neutralizing additive that combats malodors in the vapor-phase
(above the water surface).

Biocides hinder the growth of gram-positive odor-producing

bacteria, which helps to maintain freshness for longer periods of
time. They also prevent some odor-causing bacteria from
multiplying.
 Parameters

Chemical Based
Parameters Coffee Charcoal
Deodorizer

Available at home and Available at home and

Availability Available in the markets
markets markets

Cost 10php - 200 php 5php - 20php 200php - 1000php

Health Advantages Removes VOC’s Removes VOC’s Produces VOC’s

Contains hazardous
Health Disadvantages
chemicals
Research Question
Through comparative research and experiment, which

between the chemical and natural - based deodorizers will

eliminate foul odor in the toilet cubicles most effectively?

Significance of the Proposal
This study will provide the best solution to the aforementioned odor

problem in the toilet at the 7th floor of the SDA building.

The information collected will also help in developing different materials to

be used for the toilet that can contravene foul odor with considerations for

different parameters such as: cost, efficacy and health and environmental

impacts.
Research Study Objectives
To measure the efficacy of charcoal, coffee and a chemical-based deodorizer in removing foul

odors, the three aforementioned deodorizer will be subjected into a prototype experimentation and

will use three different parameters .

1. A thorough research and analysis with the components of coffee, charcoal and the chemical-based

deodorizer that makes it effective for removing foul odors.

2. A participative study to independent variable conditions:

● Coffee Deodorizer Prototype

● Charcoal Deodorizer Prototype

● Chemical - based deodorizer prototype

1. A quantitative data analysis using odor concentration

that can be determined using an the Olfactometric Method

and a calculation method of Odor Index and Odor Intensity.

Assumptions
The experimental research method will be based on the assumptions that:

1. The participants / panel subjected to the experiment will be arbitrary.

2. The inclusion criteria of the sample are appropriate and therefore, assures that the participants / panel have all

experienced the same or similar phenomenon of the study.

Scope and Limitations
This study will focus on researching the best deodorizer solution for the foul odor implicated on the 7th floor of the

SDA Building.

In addition, the research will provide a thorough understanding with the positive and negative effects of the

different materials in terms of efficacy, cost and health and environment impact.

The respondents of the study are limited only to the faculty and students of De La Salle - College of Saint

Benilde. The researchers will have a total of 10 correspondents for the research, 8 participants for the prototype

experiment and 2 panellists for the Olfactometric Method Experminent.

Olfactory sensation is one of the chemical senses and is triggered by odorous chemical molecules. However, contrary

to the importance of the molecular features of odorants, in most cases sufficient attention has not been paid to

selecting odorants for research into olfaction. Furthermore, how many researchers in the study of olfaction have

noticed that the shape of an odorous molecule itself can sometimes be changed to different shapes due to molecular

flexibility? The conformation of odorants has been considered in the study of quantitative or qualitative structure—

odour relationships (Buchbauer et al., 1994; Rognan and Chastrette, 1994; Yoshii and Hirono, 1996; Gorbachov and

Rossiter, 1999) by assuming interaction between odorous molecules and olfactory receptor proteins. The interaction

of fairly flexible molecules and receptor proteins is considered to be more complicated than that between rather rigid

molecules and the proteins. There is no yet proven direct experimental evidence that the flexibility of conformers of

odorous compounds influences actual odour sensation in human subjects.

Review of Related Literature
 1

According to General Carbon Corporation, a well known carbon and charcoal manufacturer in the US,

Activated carbon attracts and holds organic chemicals from vapor and liquid streams cleaning them of

unwanted chemicals.

For a better perspective, when individuals ingest chemicals or are experiencing food poisoning, they are

instructed to drink a small amount of activated carbon to soak up and remove the poisons.

Norman R. Rowe (1963) Odor Control with

Activated Charcoal, Journal of the Air Pollution
Control Association, 13:4, 150-153, DOI:
10.1080/00022470.1963.10468157
 1

According to to the Journal of the Air Pollution Control Association in 1963 by Norman R. Rowe, Activated charcoal

may be used to remove the vapor component of polluted air through adsorption. Adsorption is a process where

molecules stick onto the surface area of the porous material such as the activated charcoal.

Adsorption is a means of concentration and not a process of disposing contaminants. The contaminants removed will

then be in a form that will facilitate disposal. Methods of final disposal for organic vapors are reuse, burning, or

discharge into a sewer.

Norman R. Rowe (1963) Odor Control with

Activated Charcoal, Journal of the Air Pollution
Control Association, 13:4, 150-153, DOI:
10.1080/00022470.1963.10468157
 1

On the same journal, It is said that activated charcoal is capable of adsorbing organic, as well as inorganic, vapors

and gases. It has an internal submicroscopic structure consisting of tiny passages not larger than the size of the

molecules that are adsorbed.

Activated charcoal can even be used to remove gases and vapors that have become radioactive. Tests by

government agencies have shown that good quality activated charcoal will remove absolutely 100% of radioactive

iodine in the entire concentration range tested.

Norman R. Rowe (1963) Odor Control with

Activated Charcoal, Journal of the Air Pollution
Control Association, 13:4, 150-153, DOI:
10.1080/00022470.1963.10468157
2

According to a publication of research done by scientists at the City College of New York in 2012, coffee
grounds can sop up hydrogen sulfide gas and eliminate bad odor.

Caffeine, the stimulant that gives coffee its energy jolt, contains nitrogen which improves carbon's ability to
clean sulfur from the air. This process is called adsorption.

City College of New York. (2012, February 8).

Carbonized coffee grounds remove foul smells.
ScienceDaily. Retrieved February 6, 2019 from
www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/1202
08102737.htm
 3

Scientific advancements have transformed the toilet industry. This include innovations for odor neutralizer
such as toilet sprays, round shaped deodorizers and the blue liquid.

According to a conductive study made by the Pediatric Services of America Inc (PSAI), they save about
125 million gallons of fresh water every day because waste is not flushed away every time the porta-potty
is used.
 3

The main ingredient in toilet deodorizers was formaldehyde, which helped to cover waste, keep
restrooms cleans and mask foul odors.

While it did this job to a limited degree, it was also toxic to human health and harsh on the environment.

Formaldehyde: A simple compound with many uses

Raymond B. Seymour and George B. Kauffman
Journal of Chemical Education 1992 69 (6), 457
DOI: 10.1021/ed069p457
 3

Studies have indicated that when animals are exposed to formaldehyde, it can make them sick, affect their
behavior, appearance, breeding patterns and significantly reduce their life spans. It can also affect food
chains because this substance is highly toxic to aquatic life including fish, shellfish and other river
creatures.

A 2003 study conducted by F.A. Malek and published in the Journal of Experimental Animal
Science,indicated that the exposure of rats to low levels of formaldehyde vapor concentrations caused
significant alterations in their motor activities.
Formaldehyde: A simple compound with many uses
Raymond B. Seymour and George B. Kauffman
Journal of Chemical Education 1992 69 (6), 457
DOI: 10.1021/ed069p457
Framework
 Define deodorant
Designate a site for SDA, 7th Floor,
experimentation Male Restroom

What are the different types of

a deodorizer
Students and
Determine a control group
Professors

Natural Chemical

Qualitative and
Difference of natural Test of experiment
Quantitative
and chemical

Survey and Data

Gather the outcome
Analysis
Benefits of Benefits of
natural chemical

Disadvantages of Disadvantages of
natural chemical
 Data Gathering Method

Problem:
Location: Qualitative Data Analysis
Foul Odor that affects - Intensive Component Research
Male Comfort Room the health and
7/F, SDA CAMPUS
productivity of users

Quantitative Data Analysis

- Odor Index / Odor Intensity
Solution: Deodorizers

Natural Chemical

COFFEE CHARCOAL CHEMICAL - BASED

PROTOTYPE
 PROTOTYPE

Chemical - based
Coffee Deodorizer Charcoal Deodorizer
Deodorizer

Olfactometric Method

1. Collection of Samples
2. Dilution with Neutral Air Panel Analysis /
3. Lab Data Analysis using Olfactometer Participative study / Survey

(1 odor unit per cubic meter of air: “1 o.u./m3“)

Study Proper: Survey
Analysis of Data
Chemical based products are more available in the market, therefore, more people are using it.

Users also consider the availability and effectiveness the most in choosing a product.

With this data, we conclude that by creating more natural based deodorizers, available in the

market, we could help reduce the foul odor in comfort rooms and prevent from using chemical

based products that are not only harmful to our health but to the environment as well.
Design Translation
STEPS
COFFEE CHARCOAL COFFEE + CHARCOAL