Metal Filter in Purifying Used Cooking Oil

A Research Proposal Presented to the Scientific Review Committee of the

Science Department, Digos City National Highschool

Proponents:

Jomer M. Albiar
Myles Alpha M. Cortez
Elcid Virgel S. Pintor
Jermaine V. Merca
Christian Angelo V. Toledo

Research Adviser: Maricel A. Manceras

January 2021
CONTENTS
Chapter 1..............................................................................................................................................3
Chapter 2..............................................................................................................................................7
Chapter 3............................................................................................................................................12
Bibliography........................................................................................................................................16

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 CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

Disposal of used cooking oil is one of the major factors of environmental

deterioration, especially in urban areas. Oil causes murky and grayish waters that is toxic to

the fishing industry and hinders attempts to grow plants.[ CITATION Boa18 \l 1033 ] Residents

usually throw away oil after using it once, polluting the canals with its greasy nature and

adding to the water pollution that contaminate the waters. Some people resort to reusing

cooking oil, but doing so may result to multiple health hazards such as cancer, infection of

the leukocytes and increasing of cholesterol[ CITATION Ris14 \l 1033 ]

Palm Oil is the oil widely used by street vendors. Street vendors often reused oil to

save money. In South East Asia, making Palm oil is one of their major income. To do so, they

cut down large number of trees that causes harm in the biodiversity. This deforestation is a

major contributor in global warming by releasing too much carbon.[ CITATION The \l 1033 ]

Reusing edible oil for preparing food, especially in frying is a common practice

among street vendors to enhance their profit. By reusing oil, the oxidative degradation of oil

lipids accelerates during repeated process of heating. Long-term reusing of oil causes

pathologies such as diabetes, hypertension, and vascular inflammation. The injurious effects

of reusing of oil consumption extend beyond mere oxidative attack to cellular antioxidant

defense.[ CITATION Arv18 \l 1033 ]

III
Statement of the Problem

This study is done to test the effectiveness of the metal filter in cleansing used oil. More

importantly, it shall answer the following questions:

1. Can the metal filter remove impurities in the oil?

2. How much impurity will be reduced in terms of Total Polar Compound (TPC) after

filtration?

Hypothesis

Ho1: Activated Charcoal cannot be used in purifying used cooking oil.

Ho2: There is no significant difference in the TPC of the used cooking oil.

Conceptual Framework

Independent Variable Dependent Variable

Activated Charcoal
T1- Metal Filter with 10g of Activated

Charcoal, 150ml of used cooking oil

T2- Metal Filter with 15g of Activated

Charcoal, 150ml of used cooking oil

The percentage of TPC after the testing

T3- Metal Filter with 25g of Activated

Charcoal, 150ml of used cooking oil

T4- Metal Filter only, 150ml of used

cooking oil

IV
Significance of the Study

This study aims to propose another way in filtering cooking oil by using a metal filter,

moreover, it is beneficial to the following:

Sidewalk vendors – with the use of the metal filter, the vendors can now use their oil again

and still be safe for consumption.

Household consumption – having an efficient way of filtering oil, people will now be able

to save from buying too much cooking oil while still maintaining its quality.

Environment – now, nature will be more secured because people will no longer have to

dispose their oil given that it’s already consumable.

Future researchers – other researchers interested in engaging with this kind of study will

have something to refer to and might further improve existing solution.

V
Scope and Limitations of the Study

This study is focused on developing a metal filter that would cleanse the used cooking

oil specifically, palm oil. The materials to be used will include activated charcoal as an

absorbent which is to be added on various layers of the filtering device itself. Furthermore,

the study will be limited in Digos City and the experiments are expected to be conducted at

one of the private properties of Myles Alpha M. Cortez (Researcher).

Definition of Terms

Activated Charcoal- Activated charcoal is a fine powder produced from bone char, coconut

shells, peat, petroleum coke, coal, olive pits or sawdust. The charcoal itself is activated by

exposing it in high temperatures during process.[ CITATION Ali17 \l 1033 ]

Palm oil- Palm oil comes from the fruit of the oil palm (Elaeis guineensis). It is semi-solid at

room temperature and so does not need to be chemically hardened. It is also neutral in taste

and very stable when heated; it has a long shelf life and makes foods particularly spreadable.

[ CITATION For20 \l 1033 ]

Impurity-Refers to the constituent that impairs the quality of something. [ CITATION Dic20 \l

1033 ]

VI
 CHAPTER 2

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

Activated Charcoal

Impurities of Palm oil has fats which it has a negative effect to our health. The

Impurities in the oil will display according to the color of the reused palm oil. Activated

Charcoal is an absorbent of Impurities and a kind of active carbon. Using activated charcoal

to purify the Impurities of the palm oil will have a potential to purify Impurities of Palm oil

through chemical process.[CITATION BLE \l 1033 ]

Activated Charcoal (also known as activated carbon) consists of small, black beads or

a solid black porous sponge. It is used in water filters, medicines that selectively remove

toxins, and chemical purification processes. Activated charcoal is carbon that has been treated

with oxygen. The treatment results in highly porous charcoal. These tiny holes give the

charcoal a surface area of 300-2,000 m2/g, allowing liquids or gases to pass through the

charcoal and interact with the exposed carbon. The carbon itself adsorbs a wide range of

impurities and contaminants, including chlorine, odors, and pigments. Other substances, like

sodium, fluoride, and nitrates, are not as attracted to the carbon and are not filtered out. Since

adsorption works by chemically binding the impurities to the carbon, the active sites in the

charcoal eventually become filled. Activated charcoal filters become less.[CITATION Act \l 1033

VII
Adsorption of Activated Charcoal

There are several main factors that can affect the effectiveness of the Activated

Charcoal. The pore size and distribution vary depending on the source of the carbon and the

manufacturing process. Large organic molecules are absorbed better than smaller ones.

Adsorption tends to increase as pH and temperature decrease. Contaminants are also removed

more effectively if they are in contact with the activated charcoal for a longer time, so flow

rate through the charcoal affects filtration.[ CITATION Act \l 1033 ]

Mostly, the components of the fresh vegetable oils are non-polar. The reaction takes

place in the oil during the frying of food, which it creates the polar compounds. Active

carbons characterized by small contents of polar functional groups, responsible for adsorbing

polar. If the polar compounds of the oil removed, then the purification is effective. An active

carbon oxidized with hydrogen peroxide treatment is used, and the quality of the used palm

oil was improved. The carbonaceous adsorbent improves the quality of the palm oil used for

frying food by purifying it from substances, lipid hydrolysis products, oxidation products and

total polar compounds.[CITATION res \l 13321 ]

The breakdown of a substance with a help of water is what we call hydrolysis. When

fats and oils hydrolysed by moisture, it will produce glycerol and three fatty acids. If that

happens, it will lead to hydrolytic rancidity of a certain food product and it will become

unwanted for consumers. Esters are the ones responsible to hydrolysis and chemical fats are

part of the esters, the reaction will cause non-enzymatic hydrolysis. In addition, the partial

hydrolysis of triglycerides will produce mono- and di- glycerides and free fatty acids.

[CITATION sli \l 13321 ]

VIII
Palm Oil

One of the most used cooking oils in the street vendors is Palm Oil, since the oil is

most commonly used by street vendors, reusing is common in order to reduce buying oil, it

increases the fact that Palm oil is produced from the palm tree which is the main source of

income of many farmers in South East Asia. In order to do so, they cut down large amounts

of trees causing an unbalance in the biodiversity. This deforestation is also a major

contributor to the climate change as it releases too much carbon causing global warming.

Deforestation also means less habitat for the animals living in it; animals such as orangutans,

leopards and several other species. They are often injured or something killed during the

process.[CITATION The \l 1033 ]

Oils starts to smoke when it reaches to its smoking point. When oil starts to smoke, it

forms aldehydes, ketones, alcohols, dienes, and acids. Meaning, if you use the same oil for

cooking, the food quality will decrease. The alkenals and alkedienals (unsaturated aldehydes)

formed during burning process of oil. The compounds formed during burning process can

cause Alzheimer's disease due to the compounds formed by the smoking process of oil.

[CITATION The1 \l 1033 ]

Palm oil is an edible oil derived from the fruits of the oil palm (Elaeis guineensis),

which belongs to the Palmaceae family. It is an important and versatile vegetable oil that is

used as a raw material for both food and non-food industries. Most of the oil is used for food

applications such as cooking, margarines, spreads, confectionary fats, ice cream, emulsifiers,

and vanaspati. It has a unique fatty acid and triacylglycerol profile. It is naturally semi-solid

at room temperature and does not require hydrogenation for use as a food ingredient. Palm oil

is a rich source of carotenoids and tocopherols, which confer natural stability against

oxidative deterioration. Palm oil has a unique fatty acid and which makes it suitable for a

IX
number of food applications. Palm oil is also used as a source of fatty acids, vitamin E, and

emulsifiers. Fractionation of palm oil results in various fractions with distinct physical and

chemical properties. Customized blends of these fractions with other oils are used in different

food products ranging from margarines to soup mixes.[CITATION Foo12 \l 1033 ]

Impurities of the Oil

Oils contain undesired impurities. The impurities in the oil should be removed. The

impurities in the oil can have a negative effect to its taste and quality. Also, there are some

impurities in the oil that is unhealthy. So, purification of the oil is necessary. Refining can

help purify oil. Refining includes many processing steps that each step contributes the

purification of oil.[CITATION Oil \l 1033 ]

Total Polar Compound

The state of oil and the fats in contain plays a big role in its final product after frying.

Frying creates a reaction in the oil and these leads to both physical and chemical changes

forming many harmful decomposition products. These said products are known as "Total

Polar Compounds" (TPC) and the more TPC in the oil, the more unsaturated the oil is.

Determining the TPC present in the oil is a reliable method in monitoring the changes

it undergoes as it is being fried. It also indicates the degradation of the oil after its repeated

use.[CITATION Lin20 \l 1033 ]

X
Uses of Activated Charcoal as a potential purifier for used cooking oil

Activated Charcoal- Activated Charcoal is carbon that has been treated with oxygen. The

treatment results in highly porous charcoal. These tiny holes give the charcoal a surface area

of 300-2,000 m2/g, allowing liquids or gases to pass through the charcoal and interact with

the exposed carbon. The carbon adsorbs a wide range of impurities and contaminants,

including chlorine, odors, and pigments. Other substances, like sodium, fluoride, and nitrates,

are not as attracted to the carbon and are not filtered out. Since adsorption works by

chemically binding the impurities to the carbon, the active sites in the charcoal eventually

become filled. Activated charcoal filters become less effective with use and have to be

recharged or replaced.[ CITATION Tho20 \l 1033 ]

XI
 CHAPTER 3

METHODOLOGY

Research Design

In this study, the researchers will use a Completely Randomized Design as a research

design. This is because the function of the design meets the needs of the researchers for the

experimentation. For getting the samples, random sampling will be implemented given that

there will be a lot of samples gathered. Mainly they must be homogenous as there is a need

for choosing sample randomly.

Collection of Materials

The researchers are planning to make the device, mainly with cheap but efficient in

terms of its capability. They are planning to go to nearby fast-food vendors for the used

cooking oil. To do so, the researchers must ask the vendors for permission to give us samples

of cooking oil to be used in the experimentation

Experimentation proper

First, the researchers will find a liter of cooking oil. Second, the researchers will find

an accessible activated charcoal in the researchers' locality. Next, the researchers will canvass

the materials used for experimentation and will compute the budget for the whole materials.

After the computation, the researchers will construct the main components of the device, then

the body structure of the device, then the filtration structure and then the container of the

cooking oil in the device. After the construction of the body of the device, the researchers

XII
will install the remaining parts of the device into the main structure of the device. After that,

install the activated charcoal with a specified measure of 10g in the device for supporting the

filtration of the cooking oil. Then, pour 150ml of used cooking oil into the device and wait

for at least 5 minutes for the process. After the experimentation, the researchers will observe

the results of the filtered cooking oil, compare it to the non-filtered used cooking oil and

gather the information observed. After gathering the results, the researchers will change the

amount of activated charcoal to 15g in the device. Then, pour 150ml of used cooking oil and

wait of at least 5 minutes for the results. After waiting the results, the researchers will

compare the results and gather the information observed. After that, the researcher will

change the amount of activated charcoal to 20g in the device. Then, pour another 150ml of

used cooking oil and wait for at least 5 minutes for the results. After the 3 trails, the

researchers will compare all the trials and verify the difference of the TPC (Total Polar

Compound) by using an instrument that can determine TPC. Lastly, all the information

gathered by the researchers will be recorded.

Collection of data

The researchers will conduct 5 trials and 3 replications each run. After filtration, the

cooking oil will then be measured on how low the TPC of each recorded run

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Table 1. Envisioned table of the variation of Activated Charcoal each treatment

T1 Metal Filter R1 R2 R3

with 10g of

Activated

Charcoal, 150ml

of used cooking

oil
T2 Metal Filter

with 15g of

Activated

Charcoal, 150ml

of used cooking

oil
T3 Metal Filter

with 25g of

Activated

Charcoal, 150ml

of used cooking

oil
T4 The Metal Filter

only, 150ml of

used cooking oil

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 Flow Chart

Gathering of materials Gathering used cooking

for the Metal Filter oil for the experiment

Acquiring activated
charcoal for the
experiment

Creating the device for

the experiment

Conduction of the Proper disposal of

Experimentation materials used in the
experiment

XV
BIBLIOGRAPHY

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CHARCOAL

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