Mini Thesis
Mini Thesis
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Abstract
The present research aimed to evaluate the use of spent coffee grounds (SCG) from instant
coffee as natural multi-purpose liquid. After the consumption of coffee powder as beverages, people
usually discard the ground’s left after it had been brewed. They discard the SCG because they barely
know that the SCG have its own benefits. Despite discarding the SCG, it can be used to produce
useful products. SCG extracted oil can be used to produce many potential products such as fertilizers,
soap, body scrub, biofuel and absorbent. However, in this study SCG is evaluated to make natural
multi-purpose liquid. Natural multi-purpose liquid was chosen as it is not being commercialized in
industry yet. This project developed new type of multi-purpose liquid without using chemical
processes. An experiment was carried out to prepare the multi-purpose liquid from SCG. The SCG
was gone through hydrolysing process. Firstly, the SCG is being heated in the oven to remove the
moisture. After that, distilled water is added to the SCG and SCG is heated in the oven. The pH of the
solution was taken. Lastly, the solution is filtered and poured into a spray bottle. The sample was
given to the respondents and the testimony data was collected. From the data obtained, it is proven
that the solution gives much positive effects and feedback from the respondent. The highest result is
the multi-purpose is easy to use, environmentally friendly, and able to remove strains or dirt and does
not sticky or permanent. However, further improvement is needed to ensure the final product be able
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Table of Contents
Abstract…………………………………………………………………………………………………2
Table of contents………………………………………………………………………………………..3
List of figures……………..…………………………………………………………………………….4
List of tables…………………………………………………………………………………………….5
1 Introduction………………………………………………………………………………….....6
2 Methodology…………………………………………………………………………………...9
2.3 Questionnaire…...………………………………………………………………….….9
3.1 Demographic…………………………………………………………………………10
3.1.1 Gender………………………………………………………………...……..10
3.2 Testimony……………………………………………………………………………13
5 Acknowledgement……………………………………………………………………………17
6 References……………………………………………………………………………...……..18
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List of Figures
Figure 1 pH test 8
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List of Tables
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1 Introduction
Coffee is a brewed beverage produced from roasted coffee beans. The coffee beans come
from a plant that grows at 600 to 1800m above the ocean level and is a tropical plant [1]. Roasted
coffee beans are produced when the two green seeds being separated from red cherry-life fruits of
coffee plants are being roasted. Coffee plants were first cultivated from around fifth to eight century
which was introduced in India. The plants were then being planted in more than 70 countries such as
Indonesia, Brazil, Columbia and Central America and it major plantation crops are in India [2]. There
are various types of coffee as it is produced in many countries. The common and popular types of
Coffee is one of the world’s most popular beverages [3] [4]. It is popular because of its
refreshing properties and other benefits that can be obtained from coffee. The recent study from the
International Coffee Organization stated that 9.3 billion kilograms of coffee was consumed in 2016
globally. Coffee has been consumed for more than 1000 years and is estimated consumed more than
400 billion cups yearly [5]. Some people buy fresh coffee beans and use a coffee grinder to grind the
beans into very small pieces which is almost dust. When the beverages from the coffee has been made
using some filters to keep the grounds out to be drunk, the grounds are said to be spent, meaning they
have been used and are worthless to make more coffee. These small pieces of coffee beans are called
After the consumption of coffee powder as beverages, people usually discard the ground’s
left after it had been brewed. People barely know that the SCG have its own benefits. Many
researchers and experiments had been done to prove that SCG is beneficial and gives advantages to
human’s life. Many chemical compositions can be determined in the SCG. SCG is lignocellulosic
such as cellulose, hemicellulose and aromatic which is lignin [6]. Other than that, SCG is rich in
ashes, minerals, fats, protein, phenolic, soluble and insoluble fibre [7].
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According to the chemical compounds found in SCG [8], people should reconsider before
discarding the SCG. Recent study stated that almost 50% of the worldwide coffee production is
processed for soluble coffee preparation, which means in about 6,000,000 tonnes of SCG is produced
per year [1] [3]. A massive pollution hazard will occur if the SCG is discharge improperly. The direct
discharge of waste water from coffee industries has a high concentration of organic pollutant such as
melanoidins, diterpenes, xanthines and carotenoids that is harmful for surrounding water bodies,
human bodies and aquatic life [9]. The more SCG being discarded, the more environmental problem
will occur. Awareness of the need for coffee waste reduction must be increased and implemented in
order to save and protect the environment. Therefore, another alternative to reduce pollution caused
SCG is high in caffeine which could repel away the insect such as mosquitoes. For instance,
the spent coffee ground completely blocked the development of Aedes Aegypti, a species of mosquito
[10]. Several experiments has been made by recent researcher using either mosquito eggs or larvae in
addition with fish food to determine the effect of caffeine towards mosquito by adding caffeine
towards the mosquito eggs or larvae [10]. Based on the previous experiment, CAF decreased the
mating frequency, egg-laying capacity, fertility and longevity of mosquito [10]. Other than that, SCG
also repel Aedes Albopictus, female species of mosquito and inhibit the development of their embryos
[11].
Furthermore, SCG contains phenolic as antioxidant to protect human skin [6]. An experiment
has been carried out to study the concentration of phenolic in SCG and its antioxidant activity by
extraction process [3] [8]. Besides containing phenolic as antioxidant to human skin, SCG is also high
in lipids [2] [7] [5]. This property is suitable to apply on cosmetics products or industries. The SCG is
extracted with supercritical carbon dioxide with high pressure extraction in order to extract lipids [13].
Human skin consists of several layers of lipid and keeps the skin barrier. Lipids from SCG will
improve skin lipids or as known as sebum and will hydrates human skins. From the experiment that
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had been carried out, SCG contains 10% of lipid. By analysing these compounds found in the SCG, it
In addition, SCG contains many minerals compound. Thus, it can be used as natural fertilizer
[3]. SCG contains more organic matter such as nitrogen (N) and potassium (K) than common
fertilizers [8]. The SCG is efficient and good degradable of composting the organic matter and it
release nutrients to the soil for plantation with less environmental effect [14]. Recent experiment has
been carried out in Soil Use and Management (2011) and the SCG could increase the pH of water
above 5.5. Hence, it can decrease the soil acidity which is good for most of the plants to grow.
Therefore, the main purpose of this project is to study the potential of SCG to be useful
product. By the properties stated before, it has a possibility to be a natural multi-purpose liquid.
Multi-purpose liquid is chosen in this project as the usage of natural multi-purpose liquid is rarely
consumed. The other purpose of this project is to study the SCG towards many parameters such as the
potential of SCG to remove strains and dirt, be able to fertilize plants, could repel insects and skin-
friendly product. The final product will be tested practically to ensure that it is succeed. Based on
previous study, SCG also could repel insects, remove strains and as fertilizers.
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2 Methodology
The spent coffee ground (SCG) was provided and taken from the Starbucks Seri, a coffee
shop as raw material. Then, SCG was dried in an oven at 105ºC for 6 hours to remove moisture
content.
One of the common methods to prepare multi-purpose liquid is by hydrolyzing the SCG [15].
Hydrolysis process is the addition of water (H 2O) into a substance or compound [16]. The dried SCG
is weighted for 20g using analytical balance and is added into a 250mL beaker. 100mL of distilled
water is added into the beaker that contains the weighted SCG. The hydrolysate is stirred using glass
rod then is heated in the oven to a temperature between 90ºC to 110ºC for 30 minutes [17]. Then, the
hydrolysate is filtered to separate the ground from the solution using filter paper and filter funnel. The
pH of the sample was taken using pH meter. Finally, the solution is poured into a spray bottle.
Figure 1: pH test
2.3 Questionnaire
[15]. Two sections are prepared in the form which is demographic and testimony section. QR code is
made and is pasted on flyers to allow the respondents to scan and answer the survey. Four respondents
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is selected randomly which are the students and is conducted in the campus. The questionnaire can be
3.1 Demographic
The demographic section involves the gender, the frequency of using the multi-purpose
liquid, the application of multi-purpose liquid, respondent’s skin condition and the likeliness of
respondent towards the coffee scent. These backgrounds are important as it play roles to determine the
effectiveness and the potential of multi-purpose liquid during the observation and consumption of
multi-purpose liquid. Each frequency of different category by one person will be contributed 25%.
3.1.1 Gender
Gender Male
Female
Based on the Figure 2, the selected respondents were students and from University Teknology
MARA Pasir Gudang from different faculties. Most of the respondents were selected randomly and
based on the ability of them to be approached and interacted easily [18]. Approximately 75% of
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Once
1-3 times
Regularly
Respondents
Less often
From Figure 3, 75% of respondents used the multi-purpose liquid less often in a week. This
shows that the respondents have a little opportunity to apply multi-purpose in college. Other than that,
some respondents who lived outside the college who were exposed with no insects is the other factor
that the respondents rarely used multi-purpose liquid. This data showed the effectiveness of the multi-
Respondents
Window
Skin
Respondents
Kitchen
Dining Table
Figure 4. Application of
0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30%
Multi-Purpose Liquid.
as skin, window, kitchen and dining table. The application of multi-purpose liquid is depends on the
respondent’s preference by themselves. These places are chosen based on what have been prepared in
the college as all of the respondents are students. Application of the multi-purpose liquid towards the
skin is to identify the potential of the solution to be a skin-friendly product while the application of
the solution on the window, dining table and kitchen is to remove dirt or strain.
Normal
50% Skin Allergies
50%
The skin condition is needed to determine whether the product is suitable for any types of
skin or it is suitable for particular skin type. Based on Figure 5, half of the respondents have skin
allergies while the other half is having a normal skin condition. Besides that, female and male’s skin
condition is different. Male had lower skin-surface pH value than female. Hence, the skin condition
data is important in making a multi-purpose liquid as the lower pH solution could protect human’s
No
25%
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Yes
75%
Figure 6: Coffee Scent Likeliness
From Figure 6, most of the respondents like the scent of coffee from the multi-purpose liquid.
3.2 Testimony
The testimony section evaluates the potential of the solution and the characteristic or
properties of the solution. The potential and characteristics of the multi-purpose liquid involves
environmental friendly, easy to use or apply, skin-friendly, has therapeutic aroma that is capable to
refresh home, able to remove strains or dirt, can be use on dishes, repel or drive away insects from its
hiding places, does not sticky or permanent and can be used as floor detergent or cleaner. From the
survey form given to the respondents, they are required and instructed to answer the testimony survey
Response
120%
100%
80%
Response
60%
40%
20%
0%
A B C D E F G H I
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Figure 7: Percentage of the potential of multi-purpose liquid
Based on Figure 7, the respondents gave some positive feedbacks on the usage of multi-
purpose liquid. Firstly, 75% of the respondents said that the product is environmental friendly. This is
because SCG is natural substance and has high possibility of not giving the negative impact towards
the environment. This is also proven from the process or method to produce the multi-purpose liquid.
In the hydrolyzing method, no chemicals is involves in the process. Hence, the process is save for the
environment [20]. Secondly, all the respondents gave a feedback that the multi-purpose liquid is easy
to use. This is due to its easy-press design and wide angle nozzle of the spray bottle. None of the
respondents applied the product directly towards their skin because they were concerned about their
skin condition as half of them have skin allergies. There is no response or feedback on the skin-
friendly effect. However, from the recent research, extracted coffee solution gives positive and
interesting result towards facial skin care [21]. Beside, from the pH test, the solution resulted a low
pH value which is 5.79 that is not too acidic and suitable for human skins. Next, none of the
respondents said that the product has therapeutic aroma that is capable to refresh home because the
coffee scent is not suitable to be a home refresher. From the confront questionnaire for the
respondents, most of them prefer floral and fruity scent as their home refresher than the coffee scent.
This is because the coffee aroma-lovers are mostly from European countries such as Italy and Spain
[5]. 75% of respondents stated that the product is able to remove strains and dirt. The respondents
apply the liquid on their dirty dining table and windows in the college and it has proven that the
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solution could clean the dirt because the SCG can be an absorbent for removal basic dyes in an
aqueous solution [22] and could also remove dead skin on human skin [13] [20]. Furthermore, 25% of
the respondents stated that the product can be used on the dishes and can as the liquid is a plant-based
product which came from the SCG. Most of the respondents gave the feedback that the product can
repel insects and drive away insects from its hiding place. The coffee scent from the multi-purpose
liquid attracts the insects such as mosquitoes and the insect came out from their hiding place.
Moreover, the coffee scent also could repel the mosquitoes as its scent could block the mosquitoes’
respiration as same as the commercialized insect repellents [11]. From the data obtained, it is proven
that the multi-purpose liquid is quite sticky and its scent is not permanent or long-lasting. This is due
to the amount of water in the solution makes the scent of coffee is easy to be vanished. Half of the
respondent agreed that the multi-purpose liquid could be as the floor detergent as it can remove dirt on
the floor.
The coffee production is increased by years. The large amount of spent coffee ground (SCG)
requires considerations for the disposal and the adverse effect to the environment. Despite of
discarding the SCG, many useful and potential products can be made from the SCG as it contains a lot
of minerals and benefits in many aspects such as it could repel insects, able to remove strain, biofuel
and natural fertilizer. From the data obtained, SCG is suitable to be a natural multi-purpose liquid.
However, many improvements and further process needed to ensure a quality product is produced and
be commercialized. The product can be improved by adding the detergent formulation that use natural
Some suggestions and recommendations have been given by the respondents. One of the
suggestion is, the amount of coffee needed to be increased as many of the respondents like the scent
of coffee. Next, one respondent suggested to add some lemon scent in the liquid as the lemon could be
home refresher. Use another long-lasting scent to replace the coffee scent is another suggestion by the
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respondent. Lastly, the coffee liquid left a stain after the respondent applies the liquid. So, further
processes is needed to improve the product such as add more coffee scent or use different ways to
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5 Acknowledgements
I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude and a very thank you to my supervisor Mrs. Siti
Hajar Anaziah Muhamad for the constant support and guidance from the starting of this final year
project until the final step. All the suggestions, criticism and helps are much appreciated as it helps me
I would like to thank to the laboratory assistants, Ms. Nurhaslina and Mrs. Sakinah that helps
and guide me in the lab during running my experiments from the beginning until my final product.
I would also like to appreciate my friends especially to my lab group member, Muhammad
Hazman Hasnan, Nurin Nasrin and Muhammad Firdaus for sharing the information and help me
during experiments in the lab. They also supported me to keep improving my final year project.
Last but not least, I want to show my gratitude to my parents and a family that always
encourage, support and helps me in the form of financial to ensure my final year project is complete
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6 References
[1] R. A. Buffo and C. Cardelli-Freire, “Coffee flavour: An overview,” Flavour Fragr. J., vol.
19, no. 2, pp. 99–104, 2004.
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biomethanation,” Energy Sustain. Dev., vol. 15, no. 1, pp. 104–108, 2011.
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[4] F. Battista, D. Fino, and G. Mancini, “Optimization of biogas production from coffee
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Food Chem., vol. 216, pp. 114–122, 2017.
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improved skin fat levels,” Eur. J. Lipid Sci. Technol., vol. 115, no. 3, pp. 330–336, 2013.
[14] B. A. Nduka, D. B. Adewale, O. S. O. Akanbi, and K. B. Adejobi, “Nursery Soil
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[19] E. Boelsma, L. P. L. Van de Vijver, R. A. Goldbohm, I. A. A. Klöpping-Ketelaars, H. F. J.
Hendriks, and L. Roza, “Human skin condition and its associations with nutrient
concentrations in serum and diet,” Am. J. Clin. Nutr., vol. 77, no. 2, pp. 348–355, 2003.
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[21] P. Esquivel and V. M. Jiménez, “Functional properties of coffee and coffee by-products,”
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Appendix A: Multi-Purpose Liquid Flyers
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Appendix B: Demographic Survey
*Required
1. 1. Gender *
Mark only one oval.
Male Female
Once
Other:
Yes No
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Appendix C: Testimony Survey
Skip to question 6.
Product Testimony
1. Please tick based on your experience using this multi-purpose liquid *
Tick all that apply.
Has therapeutic aroma that is capable to refreshing home Able to remove stains or dirt
Can be sprayed on plants or soil as fertilizer Drive away the insects from its hiding place
Does not sticky or permanent
Long-lasting scent
Can be mixed with pets shampoo to kill pets’ lice Can be used as floor cleaner or detergent
2. Recommendation
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