Household waste, especially detergents, continues to grow from time to time. The accumulation of these wastes can pollute the aquatic environment. In detergent waste, there are phosphate compounds that will trigger algae blooms or an explosion of phytoplankton populations in the waters which can cause taste and smell problems, causing water quality to decline.
In addition, the higher the accumulation of detergent waste in the water, the lower the oxygen supply dissolved in the water. This can result in a disrupted respiration process in fish which leads to decreased fish populations. From this phenomenon, the PKM team members Mutiara Selvina and Aldian Fahrialam from the Geological Engineering Study Program, Leonardo Anthony Wijaya from the Chemical Engineering Study Program, and Aulia Rahmah Karunianti from the Chemistry Study Program initiated an environmentally friendly detergent under the supervision of Dr. I. Wayan Warmada.
The advantage of this environmentally friendly detergent is using natural zeolite minerals located in Gedangsari District, Gunungkidul, as a substitute for phosphate compounds in the builder agent. In the process, the zeolite will be characterized by laboratory analysis in the form of X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF), and Cation Exchange Capacity (CEC) analysis. The analysis was carried out to determine the content of compounds and minerals present in the zeolite sample as well as its ability to exchange cations.
“Detergents made with a mixture of zeolite are analyzed for quality and environmental friendliness. The results show that the concentration of zeolite added to detergent is associated with fish survival by 297.29%,” said Tiara, Head of the PKM Team.
In addition, the addition of zeolite also affects the stability of the detergent foam and the physical form of the detergent produced. The higher the concentration of zeolite, the more stable the foam, which means the surfactant content in the detergent increases and can clean stains better and changes the color of the detergent to the color of the zeolite without the addition of dye. With zeolite, the detergent produced is more environmentally friendly and has a better cleaning quality.
“Hopefully, this research will be able to reduce the impact of the risk of environmental pollution, especially water, so that the ecosystem can be well maintained for the future,” concluded Tiara.
