Going Green as You Clean: Are “Green” Detergents Less Toxic Than Conventional Detergents?

1. Going Green as You Clean: Are “Green” Detergents Less Toxic Than Conventional Detergents? • Kathryn Stavish • Grade 9

2. Problem • Are “green” detergents safer for the environment than conventional detergents?

3. Research • “Green”- Non-toxic, biodegradable, no petroleum based ingredients, optical brighteners, dyes or fragrances. • “Environmentally Friendly”- ambiguous term that does not have a set of guidelines • Why choose “green?” • Many conventional detergents have chemicals that are unhealthy for humans • Carcinogens • Triazoles • Chemical relative of hydroxybenzotriazole (abbreviated HOBt) • In most potent form, a class1.3C explosive

4. More Research • When it goes down the drain, it goes into the water • “Water” meaning... • Rivers, lakes, oceans - places people swim and animals live • Precipitation • Drinking water • Humans and animals

5. Hypothesis • If “green” detergent is used, then more worms will survive. This would indicate that “green” products are safer for the environment.

6. Materials • 84 Styrofoam cups, able to hold approximately 350 mL • Green Way Liquid Dish Detergent (“green”) • Meyer’s Liquid Dish Detergent (“green”) • Dawn Dishwashing Liquid (conventional) • Palmolive Dishwashing Liquid (conventional) • Plastic container (clean and reuse for each detergent) • 1 bag of potting soil • Aluminum foil • Graduated cylinder • Meal worms (2 per cup; 56 per trial--for 2 trials 112 worms) • Scale (metric)

7. Procedure • A dilution series of each detergent was created • 0%, 3%, 6%, 12.5%, 25%, 50%, 100% • 100 grams of soil were measured into labeled cups, 1 for each dilution (7 for each detergent) • 5 mL of each dilution of each detergent were measured into each cup of soil • 2 mealworms in each cup • After 5 days passed, contents of each cup poured out and worms dead/alive counted • Data collected • Repeated in a second trial (two trials total)

8. Variables • Independent variable=3%, 6%, 12.5%, 25%, 50%, 100% dilutions • Dependent variable=Number of worms dead/alive for each trial • Control=0% dilution of each series (pure water) • Constants=Amount of time for each trial, room temperature, ratio of solution to soil

9. Data

10. Conclusion • If “green” detergent is used, then more worms will survive. This would indicate that “green” products are safer for the environment. • Hypothesis supported • In the two “green” brands of detergent, more worms survived; in the conventional brands, fewer worms survived. • Further research conducted could include: • Test effectiveness in washing dishes as well • Test on other green cleaning products besides detergent • Improvements to be made include: • More trials • More brands of detergent/varying types of worms

11. Thanks • Whyte, PhD, David B. "Going Green as You Clean: Are 'Green' Detergents Less Toxic Than Conventional Detergents?" Science Buddies. Science Buddies, 18 Nov. 2012. Web. 27 Sept. 2011. <http://www.sciencebuddies.org/ science-fair-projects/project_ideas/EnvSci_p053.shtmlfave=no&isb=cmlkOjExNTA0MDk1LHNpZDowLHA6MixpYTpFbnZTY2k&from=TS W>. • Navarro, Mireya. "Cleaner for the Environment, Not for the Dishes." The New York Times. The New York Times, 18 Sept. 2010. Web. 29 Sept. 2011.  <http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/19/science/earth/19clean.html?_r=1>. • Barton, Charles. "Potentially Carcinogenic Dishwashing Detergent Leaching Directly Into the Water Supply." The Nuclear Green Revolution. Nuclear Green, 6 Apr. 2011. Web. 29 Sept. 2011. <http://nucleargreen.blogspot.com/2011/04/potentially-carcinogenic-dishwashing.html>. • Adams, Mike. "Highly toxic chemicals are found in laundry detergents, dryer sheets, deoderants, perfumes, soaps and other household products." Natural News. Natural News Network, 17 May 2004. Web. 24 Sept. 2011. <http://www.naturalnews.com/001061.html>