A student in Hanoi has discovered another advantage of this kind of leaf–making hand sanitizer from its essential oil, Vietnam News reported.

The idea was developed when Cat Huy Duong, a 17-year-old student at the High School for Gifted Students under the Vietnam National University - Hanoi, studied different natural measures that are antibacterial but safe to clean his hands.

Cat Huy Duong (first, left) and his friends use steam-water distillation to extract essential oil from betel leaves. — Photos courtesy of Thuy An/ via Vietnamnet

Suffering from an underlying skin disease, normal soap or hand sanitizers that use antibacterial chemical ingredients harm Duong’s skin, forcing him to seek products made from natural ingredients to stay clean.

As betel leaf is often used by Duong’s family members as a kind of medicinal plant for making mouthwash or treating skin rashes, he decided to study more about the advantages of this plant and found that the leaf contains antibacterial compounds that can be used to make hand sanitizer.

To turn this idea into reality, Duong and his friends decided to carry out a research project to make hand sanitizer from the extraction of betel leaf oil.

They include ninth-graders Vu Khanh Linh and Le Bao Khue and tenth grader Nguyen Tri Dung from TH School and ninth-grader Nguyen Ngoc Huyen from the International School of Vietnam.

The antibacterial activity of phenolic chemicals and their derivatives in the betel leaf essential oil can inhibit a variety of bacteria, according to Duong.

The research determined how to obtain the essential oil of betel leaf through a distillation process, and use the essential oil to prepare a hand sanitizer.

However, things did not go as easily as the young students imagined.

“The biggest challenge is how to maximize the amount of oil extracted from the betel leaf. As each leaf contains a little amount of oil so it was hard to use normal extraction methods,” Duong said.

The COVID-19 pandemic was another challenge, he added. “We could not regularly meet to discuss or go to labs to do experiments together. It means the testing and research was disrupted, making the process harder and longer,” he said.

“There were times we felt exhausted and even thought of giving up after many failures and it also wasted a lot of our time,” he said.

However, these difficulties could not hinder the students’ determination and passion.

Efforts pay off

After many failures, Duong and his group finally found a way to extract oil from the betel leaf effectively and use the oil to produce hand sanitizer gels.

A steam-water distillation method was used to extract the essential oil from the betel leaf. Distilled water and NaCl solvent were added to the distillation process to increase the extraction efficiency, according to Duong.

The betel leaves were washed with distilled water to remove all contaminants. Then the samples were cut into small pieces and air-dried for a day, followed by steam-water distillation.

The essential oil was then used with ethyl alcohol and glycerol to make hand sanitizers.

Piper betel leaves. — Photo suckhoedoisong.vn

The hand sanitizer was prepared using the Word Health Organisation recommended hand-rub formulation, but H202 was replaced with betel leaf essential oil, according to Duong.

The young students’ efforts were internationally recognized. They won the silver medal in the environmental science section of the World Invention and Competition Exhibition (WICE) 2021 for their production of hand sanitizer from the extraction of betel leaf oil.

WICE is an international competition held by the Indonesian Young Scientist Association in collaboration with SEGi College Subang Jaya of Malaysia as the learning platform to nurture young talented inventors who are active, creative and innovative.

Associate professor Tong Thi Thanh Huong from the Hanoi University of Mining and Geology, who supported the students to do the research, said although the students were young they all showed care and meticulousness during their work and were proactive in searching for different methods.

In spite of many challenges, with their own capacity, they finally succeeded, she said.

Future plans

The search for naturally occurring antibacterial compounds and their application in the manufacture of sanitizer products is beneficial to both the community and the environment.

Natural-origin products in cosmetics and detergents are always safe for users. It is a viable alternative to the chemicals commonly found in cosmetics and cleaning products.

Betel leaf essential oil has a high antibacterial activity. As a result, future research is being conducted into the use of the essential oil as a natural ingredient in some cosmetic products such as toothpaste and hand soaps, said Duong.

Vu Khanh Linh is counting drops of essential oil extracted. Photo: Vietnamnet

Many other inventions

The initial success of Duong and his friends is expected to help nurture the young generation’s passion for science as well as their creativity and innovation. As Duong said: “Never giving up on your passion and goals. Starting from the smallest things, you will gradually succeed.”

Last year, students and lecturers from several universities in Vietnam have made and donated robots and medical devices to hospitals and quarantine areas to serve the fight against COVID-19.

According to Vietnamnet, a team from Ton Duc Thang University in HCM City’s District 7 has created two robots, dubbed CD1.0 and DR1.0, that could be used for disinfection in the stead of human being and donated them to the quarantine area at the Vietnam National University-HCM City dormitory.

Meanwhile, a team of one lecturer and four students from the Da Nang University of Science and Technology has made a robot which could replace humans and carry food, medicine and other essential items into isolation rooms at the Da Nang Hospital for Women and Children.

It has a speaker to enable health officials to talk with patients.

Students of Hanoi University of Science and Technology have made an automatic hand sanitizer. Photo: Vietnamnet

The university’s students have also made automatic hand sanitizer machines and donated them to the Da Nang Hospital.

Scientists from the Military Technical Academy in Hanoi have made a robot which can carry food and medicines to patients, collect rubbish and help doctors and patients interact with each other.

Duy Tan University in Da Nang has made a ventilator and demonstrated it to the city People’s Committee and departments of Health and Science and Technology.

A team from Thai Nguyen University of Technology in Thai Nguyen Province has made a device for measuring people’s temperatures instantly and installed several at the university’s dormitory for foreign students. Students just need to put their hand in front of the device and their body temperature is displayed.

A team from Quy Nhon University in Binh Dinh Province has made devices for sanitizing hands and automatically measuring body temperature.

They have been installed at hospitals and state offices in Quy Nhon City.

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