Adnin Afifi Nawi UNIVERSITI TUN HUSSEIN ONN MALAYSIA
In the market, many stores sell spray repellents that contain N, N-diethyl
meta-toluamide (DEET) for insect repellent but this chemical content can irritate the
skin and give an unpleasant odor to humans. In this study, organic ingredients such
as cinnamon oil, tea tree oil, thyme oil, catnip oil, and citronella oil were used.
Cinnamon oil, tea tree oil, thyme oil, and catnip oil were purchased from the market
while citronella oil was extracted using the Soxhlet extraction method in ethanol
solvent. All of these essential oils were used to generate environmentally
environmentally friendly repellents that could one day be a viable alternative to
synthetic repellents due to their relative safety and low cost. The three formulations
namely, Formulation 1, Formulation 2, and Formulation 3 were analysed for pH,
enduring test, and long-lasting skin reactions. The results show that the pH were 4.0,
4.1 and 4.3 for Formulation 1, Formulation 2, and Formulation 3 respectively. It was
also found that Formulation 3 is the best among the other two Formulations. For the
enduring tests, ants, flies and mosquitoes were insects that have been used as
experimental material. Ants would die directly when sprayed directly on them while
flies and mosquitoes would stay away from the organic repellent spray. For long
lasting reaction on skin, most respondents stated the insect repellent liquid when
exposed to the skin was in a cooling sensation for formulation 3 which is in pH 4.3.
Therefore, further studies are needed to improve product function to provide optimal
effectiveness to insects.