Discipline: Chemistry and Chemical Sciences
Subcategory: Materials Science
April Howard - Howard University
Bissap as a plant is used for teas and other medicines in Senegal. The goal of this research is to see if the seeds can be used in oils for cosmetics. This is important toUniversity of Cheikh Anta Diop of Dakar, Ecole Supérieure Polytechnique (ESP), because this will be the first time that they have looked at the applications of the oil that comes from their native plant, bissap. The method that is used to gather the oil is extraction using a solvent. The reaction process used is called the Soxhlet extraction. Through this extraction with hexane as the solvent the oil is able to be collected from the ground up seeds. The final yield for each of the extractions are as follows: 1st extraction yield 6.6g of product, 2nd extraction yield 200g of product, 3rd extraction yield 244g of product. The oils where then used to make the cosmetic products that is the goal of the research. Soap and lotion were made from the oils. The next step is to finish characterizing the oil to see how beneficial it is for the hair, body, and nails. Why this research is important because it is giving a closer look into what can be done with Bissap in Senegal. This can hopefully be used as a way to bring money into the country with this research. Method is through extraction using an extracted over a long period of time.
Funder Acknowledgement(s): Howard University Gear-Up
Faculty Advisor: Dr. Kane, cheikhoukane.esp@gmail.com
Role: I lead in the set up of the research. I helped out to continue the research in the future for Dr. Kane.