1

Abstract

With the previous pandemic the prices of materials used for creating commercial
watercolors have increased. Along with the materials, the man power required in making
watercolors also decreased contributing to the high prices of the commercial water colors
today. Hence, this study aimed to find a solution using organic components found around
nature. Flower petals have colored pigments called anthocyanin that can produce different
kinds of colors. This study focused on creating an organic water color from flower petal
extracts. This study relied on the Thermochromism mechanics, where colored substances
change color when exposed to different kinds of temperatures, in improving the color of the
water color. The researchers also used the acid-base indicator treatment with flowers where
the researchers mixed the red extracts from the Paper Flower (Bougainvillea Glabra) with
coconut water to improve the color of the organic water color.

Keywords: Organic Water Color, Acid-Base Indicator, Thermochromism, Bougainvillea,

Bougainvillea Glabra, flower petal extracts, non-toxic, and low cost.
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Acknowledgement

The researchers would like to extend their sincere gratitude to Ma’am Creslil S.
Andaya for providing her insightful advice and ideas regarding this work. Dear Maam, our
principal Sofia S. Vailoces, we want to thank you for giving us this chance to work as a
researcher. We see this in your capacity to create this distinct curriculum for students. We
sincerely appreciate the advanced knowledge and instruction you provided for us. We
completed this paper as a result of your assistance; once more, thank you for the chance.
Also, our salute to all the students of the Grade 10 Venus for providing us with mental
support and assistance throughout the study. Last but not the least, the researchers would
like to share words of thanks to God for guiding us in every chapter of this study.
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CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

Different kinds of plants and attractive flowers are seen every time visit the garden.
Most of the time, People think that flowers are only for decoration purposes, but they did not
realize the potential of flowers and the pigment contained in its petals in producing
alternative matters such as watercolor. There are finite but multiple plants around us that can
help substitute materials needed for some products in order to maximize the efficiency
offered by the environment.

To start with, during the pandemic, the supply of watercolor products was abruptly
disturbed due to the quarantine order of the government preventing facilities and other
sources of ingredients to operate further. Moreover, due to such occurrence, prices began
rising up causing more complications in buying materials. Furthermore, most of the
commercial watercolors are mixed with toxic ingredients like cadmium, cobalt, and gum
Arabic which are harmful and can disrupt a human’s respiratory system. These materials are
also sold costly.

According to Statista.com, the average price of cadmium in US back in 2021 was

2.49$ per kilogram which is equal to 145.24 pesos in Philippine currency. The fact that
prices of the materials used for watercolors have risen this impacted the accessibility and
manpower required in making art materials. Moreover, the shortage of staff resulted to slow
progression in making water colors.

Pigments called Anthocyanin and Carotenoids are born in flowers, producing a range
of colors across the spectrum. Flower petals come in variety of colors and have high
potential for producing different colors. Having said that, the researchers can extract these
pigments from flowers and utilize them as components for an organic watercolor. The flower
that is going to be utilized in this study is the Paper Flower (bougainvillea glabra) also called
simply as Bougainvillea. This will help users with less accessibility to commercial watercolors
by utilizing nearby resources such as flowers which can be found almost everywhere. Users
who can’t afford commercial watercolors can consider making an organic watercolor which is
more cheap and less toxic. This will not solve the price inflation caused by COVID, however
it can be considered as an option to reduce the cost expended by the user.
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Statement of the Problem

Prices of materials used in making commercial watercolors have drastically changed

and became more expensive due to COVID 19. Moreover, some of the ingredients used in
commercial watercolors prove harmful to the human respiratory system. Hence the following
questions are applied:

1. What are the responses of students and adults on the organic watercolor that is
made up from flower (Bougainvillea glabra) petals extract?
2. Will the organic watercolor made from flower (Bougainvillea glabra) petls extract
last longer?
3. Where would this watercolor be more efficient when used among students and
adults?

Null Hypothesis

There is no significant difference between the responses of the respondents with

regards to the efficiency of the organic watercolor in terms of its color intensity and viscosity.

Significance of The Study

By using organic materials found in our environment, the costs of developing such
products can be moderated. This research also found out the probabilities of reducing the
required manpower in creating watercolors using simple materials. The researcher also
aims to substitute the harmful materials used in the production of watercolors with some of
the experimental organic materials. By doing so, customers won’t have to go to urbanized
areas or cities to buy watercolors because of shortage of supply in their area.

Scope and Delimitations of the Study

This study focuses solely on experimenting with flower extracts that produce red
orange color gradients. For that purpose, this study will be experimenting with Paper Flowers
(Bougainvillea Glabra). Researchers will engage in pounding methods in order to crush the
petals extracting the pigments. Furthermore, researchers will identify the suitable
measurements of each component to obtain a desirable color intensity and viscosity.
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Definition of Terms

Corolla: Are petals or modified leaves surrounding the reproductive

parts of flowers. They are often brightly colored or unusually
shaped to attract pollinators.

Thermochromism: is the reversable change in thr color of a compound when it is

heated or cooled.

Mortar and Pestle: Used in pounding the flower petals to extract the pigments in
flowers.

Piece of Cloth: Used to wrap around the crushed petals after adding water to
squeeze the extracts into a container while filtering it at the
same time.

Syringe: Used to measure the water added

Transparent Container: Used to store the completed product

Beaker: Used to store the flower extracts used for the heating stage.

Alcohol Lamp: Used as a heat source

Coconut Water: Used as a color enhancer for the product

 6

CHAPTER II
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

High-performance liquid chromatography coupled with ultraviolet-visible

spectroscopy, using a photodiode array detector (HPLC-PDA) were used to explore different
pigment as well as their anti-oxidants activities in Coffea
arabica . Ethanol, dichloromethane and hexane were used for extraction following a simplex-
centroid mixture design. All these pigments exhibited significant antioxidant activities
(Marcheafave, G. G., Tormena, C. D., Pauli, E. D., Rakocevic, M., Bruns, R. E., & Scarminio,
I. S. , 2019). In their study, they used ethanol as a key component in the extraction of
pigments from Coffea Arabica leaves. The Ethanol’s effect on the extracted pigments were
also observed.

The natural dye, anthocyanin, was extracted from the flowers of Rhododendron
species with three different colors, pink, red and violet, using a simple extraction technique,
and was used as the sensitizer in dye-sensitized solar cells. The dyes were treated with
nitric and acetic acids to examine their effects on the power conversion efficiency. According
to the experimental results, the performance was better with the acetic acid-treated
anthocyanin (Kim, H., Bin, Y., Karthick, S. N., Hemalatha, K. V., Raj, C. J., Venkatesan,
S., ... & Vijayakumar, G. ,2013). In this study, colored pigments extracted from three different
Rhododendron flower species namely pink, red, and violet. The ability of the dyes produced
from the pigments in power conversion efficiency was observed.

In the study of Gong, K., Pan, Y., Rather, L. J., Wang, W., Zhou, Q., Zhang, T., & Li,
Q. (2019), it was mentioned that tree leaves produce various pigments during leaf
senescence. Their study investigated natural pigment changes of Cinnamomum
Camphora leaves at different life stages (young, mature, and old) and their applications in
the dyeing and UV protection of silk and wool textile. The researchers of this study found out
that when dyed with the extracted pigments, both silk and wool demonstrated exceptional
dyeing abilities. Except for chlorophyll, fabrics colored with leaf pigments displayed improved
or stable color fastness to light, wash, and storage. This is because the leaf's chemical
composition has a high concentration of phenolic hydroxyl, which can have a hyperchromic
impact when exposed to light or an alkaline environment. When compared to undyed fibers,
every cloth dyed in this study shown exceptional UV protection performance.

It was elaborated in the study of Amogne, N. Y., Ayele, D. W., & Tsigie, Y. A. (2020),
that due to their advantages over synthetic photosensitizers, such as low cost, complete
biodegradability, availability, and no environmental impact, natural dyes produced from
various sources are emerging as possible possibilities. Researchers have tried combining
different dyes, co-pigmenting dyes, acidifying dyes, and other methods to increase the
energy conversion efficiency of natural photosensitizers. These methods have produced
noticeable performance. The researchers of this study observed the effectiveness of natural
 7

dyes as natural photosensitizers, considering the advantages of their organic ang low cost
nature.

CHAPTER III
METHODOLOGY

Research Design

This research experiment was conducted by the use of biological entities with regards
to their characteristics on certain aspects such as a flower’s credibility to produce a required
output. The measurement of the flowers and other substances used also matter owning to
the fact that it’s required to accurately formulate watercolors when the study proved the
credibility of the substance used in creating an alternative watercolor. Hence, this study uses
the qualitative and quantitative (mixed) method.

Creswell (1994), an American academic known for his work in mixed research
methods, defined qualitative research as an inquiry process of understanding a social or
human problem based on building a complex, holistic picture, formed with words, reporting
detailed views of informants, and conducted in a natural setting. He also defined quantitative
research as a process of collecting, analyzing, interpreting, and writing the results of a study
through numerical data. In that sense, such designs can be applied to the researchers’
study.

This study evaluated the color, shape, size, and the scent of the flower used. The
same can be said with the other substances that this research utilized. Moreover, the
number of flowers and other materials as well as their measurement of their final product or
the amount of watercolor produced are expressed in terms of milliliters (ml). To conclude,
quantitative and qualitative research designs are used throughout the study.

Materials and Equipment

Table 1. Materials

Materials Measurements

mortar & pestle 1 pc

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pc spoon 1 pc

pc cloth 1 pc

Transparent Containers 1 pc

Table 2. Equipment

Equipment Measurements

Disposable gloves 2 pcs

Alcohol Lamp 1 pc

Beaker 1 pc

Stirring Rod 1 pc

Table 3. Chemicals/ Ingredients

Chemicals/ Ingredients Measurements

Paper Flower Extracts 30 pcs of petals

Coconut water 2 ml

water 5 ml

Experimental Set-up

Table 2. Table of sample set-up

INGREDIENTS/COMPONENTS SAMPLE

Water (ml) 5
Paper Flower (Bougainvillea) petals 30-60 buds

General Procedure
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Preparation of the Flower (Bougainvillia glabra) Petals

The researchers first gathered equipment and ingredients to make the organic
watercolor. It is necessary to have 30 buds of flower petals, disposable gloves, water, mortar
and pestle, beaker, and alcohol lamp.

The flower petals were first collected and placed in the mortar and pestle by the
researchers. The researcher wore the disposable gloves for the safety. Researchers
pounded the petals using the mortar and pestle for about 3-5 minutes to ensure that the
pigments are extracted well. After 3-5 minutes, five ml water is added and then continued
pounding for 5 more minutes. The extracts were then transferred from the mortar into a
beaker covered with a cloth to filter the little petal particles.

Preparation of the Boiling Process

Next, the extracts were added 5 ml of water and 2 ml of coconut water and boiled
up to 76 degrees Celsius Finally, the heated substance is placed in a transparent container.

Product Development

During the first production of products, the researchers tested the credibility of
using coconut water to improve the color, it proved effective after the organic watercolor
improve their color and achieve the color the researchers desired.

Sampling Design

The organic watercolor was evaluated by 15 students from Grade 10-Venus of STE
curriculum MNHS and 15 adults around the Midsalip Zamboanga Del Sur. The evaluators of
this organic watercolor were randomly chosen by the researcher so that their ideologies can
help the researcher improve and know what was still needed to be accomplish.

Procedures/instruments in data gathering

The researchers collected data from evaluators through a questionnaire checklist.

Evaluators are required to test the product and answer the following questions in regards to
 10

its quality. When the data is processed through the help of statistical tools, researchers
asked some of the participants to elaborate on their answer.

Product Evaluation

Overall, the product was completely good, the natural watercolors from flower petals
work. The color that is produced are light color. This watercolor is non-toxic and its safe to
use by anyone. The product is evaluated by giving participants watercolor made from flower
petals and having them paint on a sheet of bond paper.

Statistical Tools for Data Analysis

The statistical used for this study was t-test. A t-test is a statistical test for comparing
the means of two groups. It is frequently used in hypothesis testing to determine whether a
process or treatment has an effect on the population of interests, or whether two groups
differ.

Here are the steps used in t-test;

Step 1: Compute the mean of each group

Step 2: Compute the variance of each group

2
2 ∑ X1
s=
1 −M 21
N1

Step 3: Compute the standard error of difference between means.

√( )( )
2
N 1 S1 + N 1 + N 2 N1+ N2
s M 1−M 2=
N 1 + N 2−2 N1 N2

Step 4: Compute the statistics

M 1−M 2
t=
s M 1−M 2

Step 5: Compute the df and know the critical value

df =N 1+ N 2−2

Step 6: Comparing the t-statistics to the critical value

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Chapter IV
Results and Discussions

The researchers have completed gathering data for the study. This study was
carefully evaluated by students and adults from Midsalip Zamboanga Del Sur to produce
reliable results. Hence here are now the findings from the questionnaire checklist evaluated
from 30 participants. The results from the data are as follows.

Furthermore, these are the few of feedback of the participants on the non-toxic
organic watercolor that is safe to use.

Theme. 1: Effective Organic Watercolor made from flower (bougainvellia glabra) extract

“The watercolor is really effective and very lightweight and can be use on any type of
bond paper”

Participant #11

“It is watery buy can easily paint on a bon paper and color is true to color”

Participant #16

“The color really matches on the flower that is chosen”

Participant #20

“It is really a good product overall although the the color is kind of light its still good to
use on people that who’s on a budget”

Participant #24

“I was impressed when the watercolor has same color on the flower”

Participant #25

“The product was overall good "

Participant #26

“I tried it with other type of flower and it does work!”

Participant #28
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Theme. 2: Color Longevity of Organic Watercolor

“The watercolor is really organic color and it’s easy to use”

Participant #1

“It is verry easy to use and the color is not bad at all”

Participant #2

“The color is really good and last longer on the bond paper”

Participant #3

“The watercolor has a light color buts its good as it looks”

Participant #4

“I really like the color its very appealing and it lasts longer”

Participant #5

“I like how it looks like when painted on a bond paper because it shows the true
color compare on a paper”

Participant
#6

This section of the results and discussion is the researchers’ interpretation of T-TEST
based on the data gathered from participants. In this section it is also showed whether the
hypothesis is accepted or not.

The Comparing of the Critical Value to the T-test

Table 2: Synopsis of the data

GROUP MEAN VARIANCE STANDARD df T-statistic Table T

ERROR
students 4.06 0.76 0.34 30 0.57 0.349
adults 3.86 0.76

After computing for the statistical tool, the table shows that the critical value is
smaller than the t-statistics from the researchers’ computation from the raw data. As a result,
 13

the null hypothesis is rejected. On the result, few of the respondents disagree in the
statements from the standardize questionnaire. Therefore, after solving and computing the
result shows that there really was a significant difference between the responses of the
respondents with regards to the efficiency of watercolor in terms of its color intensity and
longevity.

Chapter V
Conclusion and Recommendations

Summary
The Flower petals proved effective in making an organic watercolor. Heating the
product was very effective in improving the product’s color and texture. The honey also
contributed to a little improvement in the watercolor’s texture and color. The watercolor made
from flower petals extract exhibited visible colors before and after the heating process
together with the addition of coconut water to improve the color.

Conclusion
The heating process contributed to the color change and enhancement of the
product. “Thermochromism refers to a material's capability to shift its colour in response to
temperature changes” (Teja, A. S., Srivastava, A., Sathrughna, J. A. K., Tiwari, M. K.,
Kanwade, A., Yadav, S. C., & Shirage, P. M., 2022). When a colored pigment comes into
contact with heat, it displays changes in color. “Indeed, anthocyanin changes its color with
pH; it appears red in acidic, violet in neutral, and blue in basic aqueous solution” (Goto, T., &
Kondo, T. 1991). It was also elaborated in the study of Soltan, M. E., & Sirry, S. M. (2002),
that flowers serve as pH indicators because they contain anthocyanine pigments, whose
color is pH-dependent. The way they are used is when an acidic material is added to a red
flower extract, it gets more red Blue on the other hand, gets bluer when added with a
compound material. Thus, extracts from flower petals, can be used as a key component of
an organic watercolor.
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Recommendation

Although the product is finished, it still needs some improvement. With some
adjustments, the color of the product can produce a much brighter color and intensity.
Hence, the following are the suggestions in improving the product.

The higher the acidity of the material added to the water color, the more it improves
its color. Toothpaste is also a candidate component that can replace coconut water since it
contains more acid. Note that for flowers with bases like color blue, instead of acidic
materials, bases will be added.

When heating, don’t over heat the mixture, when the product reaches boiling point or
if possible, around 70 degrees Celsius, then that’s already good enough. If the mixture is
exposed to heat for longer than required, the evaporation process will convert all extracts
into gas leaving the container dry.
 15

Reference

F. Contamine, F. Faid, A.M. Wilhelm, J. Berlan, H. Delmas,Chemical reactions under

ultrasound: discrimination of chemical and physical effects, Chemical
Engineering Science, Volume 49, Issue 24, Part 2, (1994)

Mlodzinska, E. (2009). Survey of plant pigments: molecular and environmental determinants

of plant colors. Acta Biologica Cracovienca Series Botanica, 51(1), 7-16.

Chakraborty, O. (2023). Inflation and COVID-19 Supply Chain Disruption. In Managing

Inflation and Supply Chain Disruptions in the Global Economy (pp. 10-23). IGI
Global.
Marcheafave, G. G., Tormena, C. D., Pauli, E. D., Rakocevic, M., Bruns, R. E., & Scarminio,
I. S. (2019). Experimental mixture design solvent effects on pigment
extraction and antioxidant activity from Coffea arabica L.
leaves. Microchemical Journal, 146, 713-721.

Kim, H., Bin, Y., Karthick, S. N., Hemalatha, K. V., Raj, C. J., Venkatesan, S., ... &
Vijayakumar, G. (2013). Natural dye extracted from Rhododendron species
flowers as a photosensitizer in dye sensitized solar cell. Int. J. Electrochem.
Sci, 8, 6734-6743.

Gong, K., Pan, Y., Rather, L. J., Wang, W., Zhou, Q., Zhang, T., & Li, Q. (2019). Natural
pigment during flora leaf senescence and its application in dyeing and UV
protection finish of silk and wool--a case study of Cinnamomum
Camphora. Dyes and Pigments, 166, 114-121.

Amogne, N. Y., Ayele, D. W., & Tsigie, Y. A. (2020). Recent advances in anthocyanin dyes
extracted from plants for dye sensitized solar cell. Materials for Renewable
and Sustainable Energy, 9, 1-16.

Sagae, M., Oyama-Okubo, N., Ando, T., Marchesi, E., & Nakayama, M. (2008). Effect of
Temperature on the Floral Scent Emission and Endogenous Volatile Profile
ofPetunia axillaris. Bioscience, Biotechnology, and Biochemistry, 72(1), 110–
115.
 16

Teja, A. S., Srivastava, A., Sathrughna, J. A. K., Tiwari, M. K., Kanwade, A., Yadav, S. C., & Shirage,
P. M. (2022). Optimal processing methodology for futuristic natural dye sensitized
solar cells and novel applications. Dyes and Pigments, 110997.

Goto, T., & Kondo, T. (1991). Structure and molecular stacking of anthocyanins—flower
color variation. Angewandte Chemie International Edition in English, 30(1),
17-33.

Soltan, M. E., & Sirry, S. M. (2002). Usefulness of Some Plant Flowers as Natural Acid‐Base
Indicators. Journal of the Chinese Chemical Society, 49(1), 63-68.
 17

APPENDIX A
DOCUMENTATION

Preparing the apparatus

Pounding/ crushing process

 18

Extraction, measurement adjustments and heating process

Product Evaluation
 19

APPENDIX B
CALCULATION

Statistical Tool: T test

Step 1: Computation of the Mean

Students Adults
4.4 3.8
4.4 4.4
3.4 3.6
1.8 3.2
4.4 3.4
5 4.2
4.8 4.6
3.4 3.8
3.4 3.6
3.2 1.8
4.6 4.8
4.2 4
4.2 3.6
4.8 5
5 4.8

Step 2: Compute the Variance on each Group

X1 X12 X2 X22
4.4 19.36 3.8 14.44
4.4 19.36 4.4 19.36
3.4 11.56 3.6 12.96
1.8 3.24 3.2 10.24
4.4 19.36 3.4 11.56
5 25 4.2 17.64
4.8 23.04 4.6 21.16
3.4 11.56 3.8 14.44
3.4 11.56 3.6 12.96
3.2 10.24 1.8 3.24
4.6 21.16 4.8 23.04
4.2 17.64 4 16
4.2 17.64 3.6 12.96
4.8 23.04 5 25
5 25 4.8 23.04
Total = 61 ∑X12 = 258.76 Total = 58.6 ∑X22 = 238.04
 20

M = 61/15 = 4.06 M = 58.6/15 = 3.86

S21 = ∑X12 / N1 – M12 S22 = ∑X22 / N2 – M22

S21 = 258.76 / 15 – 4.062 S22 = 238.04 / 15 – 3.862
S21 = 17.250666666666 – 16.4836 S22 = 15.869333333333 – 14.8996
S21 = 0.767066666666 S22 = 0.9697333333333
Step 3: Compute the Standard Error of Difference Between Means

S M1 – M2 = (N1S12 + N2S22)(N1 + N2) / (N1 + N2 – 2) (N1 + N2) / ( N1 N2)

S M1 – M2 = (15(0.767066666666) + 15 (0.9697333333333) (15 + 15)
15 + 15 – 2 (15 * 15)
S M1 – M2 = ( 11.50599999999 + 14.545999999999) (30/225)
28
S M1 – M2 = ( 26.051999999989) (0.1333333333333)
28
S M1 – M2 = (0.93) (0.13)

S M1 – M2 = 0.12

S M1 – M2 = 0.3464101615137

Step 4: Compute the Statistic

t = M1 – M2 / SM1 – M2
t = 4.06 – 3.86 / 0.3464101615137
t = 0.2 / 0.3464101615137
t = 0.5773502691897
t = 0.57

STEP 5: Find the Critical Value

df = N1 + N2 – 2 a = .05
df = 15 + 15 – 2
df = 38
 21

Step 5: Compare the (Computed Value) in Critical Value (from table)

t = 0.57
Table t = 0.349

Statistics Table of Constant

APPENDIX C
LETTER FOR THE PARTICIPANTS
 22

April 4, 2022

Dear Participant,

The researcher, Jone Clare E. Molina, and Greg Christopher E. Calunod, Students of
Midsalip National High School. We are required to conduct research entitled, “Paper Flower
(Bougainvillea Glabra) Corolla Extracts as Component for an Organic Water Color”. We’d
like to inform you that you’ve been chosen to take part in our research. We’re hoping that
you can answer our research questions. We guarantee that your responses will be kept
strictly confidential. Thank you for volunteering your time to help with our research study.

Kindly affix your name and signature

Yours truly,

JONE CLAIRE MOLINA, GREG CHRISTOPHER -

GRADE 10 VENUS STUDENT

Approved by: _________________________

Printed Name and Signature
 23

APPENDIX D
QUESTIONNAIRE

Standardized Questionnaire

Instruction: Indicate your level of agreement with the following statements regarding this
product.

1- Strongly Disagree
2- Disagree
3- Neutral
4- Agree
5- Strongly Agree

Statements Strongly Disagre Neutral Agree Strongly

Disagree e Agree
1.The color quality of the organic
watercolor is excellent and can be
use easily.
2. The water color has a good
texture and can be use on any type
of paper.
3.The color of watercolor has good
viscosity and not sticky.
4. The organic watercolor was
aesthetically pleasing and was easy
to use.
5. The organic watercolor can be
easily use and doesn’t stain clothes.
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 25

APPENDIX E
VITAE
26