Aim: To investigate the effects of cleaning products on stain removal.

Hypothesis: That dry cleaning fluid will be more effective in the removal of chocolate stains on calico, than environmentally friendly soap will.

Method:

A) Equipment

• 10 10cm x 10cm squares of white calico
• cotton buds
• dry cleaner fluid
• environmentally friendly soap
• 100 grams of melted chocolate
• water

B)

1. Collect the equipment needed
2. Lay each of the calico squares out and identify half as "dry-cleaner" and half as "soap"
3. Pour one teaspoon of chocolate onto each square
4. Leave chocolate to set for 10 minutes
5. Using the cotton buds, rub the soap onto 5 of the squares around the stain in a circular motion
6. Stop rubbing after exactly 5 minutes
7. Repeat with dry cleaning fluid
8. Record results

Climate graph?

Sorry for the stuff up, but I think this one will work. This here is my climate graph. I've put the precipitation as a line so that you can see it in comparison to the conture of the temperature.

More research to consider :)

Hi,

So I have been doing some further research into this area, and I have found that most household cleaning solutions contain heaps of harmful chemicals. These are not only detrimental to the environment when poured down the drain, but are also incredibly dangerous for health.

This website has a list of some of the negative health effects of chemicals found in MOST cleaning agencies.

http://www.purezing.com/living/toxins/living_toxins_harmfulhousehold.html

I've been reading "spotless" by Shannon Lush and Jennifer Fleming which considers this problem, particularly with reference to removal of stains. They mention a lot about "dry cleaner fluid". This used to be pure Carbon Tetrachloride which released lots of green house gasses and had a negative effect on the Ozone layer. Thankfully, this substance is now completely banned in Australia, and now most dry cleaners and members of the public use a chemical called tetrachloroethylene. This however, is a very big waste producer. After each professional use, a large amount of hazardous waste is left over, and has to be dumped.

Now that I have found more of this stuff out, I will be adapting my research to look more into the use of tetrachloroethylene and the other harmful chemicals used by dry cleaners and households to remove stains.