Depok-Rossi Imam Prasojo, student of the Tourism Business Management study program, Vocational Education Program, Universitas Indonesia (UI), won 1st Place (Gold Medal) and Special Award: Best Project at the 2023 Indonesian International Invention Expo (IIIEX) competition. He achieved this achievement after successfully creating an innovative mouthwash formulated from guava and betel leaf extracts to prevent the development of plaque on teeth.
The product name Gua-Tell Mouthwash is an abbreviation of the basic ingredients, namely GUA from ‘guava‘ and TEL from ‘betel‘. These ingredients were chosen to be used as mouthwash because not many people know the benefits of these two ingredients.
(Photo: Gua-Tell Mouthwash product developed by UI Vocational students)
After research, guava leaves and betel leaves have a high phytochemical content, are rich in antioxidants, are antibacterial, and are safe to consume. Apart from preventing the development of plaque on teeth, this mouthwash also has another function, namely to eliminate bad breath, mouth ulcers and other oral problems.
The achievement achieved at the end of August 2023 was the result of Rossi’s collaboration with four other students from different universities, namely Salsabila Fathiya and Nova Wafrina Daru (Universitas Islam Sultan Agung Semarang), Dheandra (Universitas Gadjah Mada), and Elizabeth Frsica (Universitas Brawijaya).
Rossi’s participation in the competition and project for making mouthwash started with his four colleagues when he was in high school. He said, “Since high school, we have often collaborated and participated in several competitions in the field of science like this. I am sure that even though our knowledge is diverse, this does not dampen our enthusiasm to continue to develop and work together to create something useful for society.”
Rossi and his colleagues managed to get a gold medal after competing nationally with more than 85 teams from various institutions in Indonesia. The series of activities organized by the Indonesian Youth Science Association (IYSA) at the Politeknik Negeri Semarang consisted of product exhibitions, judging, inventor talks, and awards.
(Photo: Rossi and his colleagues receiving an award for the Gua-Tell Mouthwash product they developed)
The Gua-Tell Mouthwash product has received a patent from the Ministry of Law and Human Rights since October 2022. Rossi’s role in making the product is to determine the formula for extracting the ingredients, for example the number of samples to be made and the ratio. Meanwhile, extraction, lab testing and patent filing are carried out together.
The Director of the UI Vocational Education Program, Padang Wicaksono, S.E., Ph.D, expressed his appreciation for Rossi’s achievements. He said, “Rossi’s achievements in the field of science show that UI Vocational students can also compete theoretically. Apart from that, collaboration with students from other universities also creates good relationships between institutions and can expand their opportunities to network with each other.”
