Abstract
Oil palm empty fruit bunches (EFBs) are an attractive lignocellulosic material that can be used as a cheap renewable feedstock to produce organic acids and many other value-added products. This research is aimed at investigating the potential of steam-exploded oil palm EFBs for the production of fumaric acid, a food additive widely used for flavor and preservation, through a separate hydrolysis and fermentation process using the selected fungal isolate Rhizopus oryzae K20. To develop an efficient method for the recovery and purification of fumaric acid from fermented oil palm EFBs, a two-stage precipitation protocol was employed, followed by an activated carbon-mediated polishing step to remove contaminants. After these two processes were accomplished, a recovery yield of 81.2% and a purity of 83.5% were achieved.
Highlights
Researchers from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) have demonstrated the potential of chemical compounds derived from lignocellulosic biomass to act as important building blocks in producing valuable chemical substances [2]
The present study examines the possibility of Fumaric acid (FA) recovery and purification from fermented oil palm empty fruit bunches (EFBs) using
K20 to produce FA from EFB-derived glucose was of a similar value as compared to pure glucose, which is consistent with the research by Liao et al [17], who compared the effect of pure glucose and manure-fiber-derived glucose as raw materials for FA production
Summary
The development of modern technologies and industries requires more natural resources. One of the main energy sources under constant demand, is limited. Renewable resources are the focus of sustainable energy technologies. Each renewable energy source, such as biomass, has unique benefits over fossil fuels in reducing global warming. Many chemical compounds have been produced from petroleum via chemical processes. Advances in biotechnology have led to the production of many chemical compounds from renewable resources, such as lignocellulosic biomass [1]. Researchers from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) have demonstrated the potential of chemical compounds derived from lignocellulosic biomass to act as important building blocks in producing valuable chemical substances [2]
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