Palm Oil Milling Process Research Articles

THE POTENTIAL OF PALM OIL MILL EFFLUENT (POME) AS A RENEWABLE ENERGY SOURCE

The expanding of oil palm industry has given a significant benefit to the economic growth and country development. However, it has also contributed to environmental problems due to the production of huge quantities of waste and by-products. Palm oil mill effluent (POME) is a liquid discharge from the palm oil milling process. POME without proper treatment could be harmful to environment because it emitted greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere. Therefore, due to its high organic carbon content, POME has currently been applied to generate biogas. This study aims to measure the physicochemical characteristics of untreated POME and the potential of POME as renewable energy. The physicochemical characteristics of raw POME such as chemical oxygen demand (COD), ammonia (NH3N), dry matter (DM) content and heavy metals were also measured and compared with the regulatory discharge limits. Converting POME to biogas can produce energy which save a huge source of renewable energy as well as reduce the environmental impacts of palm oil production.

Computer Aided Molecular Design for alternative sustainable solvent to extract oil from palm pressed fibre

Palm pressed fibre (PPF) is one of the by-products from palm oil milling process which is conventionally burned as fuel to produce energy to support the milling operation. PPF typically contains 5–6% of residual palm oil, which can be further recovered as by-product before using it as fuel in boiler. Therefore, it has propagated great interest in developing technologies to extract the residual oil from PPF. Based on the currently available technologies, hexane cold extraction is the most established method for recovering the residual oil. However, the extracted residual oil via hexane is not suitable for food applications due to the toxicity of hexane. Besides, the low recovery of carotene from the residual oil is another major concern of using hexane as solvent in the cold extraction. Therefore, there is a need to identify an alternative solvent to recover the residual oil from PPF. In this work, Computer Aided Molecular Design (CAMD) technique is adapted to identify alternative solvents which possess the most desirable attributes for this application. This application of CAMD is unique because it is important to optimize the physical properties of the potential solvent along with safety and health attributes in order to use in food industries. Moreover, the safety and health indexes depend on the physical properties of the final solvent and the abrupt changes of these indexes must be tracked simultaneously with the changes in properties. The proposed approach can identify alternative solvents that extract residual oil from PPF with the highest retention of carotene. To trade off the optimisation objective of the recovery of carotene and total health and safety impacts, fuzzy optimisation based approach for solvent design has been developed.

Evaluation of biomass energy potential towards achieving sustainability in biomass energy utilization in Sabah, Malaysia

The potential of biomass energy in Sabah, Malaysia was analyzed by data which was established from literature, statistic data and available documents for estimating the potential of biomass energy derived from oil palm, coconut shell, rice, livestock and forest. Nowadays, the issue of solid biomass residues including effluent from the palm oil milling process has become a big concern for the industry and the public in Sabah, because oil palm residues provide a huge potential of biomass energy in Sabah. This paper showed that biomass energy potential in Sabah was around 267,179,818 GJ/year in total, which was derived from oil palm EFB, shell, OPF (oil palm frond), OPT (oil palm trunk), coconut shell, rice, livestock and forest. Potential of biomass energy from oil palm, coconut shell, rice, livestock and forest was 263,635,079 GJ/year, 95,713 GJ/year, 710,028 GJ/year, 750,696 GJ/year and 1,988,301 GJ/year, respectively. Most biomass energy came from oil palm, which was around 98.7% of total potential. If this total energy potential is applied at a power plant with efficiency ratio of 25% and 8000 h per year of operation, this has potential of 2,288 MW, which is equivalent to around 3.8 times of total supply of electricity in 2010 in Sabah. This paper also suggests that relevant policy and innovative technology be developed based on the result to effectively utilize biomass.

Biorefinery for the Production of Biodiesel, Hydrogen and Synthesis Gas Integrated with CHP from Oil Palm in Malaysia

Abstract Malaysia is presently the world’s largest exporter of palm oil with total production of 19.22 million tonnes of crude palm oil (CPO) in 2013. Aside CPO, by-products such as empty fruit bunch (EFB), palm kernel shell (PKS), palm kernel oil (PKO), palm kernel cake (PKC) and pressed palm fibres (PPF) are produced from the palm oil mills. These biomasses can be used as potential feedstock for the production of biofuels, biogas and bioelectricity. One of the ways to fully harness the potentials of these biomasses is by employing the biorefinery concepts where all the products and by-products from oil palm are utilized for production of valuable bio-products. In this study, technological feasibility of biorefinery for the production of biodiesel, hydrogen, Fischer-Tropsch liquids (FTLs) integrated with combined heat and power (CHP) generation was investigated. Flowsheet was designed for each of the processes using Aspen HYSYS® v 8.0. Material balance was performed on a palm oil mill processing 250 tonnes per year of fresh fruit palm (FFP). Results from the material balance shows that 45.1 tonnes of refined bleached deodorized palm oil (RDBPO) and 52.4 tonnes of EFB were available for the production of biodiesel, hydrogen, FTLs and the CHP generation. The annual plant capacity of the biodiesel production is estimated to be 26,331.912 tonnes. The overall energy consumption of the whole process was estimated to be 36.0 GJ/h. This energy demand was met with power generated from the CHP which is 792 GJ/h leaving a surplus of 756 GJ/h that can be sold to the grid. The process modelling and simulation of the biorefinery process shows technological feasibility of producing valuable products from oil palm.

Towards low carbon society in Iskandar Malaysia: Implementation and feasibility of community organic waste composting

Rapid population growth and urbanisation have generated large amount of municipal solid waste (MSW) in many cities. Up to 40-60% of Malaysia's MSW is reported to be food waste where such waste is highly putrescible and can cause bad odour and public health issue if its disposal is delayed. In this study, the implementation of community composting in a village within Iskandar Malaysia is presented as a case study to showcase effective MSW management and mitigation of GHG emission. The selected village, Felda Taib Andak (FTA), is located within a palm oil plantation and a crude palm oil processing mill. This project showcases a community-composting prototype to compost food and oil palm wastes into high quality compost. The objective of this article is to highlight the economic and environment impacts of a community-based composting project to the key stakeholders in the community, including residents, oil palm plantation owners and palm oil mill operators by comparing three different scenarios, through a life cycle approach, in terms of the greenhouse gas emission and cost benefit analysis. First scenario is the baseline case, where all the domestic waste is sent to landfill site. In the second scenario, a small-scale centralised composting project was implemented. In the third scenario, the data obtained from Scenario 2 was used to do a projection on the GHG emission and costing analysis for a pilot-scale centralised composting plant. The study showed a reduction potential of 71.64% on GHG emission through the diversion of food waste from landfill, compost utilisation and significant revenue from the compost sale in Scenario 3. This thus provided better insight into the feasibility and desirability in implementing a pilot-scale centralised composting plant for a sub-urban community in Malaysia to achieve a low carbon and self-sustainable society, in terms of environment and economic aspects.

Palm oil mill effluent as a low-cost substrate for bioflocculant production by Bacillus marisflavi NA8

Palm oil mill effluent (POME) generated from the palm oil milling process contains high organic matter from which the molecule of interest for bioconversion such as fermentable sugar can be derived. This study examined the enzymatic hydrolysis of complex celluloses and polysaccharides present in POME with the aim to release the simple sugars as low-cost fermentable feedstock convertible into bioflocculant. The maximum concentration of fermentable sugar produced after 24 h of hydrolysis was 30.5 g/L. The POME hydrolysate served as a carbon source for Bacillus marisflavi NA8 to produce bioflocculant. The optimum conditions obtained were an initial pH of 7.0 and a temperature of 37 °C with an inoculum size of 5 % (v/v), yielding 6.4 g/L or 32 kg/t bioflocculant from POME. This finding indicated that POME could be utilized as a low-cost substrate to improve the feasibility of commercial production of bioflocculant.

A Study on the Mechanical Properties of Oil Palm Mesocarp Fibre-Reinforced Thermoplastic

Oil palm mesocarp fibre obtained from a palm oil processing mill was washed with detergent and water to remove the oil and sun-dried to enhance good adhesion to Linear Low Density Polyethylene (LLDPE). The fibre was pulverized and filtered through a sieve of pore size 300 microns. The Oil Palm Mesocarp Fibre Reinforced Thermoplastic (OPMFRT) was produced with a form of hand lay-up method and varying fibres weight ratio in the matrix from 5 wt% to 25 wt% in steps of 5 wt%. Tensile test was carried out to determine the tensile strength, tensile modulus, and elongation at break of the material. The hardness and impact strength of the composite were also determined. The results showed that tensile modulus and hardness of the OPMFRT increased by 50% and 24.56%, respectively, while tensile strength, impact strength, and percentage elongation of the OPMFRT decreased by 36.78%, 39.07%, and 95.98%, respectively, as fibre loading increased from 5 wt% to 25 wt%. The study concluded that the application of the OPMFRT developed should be restricted to areas demanding high rigidity and wear resistance.

Non-CO2 greenhouse gas emissions from palm oil production in Thailand

The global demand for palm oil has been increasing during the past two decades. As a result, there has been an expansion of oil palm plantations and palm oil production, in particular in South East Asia. This contributes to a number of environmental problems. In this study, we focus on non-CO2 greenhouse gas emissions from palm oil production in Thailand, the third largest palm oil producing country in the world. Carbon dioxide (CO2) is typically emitted during fuel combustion in production processes. In addition, methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) are emitted during palm oil production. We quantified current and future emissions of CH4 and N2O based on future projections for palm oil production in Thailand. Our analysis distinguishes between emissions from oil palm plantations and palm oil processing mills. Our study shows that nitrogen fertilizers are the main source of N2O emissions, while CH4 is emitted mainly from inappropriate management of empty fruit bunches and wastewater management. We also analysed the effect of possible options to reduce emissions of CH4 and N2O, illustrating the potential for emission reduction in the future.

Energy Self-Sufficiency of Semi-Mechanized Oil Palm Processing: A Case Study of Bayelsa Palm Mill, Elebele, Nigeria

The study was designed to assess the energy requirement, biomass generation and the contribution of biomass in oil palm processing from1 tonne of fresh fruit bunch (FFB) by a semi-mechanized palm oil processing mill in Nigeria. The energy required for the extract oil from fresh fruit was measured at the Bayelsa Palm Mill, Elebele, Nigeria. The average weight of FFB was 13.5 kg. The mass balance of FFB during processing is 26.0 % empty fruit bunch (EFB), 1.5 % chaff, 18.5% nut, 30.0 % palm press fibre (PPF), 14.0% moisture and 10.0% crude palm oil (CPO).The biomass generated during the processing of CPO from 1 tonne of FFB is 259.0 kg (EFB), 301.9 kg (PPF) and 14.8 kg (chaff). Of these, only 234.9 kg of EFB was utilized as fuel for boiling, while 1.85 liters of diesel was used to power generator for stripping, digestion/pressing and fiber separation. Majority of the biomass generated were un-utilized. About 40% of the potential energy in the biomass was utilized by the mills, while the rest was disposed by open combustion. The total energy utilized for the processing of FFB is 4291.39 MJ/ tonne. Of these, biomass fuel accounted for 97.5%, while fossil fuel supplied the remaining 2.5%. We conclude that the excess biomass can be converted into liquid fuel via pyrolysis and/or gasification and used for digestion purposes to attain 100% energy self-sufficiency to prevent air quality impacts associated with the open air combustion of excess biomass. Other potential biofuel that could be generated from oil palm waste biomass include solid (briquette), liquid (bioethanol, bio-methanol, bio-oil) and gaseous fuel (biogas, bio-hydrogen).

Sustainable and integrated palm oil biorefinery concept with value-addition of biomass and zero emission system

The problem of biomass residues and effluent from the palm oil milling process has become a big concern for the industry, the public and the environment. Furthermore, the modern palm oil mill can no longer rely solely on traditional crude palm oil and palm kernel products for profit generation. In order to remain truly sustainable in the future, we propose the solid biomass residues and liquid effluent to be managed and utilized via a biorefinery concept to generate new value-added products, in-line with zero emission system. Modern and efficient boiler and turbine systems utilizing biomass and biogas captured from the anaerobic effluent treatment can provide the steam and electricity required for the palm oil mill operations. The solid biomass residues can be channeled towards the production of value-added products such as biofertiliser, biochar, biofuels and biomaterials. The liquid final discharge can be further treated to meet river water quality, making it suitable to be recycled - hence achieving zero emission. Such an integrated approach will not only solve the issue of proper biomass disposal and effluent treatment, but also more importantly create a win-win-win situation for profit, people and planet - the three pillars of sustainability.

Small-Scale Palm Oil Processing Business in Nigeria; A Feasibility Study

Palm oil is a major food and non-food ingredient consumed by virtually everyone in Nigeria through the use of palm oil related products. This study investigates the feasibility of small-scale palm oil processing in Nigeria, using Elele, Rivers State as case study. Information was elicited through interviews and physical observations. Manual processing and screw hand press methods were adopted for palm oil extraction from fresh fruit bunch. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics (mode, frequencies and corresponding percentages and gross margin model) and profitability techniques (i.e Gross ratio, Expense Structure Ratio, rate of return and Benefit-Cost Ratio). The findings show that the average cost of procuring equipment and its installations for a small-scale palm oil processing mill were estimated at N623,650.00. The gross margin return from this study was N44,000.00 while net return was N14,000.00. The gross ratio reveales that for every N1.00 return to the mill 68.00 kobo was spent on the production processes. The small-scale palm oil venture is dominated by elderly people from 50 years and above (30%). About 34% and 32% of the processors have WASC and Primary School Leaving Certificates respectively as the educational qualification. About 50% of the processors have 16-20 years experience in oil palm processing. The study concludes that small-scale oil palm processing is profitable and can also be a source of employment.

Use of Palm Oil Mill Effluent as Medium for Cultivation of Chlorella sorokiniana

Aims: Palm oil mill effluent (POME) erodes the principal biophysical characteristic of both soil and water when discharged untreated but could be exploited as medium for microalgae cultivation due to its vast mineral contents. Place and Duration of study: POME samples were collected from a local palm oil processing mill at Nsukka, Enugu State, Nigeria. A part of the study was done at the Graduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba, Japan while the rest at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka between March and September, 2012. Methodology: Chlorella sorokiniana C212 was grown in several Batches (A-D) of POME supplemented with urea (60 mg/L) before subjecting to different sterilization protocols. Cultivation was conducted in shaker flasks at 150 rpm, 1 vvm, 3000 lux and pH 7.0±0.2. Results: The filter sterilized Batch (B) promoted the highest (1070±30 mg/L) dry cell weight (DCW), lipid (156±12 mg/g-cell) and chlorophyll (1.59±0.11 mg/g-cell) contents while chemical oxygen demand (COD) decreased by 45±08%. The autoclaved medium Original Research Article British Biotechnology Journal, 4(3): 305-316, 2014 306 (Batch A) gave the least DCW (310±20 mg/L), lipid production (40±05 mg/g-cell) and chlorophyll content (0.58±0.02 mg/g-cell) while COD reduced by 20±04%. The highest COD decrease (70±05%) was achieved in the unsterilized Batch (D). Batch B was most positively affected by dilution because at 75% concentration, DCW increased to 1360±30 mg/L, lipid contents to 174±10 mg/g-cell, chlorophyll to 1.87±0.14 mg/g-cell the while COD declined by 63±03%. Conclusions: POME has potential for use in microalgae cultivation with significant saving

Energy self-sufficiency of smallholder oil palm processing in Nigeria

The study evaluated the contribution of various energy sources to the smallholder processing of oil palm in Nigeria. Ten small-scale palm oil processing mills were visited at Elele, River State, Nigeria for sample collection. The weight of the various solid wastes generated and utilized for boiling process were measured including EFB (empty fruit bunch), PPF (palm press fiber), PKS (palm kernel shell) and chaff, while the volume of diesel used for digestion was also measured. The processing of 1 tonne of FFB (fresh fruit bunch) in the mill yields 63.4–77.1 L of CPO while the following waste by-products were generated from the FFB; 24 to 31% EFB, 23 to 28% PPF, 10 to 12% PKS and 1.4 to 2.4% chaff. Out of the total biomass generated by the mills only 12.74–22.25% EFB, 24.43–33.38% PPF, 2.71–6.71% PKS and 15.12–49.04% chaff were utilized by the various mills for fruit boiling/sterilization, indicating that the majority of biomass wastes is unutilized in the mills. The volume of diesel utilized by the mills for digestion is quite low ranging from 0.6 to 0.8 L. The gross calorific values of the waste biomass are EFB 16.970–18.537 MJ/kg, PPF 16.472–21.037 MJ/kg and PKS 19.378–21.614 MJ/kg. The total energy utilized by the mills for processing 1 tonne of FFB ranged from 2179.43 to 3014.31 MJ. Out of these, biomass energy accounted for 98.22–98.75%, while fossil fuel accounted for the remaining 1.25–1.78%. The study concluded by suggesting innovative ways of substituting the <2% fossil fuel contribution with the direct use of pre-heated palm oil to fuel the digesters.

Anaerobic treatment of palm oil mill effluents: potential contribution to net energy yield and reduction of greenhouse gas emissions from biodiesel production

Abstract The effluents from palm oil mills for biodiesel production are generally treated in open ponds, causing large amounts of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. This study assesses the use of palm oil mill effluents (POME) as feedstock to produce biogas via anaerobic digestion. Biogas from POME can be converted into electricity and heat to eventually reduce the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of biodiesel production from palm oil. This study is using two system boundaries, firstly, system a “gate-to-gate” concerning the POME treatments, and secondly a “cradle-to-gate/total combustion” when we assess the impact of varying POME treatments within the biodiesel chain. The research draws on field and experimental data from palm oil and biogas production in Sumatra, Indonesia. The findings show that the energy output from the conversion of POME to methane via anaerobic digestion and the subsequent combustion of the methane in a combined heat-power plant exceeds the energy consumption of the palm oil milling process. Treating POME in an anaerobic digester and using the biogas to generate electricity and heat has the potential to significantly reduce the GHG emissions of biodiesel production from palm oil. In the studied case, the energy output from the conversion of POME to electricity and heat is 0.44 MJ kg−1 biodiesel and the net energy yield is 0.42 MJ kg−1 biodiesel. The ratio of energy output to energy input of the conversion process is about 23.1. The potential reduction of GHG emissions is 658 g CO2-eq kg−1 biodiesel or 15.96 g CO2-eq MJ−1. This is equivalent to about 33% of the total GHG emissions of biodiesel production from palm oil. Against this background we recommend to further develop and implement the treatment of POME in anaerobic digestion combined with the purposeful use of the methane, electricity and heat produced from the POME. This can make a significant contribution toward meeting international targets of emissions reduction for biodiesel production.

Systematic Approach for Synthesis of Integrated Palm Oil Processing Complex. Part 1: Single Owner

Throughout the palm oil milling process, fresh fruit bunches are converted into crude palm oil and a large amount of palm-based biomasses are produced as byproducts. Processes that convert palm-based biomass (e.g., empty fruit bunches, palm oil mill effluent, etc.) into value added products via single conversion technology (i.e., thermal, biological, and physical conversion technologies) are well established. However, integrating multiple conversion technologies to convert palm-based biomasses into value-added palm green products (e.g., biofuels, biochemicals) has not been studied. In this work, a conceptual zone of integrated palm oil processing complex (POPC) that is owned by single owner is introduced to fully utilize palm-based biomasses for value-added palm green product production and heat and power generation. In this work, integrated POPC is defined as a complex that integrates palm oil mill (POM), palm oil refinery (POR), palm oil-based biorefinery (POB), and combined heat power (CHP) at the same site. A systematic generic approach for synthesis and optimization of integrated POPC to achieve maximum economic performance is developed and presented in Part 1 of this series. The optimized network configuration that achieves the targets can also be determined. Meanwhile, the synthesis and optimization of integrated POPC that has multiple owners of those processing facilities is further analyzed based on industrial symbiosis concept and will be presented in Part 2 of this series.

Improved economic viability of integrated biogas energy and compost production for sustainable palm oil mill management

This paper proposes a new approach for integrated technology of biogas energy and compost production for a palm oil mill. This study evaluated the economic viability based on the changes of materials flow and energy balance when a palm oil mill introduces this approach. A palm oil mill processing 54 tonnes fresh fruit bunch (FFB) per hour has the potential to produce 8.2 GWh per year of electricity using biogas captured during anaerobic treatment of palm oil mill effluent (POME). Compost production using shredded empty fruit bunch (EFB) and POME anaerobic sludge obtained from the anaerobic digester is equivalent of 579 tonnes, 151 tonnes and 761 tonnes per year of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium respectively. The integrated technology is a more attractive solution compared to the case when the palm oil mill installs either biogas energy or compost technology individually. The result of economic analysis suggests that this integrated approach is the most economically effective in comparison to the other two cases. Interestingly, even without Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), the integrated technology can still be economically viable, which can be a good solution for sustainable palm oil industry management in the near future.

Electrocoagulation of Palm Oil Mill Effluent as Wastewater Treatment and Hydrogen Production Using Electrode Aluminum

Palm oil mill effluent (POME) is highly polluting wastewater generated from the palm oil milling process. Palm oil mill effluent was used as an electrolyte without any additive or pretreatment to perform electrocoagulation (EC) using electricity (direct current) ranging from 2 to 4 volts in the presence of aluminum electrodes with a reactor volume of 20 L. The production of hydrogen gas, removal of chemical oxygen demand (COD), and turbidity as a result of electrocoagulation of POME were determined. The results show that EC can reduce the COD and turbidity of POME by 57 and 62%, respectively, in addition to the 42% hydrogen production. Hydrogen production was also helpful to remove the lighter suspended solids toward the surface. The production of Al(OH)XHO at the aluminum electrode (anode) was responsible for the flocculation-coagulation process of suspended solids followed by sedimentation under gravity. The production of hydrogen gas from POME during EC was also compared with hydrogen gas production by electrolysis of tap water at pH 4 and tap water without pH adjustment under the same conditions. The main advantage of this study is to produce hydrogen gas while treating POME with EC to reduce COD and turbidity effectively.

Microwave pretreatment: A clean and dry method for palm oil production

The present study shows that microwave pretreatment coupled with solvent extraction is a clean and dry process for the production of crude palm oil (CPO). The results indicate that palm fruits microwave heated for 3 min achieved oil yield comparable to the conventional and commercial palm oil milling process with an average of 20%. Fatty acid composition (FAC) of the CPO produced shows an increment in lauric acid (C12:0) as the duration of microwave exposure increases. Due to the absence of wet-heat treatment or sterilization process, the resultant palm oil also exhibits desirable and very low free fatty acid (FFA) (0.26%) and moisture content (0.05%). The current approach has also provided surprisingly high vitamin E and carotenes content. The highest concentration of vitamin E (2345 ppm) and carotene content (1585 ppm) was recorded for palm fruits subjected to microwave for 2 min. It shows that under the investigated conditions in the present study, the quality of CPO produced using microwave treatment coupled with hexane extraction possesses superior qualities compared to the conventional palm oil milling process.

Synthesis of property-based resource conservation network in palm oil mills with time-varying process disturbance

This article presents a mathematical model for resource conservation in a palm oil milling process via property integration. The focus is given to the clay bath system for kernel/shell separation based on flotation principle. In the present study, the clay bath separator is considered as a semi-batch unit under time-dependent process disturbance. This is different from previous works where it is simplified as a continuous unit. The design problem can be formulated as a nonlinear program based on a superstructure approach, with the objective set to minimize the fresh resource consumption. An illustrative case study is solved to demonstrate the proposed model.

Property integration for resource conservation network synthesis in palm oil mills

This paper presents a mathematical model for resource conservation in a palm oil milling process via property integration. The focus is given to the clay bath system for kernel/shell separation based on flotation principle. In the present work, the clay bath separator is considered as a semi-continuous unit with a specific operating period. This is different from previous works where it is simplified as a continuous unit. The design problem can be formulated as a nonlinear program based on a superstructure approach, with the optimization objective that is set to minimize the fresh resource consumption or the operating cost. An illustrative example is solved to demonstrate the proposed model. The results indicate that more than 40% reduction in fresh resource consumption and more than 50% reduction in operating cost can be achieved through material recovery.