Oil palm biomass as a sustainable energy source: A Malaysian case study

Abstract

The latest scientific data confirmed that the earth's climate is rapidly changing. Therefore, it has been widely accepted worldwide that global warming is by far the greatest threat and challenge in the new millennium. The main factor that causes global warming is the release of greenhouse gases to the environment. In order to reduce the emission of these greenhouse gases and to promote sustainable development, renewable energy is the perfect solution to achieve both targets. Besides, latest report has shown that the world, including Malaysia can no longer turn away from renewable energy as fossil fuel reserves can only last for the next 30 to 40 years. On the other hand, presently million of hectares of land in Malaysia is occupied with oil palm plantation generating huge quantities of biomass. In this context, biomass from the oil palm industries appears to be a very promising alternative as a source of raw materials including renewable energy in Malaysia. Thus, this paper aims to presents the current scenario of biomass in Malaysia covering the availability of feedstock as well as current and possible utilization of oil palm biomass. This paper will also discuss some ongoing projects in Malaysia related to the utilization of oil palm biomass as a source of renewable energy. Based on the findings presented, it is definitely clear that Malaysia has position herself in the right path to utilize biomass as a source of renewable energy and this can act as an example to other countries in the world that has huge biomass feedstock.

Sodium Hydroxide Pretreatment and Enzymatic Hydrolysis of Oil Palm Mesocarp Fiber

“…Solid biomass such as oil palm mesocarp fiber (OPMF) is an attractive feed stock because it is an abundant, renewable source, rich with various carbohydrate sugars and other useful chemical compounds that can be converted into a range of value added products. Due to the enormity of the plantation industry, about 10.9 million tons of oil palm mesocarp fiber is being produced annually as agriculture waste and contributes to the accumulation of lignocellulosic waste and cause emission of greenhouse gas to the environment [1]. Traditionally oil palm mesocarp fiber is either used in mulching or incinerated, however both Manuscript received February 9, 2013; revised April 12, 2013 Generally, lignocellulosic biomass consists of three main groups of polymer that are cellulose, hemicelluloses and lignin [3].…”

“…Malaysia is the second largest contributor and exporter in the palm oil industry [1]. About 5 million hectares of oil palm planted area emerged in 2011 was as result of planted area increases in Sabah and Sarawak [2].…”

CDM Potential in Palm Solid Waste Cogeneration as an Alternative Energy in Aceh Province

“…EFB can also be a cheap carbon source for bioplastic industry, such as polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) or polylactate (PLA), thus reduce total manufacturing cost [14]. The utilization of EFB has been applied for CDM project in some CPO Mills in Malaysia, however the utilization of EFB for RE less implemented in Indonesia.…”

“…In some oil palm mills, EFB is not incinerated, but mulch and directly thrown back to oil palm plantations [12]. Since EFB belongs to the category of fibrous crop residues or also known as lignocellulosic residues, therefore EFB can also be converted into pulp [13][14].…”

“…However, due to their characteristics, some of these fuel sources have to be pretreated before they can be burned in the boiler [14]. Therefore, basic pretreatment process is required for effective use of biomass includes shedding to reduce the size and drying to reduce moisture content.…”