Palm Oil Production’s Waste Could be Sustainable Biomass

In developing countries like Mexico, people often rely on firewood to generate energy for cooking and heating. Using wood as a biomass is cheap and easy to access, nevertheless, it negatively affects ecosystems and the health of vulnerable communities. Therefore, scientists have proposed using residues generated in the production of palm oil as a more beneficial biomass.

Most of the world’s palm oil, used in many prepackaged foods and consumer goods as well as biodiesel, is produced in countries like Indonesia and Malaysia. Its production is a strenuous process for these countries and demand is growing steadily, providing opportunity for new players like Mexico to enter the fold. A group of scientists, led by José Antonio Azamar, a member of the Department of Applied Physics at CINESTAV in Merida, proposed to take advantage of the rest material of this production process. By generating pellets and other types of biomass from solid palm waste, harmful emissions can be redyed by around 71 to 88 percent compared to burning wood.

Other benefits include halting deforestation and eliminating further emissions by ensuring palm residues are neither burned in the open air or accumulate in bodies of water or soil. The scientists outlined their findings in a CINESTAV press release and published in the Biomass and Bioenergy journal. Despite the benefits, organizations such as WWF warn that too much palm oil production encourages deforestation and the destruction of ecosystems too. By setting robust environmental protection policies, boosting RSPO-certified palm oil and encouraging transparency for oil sourcing, these issues can be avoided.

“Given the expansion of the palm oil production industry, we saw a great opportunity to take advantage of waste. Instead of ending up in the ground or generating emissions, it could be used as a raw material to obtain a solid biofuel,” explains Liliana Pampillón, a team member and CINESTAV graduate. Though palm oil production is still small compared to other more active countries, it has grown significantly over time: it has gone from 3,000 hectares cultivated in 1995 up to 96,657 in 2017, according to data from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. There are currently 17 extraction plants active in Mexico, most of which can be found in the southeastern states.

Based on their field research, scientists discovered that the calorific value of pal, waste, which ranges between 16 and 17 Megajoules per kilogram, is not unlike that of conventional fuels such as petroleum. “This gives it an added value by using it as a biofuel due to its great potential to produce energy,” said Pampillón, who explained that the project tackles both the issue of proper waste management and can help the most vulnerable communities in Mexico to generate sustainable energy.

Looking at the state of Tabasco, the state could generate about 156,000MW/h per year, going from an estimated 33,416 tons of biomass. This corresponds with around 25 percent of a yearly energy demand from a small Mexican city.