Treatment of Palm Oil Mill Effluent
Document Type
Contribution to Books
Publication Date
2023
Publication Title
Waste Treatment in the Biotechnology, Agricultural and Food Industries, Vol. 2
Abstract
Palm oil is one of the two most significant vegetable oils on the global market for oils and fats. Despite its many positive effects on agriculture and the economy, the palm oil sector has also caused serious environmental problems, such as climate change, biodiversity loss, eutrophication, and acidification. The extraction of crude palm oil (CPO) results in several by-products, both solid and liquid, such as empty fruit bunch (EFB), palm kernel shell (PKS), mesocarp fibre (MF), and palm oil mill effluent (POME). At 67%, POME is the most abundant by-product of the CPO production process. The negative effects of POME on the environment are real and must be mitigated prior to discharge. POME has the potential to cause severe damage to ecosystems if it is not properly treated. This chapter will therefore provide a more in-depth explanation of the conventional and advanced treatment technologies for POME produced during CPO production. In addition to a brief overview of palm oil production globally and in Southeast Asian countries, this chapter will delve into the following topics: the CPO production process (including sterilization, threshing, digesting, screw pressing, depericarping, clarification of CPO, kernel separation, and drying); the characteristic of POME; the merits and demerits of POME treatment methods; and current and future perspectives of the POME treatment technologies for the palm oil industry.
Recommended Citation
Sabiani, Nor Habsah Md; Alkarimiah, Rosnani; Ayub, Khairul Rahmah; Makhtar, Muaz Mohd Zaini; Aziz, Hamidi Abdul; Hung, Yung-Tse; Wang, Lawrence K.; and Wang, Mu-Hao Sung, "Treatment of Palm Oil Mill Effluent" (2023). Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications. 503.
https://engagedscholarship.csuohio.edu/encee_facpub/503
DOI
10.1007/978-3-031-44768-6_7
