Calcium oxides with a specific surface area between 4.5 m 2 g-1 and 62.5 m 2 g-1 were obtained by calcination of scallop shells, following by methanol-assisted dry nano-grinding. Three distinct phases are formed on the surface of these catalysts during nano-grinding: calcium methoxide, calcium hydroxide, and calcium oxide. The effects of specific surface area and active surface phase composition on the catalytic activity of calcium oxide during methanolysis of soybean oil were investigated. The properties of the calcium oxide before, during, and after methanol assisted dry nano-grinding were studied by XRD, FTIR, and nitrogen gas adsorption based on the BET method. The ground calcium oxides were found to be effective in catalyzing the methanolysis of soybean oil, with the optimal catalyst producing a 72.3% ester yield after 20 mins of reaction. The improvements in rate of reaction were attributed to the rapid formation of calcium diglyceroxide during the initial stages of methanolysis. A combination high specific surface area and effective active phases on the surface of the calcium oxide catalysts is correlated with reductions in mass transfer limitations in the early steps of the reaction, indicated by the rapid formation of calcium diglyceroxide.

An oil palm variety with high vitamin E has an added value because of its benefit as pharmaceutical and nutraceutical source. The measurement of the vitamin E content in CPO from eight varieties of oil palm is an effort to obtain high vitamin E varieties with the optimum oil yield. The varieties used in this experiment were DxP PPKS 718, DxP PPKS 239, DxP PPKS 540, DxP Yangambi, DxP Lame, DxP Avros, DxP Simalungun, and DxP Langkat, which were planted in a demonstration block, located at Kebun Adolina PTPN IV. The result showed that the average of the vitamin E from 8 varieties ranged from 477.36 ppm up to 582.78 ppm. The DxP Yangambi has the potency to be improved as the candidate of DxP variety with high vitamin E added value due to its highest vitamin E content. On the other hand, the DxP PPKS 540 is appropriate as candidate of ortets for high vitamin E clones regarding the vitamin E content; which is the highest over the whole samples

The health benefits of unsaturated fatty acids and palm oil phytonutrients have prompted various studies on red palm oil (RPO). This study aims to produce RPO that contains high oleic and low palmitic acid compositions. Dry fractional crystallisation was carried out on RPO at temperatures of 5, 10, 15 and 20 °C for 1, 3, 5, 8, 12, 24 and 48 h. High-Oleic Low-Palmitic Red Palm Super Olein (HOLP-RPSO) was successfully obtained from dry fractional crystallisation at T c 15 °C for 24 h with a composition of oleic acid >47%, a palmitic acid of <37% and an iodine value of 63.58. Triacylglycerol analysis of HOLP-RPSO revealed a reduction of dipalmitoyl oleoyl glycerol (POP), while palmitoyl dioleoyl glycerol (POO) content improved through crystallisation. The obtained HOLP-RPSO also contained more carotene, vitamin E and squalene than the raw material. In addition, modification of the filtration method improved the quality of the crystallisation products through the increase of the iodine value and improving the fatty acid profile.

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1,2-dimethyl-1,1,2,2-tetraphenylsulfonato disilane (DMTPS) has been prepared by sulfonation of 1,2-dimethyl-1,1,2,2-tetraphenyl disilane and its catalytic activities in transesterification of palm oil and esterification of fatty acids with secondary alcohols have been studied. The DMTPS was characterized by FT-IR, 1 H-NMR and 13 C-NMR and showed that all phenyl rings have been sulfonated. The transesterification of crude palm oil with methanol using DMTPS as the catalyst performed in an autoclave under a temperature ranging from 120 °C to 160 °C. The total ester yielded from transesterification was 96 %. Then, the catalyst was recovered (97 %) and reused in three other successive transesterifications at 160 °C to see the catalyst activity and stability. It was found that the catalyst activities remain unchanged shown from the transesterification yield which was 96 % in each reaction. The FT-IR of the used DMTPS catalyst was also very similar to that of the original one. The DMTPS catalyst also used in the esterification of long chain fatty acids with two secondary alcohols i.e. 2-propanol and 2-butanol at 150 °C, provided yield of 86 % and 48 % of esters respectively. These show that the DMTPS catalyst is a stable catalyst in moderate temperature and show a good performance in both transesterification and esterification involving secondary alcohols.