The development of specialty esters using palm-based materials through a solventless and autocatalytic method was investigated. The C 8− C 10 fatty-acid esters of pentaerythritol are the bases for high-performance lubricants. In the present study, an easy and efficient method was developed using an esterification process coupled with short-path distillation to produce high-purity pentaerythritol ester (PEE) for the more complete removal of acid value (AV) in the end products. The compositions of the distilled PEE have the highest 96% w/w % tetraester at an evaporator temperature of 200-225 C and a vacuum pressure of 0.05 mbar to retain a low AV of less than 1 mg KOH g −1 and a low hydroxyl value. The rate of heating at 30 C h −1 was found to be crucial in obtaining high-purity tetraester. According to Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) 301F, PEE is readily biodegradable and 100% biodegradability can be achieved in less than 9 days. PEE produced has shown lubricant properties and can be used as a base stock for biolubricant composition.Keywords Environment Á Biolubricant Á Pentaerythritol ester Á Tetraester J Am Oil Chem Soc (2018) 95: 1421-1429.

Methyl ester sulfonate (MES) is an anionic surfactant derived from palm oil through sulfonation of fatty acid methyl esters. Due to limited ecotoxicological data on MES, this study was initiated to evaluate the ecotoxicological properties of MES and its impact to the environment. The respirometric method (OECD 301F) was used to monitor the biodegradation of various homologues of MES over 28 days. The algae growth inhibition test (OECD 201) was conducted to assess the effects of palm‐based MES towards green algae by exposing exponentially‐growing cultures of Pseudokirchneriella subcapitata (P. subcapitata) to five concentrations of MES with maximum concentrations of 100 mg/L. Results showed all MES samples were readily biodegradable, where the biodegradability of each homologue surpassed 60% within 28 days. It was also observed that the longer the carbon chain length of MES, the solubility and the biodegradability rate decreased. The ecotoxicity of C12 and C14 MES towards P. subcapitata after 72 h of experiment showed no inhibition of algae growth in C12 MES while, the growth of algae decreased as the concentration of C14 MES increases. The EC50 value for C14 MES and C16 MES towards green algae was >100 and >10 mg/L, respectively. It can be concluded that C12 and C14 MES were practically non‐toxic towards P. subcapitata and the toxicity increased with an increase in chain length of the surfactant (EC50 value decreases). Therefore homologues of palm‐based MES are not expected to cause environmental concern due to their biodegradability and low toxicity in the aquatic environment.

Plant oil-based lubricants are used as alternative for mainstream petroleum-based lubricants mainly because they are known to be environmentally friendly. However, their market acceptance is limited by their high pour point and poor oxidation stability. This study presents an approach to make biodegradable lubricant from oleic acid that shows low pour point and satisfactory oxidation stability. A mixture of estolides with acetyl and hydroxy functionalities is prepared from reaction between oleic acid, acetic acid, and hydrogen peroxide. Subsequently, the hydroxy groups of estolide are end-capped with lauric acid to improve oxidation stability. Further reaction with alcohol and amine yielded estolide ester and amide, respectively. Physicochemical properties evaluation of prepared estolide ester and amide reveal that they have properties comparable to commercial samples in terms of pour point, oxidation stability, viscosity index, and antiwear. Furthermore, both estolide ester and amide are found to be readily biodegradable, which support their use as environmental friendly lubricant. Therefore, the inferior properties of plant oil-based lubricants can be resolved by chemical modifications that yield specific estolide ester and amide with excellent properties suitable for lubricants. Practical Applications: The prepared estolide ester and amide have good potential to be used as lubricant base oil for environmentally acceptable lubricants due to their inherent readily biodegradability nature and excellent lubricant properties.

The oleochemical manufacturing is one of the industrial sectors that contributed significantly to the economic growth of the country. Palm oil (PO) and palm kernel oil (PKO) have been utilised as feedstocks for production of the five basic oleochemicals, namely fatty acid, methyl ester, fatty alcohol, fatty amine and glycerol. These basic oleochemicals could be used without further treatment or they could be processed further for the purpose of purification and improving functionality, and then formulated with other ingredients into finished products.  The industries, however, are challenged with the growing concern on safety, toxicity and eco-toxicity level, biodegradability profile and hence marketability of the products and new technologies developed. While Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB)’s R & D focused on developing various oleochemicals derivatives, the method to assess the environmental impact of the production of these products are also being looked into together with process feasibility and technology viability study. With a complete entity comprises of laboratories, facilities and expertise, MPOB can now assist Malaysian manufacturers/exporters to establish a complete dataset on biodegradation, ecotoxicity and life cycle assessment (LCA) to facilitate the market access of their products and ensure conformation to regulation set by importing countries.

Fatty alcohol ethoxylates (FAEO) are widely used for a wide range of applications. Due to their excessive and widespread use, the ecotoxicological behaviour of FAEO in aquatic environment is crucial in managing the environmental sustainability. The objective of this study is to determine the ecotoxicology behaviour, i.e. biodegradation and ecotoxicity, of poorly water soluble lauryl alcohol ethoxylates (C 12) with different ethoxylate numbers (EO), i.e. EO3, EO5, EO6, EO7 and EO10. For ecotoxicity test, OECD 209, activated sludge, respiration inhibition test method was used. This method was selected as a rapid screening test to identify substances that have unfavourable influence on microorganisms in sewage treatment plant and also to identify non-inhibitory concentration of test substances applicable for biodegradation test. Meanwhile, the biodegradation test was performed using OECD 301C, MITI (I) (Ministry of International Trade and Industry, Japan) test method. The biodegradability of this surfactant was monitored for 28 days. The results of OECD 209 showed only FAEO (EO3) with a maximum concentration of 1000 mg litre-1 inhibited more than 50% respiration of activated sludge, while other FAEO samples inhibited less than 50% after 3 hr of exposure. The 3-hr of half maximal effective concentration (EC 50) for FAEO (EO3) for activated sludge was 423 mg litre-1 while, for other FAEO samples was > 1000 mg litre-1. The toxicity effect decreased with increasing EO number. For biodegradation test, the results indicated that FAEO were readily biodegraded in OECD 301C where their biodegradability surpassed the 60% pass level as stated in the standard method and can be considered as readily biodegradable in the environment. As the EO chain length increased, the hydrophilic-lipophilic balance (HLB) of FAEO tended to increase while the hydrophobicity tended to decrease. The reduction in hydrophobicity level increases its solubility in water, thus promotes rapid biodegradation in aquatic environment.