Mechanical properties of the macaw palm endocarp aiming seedling production process

Abstract

Background:The Macaw palm (Acrocomia aculeata) is a palm tree native to the Tropical America Forests. This palm has stood out due to its high potential for the production of oil for biofuels, being an excellent source of renewable energy. However, due to the rudimentary way of exploring the Macaw palm, mostly using native people labor, it is not possible to extract the maximum economical potential that this plant can provide. In order to use the Macaw palm in industrial scale, new strategies using highperformance machinery in several segments of the production chain should be employed. Results:For that, its seedlings production must be broadly expanded, using modern techniques for its propagation and production on an industrial scale, since its present low germination rates when the natural way is employed. In this way, the present paper has the objective of establishing a database of the mechanical properties of the endocarp of the Macaw palm when submitted to compression efforts, typically used for removing almonds from the endocarp. The inherent variability of its mechanical properties was quantified, using three different crops sites. Conclusion:Important information about the mechanical properties of the Macaw palm endocarp is presented, serving as guideline for future works to genetic improvement of the Macaw palm, in order to obtain fruits with less variability in the mechanical properties of the endocarp and consequently improve the production on an industrial scale.