Oil Palm Empty Fruit Bunch (EFB) Pellet and Rice Husk Pellet Biomass Fuel in Malaysia: A Comparative Investigation of Moisture, Dry Ash, and Oil Content

Abstract

In a world heavily reliant on fossil fuels, accounting for a staggering 80% of total energy consumption, the impending exhaustion of these finite resources within the next half-century looms as a dire global crisis. As a response to this impending challenge, biomass energy is emerging as a powerful alternative, harkening back to one of humanity's oldest sources of fuel. Amid this transition, Malaysia, a nation grappling with surging energy demands, holds significant promise in harnessing the latent energy within its abundant agricultural waste, primarily derived from the palm oil (Elaeis guineensis) industry and the extensive cultivation of paddy crops (Oryza sativa L). This study embarks on a critical examination of the potential that agricultural waste, chiefly composed of oil palm empty fruit bunch (EFB) and paddy rice husk (RH), holds in the form of biomass pellets, offering an environmentally friendly and sustainable energy solution. The primary focus of this research is to conduct a comprehensive comparative analysis between EFB and RH pellets, meticulously investigating key parameters such as moisture content, dry ash content, oil content, and ignition time. These parameters were scrutinized to discern which of the two pellet types exhibits greater potential as a viable source of biomass fuel within the Malaysian context. The results indicated that EFB pellets demonstrated superiority in terms of lower moisture content and faster ignition time, while RH pellets exhibited lower dry ash content and sustained combustion.