Chemical composition of oil palm

Chemical composition of oil palm

Table 2.1 shows the differences in chemical composition between the various types of oil palm fibers.

Table 2.1: Chemical composition of oil palm and wood fibers.

	Extractive (%)	Holocellulose (%)	Cellulose (%)	Lignin (%)	Ash (%)
Empty fruit bunch (EFB)	3.21	80.09	50.49	17.84	3.4
Oil palm frond (OPF)	4.40	83.54	56.03	20.48	2.4
Oil palm trunk (OPT)	5.35	73.06	41.02	24.51	2.2
Hardwood*	0.1-7.7	71-89	31-64	14-34	< 1
Softwood*	0.2-8.5	60-80	30-60	21-37	< 1

(Khalil et al., 2008)

OPT fiber has highest extractive content (5.35 %) compared to other fibers. Extractive content is considered to play the most important role in obstructing the formation of microbes in the early stage of cloning. The high extractive content (especially oil and wax) will reduce the hygroscopic fiber property of OPT fiber and so it is believed to have a high dimensional stability. The utilization of OPT fiber in paper production will also reduce the pulp yield because most extractives have a bad impact on chemical and mechanical pulping (Khalil et al., 2008).

Chemical analysis of oil palm fibers shows that the principal component is cellulose. OPF fiber contains the highest percentage of holocellulose (83.54%) and α-cellulose content (56.03%). The amount of cellulose in fibers will affect the property and economic production of fibers for various uses. In pulp and paper technology, the strength of paper depends on the content of cellulose in the natural plant resource that is used (Khalil et al., 2008).

Generally, OPT fiber showed the highest percentage of lignin (24.51%), followed by OPF (20.48%) and EFB (17.84%). This was expected since mature tissues at the base (trunk) accumulate higher amounts of metabolic products than the younger parts at the top (frond and branches) (Khalil et al., 2008).

Oil palm fibers were found to have higher ash content compared to wood fibers. EFB fiber showed the highest percentage (3.4%) of ash. Even though the ash content of EFB fiber is high, this fiber may be able to be used in pulping because of the low content of lignin. The use of EFB fiber in composite fabrication must also be valued accordingly because the ash content will have a great effect on the outcome (Khalil et al., 2008).