The paper industry use large and expensive equipment. For example, the cost of a single paper machine complex runs close to US$300 million and a fully-integrated bleached kraft pulp and paper mill costs almost US$1.5 billion. Such capital requirements for the construction of a conventional pulp mill has caused many investigators to take a fresh […]

The use of cosmetic products is as old as civilization. During ancient times, people had already begun to use a variety of items to enhance their appearance. The renaissance era saw a wider acceptance of cosmetic products. This was the period of rose water, homemade soap, cucumber cream and rice powder. With development and improvement […]

Over the past years, natural or naturally derived cosmetic products have been swarming the market, replacing the synthetic based products. This change was mainly due to consumers’ preferences towards natural, mild and plant derived products. thus natural trend’ is not unfounded as the main competitor, cosmetic products derived from petroleum could contain polyaromatic hydrocarbons which […]

The formulation of soap bars has become more complex over the years due to the need to increase the functionality of the soaps. Nowadays, the consumers have become very accustomed to multi-functional products. Traditionally, soaps were designed for cleaning the skin only but overtime soaps began to be used as delivery system for perfumes, superfattting […]

Recent research at PORIM has developed a new derivative from palm with great commercial potential. This product is dihydroxy fatty acid (DHFA). Hyroxy fatty acid has been shown to have numerous commercial use such as, additives in lubricants, starting material to make emulsifiers and surfactants, and polyol for polyurethanes.  Main Research: Roila Awang