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Xylooligosaccharides (XO) is a sugarbased product of lignocellulosic material produced from forestry, agricultural or industrial wastes. They possess a variety of beneficial health properties particularly in prebiotic activities and as food additives. Malaysia produces an abundance of oil palm biomass, in which one of it is empty fruit bunch (EFB). EFB is about 21%-22% of … Read more

The physical and mechanical properties of oil palm trunk (OPT) are far from homogeneous (Kamarudin et al., 2011). The conversion of OPT to sawnlumber has to be carried out immediately, as long-term storage may not be economical. This is to prevent insect and fungal attacks due to high moisture and starch contents (Nur Syuhada et … Read more

Oil palm empty fruit bunch (EFB) contains about 70%-80% holocellulose; which comprises about 40%-45% and 30%-35% of cellulose and hemicelluloses respectively; and 18%-22% lignin. Cellulose is a polymer of α-D-1,4-linked anhydrous glucose units, (C6H12O5 )n. Basically, the individual cellulose molecules are linked together to form elementary microfibrils, which, in turn are aggregated by intermolecular hydrogen bonding … Read more

Activated carbon (AC) is widely used as an adsorbent in the treatment of liquids and gases. Many industries such as pharmaceutical, mining, petroleum, nuclear, water treatment, food and beverages are using activated carbon in their processing units. The important parts of the production process of activated carbon are the carbonisation (production of charcoal) and activation … Read more

Fruits of the oil palm can vary considerably based on their external appearance, notably the exocarp colour. The most common type of fruit colour is nigrescens (Nig), which is deep violet to black at the apex and pale yellow at the base when unripe. The colour of the Nig fruit varies to some extent on … Read more

The palm Bactris gasipaes also known as pejibaye or peach palm, is native to the tropical forests of South and Central America (Graefe et al., 2013). Bactris produces high fruit yields up to 3.8 t ha-1 yr-1 (Bolanho et al., 2013). The fruits (Figure 1) are rich in starch and contain all essential and non-essential … Read more

The livestock industry in Malaysia is growing in importance. Due to lack of local production, the industry relies heavily on the import of raw feed ingredients such as maize, soyabean and other grains. Monogastric animals such as cattle and poultry (Figures 1 and 2), the main consumers of these feed grain, suffer high production cost … Read more

Goose grass (Eleusine indica) (Figure 1) is a noxious weed in oil palm plantation in Malaysia. The weed is listed as one of the 10 worst weeds of the world (Lim and Ngim, 2000). E. indica competes strongly with oil palm for nutrient, water, light and space (Mohamad et al., 2010). Currently, application of herbicide … Read more

Basal stem rot (BSR) disease caused by the Ganoderma species is a serious problem to the oil palm industry (Idris, 2011; 2012). MPOB has introduced the Integrated Ganoderma Management (IGM) to find solution to the disease (Idris, 2011). Plant nutrients are primary components of disease control in many crops (McMahon, 2012). It was reported that … Read more

Palm mid fraction (PMF), a co-product from fractionation has been established as a major confectionery fats, usually after modification process. Second fractionation process becomes a common activity in the refineries for producing palm olein with iodine value higher than 58. This is to ensure longer clarity life of palm olein on supermarket shelf and in … Read more