Integrated System Technology of POME Treatment for Biohydrogen and Biomethane Production in Malaysia

Methane Biogas Production in Malaysia: Challenge and Future Plan

Biomethane is a sustainable energy that is produced from an organic and renewable resource. As the second-largest oil palm producer in the world, palm oil mill effluent (POME) is the primary source of biomethane generation in Malaysia. POME is the by-product of palm oil extraction and is extensively employed as a feedstock for the production of biomethane. Malaysia has an equatorial environment with humid and hot weather; this climate is conducive to the cultivation of numerous agricultural crops. A considerable number of agricultural wastes and residues are produced by agricultural crops, however, only 27% of them are used as fuel or to create useable products. Several publications have been published on the production of biomethane from POME; nevertheless, additional research is required on the use of other bioresources and technologies for biomethane production in Malaysia. In addition, there is a lack of comprehensive information on the future development of biomethane production in Malaysia; thus, to fill this gap, this review paper focuses on the challenges and future of Malaysia, which puts an emphasis on POME and also includes other alternative options of bioresources that can be the future feedstock for biomethane production in Malaysia. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first paper to provide a comprehensive overview of the biogas trend in Malaysia in terms of challenges and current biomethane development, as well as detailed information on a number of leading companies that are currently active in Malaysia biogas industry.

The Potential of Sustainable Biomass Producer Gas as a Waste-to-Energy Alternative in Malaysia

It has been widely accepted worldwide, that the greenhouse effect is by far the most challenging threat in the new century. Renewable energy has been adopted to prevent excessive greenhouse effects, and to enhance sustainable development. Malaysia has a large amount of biomass residue, which provides the country with the much needed support the foreseeable future. This investigation aims to analyze potentials biomass gases from major biomass residues in Malaysia. The potential biomass gasses can be obtained using biomass conversion technologies, including biological and thermo-chemical technologies. The thermo-chemical conversion technology includes four major biomass conversion technologies such as gasification, combustion, pyrolysis, and liquefaction. Biomass wastes can be attained through solid biomass technologies to obtain syngas which includes carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, oxygen, hydrogen, and nitrogen. The formation of tar occurs during the main of biomass conversion reaction such as gasification and pyrolysis. The formation of tar hinders equipment or infrastructure from catalytic aspects, which will be applied to prevent the formation of tar. The emission, combustion, and produced gas reactions were investigated. It will help to contribute the potential challenges and strategies, due to sustainable biomass, to harness resources management systems in Malaysia to reduce the problem of biomass residues and waste.

Bioenergy on Islands: An Environmental Comparison of Continental Palm Oil vs. Local Waste Cooking Oil for Electricity Generation

Energy security on islands is a challenging issue due to their isolation from energy markets and fossil fuel dependence. In addition, islands’ average energy intensity has increased in recent years due to economic development. This research explores the environmental performance of two alternative non-variable bioelectricity feedstocks to increase energy resilience on islands. The study was developed for the Galápagos islands to address the environmental impacts from the direct use of waste cooking oil (WCO) and refined palm oil (RPO) to produce 1 MWh using the life cycle assessment methodological framework. A combination of primary and secondary data sources was used. The results show better performance for the electricity derived from WCO in all the impact categories considered when compared to RPO.