Environ Dev Sustain DOI 10.

1007/s10668-013-9457-x CASE STUDY

Life cycle inventory of the commercial production of compost from oil palm biomass: a case study
Abu Hassan Norhasmillah Chiew Wei Puah Nor Azowa Ibrahim Azhari Samsu Baharuddin Yuen May Choo

Received: 29 January 2013 / Accepted: 12 April 2013 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2013

Abstract This paper compared the life cycle inventory (LCI) obtained from three commercial oil palm biomass composting projects in Malaysia which use the open windrow composting system. The LCI was obtained and calculated based on the functional unit of 1 t of compost produced. The input of the inventory are the feed materials such as empty fruit bunches (EFB) and palm oil mill efuent (POME); and utilities which include electricity generated at palm oil mill and diesel used. Composting 2.02.5 t of EFB and 5.07.5 t of POME required diesel from 218.7 to 270.2 MJ and electricity from 0 to 6.8 MJ. It is estimated that the composting emitted from 0.01 to 0.02 t CO2eq/tcompost mainly from diesel used to operate machineries. Composting saved 65 % of time required for a complete degradation of POME when compared to ponding system, and 89 % of time required for a complete degradation of EFB compared to mulching. In terms of land required, it required 36 % less land as compared to ponding for POME and 99 % less land as compared to mulching for EFB. Based on the case study, diesel was found to be the main contributor to the environmental impact. There is a potential of upgrading the process to be more economical and environmental friendly. Using electricity as the source of energy has a lower footprint for the composting process. Instead of using raw POME, studies had reported that using treated POME either from anaerobic ponding or digested tank can accelerate the composting process. Keywords Life cycle inventory Commercial production Compost Palm oil mill efuent Empty fruit bunches Greenhouse gas emission
A. H. Norhasmillah C. W. Puah (&) Y. M. Choo Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB), P.O. Box 10620, 50720 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia e-mail: cwpuah@mpob.gov.my A. H. Norhasmillah N. A. Ibrahim Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia A. S. Baharuddin Department of Process and Food Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia

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1 Introduction Life cycle assessment (LCA) is an analytical tool used to estimate the environmental impacts associated with a product or system, considered from scratch or raw until nal removal. The practice of conducting life cycle studies has existed for more than 20 years (Vigon et al. 1994). The versatility of LCA as a very useful tool for estimating, comparing and evaluating a product, process or system is well known, and many researchers have practised it in their studies on various products (Contreras et al. 2009; Hermann et al. 2011; Roberts et al. 2010; Stichnothe and Schuchardt 2010; Yusoff and Hansen 2007). LCA consists of (1) goal and scope denition, (2) life cycle inventory (LCI), (3) life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) and (4) interpretation (Buratti and Fantozzi 2010; McManus 2010; Gilbert et al. 2011). Hence, here, the LCA has been chosen as a tool to estimate and evaluate the environmental impact of the production of a product, viz. compost using residues from palm oil milling activities. In the year 2011, the fresh fruit bunches (FFB) processed was 92.9 million tonnes (Malaysian Oil Palm Statistics 2011). From the gure, it is estimated that approximately 83 million tonnes of oil palm biomass was produced. Empty fruit bunches (EFB) and palm oil mill efuent (POME) comprise the major part of oil palm biomass generated with signicant organic matter content. A total of 22 % of the FFB processed contributed to the EFB production (Yusoff 2006), while POME is approximately 6067 % of the FFB processed (Shirai et al. 2003; Yusoff 2006). According to Stichnothe and Schuchardt (2010), dumping of EFB and open ponding treatment of POME is estimated to contribute to 245 kg CO2eq/tFFB as compared to 7.4 kg CO2eq/tFFB when both are converted to compost and returned to the plantation. In addition, treatment of POME in open lagoons causes environmental problems such as foul odour and emits methane into the atmosphere. Composting will treat the EFB and POME aerobically and therefore signicantly reduces the emission of methane (CH4) to the atmosphere. Composting provides a viable alternative method for managing organic wastes (Singh et al. 2010). According to Yoshizaki et al. (2012), a palm oil mill with 300,000 t FFB processed a year has the potential to produce fertiliser equivalent to 488 t of nitrogen, 76 t of phosphorus and 1,065 t of potassium per year by using its biomass by-products. Compost is a substance which results from the degradation of organic materials by the microbial growth and activities. In composting, the higher-plant material breaks down under the inuence of aerobic thermophilic microorganisms present in the waste to a material rich in organic nutrients (Thambirajah et al. 1995). Several studies have been conducted to enhance the production (Baharuddin et al. 2010; Singh et al. 2010; Yahya et al. 2010) and application of compost from oil palm biomass to mitigate the use of inorganic fertiliser (Oviasogie et al. 2010). In terms of its economic viability and with clean development mechanism (CDM) registered, a compost project (based on 54 t/h palm oil mill) will give an internal rate of return (IRR) of 31 % and RM11.4 million net present value (NPV) with 2.9 years payback period (PBP) (Yoshizaki et al. 2012). Composting therefore is a potential option in enhancing the oil palm waste management system environmentally and economically. As the Malaysian oil palm industry is seriously embarking on commercial scale composting projects, there is a need to study the impact of the production of biocompost to the environment. There were various reports on life cycle study of the production and application of compost from domestic and municipal solid waste (Gilbert et al. 2011; Hermann et al. 2011; Jimenez and Garcia 1989) comparative life cycle study on other industrial byproduct (Cabaraban et al. 2008; Contreras et al. 2009) and a comparative study on the

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utilisation of oil palm biomass into composting (Stichnothe and Schuchardt 2010). However, a detail study on LCI emphasising on the commercial production of compost from oil palm biomass has yet to be conducted. Therefore, this paper highlights the LCI of the commercial production of compost from oil palm biomass. The detail on the composting process has been included for further understanding of each step in the process and other options in enhancing the steps along with the environmental impact concerned. Such studies are useful for millers and compost plant owners to identify opportunities to reduce their respective environmental impacts, for example through process optimisation or new technology innovation.

2 Materials and methods 2.1 Goal and scope denition The goal of this study is to obtain the LCI of the production of compost from oil palm biomass with the scope to quantify and compare the comprehensive sets of environmental ow (to and from the environment) associated with the production of compost from oil palm biomass, namely EFB and POME. A case study on the commercial production of compost has been conducted on three projects. 2.2 System boundary Figure 1 shows the system boundary for the production of compost. The study has a gateto-gate system boundary. The projects considered open windrow system for the composting process and are located next to the palm oil mill. The input consists of raw materials namely EFB and POME; as well as utilities such as electricity generated at the palm oil mill and diesel. The composting process was conducted under roof and concrete ooring with open air for Plants 1 and 2. Canvases were used to cover the compost mixtures in Plant 3. Plants 1 and 3 use shredded EFB. For Plant 1, EFB is fed through a shredder to reduce the size into bres of uniform size and then conveyed to the composting site. The shredder and conveyors were attached together to ease the movement of EFB to the composting site. There are windrows for composting, and the shredded EFB is placed in piles at these windrows. The windrow piles applied at the three plants have the height in the range of 1.52 m; width in the range of 24 m; and length in the range of 26 m. For Plant 2, whole bunches of EFB were laid down in piles and were cut into small pieces using pulveriser. The shredded or pulverised EFB was sprinkled with POME to moisten the heap. The temperature and moisture of the mixture were monitored to ensure optimum condition. This is to provide a sufcient environment which is essential for material degradation. In an attempt to ensure sufcient aeration and a well-mixed material, turning and mixing was scheduled depending on the temperature and oxygen level in the compost piles. Ploughing machines were used for turning and mixing of the piles for the three plants. The ploughing machines at Plant 1 are specially built with a compartment to store some amount of POME, and a sprinkler was used to spray POME into the piles during mixing and turning. For Plants 2 and 3, pumps were used to spray POME. POME plays important roles to maintain moisture and to aid the growth and activities of microbes to accelerate the degradation process. Turning of the piles was ended at xed time before harvesting. The output is comprised of compost as fertiliser, and emission to air. The processes continue

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Empty fruit bunches (EFB) Palm oil mill effluent (POME) Utilities Electricity Diesel

Mixing Compost

Aeration Air Emission Incubation / Maturation

Fig. 1 System boundary of the production of compost

until the nal matured compost was produced. A complete cycle requires 2050 days depending on the process conditions. Parameters monitored will be the indicator to ensure the compost mixture reaches maturity. Physically, the matured compost has a soil-like structure with dark brown colour and has an earthy smell. The compost produced were applied at the nearby plantations or packed for sale. 2.3 Functional unit The functional unit for this study was the production of 1 t compost.

3 Results and discussion 3.1 Life cycle inventory (LCI) Table 1 shows the LCI data obtained from commercial compost projects via questionnaires, site visits, discussion, calculated data and expert consultation. The LCI data have been calculated based on the functional unit of 1 t compost produced to quantify the input and output of the system boundary. Based on the case study, to produce 1 t of compost, average EFB required is from 2.0 to 2.5 t (wet-matter weight) and POME is from 5.0 to 7.5 t.

Table 1 Inventory data for production of 1 t compost Parameters Input Feed materials Empty fruit bunch (EFB) Palm oil mill efuent (POME) Utilities Diesel Electricity generated at palm oil mill Output Estimated greenhouse gas (GHG) emission tCO2eq t
-1 compost

Unit

Plant 1

Plant 2

Plant 3

tt tt

-1 compost -1 compost

2.5 6.5 231.6 6.8 0.02

2.0 5.0 218.7 0 0.01

2.5 7.5 270.2 0 0.02

MJ t MJ t

-1 compost -1 compost

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3.2 Assumptions Assumptions are made in this study because of limitations of the facilities at the study sites, and there were also some data not available for the production of compost. 3.2.1 Transportation In order to shorten the distance and reduce the cost of transporting raw materials, all the three plants were constructed next to the palm oil mill. Hence, the transportation of EFB from palm oil mill to the composting plant is assumed to be negligible. In addition, POME is pumped from the efuent pond at the palm oil mill, and the utilities required to operate the pump have been included in the calculation. 3.2.2 Utilities Plant 1 uses diesel for operating ploughing machines, whereas electricity is used for shredder and conveyors. For Plants 2 and 3, diesel is used for all composting activities. Plant 2 uses electricity mainly for ofce use and lighting purposes; therefore, it is not considered in this study. Electricity consumption in Plant 3 is zero (Table 1) because it is not connected to the grid and palm oil mill. Palm oil mills in Malaysia are very selfsufcient in producing their own energy for operation using shell and mesocarp bres from the milling process (Vijaya et al. 2008). As such, the electricity used for the compost project is renewable, and as a result, the emission from electricity is not considered in this study as a conservative assumption (CDM UNFCCC 2012). In this case study, diesel used to operate machines is estimated to contribute greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions ranging from 0.01 to 0.02 t CO2eq/tcompost (Table 1) and has been identied as the main contributor to the environmental impact. 3.2.3 Process emission The composting process is conducted aerobically and under complete aeration, composting generated by-products that are carbon dioxide (CO2) and water (H2O) (Cabaraban et al. 2008). Based on review study by Oviasogie et al. (2010) and when simplied the reaction can be written as follows: Organic matter oxidation ! CO2 H2 Ovapor heat humus Themelis and Young (2002) expressed the aerobic bioconversion reaction as follows: C6 H10 O4 x 6:5O2 ! C6 H10 O4 x 1 6CO2 5H2 O Therefore, under complete aeration no CH4 is released. However, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in composting, only CH4 is calculated for the estimation of total GHG emission and not CO2 (IPCC 2006). In this case study, the CO2 emission is not considered in the calculation because CO2 from waste decomposition is of biogenic origin and hence does not add to the overall GHG emissions that contribute to global warming (IPCC 2006). Cabaraban et al. (2008) found that aerobic composting has no CH4, NOx and trace organic emission. Hence, in this study, the process is assumed to have complete aeration during composting and therefore no CH4 emission at the three plants.

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Another type of GHG is nitrous oxide (N2O). According to Lou and Nair (2009), N2O results from leachate recirculation. However, reports of N2O emission associated with mechanicalbiological treatment of waste are very rare (IPCC 2006). For Plants 1 and 2, there is no run-off wastewater or leachate produced because there is no direct contact with rainwater as the process is conducted under roof with a concrete base. Plant 3 also covered their compost mixture with canvases to prevent direct contact with rain. However, in case of emergency if there is run-off, it will be collected in gutters and recycled to the system. The generation of GHG such as methane is usually initiated by the anaerobic degradation of the organic waste in the absence of oxygen in the system. The aerobic condition turns to anaerobic when there is improper management of composting system or when the parameters such as temperature, moisture and turning frequency are out of range. The three compost plants investigated in this study practised a systematic process to prevent the anaerobic degradation through best management practice. Therefore, there is negligible or no emission of CH4 and N2O associated with the production of compost at the three plants. 3.2.4 Microbes Microbes play an important role as additives in the formation of compost. However, it is difcult to control the growth and population of microbes during composting. According to Oviasogie et al. (2010), the amount of bacteria is relatively small and does not contribute as much to the overall microbiological mass. Aerobic respiring bacteria convert the organic matter to mostly CO2 and H2O instead of CH4 (Read et al. 2001), and the emission of CO2 associated with composting has been discussed previously. 3.3 Composting versus open lagoon and mulching The results shown in Table 2 were obtained from literature and calculated based on a 60 t/h palm oil mill processing capacity. It compares the total days and area required for treating of POME in open lagoons and mulching of EFB in plantation with composting. From the results, it is estimated that composting saved approximately 65 % of time required for a complete degradation of POME when compared to the ponding system, and 89 % of time required for a complete degradation of EFB compared to mulching. In terms of land required, it required 36 % less land as compared to ponding for POME and 99 % less land as compared to mulching for EFB.

Table 2 Comparing open lagoon system and mulching with composting Description Current treatment system Open lagoona Mulching of EFBb,c 300 790.0 Composting (average data)c 35 1.6

Days required to completely decomposed Area required (ha)

a b c

100 2.5

Yacob et al. 2006 Suhaimi and Ong 2001 Own data and calculation

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4 Conclusion This study is on the gate-to-gate LCI of the production of 1 t compost from oil palm biomass. Diesel is found to be the main contributor to the environmental impact. There is a potential of upgrading the process to be more economical and environmental friendly. Using electricity as the source of energy has lower footprint for the composting process as it is generated by the mill itself using shell and mesocarp residues from the milling process as fuel. In this case, there is a chance to reduce diesel used approximately 5.57.0 L/tcompost if the ploughing machines and pumps are operated using electricity. Instead of using raw POME, the application of pre-treated POME (Baharuddin et al. 2009) or POME anaerobic sludge (Baharuddin et al. 2010) will further accelerate the composting process. In addition, the ratio of EFB to POME will be increased from 1:2.53.0 to 1:1. Hence, the practice will completely utilise the oil palm biomass, and the oil palm industry will be moving towards achieving the production of zero waste. Finally, composting of EFB and POME enhanced the waste management system by reducing the growing amount of oil palm biomass, turning waste into a value-added product.
Acknowledgments This study has been nancially support by the Malaysian Palm Oil Board Graduate Students Assistantship Scheme (MPOB GSAS).

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