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•The potential of treated UCO composition and Ca base catalyst derived of bovine bones for biodiesel.•To provide the estimation of UCO to biodiesel conversion by saponification and confirm with GC/MS.•Optimization of treated UCO with RSM at varying temperatures and catalyst-UCO ratio.

Graphical Abstract:

Delignification has an important role in biomass utilization framework of Empty Fruit Bunch of Palm Oil (EFB). EFB from Sulawesi Island with high lignin reached 45% was a challenge. Innovation for delignification should be delivered to remove lignin but keep holocellulose, cellulose, and hemicellulose. Treated EFB improved accessible the holocellulose for subsequent process like enzymatic process. Delignification would remove or break down lignin to increase the accessibility. Delignification by ozonized NaOH solution conducted at ambient temperature to save energy and low NaOH concentration, 3.2%. Ozonization NaOH solution with 500 ppm H2O2would produce hydroxyl radical (OH°), an oxydator. ORP, TDS, and TSS of black liquor was observed to assess any suspended and dissolved solid of EFB. Treated EFB was analized for its component, lignin, and holocellulose. At higher NaOH solution was the higher TSS in ozonized NaOH solution. The highest TSS by ozonized 0.8 M NaOH reached 50.810 ppm. Unfortunately, the holocellulose was also decomposed as well. Thus, the yield was decrease since both lignin and holocellulose degraded. Optimal delignification was figure out at 0.4 M or 1.6% NaOH whereas lignin decreasing and holocellulose increasing by 30.8% and 27.17%, respectively. XRD analysis clarified improvement of this delignification for crystallinity increased 8.5%, 69%, closer to α-cellulose. Morphology by SEM showed remove the impurities successfully and Si, Nb, Mg, and Ca detected by EDS.

Bio-desulfurization generally involves the oxidation of sulfide to sedimented, sulfur compounds in microaerobic conditions and is applied at biogas power plants by the palm oil industry. In this work, microbes were screened from various sources, including microalgae, coal waste, Palm Oil Mill Effluent (POME), and cow manure. Screening of potential microbes was conducted using synthetic chemical reagent as the sulfur source. Decomposition of sulfur sources, like Na2S2O3, has been observed through microbial process whereas sulfur was separated into sedimented other sulfur compounds. Screenings were first conducted in modified growth media followed by screening with selective media forThiobacillus. With the selective media, the treatment was continued with the addition of a sulfur source to see if the microbes are able to convert the sulfur to sulfuric acid or other sulfur compounds as sediment. The preferred microbe would be chosen and applied to the bioscrubber system at Terantam, Indonesia. This work could also be applicable to biogas generation from POME where H2S content is more than 1,200 ppm, which is corrosive to the biogas engine. Finally, we propose a two-step desulfurization in which H2S is absorbed by an alkali solution followed by sulfur separation.