EFB Pellet is Difficult Accepted by the Market, It's Time for EFB Charcoal Briquette to Come as a Solution

When the EFB pellet properties cannot be accepted by the market, and the solution to upgrade the fuel is not yet economical, it needs a precise solution that can really solve the problem. Most power plants that use pellets as fuel use pulverized combustion technology, where pellet EFBs that have high chlorine levels are less acceptable. Chlorine is corrosive to metals so that the lifetime of the power plant is short. Whereas EFB pellets will be more suitable for power plants that use fluidized bed combustion technology, or even gasification, as a reference can be read here.

The right solution to overcome the EFB problem is to be processed into EFB charcoal briquette, which is by briquetting and followed by carbonization. The market segment of EFB charcoal briquette for barbecues is clearly very different from a power plant. So the product specifications needed are also a little different. Electricity needs for the production of EFB charcoal briquette can also use the EFB, so some of it is used for fuel in electricity generation and partly for the raw materials of the EFB charcoal briquette. The electricity needs for the production of charcoal briquette EFB are not as big as for palm oil mills and also do not need steam, so they do not have to use steam turbines, but it can be with Stirling engines which are external combustion engines, ORC (Organic Rankine Cycle) or even gasification.

EFB is the most solid waste produced by palm oil mills, as an illustration for palm oil mills with a capacity of 60 tons / hour FFB will produce 264 tons of EFB. The EFB continues to be produced and if it is not treated it will cause more problems. Most EFB is currently only as waste and untapped. As a profit-oriented business entity the palm oil industry, EFB processing or utilization is certainly sought not only to overcome environmental problems but also generate profits. And with the production of EFB charcoal briquette, InsyaAllah, this goal can be achieved. Although the quality of the EFB charcoal briquette will be below the sawdust charcoal briquette, which is woody biomass raw material, there should be a reasonable price for the charcoal briquette EFB product.

The main markets or users of sawdust charcoal briquette are Turkey, Middle East and Saudi Arabia, which use them to roast meat, especially lamb. The charcoal briquette EFB can be used for substitution or an alternative to the sawdust charcoal briquette. Even for the palm oil mill industry which has very large land, it can also develop the livestock industry on the land. Cattle farming in oil palm plantations has started to be done a lot, but what about sheep? Why are sheep farms not getting enough attention? I try to explain in writing here, to try to answer the question above. As in palm oil cultivation on its extensive plantations using certain techniques to maintain its productivity, so also with livestock businesses should also use certain techniques to maintain productivity such as rotation grazing.

The implementation of the EFB charcoal briquette business and livestock in the palm oil industry also requires processes, such as adjusting the company's organizational structure. If the current palm oil industry company organization is only divided into plantation units and CPO mill units, then for the development of new businesses it can create new divisions such as the EFB charcoal briquette division, sheep breeding division and so on, so that the potential of land and all resources can be optimized.

EFB Charcoal Briquette for Substitution of Sawdust Charcoal Briquette

Continuity of raw material supply is the main thing for the sustainability of a production, as well as the sawdust charcoal briquette industry. The lack or even stop of supply the sawdust or wood waste as raw material for sawdust charcoal briquette makes production disrupted and even stops. And such conditions have now been experienced by some the sawdust charcoal briquette factories. In fact, from the market side the demand for sawdust charcoal briquette is very large, especially in Turkey, Saudi Arabia and the Middle East. Continuous alternatives to raw materials and availability in large quantities are the choices. An empty fruit bunch (EFB) can be an option. Why? EFB is a solid waste of oil palm mills which are large in number and are generally not utilized. Palm oil mills with a capacity of 60 tons / hour FFB produce EFB waste of 13.2 tons / hour or 264 tons / day. And currently there are approximately 1,000 oil mills throughout Indonesia.

The next question is, can the quality of charcoal briquette made from EFB compete with sawdust or wood waste? Judging from its use for fuel or energy, the quality of EFB is lower than sawdust or woody waste belonging to woody biomass while EFB is a biomass of agricultural waste (agro waste). The measure of quality can be shown mainly from the calorific value and ash content. The calorific value of the EFB charcoal briquette is lower and the ash content is greater than the sawdust charcoal briquette. Based on these conditions, the price of sawdust charcoal briquette should be slightly lower than sawdust charcoal briquette. But in an effort to overcome the problem of waste and be able to increase income, the profits from the production of the EFB charcoal briquette should still be very attractive.

The implementation of EFB charcoal production can work with palm oil mills, namely as a provider of raw materials as well as electricity providers for their operations. A number of palm oil mills with excess biomass waste such as palm kernel shells and mesocarp fiber can be used for electricity production. If it is still lacking, waste in the plantation such as fronds and leaves can also be used to fuel the power plant. The location of many palm oil mills is in the remote areas and there is no other electricity source that is sufficient so that's make the palm oil mill automatic as a power plant also which is generally used internally but can also be upgraded for external use. As for management and business, it is possible to produce EFB charcoal briquette that are integrated palm oil mill or separatd and managed by ownself. Of course the choice is very dependent on the management pattern of the company, especially in its business development division.