Renewable energy, over the past several decades, has become a priority for both scientific authorities and industrial leaders amid air pollution, energy crises, and global warming. It comes from renewable natural resources, including solar energy from the Sun, biomass from plants, and wind energy. This type of energy has been perceived by many as clean, efficient, and practical.
Also dubbed as "green energy," renewable energy is relatively unlimited and can be replenished by natural means, including through hydropower from flowing water and geothermal heat from inside the Earth. However, despite the availability of a renewable energy source, the use of environment-damaging, non-renewable energy such as fossil fuels, coal, oil, and natural gas is still prevalent.
Because of this, scientists continue to study current and potential new methods of harnessing clean energy. Recently, researchers from Japan and Malaysia have been reported to be leading a novel approach by conducting test recycling on dead palm trees to convert them into biomass or biofuel as a renewable energy source. Primarily, they target the trunks of felled palm trees in Kluang, Malaysia.
Dead Palm Trees to Biofuel
(Photo : Photo by Julian Myles on Unsplash)
The Japanese and Malaysian scientific team are currently testing a process that allows felled or dead palm trees to be turned into biomass, according to a report earlier this week. As mentioned earlier, this method will make the plants a source of renewable energy. The team is using the trunks of the trees arranged in stacks at a demonstration plant in the southern town of Kluang.
The process involves feeding the trunks into a machine, where they are reduced to smaller particles like moist and fiber in a matter of seconds. Afterward, the fibers from crushed palm trees are washed, dried, and converted into fuel pellets, the report says. While the process is novel, this is not the first time that palm trees have been considered as a potential renewable source of energy.
In a 2022 study published in the peer-reviewed journal Sustainability, researchers from Saudi Arabia also stated that waste from date palm trees is also a great source of degradable biomass that can be applied for various purposes, including in the field of engineering. This can be done through date palm tree waste recycling, with the said tree species being significant across the Middle East.
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Global Energy Crisis
The utilization of renewable energy is necessary more than ever amid the global energy crisis, which has resulted in fuel shortages and price hikes since 2021 and following the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), the crisis is exacerbated following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, in addition to the economic rebound from the pandemic.
The IEA states that oil prices reached their record-breaking prices since 2008. The price of natural gas also underwent a similar surge, as well as electricity in some markets. As a result, the push towards the use of sustainable renewable energy, including wind and solar energy, has also gained momentum.
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