Project
Title
Joint project: Improving Circular Economy Practices and Food Security in the Agriculture Sector by Valorizing Organic Residues Using Thermo-Chemical Processes. Subproject: Process optimization for thermo-chemical conversion.
Acronym
WASTE4CHAR
Start
01.08.2025
End
30.11.-0001
Coordinating Institute
Leibniz-Institut für Agrartechnik und Bioökonomie e.V. (ATB)
Coordinator
Partner
Zurich University of Applied Sciences
Ege University
Universiti Malaya
Universiti Malaysia Terengganu
University of Extremadura
Allocated to research program
Summary
Malaysia is the world’s second-largest producer of crude palm oil (PO) with 17.32 million tonnes produced in 2017, which serves as the primary feedstock for biofuel production. However, the PO industry faces unsustainable practices causing environmental problems, such as deforestation, biodiversity loss, high greenhouse gas emissions, and water pollution from effluents. In response to these impacts, many European countries have committed to importing only sustainably produced PO. In addition, Malaysia is currently looking for more land for PO cultivation and expanding palm production on areas of other crops which causes soil degradation.
This project proposes a feasibility analysis of integrating thermo-chemical processes into the palm oil value chain to generate carbon-rich material from different fractions of residues (both dry and wet) from PO processing production. These materials will have optimized structural and chemical properties to improve soil fertility of PO-growing areas and enhance the energy potential in the palm oil value chain. This approach is aligned with sustainable agricultural practices, promoting soil health, and enhancing environmental conservation over the long term.
The German partner (ATB) will provide knowledge about the design of experiments and thermo-chemical process optimization. The other European project partners will contribute knowledge exchange on thermo-chemical conversion, energy assessments, and soil tests, while Malaysia will take on the life cycle assessment and experiments to validate the laboratory results for practical application.
Through interdisciplinary cooperation, the initiative seeks to establish a more sustainable and resilient agricultural sector in Southeast Asia, with a particular focus on Malaysia, as a standard model for other regions.
Funding
Bundesministerium für Forschung, Technologie und Raumfahrt (BMFTR)
Funding agency
Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt (DLR)
Funding framework
Projekte zwischen Südostasien und Europa zu Kreislaufwirtschaft im Rahmen des JFS 2023