Mohd Hasbi Ab. Rahim

• Doctor of Philosophy
• Professor (Full) at Universiti Malaysia Pahang Al-Sultan Abdullah

The development of sustainable protocols for the synthesis of bioethanol from cellulose biomass using reduction-free heterogenous catalysts without external H2 is a challenging task. In this work, a highly active and robust Ni-Pd/iron oxide catalyst has been reported for the synthesis of bioethanol from microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) in a single-...

Nowadays, thermoset polymers stand out as notable composites, but the surge in global thermoplastic production has raised concerns due to the non-recyclability of these composites, leading to an increase in landfill waste. In response to these challenges, researchers are investigating innovative approaches to enhance thermosetting materials, focusi...

Although lignin from oil palm empty fruit bunches (OPEFB) is a sustainable bioresource with several value-added uses, it is still difficult to extract lignin from lignocellulosic biomass economically. Lignin fractions are required for high-value applications and subsequently increase the feasibility of lignocellulosic biorefineries. Besides, the re...

The conversion of lignin into bioactive compounds through selective organic synthesis methods represents a promising frontier in the pursuit of sustainable raw materials and green chemistry. This review explores the versatility of lignin-derived bioactive compounds, ranging from their application in drug discovery to their role in the development o...

High-surface-area ZrO2/γ-Al2O3 catalysts were used for the selective N-methylation of aniline with methanol at mild temperature and atmospheric pressure conditions. The activity and stability of these catalysts were maintained throughout the process without significant changes in conversion and selectivity of the target products. These γ-Al2O3-supp...

In this work, lignin was extracted from palm oil empty fruit bunch (EFB) for the first time under pressurized and inert conditions in the presence of deep eutectic solvents (DES). The choline chloride and the oxalic acid were mixed at a ratio of 1:1 to prepare DES, which successfully extracted around 30wt.% of lignin at a relatively mild temperatur...

Microalgae possess high oil content, exhibit rapid growth rates and biomass productivity, and leave a minimal environmental footprint, making them highly attractive for biofuel applications. Consequently, this present study is aimed at evaluating the impact of nitrogen starvation on the marine microalgae Nannochloropsis sp. to enhance lipid accumul...

To a great extent reversing the effects of climate change is almost unfeasible. The impact has grown to a near-final stage. The results certainly cost a lot to human beings. Humans undoubtedly initiated the current deteriorating state through their activities to achieve the so-called 'development'. On the other hand, the deterioration effects have...

Due to the high oil content, rubber seed oil (RSO) has the potential to be used as a raw material in biodiesel manufacturing. The present study was aimed at oil extraction on rubber seed composed of 47–51% kernel by seed weight. The effects of extraction time (0.75–120 h), particle size (0.14 ± 0.047 µm, 0.35 ± 0.003 µm, and 0.68 ± 0.1 µm), dryness...

Palm oil mill effluent is a type of wastewater which contains a high concentration of organic nitrogen, phosphorus, and different supplement substances. These substances support and enhance the growth of microalgae. Cyanobacteria Spirulina platensis is a blue-green microalga with two phycobiliproteins as its primary constituents. Phycocyanin is a n...

The present review article provides an efficient cluster of data related to diversity in applying nanoparticles explicitly in the arena of biomedicine. The researchers extensively employ the plant-mediated synthesis of gold nanoparticles, as then precedent method executes a comparatively improved eco-friendly nature than chemical-mediated synthesis...

In this research article, ethanol production has been proposed through the one-pot catalytic conversion of microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) over Pd-Ni/iron catalysts without any prior reduction under viable and inert experimental conditions. The Pd-Ni on iron oxide catalysts was prepared by facile co-precipitation and impregnation methods. Under op...

The current work reports the catalytic conversion of α-cellulose to glycolic acid using molecular oxygen as an oxidant. A series of copper and cobalt molybdophosphoric acid catalysts (Cu-H3PMo12O40 and Co-H3PMo12O40) were synthesized via impregnation and ion-exchange techniques. Then the synthesized catalysts are thoroughly tested for effective con...

Light is the core environmental factor that affects the growth and biomass production of microalgae. However, the high density of microalgae will lead to reduction of the growth rate of microalgae culture due to availability of light decreases. Therefore, this experiment was conducted with aim of determining the influence of biomass density on grow...

The formation of an external Cr2O3 scale is important to obtain the oxidation resistance of Fe–Cr alloys at high temperatures. It is well known that the critical concentration of Cr to form a protective external scale of Cr2O3 in humid conditions is higher than that in dry conditions, and the criterion is expressed as Wagner’s equation (Rapp in Act...

Malaysia is one of the second largest world palm oil exporters; correspondingly, the massive production of palm oil mill effluent (POME) is a significant concern. The present investigation aimed to isolate and characterize the potential microalgae and maximize the growth and biomass productivity of Chlorella sp. using POME. Chlorella vulgaris was c...

In this study, Pb2+ removal from wastewater using multiwall carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) was investigated. XRD, SEM-EDX, BET, and FTIR were employed for MWCNT characterization. The effects of various parameters, including the solution pH, adsorbent dosage, initial concentration of Pb2+, and contact time, on the Pb2+ removal from wastewater were invest...

Diatom Thalassiosira pseudonana photosynthetic properties and generation of fucoxanthin and lipid production under different blue light intensity with different photoperiods (dark/light cycle) at temperature 23 ± 1 °C were studied in this work. The growth (cell number) and the biomass concentration of the cells were found to be doubled at 120 μE m⁻...

The lignocellulosic enzymes have been used in the biomass pretreatment, are getting special attention to produce the sustainable green biofuel. However, free enzymes not only difficult to separate from reaction media but also highly temperature and pH sensitive, so a controlled environment is required to maintain. A proper immobilization supporting...

Lignocellulosic biomass is nature's most abundant alternative source of biofuels replacing traditional fossil fuels. Globally, more than 70% of renewable energy depends on biomass, contributing 14% of the total energy supply. The pretreatment of lignocellulosic biomass is to remove lignin, modify the lignin structure, reduce the cellulose crystalli...

Electrical energy generation and storage have always been complementary to each other but are often disconnected in practical electrical appliances. Recently, efforts to combine both energy generation and storage into self-powered energizers have demonstrated promising power sources for wearable and implantable electronics. In line with these effor...

Malaysia is one of largest palm oil producer and exporter in the world, which generates million tons of palm oil mill effluent (POME) in a year. Discharge of POME into water bodies had created major environmental pollutions in Malaysia. Other side, POME also comprised of organic and inorganic pollutants that can become as potential medium source fo...

In this research, a magnetic reusable nickel nanoparticle (NiNPs) supporting materials were prepared for cellulase enzyme immobilization. The immobilized cellulase showed high activity recovery, large & fast immobilization capacity and improved pH & temperature tolerance. The excellent stability and reusability enabled the immobilized cellulase to...

Nickel–cobalt–manganese oxides (NCMs) are widely investigated as cathode materials for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) given their beneficial synergistic effects of high storability, electrical conductivity, and stability. However, their use as an anode for LIBs has not been adequately addressed. NCM nanofibers prepared using the multi-needle electros...

Biomass and lipid production by the marine centric diatom Thalassiosira pseudonana were characterized in media based on palm oil mill effluent (POME) as a source of key nutrients. The optimal medium comprised 20% by volume POME, 80 µM Na2SiO3, and 35 g NaCl L−1 in water at pH ~7.7. In 15-day batch cultures (16:8 h/h light–dark cycle; 200 µmol photo...

Algae are the dominated diverse group of the unicellular and multicellular organisms in the eukaryotic phylum. They have close resemblance with photosynthetic plants in the form of metabolic pathways, but the actual root systems are not similar. Microalgae can be cultivated using natural or artificial light systems using freshwater, marine water bl...

Tissue engineering is an emerging field to study the principles of medicine, biology, and bioengineering for designing biological substitutes to restore the tissue functions in regenerative medicine. Nanotechnology is a valuable tool to track and image stem cells, to drive their differentiation into specific stem cells and ultimately to understand...

A polyhedral Ni–Co–Mn–O nano-octahedron anode for lithium-ion batteries was synthesized, which demonstrated enhanced lithium storage properties as compared to the nanofiber counterpart.

Latest advances of ionic liquids (ILs) have allowed to a new application on the dissolution of calcium carbonate (CaCO 3) scales where the CaCO 3 scale deposition have seriously severe threat in the petroleum field. In this study, the molecular interaction between CaCO 3 and ILs n-pyridinium chloride [NPy][Cl] was studied experimentally in order to...

A bio-based polybenzoxazine demonstrating excellent thermal properties was synthesized using phenolic and its derivatives derived from liquefaction of empty fruit bunch (EFB) fibres to fulfill green chemistry principles. The liquefied EFB was reacted with furfurylamine and paraformaldehyde through a Mannich condensation reaction. For comparison pur...

This article demonstrates the development of nanofibrous cloths by electrospinning of renewable materials, i.e., curcumin-loaded 90% cellulose acetate (CA)/10% poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL), for applications in regenerative medicine. The CA is derived from the biomass waste of the oil palm plantation (empty fruit bunch). The nanofiber scaffolds are ch...

The marine microalgae Nannochloropsis sp. was grown in a different stress factor to produce maximum biomass and lipid production. The experimental stress factors were light, salinity and pH. The result showed that the maximum growth rate of Nannochloropsis sp. was observed best in photoautotrophic, the salinity of 30 ppt and pH of 8 at 25 ºC ± 1. U...

Malaysia is one of the world’s largest palm oil producers and exporters, which generates several million tons of palm oil mill effluent (POME). POME is discharged into the water sources and considered as a major environmental pollutants in Malaysia. Alternatively, POME also contains some nutrients and several minerals, thereby POME could prove as a...

Malaysia is one of the top eight countries that has a drawback of mismanaged plastic waste. This study intended to investigate polymer degradation using the biological technique with the help of microalgae to minimise the time required for biodegradation. This research article aims to identify the collected sample with the most suitable microalgae...

Biodiesel is considered as one of the most sustainable alternative form of bioenergy to overcome and compensate the detrimental effect of fossil fuel. Blending of biodiesel into diesel fuel at specific fractions has been mandated in various countries. In this regard, the present study is intended to observe an appropriate proportion of blending of...

Various phytochemicals and bioactive compounds are sourced from medicinal plants. This study focused on finding the most potent plant extracts whose combination could exhibit better antioxidant and antimicrobial activities compared to the efficacy of the individual extracts. The combined plant extracts were O. stamineus, E. longifolia, A. bilimbi,...

Biodiesel is one of the biofuel alternatives obtained from vegetable oils and animal fats, currently being used globally to lessen environmental pollutions. In this research investigation, waste banana peels impregnated with calcium oxide (CaO) were utilized as a catalyst in the transesterification reaction of soybean oil with methanol. The waste o...

Followed by decades of successful efforts in developing cathode materials for high specific capacity lithium-ion batteries, currently the attention is on developing a high-voltage battery (>5 V vs Li/Li⁺) with an aim to increase the energy density for their many fold advantages over conventional <4 V batteries. Among the various cathode materials,...

Waste or low-cost feedstock utilization for preparing renewable energy is a noble effort towards a greener environment. In this work, palm fatty acid distillate (PFAD), which is usually transacted at a concession rate versus crude palm oil, is esteri-fied to methyl esters. Conventional catalysts are not feasible in the process since PFAD consists o...

An efficient and robust chemical oxidation process using an OZ-3G ozone generator was developed and investigated to degrade and reduce sulphide toxicity in petrochemical wastewater. Different concentrations of sulphide in synthetic wastewater were prepared and evaluated using the Spectrophotometric technique. The values of Chemical Oxygen Demand (C...

Gelatin is a mixture of protein obtained from animal parts (skin, bones, tendons, ligaments, and cartilages) by hydrolysis. Gelatin market demand is high especially in pharmaceutical, food, photographic, and cosmetics industries based on its gelling, foaming, and emulsifying properties. This preliminary study was focus on chicken head and feet gela...

Ferromagnetic nanomaterials can easily be separated from the reaction media by using external magnetic force. Nanoparticles are excellent supporting materials that provide large surface area with high mass transfer rate. Ferromagnetic nanoparticle considered as an ideal immobilization supporting materials of biocatalysts for easy and fast recovery....

Present work proposes on the synthesis of nano calcium oxide derived from waste cockle shell (Anadara granosa) and applied as heterogenous catalyst in biodiesel production via transesterification reaction under reaction parameter 15:1 methanol to oil ratio, 5 wt.% catalyst and 3 hour reation time and constant temperature at 65 ± 2 °C. The waste coc...

Biodiesel, an environmentally friendly biomass-based fuel, is gaining popularity globally as a cost-effective way to meet rising fuel demand. However, the high cost of raw materials and catalysts continues to drive up biodiesel production. An alternative feedstock with a heterogeneously catalyzed reaction could be the most cost-effective way to sta...

Sterile and fresh tissues of three marine macroalgae red, green and brown ( Kappaphycus alvarezii, Kappaphycus striatus and Padina gymnospora ) collected from Malaysia east costal seas were compared for the antioxidants and polysaccharide composition of sugars as well as the active components. Results obtained showed that polysaccharides isolated f...

Present investigation focused on marine microalgae strain Coelastrum sp. for enhanced biodiesel production. Microalgae grow when stressed and produce enhanced lipids despite urea being present. The dry cell weight, chlorophyll (a) content and total biomass yield increased productivity after the addition of urea in the nutrient medium. The chlorophy...

The asymmetric biraphid pennate diatom Amphora copulata, isolated from tropical coastal waters (South China Sea, Malaysia), was cultured for renewable production of lipids (oils) in a medium comprised of inorganic nutrients dissolved in dilute palm oil mill effluent (POME). Optimal levels of nitrate, phosphate, and silicate were identified for maxi...

Over the past decades, research efforts are being devoted into utilizing the biomass waste as a major source of green energy to maintain the economic, environmental, and social sustainability. Specifically, there is an emerging consensus on the significance of glycerol (an underutilised waste from biodiesel industry) as a cheap, non-toxic, and rene...

Immobilized enzymes are more stable and more resistant to environmental changes in contrast to free enzymes in solution. Magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) are potential immobilization supports materials for enzymes and easily recovered for reuse. It has low toxicity effects and fast separation from reaction mixtures simply by use of external magnets. E...

Corrosion is one of the serious problems in oil and gas industry. So far, many inhibitors have been used to control or reduce corrosion. Nowadays, nano-materials have been employed as inhibitors as well due to their excellent properties such as high surface area, excellent inhibition efficiency, low cost, and minimum toxicity. In the current work,...

In this research investigation, three microalgal species were screened (Pleurosigma sp., Amphora sp., and Amphiprora sp.) for lipid content before choosing the potential microalgae for biodiesel production. It was found that the lipid content of Amphiprora sp. was 41.48 ± 0.18%, which was higher than the Pleurosigma sp. (27.3 ± 0.8%) and Amphora sp...

Natural and wood-based fiber composites and adhesive industry have shown remarkable progress during the last decades. Adhesives play a central role in wood-based panel production. Knowledge about wood bonding is quite limited although it is one of the ancient techniques. Wood structure having so many variability including; cell structures, complex...

Biomass and lipid production by the marine diatom Chaetoceros affinis were characterized under continuous light with aeration. Media based on palm oil mill effluent (POME; 10, 20 and 30% v/v in distilled water) were used together with a standard control medium. The maximum biomass concentration on day 12 of batch cultures in control medium was 821...

The potential of microalgae as a source of renewable energy based on wastewater has received increasing interest worldwide in recent decades. A freshwater microalga Chlorella vulgaris was investigated for its ability to remove both nitrogen and phosphorus from three industrial wastewaters which were diluted in microalgae in two different proportion...

To deepen the structure-property relationship, and thereby developing improved third-order nonlinear optical (NLO) molecular materials, porphyrin is a promising candidate because of its strong excited state absorption, high triplet yields,...

Medicinal plants are sources of important therapeutic aids for alleviating human ailments. The present research investigation was carried out to study anti-fungal activity of C. asiatica were tested against C. albicans, Aspergillus niger, and Penicillium sp. using two methods, disc diffusion method and broth dilution method. C. asiatica crude metha...

Cyanobacteria is blue-green microalgae that produces a variety of secondary metabolites such as antibiotic, cytotoxic and antimicrobial agents. Present investigation proposed to study an extraction of active agents from Cyanobacteria and its antibacterial activity. The Cyanobacteria were collected, and isolated colony was found to be Oscillatoria s...

Process intensification has been a promising tool for efficient energy usage, especially in the production of products that are considered energy sources, such as biodiesel. The very mechanism of ultrasound in aiding the reactions lies in the implosion of cavitation bubbles that generate hot regions with extremely high temperatures that reach as hi...

A marine microalga, Nannochloropsis sp., was discovered in a water body in Teluk Cempedak, Kuantan, Pahang. In Nannochloropsis sp., for biomass and lipid synthesis, POME was used as a substitute medium. The isolated monoculture was grown in various concentrations of POME (5%, 10%, 15%, and 20%), as well as a standard control medium. Nannochloropsis...

Nowadays, the water pollution is leading issue due to palm oil mill effluent (POME), waste from palm oil production is a big problem to Malaysia which is largest palm oil producers. POME containing large amount of chemical oxygen demand (COD) which can cause severe pollution to the environment especially water. This present study designed for cultu...

An intensive work of Fischer-Tropsch synthesis (FTS) on a cobalt-based catalyst supported with cerium as a promoter was presented. The influence of space velocity and inlet gas feed ratio on FTS reaction performance was studied for the synthesized catalysts. Incipient wetness impregnation method was utilized to synthesis both unpromoted (25%Co/γ-Al...

An intensive work of Fischer-Tropsch synthesis (FTS) on a cobalt-based catalyst supported with cerium as a promoter was presented. The influence of space velocity and inlet gas feed ratio on FTS reaction performance was studied for the synthesized catalysts. Incipient wetness impregnation method was utilized to synthesis both unpromoted (25%Co/?-Al...

Cold flow properties are the primary drawback to the common usage of biodiesel as an alternative fuel to diesel. Biodiesel's cold flow behaviour is discovered for the main reasons of presence of precipitant or crystal initiate by minor components such as monoglycerides and steryl glycosides. The ASTM test for this precipitant is ‘The Standard Test...

Fresh water microalgae Chlorella sp. was isolated from water body of Taman Gelora, Kuantan, Pahang. The isolated monoculture was cultured in different concentration of POME (10%, 20%, 30%, 40% and 50%, v/v) as substrate. The maximal growth and biomass productivity found in 30% (v/v) of POME. The maximal dry biomass 1.56 g/L was obtained and extract...

The potential of microalgae as a source of bioremediation based on wastewater has received increasing interest throughout the world. A freshwater microalga Chlorella vulgaris was investigated for its ability to reduce salinity from six different poly-chem industrial wastewaters which were diluted in microalgae in three different proportions (namely...

Development of efficient molecular photoacoustic contrast agent plays significant role in the next generation biomedical imaging techniques. This article demonstrates a design criterion for small molecules to exhibit large photoacoustic effect by density functional theory (DFT) and its experimental validation. The method relies on controlling the e...

In the present study, welan gum (WG) was modified with a quaternary amine group producing cationic welan gum (CWG) to enhance its thermal and viscosity properties. N-(3-chloro-2-hydroxypropyl) trimethyl ammonium chloride (CHPTAC) was used as the source of the quaternary amine group. The effect of CHPTAC amount in the presence of NaOH was investigat...

Nowadays due to the depletion of non-renewable energy resources, production of green material from domestic wastes has played an important role. The waste of banana peel impregnated with calcium oxide (CaO) from eggshell had successfully been used as a low-cost catalyst to transesterify soybean oil to produce methyl ester. The catalytic actions fro...

In this investigation microalgae Chlorella sp. were isolated and identified from the industrial wastewater. Microalgae species was mass cultivated by using BG11 medium. After 30 days, mixture of Chlorella with different wastewater A, B, C, D, E and F with different ration of Chlorella: wastewater which were 1:6, 1:1, and 2:1. Incubated at room temp...

The economic globalization and rapid energy depletion require alternative forms of energy which is more reliable, sustainable and renewable without causing adverse effects to the life forms. Microalgae are currently considered to be one of the most promising alternative sources for biodiesel and the application of phytohormones has also been consid...

The marine diatom Gyrosigma sp. was cultured in a medium comprised of inorganic nutrients dissolved in palm oil mill effluent (POME) wastewater. The production of lipids in the biomass was optimized using a statistical design of experiments in combination with the response surface method. The experimental factors were incident light level and initi...