Mohd Ali Hassan

• Universiti Putra Malaysia

The growing population causes municipal solid waste (MSW) buildup, which is a major problem. National MSW output in Malaysia is estimated at 1.17 kg per capita. This issue is crucial since 29 Malaysian landfills produce 200 thousand tons of MSW per month, releasing greenhouse gasses (GHGs). Anaerobic digestion (AD) may convert MSW into biogas to lo...

Anthocyanin-based films derived from Brassica oleracea L. have gained significant attention for their potential application in intelligent packaging systems. These bioactive films serve as visual indicators of food freshness and quality, leveraging the pH-sensitive properties of anthocyanins. This review examines the extraction methods and structur...

Waste generated from Malaysia’s paddy milling factories, known as empty and partially filled paddy grain (EPFG), has been improperly managed as it can be further utilized for sustainable resources such as feedstock via biorefinery. However, the critical driver for a biorefinery is whether the proposed design is profitable. In this study, the conver...

Purpose: The oil palm nursery plays a pivotal role in ensuring optimal replanting materials for sustained productivity. However, conventional practices that rely exclusively on inorganic fertilizers can degrade soil over time, highlighting the need to reassess planting materials. This study examines the impact of incorporating compost into soil med...

Application of sewage sludge as fertilizer can be beneficial for sustainable agriculture as it could largely account for nitrogen and phosphorus demand for crops and has lower costs compared to other disposal routes, e.g., incineration, and sanitary landfills. This study evaluates the feasibility of pilot-scale pelletization of sewage sludge for no...

Oil palm trunks (OPT) are a valuable but often mismanaged resource in plantations, typically left to decompose, causing pest issues and harming soil health. Transforming OPT into biochar, a promising bioadsorbent, addresses environmental challenges while creating a secondary income stream. This study examines the versatility of OPT’s lignocellulosi...

This study promotes the use of nanobiochar (NBC) as an environmentally friendly substitute to conventional fillers to improve various properties of biopolymers such as their mechanical strength, thermal stability and crystallization properties. TGA analysis showed a slight increase in onset thermal degradation temperature of the composites by up to...

Time and again we hear of calls made by countries to ban palm oil over deforestation. Pressing on, the critics demand the commodity be certified as per international standards and the cultivation to comply with responsible agroecological practices. This urgent and growing concern requires the rethinking of the current operations to be restructured...

Environmental impact assessment of glucose production from paddy milling waste, known as empty and partially filled paddy grain (EPFG) in Malaysia, was performed using life cycle assessment (LCA). Three scenarios were conducted based on system expansion of the process. The LCA was conducted using ReCiPe methodology at midpoint and endpoint levels....

The palm oil industry produces large quantities of biomass residues that can be utilized to produce value-added products. Oil palm biomass has an average carbon content ranging from 42.7% to 57.9%, with 3.5–27% fixed carbon, making it a promising source of carbonaceous, thermogenic materials. With estimated yearly production hovering around giga-to...

In Asian countries, the primary palm oil producers, used cooking oil (UCO) is the primary feedstock for biodiesel production. It can be converted into an eco-fuel for application in heavy machinery and diesel engine vehicles due to its low carbon emissions and low global warming potential. However, the illegal dumping of UCO containing triglyceride...

Subcritical hydrothermal pretreatment of oil palm frond pressed fiber was conducted at various combined severity factors to evaluate the effect of carbon dioxide addition on the glucose recovery following saccharification. Preliminary pretreatment work using stainless steel tube reactor yielded a glucose production of 57.l% (gig substrate) at pretr...

The discharge of leachate poses a serious risk to both surface water and groundwater from landfills. As rainwater and moisture seep through waste in landfills, it will release leachate which is high in concentration of organic matter and ammonium nitrogen. Adsorption process using activated carbon was used as one of the tertiary treatment processes...

To meet the need for food products to be safe and fresh, smart food packaging that can monitor and give information about the quality of packaged food has been developed. In this study, pH-sensitive films with sago starch and various anthocyanin concentrations of Brassica oleracea also known as red cabbage anthocyanin (RCA) at 8, 10, 12, and 14% (w...

The current production method of nanobiochar (NBC), an emerging, environmentally friendly nanocarbon material, is tedious and lengthy. Therefore, in this study we aimed to improve the productivity of NBC via high-energy ball milling by manipulating the grinding media and processing time. The particle size distribution of the resulting NBC measured...

Material with negative value such as grease trap waste appears to be a cost‐effective feedstock for biodiesel production since it can be collected at little to no charge. Owing to its high lipid content, fatty acid methyl ester can be produced from grease trap waste via a two‐step production process with methanol, using potassium hydroxide as the c...

Empty and partially filled paddy grain (EPFG) is a type of biomass removed from grain processing line in rice milling factory due to its damaged features and lower quality. In this study, two conditions of EPFG (unground and ground) were pre‐treated using a mild hydrothermal process at 120°C at 30–120 minutes. This allows the disruption of lignocel...

Biochar is conventionally and widely used for soil amendment or as an adsorbent for water treatment. Nevertheless, the need for transition to renewable materials has resulted in an expansion of biochar for use as a filler for polymer composites. The aim is to enhance the physical, chemical, mechanical and rheological properties of the polymer compo...

Microbial degradation of organic matters is crucial during the composting process. In this study, the enhancement of the composting of rice straw and chicken manure with biochar was evaluated by investigating the indigenous cellulolytic bacterial community structure during the composting process. Compared with control treatment, composting with bio...

Glucose is an intermediate substance of various bio-based products in a biorefinery concept. A sustainable processing of biomass into glucose could provide alternative for managing waste of the paddy industry. A detailed model of glucose production life cycle inventory from the waste of the paddy industry, and evaluation of potential greenhouse gas...

Palm oil is a representative and important biomass, not only as the most edible vegetable oil consumed worldwide, but also as a material for chemicals and biofuels. Despite the potential sustainability of the palm oil industry, it has conventionally emitted excess greenhouse gases, waste materials, and wastewater, brought land use change, thus affe...

Composting is an important technology used to treat and convert organic waste into value-added products. Recently, several studies have been done to investigate the effects of microbial supplementation on the composting of agro-industrial waste. According to these studies, microbial inoculation is considered to be one of the suitable methods for en...

Nanocellulose, including cellulose nanofiber (CNF), recently has received an exponential growth of interest to be used as an alternative material to replace petroleum-based materials for the production of biomaterial with low environmental impact. Owing to its superior and versatile properties; low weight, large surface area, high mechanical, and p...

In this study, the biomass of banana peel was used to produce pectinase via optimization of solid-state fermentation conditions of the filamentous fungi Aspergillus nigeA. niger). The operating conditions of solid-state fermentation were optimized using the method of full factorial design with incubation temperature ranging between 25 °C and 35 °C,...

Zero-emission technology for palm oil mill effluent (POME) has led to a breakthrough in the palm oil industry in relation to the goal of sustainable development. However, there are limited resources on how this technology has affected the bacterial community in the receiving river that has previously been polluted with POME final discharge. Thus, t...

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of different initial carbon to nitrogen (C/N) ratios on the organic matter degradation during active co-composting of oil palm empty fruit bunch (OPEFB) and palm oil mill effluent (POME) anaerobic sludge. The initial C/N ratio was varied from 25:1, 35:1 and 45:1. Co-composting was conducted by...

This work investigated the combined effects of CNF nucleation (3 wt.%) and PLA-g-MA compatibilization at different loadings (1–4 wt.%) on the crystallization kinetics and mechanical properties of polylactic acid (PLA). A crystallization kinetics study was done through isothermal and non-isothermal crystallization kinetics using differential scannin...

The reason for such enormous efforts in palm oil mill effluent research would be what has been singled out as one of the major sources of pollution in Malaysia, and perhaps the most costly and complex waste to manage. Palm oil mill final discharge, which is the treated effluent, will usually be discharged to nearby land or river since it has been t...

Pseudomonas aeruginosa RW9 is a promising candidate for the bioremediation of chromium hexavalent (Cr(VI)) pollution, as it resists a high concentration of up to 60 mg/L of Cr(VI). Leaving cells exposed to Cr(VI) has large bioreduction potential, implying its capacity to extract the ions from the contaminated medium. In this study, the tolerance fo...

A kinetic study was performed to determine the kinetics of hemicellulose (xylan) hydrolysis during subcritical hydrothermal pretreatment of OPFPF. The trend of xylan conversion was observed over 40-min treatment time at two different conditions: without CO2 addition at four different temperatures (170, 180, 190, and 200 °C), and with CO2 addition o...

Biodiesel or known as fatty acid methyl ester (FAME), is a diesel fuel substitute derived from the transesterification reaction of triglycerides with alcohol in the presence of suitable catalyst. The demand for biodiesel is increasing due to environmental and health awareness, as well as diminishing energy security. However, the presence of impurit...

The high fermentable sugars content in oil palm frond (OPF) juice makes it an excellent fermentation feedstock for bioethanol production. The major challenge of using the juice as a feedstock is the rapid degradation of the fermentable sugars during storage. Thus, this study was aimed to investigate the effects of OPF juice concentration and mild t...

This study provides insight into the decolorization strategy for crude glycerol obtained from biodiesel production using waste cooking oil as raw material. A sequential procedure that includes physico-chemical treatment and adsorption using activated carbon from oil palm biomass was investigated. The results evidenced decolorization and enrichment...

Alcaligenaceae and Chromatiaceae were previously reported as the specific pollution bioindicators in the receiving river water contaminated by palm oil mill effluent (POME) final discharge. Considering the inevitable sensitivity of bacteria under environmental stresses, it is crucial to assess the survivability of both bacteria in the fluctuated en...

Bioethanol/biodiesel are deemed a highly suitable alternative to conventional fuels in the near future due to their versatility in production techniques and operability. This paper examines the engine performance and possible scope of improvement in direct injection engines powered by biofuel blends. The obtained outcomes from this review are mainl...

Residual hemicellulose could enhance cellulose nanofiber (CNF) processing as it impedes the agglomeration of the nanocellulose fibrils and contributes to complete nanofibrillation within a shorter period of time. Its effect on CNF performance as a reinforcement material is unclear, and hence this study seeks to evaluate the performance of CNF in th...

The influence of biomass cellulosic content on biochar nanopore structure and adsorption capacity in aqueous phase was scarcely reported. Commercial cellulose (100% cellulose), oil palm frond (39.5% cellulose), and palm kernel shell (20.5% cellulose) were pyrolyzed AT 630 °C, characterized and tested for the adsorption of iodine and organic contami...

Excessive fertilizer applications in oil palm plantations are conventionally done to increase the oil yield, but they result in high production cost and environmental pollution. There have been only separate reports on the effects of fertilizer application on soil physical, chemical characteristics, and microbial biodiversity. Therefore, this study...

Biodiesel side stream waste glycerol was identified as a cheap carbon source for rhamnolipids (RLs) production which at the same time could improve the management of waste. The present study aimed to produce RLs by using Pseudomonas aeruginosa RS6 utilizing waste glycerol as a substrate and to evaluate their physico-chemicals properties. Fermentati...

Most palm oil mills adopted conventional ponding system, including anaerobic, aerobic, facultative and algae ponds, for the treatment of palm oil mill effluent (POME). Only a few mills installed a bio-polishing plant to treat POME further before its final discharge. The present study aims to determine the quality and toxicity levels of POME final d...

Excessive fertilizer applications in oil palm plantations are conventionally done to increase the oil yield, but they result in high production cost and environmental pollution. There have been only separate reports on the effects of fertilizer application on soil physical, chemical characteristics, and microbial biodiversity. Therefore, this study...

Polylactic acid (PLA), a potential alternative material for single use plastics, generally portrays a slow crystallization rate during melt-processing. The use of a nanomaterial such as cellulose nanofibers (CNF) may affect the crystallization rate by acting as a nucleating agent. CNF at a certain wt.% has been evidenced as a good reinforcement mat...

In order to meet the growing demand for adsorbents to treat wastewater effectively, there has been increased interest in using sustainable biomass feedstocks. In this present study, the dermal tissue of oil palm frond was pyrolyzed with superheated steam at 500 °C to produce nanoporous biochar as bioadsorbent. The effect of operating conditions was...

The use of biochar as an adsorbent for wastewater treatment purposes has been hindered due to its lower surface area compared to activated carbon. Current research on increasing surface functional groups on biochar surfaces to improve its adsorption performance suggests using high chemical concentration and long period of modification. This study s...

In this study, three types of oil palm biomass (OPB) namely, oil palm mesocarp fiber (OPMF), oil palm empty fruit bunch (OPEFB) and oil palm frond (OPF), were studied and compared as the alternative fillers in the biocomposite reinforced polypropylene (PP). The fibers were treated using the optimal condition of superheated steam treatment obtained...

Malaysia is one of the largest producers and exporters of palm oil, thus, a large amount of palm oil mill effluent (POME) is generated through this process. POME contributes to environmental pollution if it is not properly treated. This complex effluent consists of colloidal matters and mainly organic components with more than 90% water. Thus, it i...

The aquatic ecosystem is continuously threatened by the infiltration and discharge of anthropogenic wastewaters. This issue requires the unending improvement of monitoring systems to become more comprehensive and specific to targeted pollutants. This review intended to elucidate the overall aspects explored by researchers in developing better water...

Cellulose from oil palm empty fruit bunch (OPEFB) was subjected to superheated steam (SHS) treatment at 150 °C for 1 and 2 h to produce cellulose with different degree of polymerization (DP). The treated OPEFB cellulose was subjected to a wet disc milling process to produce cellulose nanofibrils (CNFs), followed by nanocellulose film production usi...

Fluctuation in fossil fuel prices and the increasing awareness of environmental degradation have prompted the search for alternatives from renewable energy sources. Biodiesel is the most efficient alternative to fossil fuel substitution because it can be properly modified for current diesel engines. It is a vegetable oil-based fuel with similar pro...

To promote the growth of the biodiesel industry, many countries have started allocating initial inducements to start-up companies to set up the infrastructure for its production facilities. Thus, comprehensive economic assessments are vital to keeping businesses on the right track in the long run. In this present study, net energy ratio (NER) and m...

This study evaluates the adsorption of diazinon from aqueous solutions onto coconut shell-modified biochar using a batch system. The amount of dosage and initial pH are the main parameters being studied to obtain maximum adsorption capacity of the probe molecules. The carbonized coconut shell biochar (BC1), activated coconut shell biochar (BC2), ch...

Phytoremediation is one of the environmental-friendly and cost-effective systems for the treatment of wastewater, including industrial wastewater such as palm oil mill effluent final discharge (POME FD). However, the effects of the wastewater on the phytoremediator plants, in term of growth performance, lignocellulosic composition, and the presence...

Two different liquid assisted processing methods: internal melt-blending (IMB) and twin-screw extrusion (TWS) were performed to fabricate polyethylene (PE)/cellulose nanofiber (CNF) nanocomposites. The nanocomposites consisted maleic anhydride-grafted PE (PEgMA) as a compatibilizer, with PE/PEgMA/CNF ratio of 97/3/0.5–5 (wt./wt./wt.), respectively....

Biochar has proven to be a feasible additive for mitigating nitrogen loss during the composting process. This study aims to evaluate the influence of biochar addition on bacterial community and physicochemical properties changes, including ammonium (NH4⁺), nitrite (NO2⁻) and nitrate (NO3⁻) contents during the composting of poultry manure. The compo...

Microorganisms are progressively adopted as reliable and specific bioindicators of pollution, with Alcaligenaceae and Chromatiaceae being recently proposed to indicate contamination in river water due to palm oil mill effluent (POME) final discharge. This study was conducted to evaluate the reliability of these bacteria to act as specific bioindica...

Advances in biochar production and modification have extended the applications of biochar to wastewater treatment. However, not all feedstocks produced porous biochar at a moderate temperature suitable for wastewater treatment. In this study, biochar was produced from oil palm frond using steam pyrolysis at 500 °C and pulverized to granular and mic...

Conventional aerobic treatment of facultatively treated palm oil mill effluent (POME) containing phenolic compounds such as phenol, encounters difficulty because of microbial inhibition. In this study, adsorption of phenol in facultatively treated POME was proposed as a solution for mitigating the inhibition. Low-cost biochars produced from oil pal...

Biomass carbonization technology is implemented to produce charcoal with high-calorific content. However, this technology releases pollutant gases, which adversely affect ambient environment and human health. This study proposed a catalytic gas treatment method using platinum-supported alumina catalyst (Pt/γ-Al2O3) for carbon monoxide emission redu...

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper.

Organic and/or heavy metal pollutants in soil and wastewater can be remediated by phytoremediation. Phytoremediation combines the disciplines of plant physiology, soil microbiology and soil chemistry. There are several ways by which plants extract, stabilize, filtrate, volatilize or degrade the contaminants. However, the effectiveness of phytoremed...

A study was conducted to estimate the possible environmental impacts arising from the generation of bioethanol from oil palm frond sugar juice in a theoretical oil palm based biorefinery model. A life cycle assessment (LCA) with the gate-to-gate approach was performed with the aid of SimaPro version 8.0 whereby ten impact categories were evaluated....

Palm oil mill effluent (POME) contains complex and highly biodegradable organic matters so discharging it without appropriate treatment may lead to environmental problems. POME final discharge quality is normally determined based on conventional chemical detection such as by biological oxygen demand (BOD) and chemical oxygen demand (COD). The novel...

A thermophilic Thermobifida fusca strain UPMC 901, harboring highly thermostable cellulolytic activity, was successfully isolated from oil palm empty fruit bunch compost. Its endoglucanase had the highest activity at 24 hours of incubation in carboxymethyl-cellulose (CMC) and filter paper. A maximum endoglucanase activity of 0.9 U/mL was achieved a...

The study aims to investigate the effect of photo-autotrophic cultural conditions on the productivity and biomass composition of Chlorella vulgaris. The following five photo-autotrophic cultural conditions were investigated: light intensity (4000, 10,500, 17,000, 23,000, 30,000 lux), temperature (25, 28, 32, 35, 40 °C), pH (6, 7, 8, 9, 10), CO2 (0....

Although conventional inorganic fertilizers increased plant growth and productivity, their excessive use leads to wastage, run-offs and environmental pollution. In order to promote nutrient recycling and zero emission strategy in the palm oil industry, compost was produced from oil palm empty fruit bunch (EFB) and palm oil mill effluent (POME) anae...

Achieving a more sustainable wastewater treatment plant has never been so important. Issues around energy consumption and pollutants removal efficiency are of growing importance in the context of production costs and pollution control. In the palm oil industry, more than 85% mills are managing their palm oil mill effluent (POME) via lagoons, yet th...

The global waste generation keeps increasing over the years and it requires innovative solutions to minimize its impacts on environmental quality and public health. A strategic plan must be ascertained to overcome the future challenges of Municipal solid waste (MSW) locally and globally. Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) coined an initiative to demon...

Global waste generation keeps increasing over the year and requires innovative solutions to minimize their impacts on environmental quality and public health. Predicted 2.2 billion tonnes per year of global municipal waste generation in the year 2025 which 1.6 fold is higher than in 2012. Hence, a strategic plan must be ascertained to overcome the...

Despite efforts to address the composition of the microbial community during the anaerobic treatment of palm oil mill effluent (POME), its composition in relation to biodegradation in the full-scale treatment system has not yet been extensively examined. Therefore, a thorough analysis of bacterial and archaeal communities was performed in the prese...

An integrated treatment system which incorporated an anaerobic-aerobic-wetland sequential system (AAWSS) and a convective sludge dryer (CSD) was established to treat highly polluting palm oil mill effluent (POME) in a shorter retention period and with a smaller area requirement. Before actual treatment, a start-up operation was performed to achieve...

Discharge of vegetable oily ballast wastewater constitutes serious hazardous pollution to the environment due to its toxic effects on aquatic organisms and terrestrial animals consuming the waste. The damage is especially severe if the release of this waste occurred in temperate waters where biodegradation by existing marine microorganisms is limit...

Oil palm biomass is widely known for its potential as a renewable resource for various value‐added products due to its lignocellulosic content and availability. Oil palm biomass biorefinery is a certain homerun money‐making industry that comes with socio‐political benefits through job opportunities created as well as a great environmental conservat...

A one-step self-sustained carbonization of coconut shell biomass, carried out in a brick reactor at a relatively low temperature of 300–500°C, successfully produced a biochar-derived adsorbent with 308 m ² /g surface area, 2 nm pore diameter, and 0.15 cm ³ /g total pore volume. The coconut shell biochar qualifies as a nano-adsorbent, supported by s...

The main objective of this work was to investigate the effects of the controlled periodic addition of anaerobic sludge during composting to increase amount of microbial DNA, which appears to be correlated to soluble sugar content which may relate to rate of lignocellulosic degradation. In this study, the composting of pressed-shredded oil palm empt...

This study was undertaken to confirm the reliability of the proposed potential bioindicators, Alcaligenaceae and Chromatiaceae to specifically indicate contamination in river water by palm oil mill effluent (POME) final discharge. The use of bioindicators could assist in determining the specific cause of contamination in water bodies. Alcaligenacea...