Palm oil mill effluent (POME) is a major concern as open lagoon technology is not environment-friendly. Therefore, the palm oil industry refers to a roundtable on sustainable palm oil (RSPO), Indonesian sustainable palm oil (ISPO), and Malaysian sustainable palm oil (MSPO) standards for POME treatment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. An alternative POME treatment technology is the combination of open lagoon technology (COLT) with composting, biogas technology plus composting, biogas technology plus membrane, and biogas technology plus land application. The objective of this study is to analyze the life cycle assessment (LCA) result using a multi-criteria decision approach and to determine the implementation of POME treatment in the RSPO, ISPO, and MSPO standards. The LCA system boundary was considered from gate-to-gate and unit per ton of fresh fruit bunch as a functional unit. SimaPro^® was used as the LCA analysis tool; Expert Choice^® and Super Decision Software^® were used to perform the analytic hierarchy process and analytic network process, respectively. In this study, COLT–Biogas plus composting technology had the maximum priority weight (0.470), according to the opinion of experts. The results could help palm oil mill decision-makers in choosing environment-friendly POME treatment technology.

This study investigates the potential of microalgae oil production as an alternative renewable energy source, in a pilot project located at Minamisoma City in the Fukushima Prefecture of Japan. The algal communities used in this research were the locally mixed species, which were mainly composed of Desmodesmus collected from the Minamisoma pilot project. The microalgae oil-production processes in Minamisoma consisted of three stages: cultivation, dewatering, and extraction. The estimated theoretical input-energy requirement for extracting oil was 137.25 MJ to process 50 m³ of microalgae, which was divided into cultivation 15.40 MJ, centrifuge 13.39 MJ, drum filter 14.17 MJ, and hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) 94.29 MJ. The energy profit ratio (EPR) was 1.41. The total energy requirement was highest in the HTL process (68%) followed by cultivation (11%) and the drum filter (10%). The EPR value increased along with the yield in the cultivation process. Using HTL, the microalgae biomass could be converted to bio-crude oil to increase the oil yield in the extraction process. Therefore, in the long run, the HTL process could help lower production costs, due to the lack of chemical additions, for extracting oil in the downstream estimation of the energy requirements for microalgae oil production.

There are considerably limited evaluations had dealt with the demand side of the Indonesian B20 biodiesel market. Thus, market research on product performance, product importance, and consumer awareness was performed. This research utilized both qualitative and quantitative methods. In-depth interviews with key informants were summarized in the word cloud form. The outcomes then became the ground for quantitative research. The results of 111 online questionnaires indicated that there was a gap in the level of awareness among respondents in Sumatra to that of outside Sumatra. The male, higher education background, and heavy-user of bio solar cohort were tended to vote a sizeable number in the performance evaluation. Especially for the performance of biodiesel that caused sedimentation on the filter engines (73.08%, 72.35%, and 73.08%). Meanwhile, biodiesel performance that supports the nation's energy security is the most important attribute to be highlighted as the product main entity. The policy implication through multifaceted strategies such as incentive provision for automotive companies that are adaptive to market demand is one of a kind. In the long run, the return to investment from these policies are expected to not only increase the multiplier effects of the oil palm plantation but also national energy security.AbstrakSejauh ini belum ada evaluasi ilmiah yang mempelajari aspek permintaan produk biodiesel Indonesia dari sisi konsumen (pasar), sehingga studi mengenai evaluasi produk dan kesadaran konsumen biodiesel B20 menjadi tujuan dari penelitian ini. Riset pasar ini menggunakan metode kualitatif dan kuantitatif. Temuan dari riset kualitatif dalam bentuk wordcloud menjadi landasan untuk kajian kuantitatif. Hasil deskriptif dan nonparametrik 111 kuesioner secara daring mengindikasikan adanya kesenjangan tingkat kesadaran antara responden berdomisili di Sumatera dan luar Sumatera. Responden berjenis kelamin laki-laki, berlatar pendidikan tinggi, dan dominan menggunakan biosolar sebagai bahan bakarnya cenderung kritis menilai atribut terjadinya endapan pada mesin filter (73,08%; 72,35%; dan 73,08%). Performa biodiesel yang mendukung ketahanan energi bangsa menjadi aspek penting yang harus ditonjolkan sebagai entitas dari produk. Inovasi produk dapat dikembangkan melalui kebijakan multidimensi. Salah satunya dengan intervensi pemerintah melalui pemberian insentif bagi automaker yang adaptif terhadap permintaan pasar. Pada akhirnya, implikasi kebijakan ini diharapkan tidak hanya meningkatkan multiplyer effect dari perkebunan kelapa sawit, tetapi juga ketahanan energi nasional.