Bio-failure or Bio-fuel? Economic Feasibility of Converting Palm Oil Waste to Biogas

Abstract

This study aimed to investigate the economic feasibility of using an Up-Flow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket (UASB) reactor to convert liquid waste from palm oil processing plants into biogas containing methane. The study examined total capital investment (TCI), working capital investment (WCI), and production costs at different capacities (3, 30, and 300 liters per day) to determine if the process could generate a profit. The results showed that the biogas production from palm oil industrial liquid waste using the UASB reactor did not result in a profit due to the large capital costs and low biogas production. The implication of this study is that further research is needed to find ways to reduce the capital costs of the process and increase biogas production to make it economically feasible.