Universitas Indonesia’s (UI) research team from the Faculty of Engineering (FT) introduced an innovative environmentally-friendly concrete product based on recycled palm shells called PalmCrete®. This product was first introduced at the Semarak Usaha Kecil Mikro dan Koperasi (UKMK) Sawit 2024 (2024 Palm Oil Small and Medium-sized Enterprises and Cooperatives (SMEs) Festival) held by the Indonesian Palm Oil Plantation Fund Management Agency, or BPDPKS, on August 1-3, 2024, in Makassar, South Sulawesi. On this occasion, the Head of the Research Team, Dr. Ir. Sotya Astutiningsih, M.Eng. explained the research product funded by the 2021 Grant Riset Sawit (Palm Oil Research Grant).
Dr. Sotya and team members, namely Dr. Dipl.-Ing. Nuraziz Handika, S.T., M.T., M.Sc.; Dr. Bastian O. B. Sentosa, S.T., M.T., M.Rech.; Dr. Arian Dhini, S.T., M.T.; Dr. Eng. Mochamad Adhiraga Pratama, S.T., M.T.,; and Dwica Wulandari, S.T., M.T., M.Sc., studied the use of palm shells as a substitute for natural aggregates in concrete. The selection was based on the perspectives of concrete performance, environmental aspects, and techno-economic studies.
According to him, the oil palm tree is a tree where almost all of its parts can be utilized, one of which is the shell of the fruit. After the contents of the fruit are taken to produce oil, the shell material remains. Palm kernel shells can be categorized as wood-based materials with a hardness of 26.9 on the hardness scale. When measured by the Vickers method, the hardness of palm kernel shells approaches the hardness of pure gold metal.
In addition to its high hardness, palm shells contain bio-oil which is a preservative, so it is not eaten by termites. Therefore, in this study, the research team utilized palm shells as an aggregate substitute for concrete and produced a product called PalmCrete®. PalmCrete® has a specific gravity of around 1850–1900 kg/m³ and an average strength of 19.1 MPa. This strength is equivalent to ordinary concrete that can be used in simple building structures, such as residences.
“PalmCrete® behaves like normal concrete under four-point flexural loading and shows higher ductility properties than normal concrete under semi-cyclic loading. This indicates that this concrete is more resistant to earthquake loads. PalmCrete® also has pervious properties, so it has the potential to be applied as a paving block with water drainage,” said Dr. Sotya.
With this innovation, the Dean of FTUI, Prof. Dr. Ir. Heri Hermansyah, S.T., M.Eng., IPU, stated that “Various products made from palm oil and its derivatives can be produced by UKMK as a means of campaigning for the goodness of palm oil. Dr. Sotya’s participation in Semarak UKMK is a manifestation of FTUI’s commitment to sharing knowledge and expanding networks with palm oil business actors in Indonesia. Hopefully, in the future, Palm Oil UKMK in Indonesia will be more competitive and able to provide greater contributions to the national economy.”
The Kegiatan Semarak UKMK Sawit 2024 (2024 Palm Oil SME Festival) with the theme “UKMK Sawit yang berjaya di Indonesia” (Successful Palm Oil SMEs in Indonesia) was attended by the Director of Planning and Fund Management of BPDPKS, Kabul Wijayanto; Assistant II for Economic and Development Affairs of the South Sulawesi Provincial Secretariat, Andi Sukri Mattinetta; Head of Budget Implementation II of the South Sulawesi DJPB Regional Office, Wahyu Harmono; Deputy Chief of South Sulawesi Police, Brigadier General Nasri Sulaeman; Inspector of the XIV/Hasanuddin Military Command, Brigadier General TNI Dwi Endrosasongko; and other guests. This activity was attended by industry players, academics, and the general public who had the opportunity to see the latest innovations and developments in the palm oil industry firsthand.
