An integrated method for palm oil mill effluent (POME) treatment for achieving zero liquid discharge - A pilot study

Palm oil industries have been significantly contributing towards the economic growth and increase standard of living among the South East Asian countries. However, it has also been identified as the major contributor for discharging the largest pollution load in the form of Palm Oil Mills Effluent (POME) throughout these regions. This paper will focus on the successful running of POME zero discharge Pilot plant based on 5 m(3) POME h(-1) built at MPOB Experimental Palm Oil Mill, Labu, Malaysia. This piolt study is a cutting edge as no greenhouse gas emitted into the atmosphere, no discharge of wastewater; low capital investment and low operating cost compared to other existing systems. After a whole year's experiment, the percentage of BOD reading after BioAX treatment below 20 mg/L was 80.76%, and about 30 m(3) biogas was produced per m3 of raw POME in AnaEG bioreactors, among which, 57% (v/v) was methane. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.