Dr Hendro Juwono, M.SI., 212. Professor of the Institut Teknology Sepuluh Nopmber (ITS) successfully developed a technique of reworking plastic waste into biofuel with biomass. This innovation applies to 2 critical issues at the identical time: reduction of dependence on fossil fuels and relieving the escalation of environmental threat, which constitutes pollution of plastics.
Prof. Hendro Juwono from the Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Data Analytics (FSAD) in IT, classifies polymers to 2 categories: natural and artificial polymers. Natural polymers, equivalent to rubber, protein, starch and collagen, are naturally biodegradable. However, synthetic polymers – equivalent to polyethylene, polypropylene and polystyrene (predominant components of plastic) – are proof against degradation.
Medicated from non -service resources, plastics have a chemical structure just like fossil fuels.
To solve this problem, prof. Hendro conducted research using the pyrolysis method to process degradable plastics. Result? Fuel with octane research number (RON) 98-102, comparable to premium gasoline.
“The variety of RON indicates that this fuel is higher quality than most fuels currently available in public,” he explained.
Inexpensive plastic and biomass biofuel
Although the resulting octane number (RON) is comparatively high, the transformation of plastic waste into fuel requires extreme temperatures (400 ° C), which devour a major amount of electricity. On the opposite hand, biomass sources, equivalent to Nyamplung oil, oil (CPO) and waste kitchen oil (WCO), require only a temperature of 250 ° C.
To improve cost performance, prof. Hendro combined biomass with plastic waste, reducing the method temperature to 300 ° C. This mixture not only reduces operating costs, but in addition uses cheaper and simply accessible raw materials.
These studies, presented as a part of the inaugural lecture by prof. Hendro as a professor, is to contribute to the achievement of SDG 7 (pure energy) and SDG 12 (responsible consumption and production).
Hendro emphasized that these studies require perseverance and long -term commitment to develop an actual solution to the environmental and energy crisis.
