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UPM Commercialise Nanocellulose Palm Biomass Industrial Scale

By: Nor Azizah Ismail


Malaysia is one of the world's leading commodity producers of palm oil. To produce palm oil, it has been estimated that 44 million tonnes of palm biomass waste is produced and it contributes to the dumping of oil palm industry waste.


Palm biomass is a lignocellulose substance that has a lot of potential for the production of various products. Looking at the potential, a team of researchers from Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) led by Prof. Ts. Dr. Hidayah Ariffin from the Faculty of Biotechnology and Biomolecular Sciences has developed the innovation of Nanocellulose Biomass Palm which has a wide range of uses, for example in the field of polymers and composite materials, pulp and paper, cosmetic materials, paints, and food industry
Palm biomass is a lignocellulose substance that has a lot of potential for the production of various products. Looking at the potential, a team of researchers from Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) led by Prof. Ts. Dr. Hidayah Ariffin from the Faculty of Biotechnology and Biomolecular Sciences has developed the innovation of Nanocellulose Biomass Palm which has a wide range of uses, for example in the field of polymers and composite materials, pulp and paper, cosmetic materials, paints, and food industry.


The technology developed in UPM in collaboration with the Kyushu Institute of Technology (Kyutech), Japan has been enhanced to a commercial scale through the signing of a memorandum of licensing agreement (MoA) with ZoepNano Sdn. Bhd. (ZoepNano).
Prof. Hidayah started this research almost 10 years ago sharing the uniqueness of this innovation.


"Nanocellulose produced from palm biomass is a versatile ingredient due to its potential use across a wide range of fields – from the polymer industry, chemicals, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals to the food industry.


Our team has managed to produce nanocellulose in dry form (powder), and maintain particle size on a nano scale (30 - 50 nm) without any modification or addition of chemicals. The techniques used are simple and attract industry players to be commercialised to meet the various needs of the industry in the market", explains Prof. Hidayah.


In addition, the special properties of nanocellulose that are mechanically powerful, have a high specific surface area, and are made of renewable and bio-decomposable (biodegradable) materials are important features that are expected to be of interest to many.


"This innovation was implemented in collaboration with the Kyushu Institute of Technology, and was sponsored by research grants from the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), Ministry of Science, Technology, and Innovation (MOSTI), and listed as a recipient of the Market Validation Grant from Putra Science Park, UPM," he added.


This nanocellulose innovation from palm biomass received the Most Commercial Ready Product and Most Innovative Product awards at the Bioeconomy Innovation Award 2017. In addition, the nanocellulose product from UPM's innovation has also been certified as a nano-material through the NanoVerified logo certification. i.e. certification under the NANOVerify program which is a globally recognized nano certification program.
"Strategic partnership with ZoepNano Sdn. Bhd. not only enables the exchange of expertise, ideas, and insights but also can be fully leveraged by both parties. Most important thing is to lift this local innovation to be marketed to foreign countries such as Japan as the concept of green innovation is exciting," explained Dr. Liana Noor Megashah, Chief Executive Officer of ZoepNano Sdn. Bhd. at the MoA Nanocellulose Biomass Exchange Ceremony between UPM and ZoepNano Sdn. Bhd. recently.


In addition, UPM through the InnoHub program initiative is committed to ensuring that UPM's research results can be commercialised through a startup development program under Putra Science Park, UPM. To date, UPM has successfully developed 77 startups working to bring new technologies to market in various fields.

InnoHub's establishment program through Putra Science Park, UPM has proven to be effective in producing young entrepreneurs who are brave to face challenges and are willing to face risks to compete in the world market.

 

Date of Input: 20/04/2022 | Updated: 30/09/2022 | aishah

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