PALMOILMAGAZINE, JAKARTA – Amid the smoke stacks and wastewater ponds of Indonesia’s palm oil mills, a group of local scientists has made a groundbreaking discovery that could reshape the future of the industry. By combining natural microbes and aquatic plants, they’ve created a low-cost system that transforms Palm Oil Mill Effluent (POME) into clean energy, purified water, and organic fertilizer—offering a sustainable solution to one of the industry’s most persistent environmental challenges.
Published in the 2025 edition of Case Studies in Chemical and Environmental Engineering, the study was conducted by a multidisciplinary team including Bambang Trisakti, Rivaldi Sidabutara, Irvana, Gloria Clarita Sinamo, and others. Their innovation avoids costly chemical treatments and instead uses two biological agents found in nature: Thiobacillus bacteria and Azolla microphylla, a floating aquatic fern.
“Often, the answer to waste lies in nature itself. We simply tried to listen,” said lead researcher Bambang Trisakti, as quoted by Palmoilmagazine.com from the official website of Universitas Sumatera Utara (USU), Monday (14/7/2025).
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POME, a byproduct of palm oil production, has long been associated with strong odors and environmental pollution. Though it contains valuable biogas, the gas is often contaminated with hydrogen sulfide (H₂S)—a toxic and corrosive compound that damages equipment and poses health risks. While industrial facilities commonly rely on chemical treatments to remove H₂S, these methods are costly and generate additional waste.
The team’s eco-friendly alternative involves a column filled with water and Raschig rings to trap H₂S from biogas. The water is then purified in two biological stages: first, passed through a pond containing Thiobacillus bacteria that oxidizes H₂S into sulfate; second, filtered through a bed of Azolla microphylla, which absorbs remaining pollutants and improves water quality.
The results are striking. In just nine hours, Thiobacillus reduced H₂S concentration from 3,000 ppm to 900 ppm. Azolla further reduced levels from 10,000 ppm to just 1,700 ppm over four days. The system achieved an overall efficiency rate of 83%.
Three Benefits, One Solution
Beyond purifying air and water, the system produces organic fertilizer from the nutrient-rich growth of Azolla, which is high in nitrogen. “With one pond, we get three benefits: pollutant absorption, oxygen production, and natural fertilizer,” Bambang explained.
Further lab tests showed that the system also reduced biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), chemical oxygen demand (COD), and dissolved solids in wastewater. It even neutralized the pH of the originally acidic effluent.
The treated water can be reused in factory operations or processed into liquid organic fertilizer. Remarkably, the system’s operating cost is only around Rp54.8 per liter—significantly lower than its potential economic value, which could reach up to Rp709 per liter from the sale of biofertilizer and sulfur byproducts.
Bambang emphasized that this solution is accessible even to small-scale palm oil mills. “We wanted to prove that sustainability can be simple, affordable, and profitable,” he said.
With broader implementation, this innovation could help solve one of palm oil’s biggest environmental hurdles—waste management—while adding economic and ecological value. It aligns with the three pillars of sustainability: economy, society, and the environment.
More than just a scientific milestone, this project serves as a reminder that meaningful change often starts small. From a few drops of wastewater and a handful of microbes, the team has built a system that clears the air, nourishes the soil, and purifies water.
As Indonesia’s palm oil sector moves toward a cleaner, greener future, this modest laboratory breakthrough might one day be recognized as a turning point—where waste became opportunity, and sustainability began with bold, simple ideas. (P2)
