Adsorptive removal of methyl orange and methylene blue from aqueous solutions with Acacia crassicarpa activated carbon

In this study, activated carbon prepared from Acacia crassicarpa barkwas prepared and studied for the potential development of low-cost, carbon-based adsorbents that remove industrial dyes from aqueous solutions. Various spectroscopy techniques and surface analyses were used to characterize the adsorbents. The adsorption of methyl orange (MO) and methylene blue (MB) onto the material was investigated under optimal experimental conditions including temperature, adsorbent dosage, and initial concentration of chemicals. The Langmuir isotherm model was observed to fit the adsorption data well. The maximum adsorption capacities predicted by the Langmuir isotherm were found to be 10.36 mg.g-1 for MO and 15.34 mg.g-1 for MB. The adsorbents were better able to remove the cationic dye than the anionic dye. The results of this study will be useful for future scale-up production of low-cost adsorbents using Acacia crassicarpa for the removal of cationic and anionic dyes.

Experimental study on the utilization of residue from particleboard’s recycling activity

Both solid and liquid residues derived from activity of particleboard (PB)’srecycling were investigated. The solid was attempted to make recycle particleboard (rPB) while the liquid was tried to use as fertilizer to seedling of Acacia crassicarpa. Objective of this study was to compare quality between PB and rPB and to evaluate seedling growth of A.crassicarpa exposed to liquid disposal from PB’s recycling activity. Methods of this study were consisted of testing of physical and mechanicalproperties of industrial PB, manufacturing rPB, and comparing the properties between PB and rPB. Prior to manufacture rPB, liquid disposal from PB’s recycling activity was released through water immersion of industrial waste’s PB comprised of predominant trimming residues. The liquid disposal was measured its nitrogen (N) content and then it was kept in a gallon for further use as fertilizer. Observation on growth parameters (height, diameter, leaves number and seedling’s strength) of both treated and untreated seedlings was conducted weekly for 2 months. Results of this study showed: 1)rPB was feasible to be produced but their quality was slightly decreased. 2) Liquid disposal during cyclist test and water immersion of PB’s residues contained 0.69% N. 3) Growth parameters of A.crassicarpa seedling showed response positively and significant statistically between treated and untreated seedlings. These findings suggested that both residues originated from PB’s recycling can be utilized further; the solid can be used as raw material of rPB while the liquid can be utilized as fertilizer to seedlings.

Pengaruh Lama Penyimpanan Chip Terhadap Kualitas Pulp

Pada penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui lama penyimpanan bahan baku chip guna mengetahui kualitas pulp yang dihasilkan dan pengaruhnya apabila disimpan dalam waktu yang lama. Di dalam penelitian ini ada beberapa tahap proses yakni, proses cooking dengan memvariasikan waktu penyimpanan chip selama 1 minggu, 2 minggu, 3 minggu dan 4 minggu dengan bahan baku yang berupa kayu Acacia mangium, Acacia crasicarpa, dan Eucalyptus. Untuk waktu optimum diperoleh maksimal waktu tunggu yakni dua minggu. Semakin lama chip disimpan maka akan membuat tingkat kekeringan chip meningkat sehingga lebih banyak larutan pemasakan yang akan digunakan. Dengan nilai parameter yang dihasilkan minggu kedua total solid acacia mangium 16.23%, acacia crassicarpa 16.78% dan Eucalyptus 17.23%. Nilai yield acacia mangium 54.87%, acacia crassicarpa 54.15% dan Eucalyptus 48.33%. Nilai kappa number Acacia mangium 22.3, Acacia crassicarpa 21.7 dan Eucalyptus 20.4. Nilai viskositas Acacia mangium 1228.23 cm3/gr, Acacia crassicarpa 1200.13 cm3/gr dan eucalyptus 1162.87 cm3/gr. Nilai REA Acacia mangium 9.43 g/L, Acacia crassicarpa 8.73 g/L dan eucalyptus 8.41 g/L. Nilai brightness Acacia mangium 28.23 %, Acacia crassicarpa 24.99 % dan Eucalyptus 37.51 %. Nilai reject Acacia mangium 0.57 %, Acacia crassicarpa 0.42 % dan Eucalyptus 0.31%.

Acacia crassicarpa (northern wattle).

A. crassicarpa is one of the fastest-growing acacias for planting on degraded sites in the seasonally-dry tropics. It tolerates a range of soil types, particularly those of low fertility. It is a nitrogen-fixing tree that produces abundant natural root nodulation. It is fire resistant and competes favourably against weed species such as Imperata cylindrica. It has the potential to produce a dense hardwood that can be used in industrial pulp production, as sawn or round timber for construction or as fuelwood.

Understory and Soil Macrofauna Diversity under the Three Young Native Species and Acacia crassicarpa in a Drained Peatland of Pelalawan-Riau, Indonesia

Most studies mentioned that Acacia crassicarpa belongs to invasive species that could threat the native biodiversity. To respond that issue, we conducted a study that covers the understory and soil macrofauna diversity of three native tree species, namely mahang (Macaranga pruinosa), skubung (Macaranga gigantea) and geronggang (Cratoxylum arborescens) and an exotic species namely krassikarpa in a drained peatland in Pelalawan, Riau. The observation of understory vegetation under each studied species was undertaken by using 2 x 1 m plots. Furthermore, the structure of macrofauna was observed by pitfall trap methods. Results revealed that there were two fern species namely Neprolephis biserrata and Stenochlaena palustris that dominated the understory vegetation in namely mahang (Macaranga pruinosa), skubung (Macaranga gigantea) and geronggang (Cratoxylum arborescens). The diversity index in vegetation structure among those four tree species was insignificantly varied. Moreover, the percentage of understory coverage under A. crassicarpa was significantly higher than that under all native tree species. On the other hand, Formicidae and Rhinotermitidae were dominant in skubung and krassikarpa. Meanwhile, Formicidae and Blattidae were high in mahang and geronggang. Furthermore, diversity index of macrofauna were significantly low at krassikarpas`s understory compare to other three native species. This study suggested that the introduction of krassikarpa affect the biodiversity.