Medan – Unimed student’s creativity is not running out, innovation for innovation continues to be produced. This is evidenced by three students of the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences (MIPA) who conducted research using durian peel waste as a raw material in the manufacture of bio-ethanol fuel. The three students are Shanta Noventhya Ginting and his two colleagues Epi Kristina Simanullang and Lindu Parningotan Simanullang and under the guidance of his supervising lecturer Drs. Bajoka Nainggolan, MS. Their research also managed to get funding from kemenristekdikti in the field of research.
This research is conducted based on North Sumatera Province which is the largest durian producer in Indonesia. As the largest producer in Indonesia, North Sumatra produces 332,712 tons of durian peel waste. This has an impact on environmental pollution because it can not be empowered. On the basis of these three students, these solutions are solved by utilizing the abundant durian peel waste in North Sumatra and processing them into bio-based fuels in the form of bioethanol.
“We use durian peel as raw material because durian peel has high cellulose element content (50-60%), so it becomes very potential to be utilized as raw material of bioethanol manufacture. Bioethanol itself in everyday life can be utilized as an alternative fuel that is environmentally friendly because it has a high enough octane number, “said Shanta to Unimed Public Relation, Tuesday (10/7)
Bioethanol made by these three students were given optimization treatment on acid hydrolysis process with the variable used is 1% sulfuric acid concentration; 3%; and 5%, temperature 1000C; 1200C; and 1400C, and time 120 minutes; 150 minutes; and 180 minutes. From the results of their analysis, from the total samples used, the highest bioethanol yield was obtained at 8,5% at 1400C and 180 minutes hydrolysis time. (Unimed Public Relations)
