report final 1.1.1

ZERO-WASTE SYSTEM AT AN ESSENTIAL

OIL DISTILLERY

BACHELOR THESIS BY THOMAS MATTHEIJ

ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE

Thesis Title: Zero-Waste System at an Essential Oil Distillery

Author: Thomas Peter Herman Mattheij

Institute of Execution: Gadjah Mada University, Yogyakarta

Education Institute: Avans University of Applied Science

Date and Place: 11-09-2010, Breda, The Netherlands

Project Type: Final Year Project, Bachelor Degree

…Dedicated to my beloved parents, for their immeasurable support…

Preface 3

PREFACE

Before you lies the result of my half year final project at Gadjah Mada University, in Yogyakarta,

Indonesia. Never before had I been confronted with a greater challenge, nor had I experienced a

greater adventure, or had I encountered such warm hospitality, as people in Indonesia have offered

me.

Firstly, I’m greatly indebted to my mentor Dr. Agus Prasetya for his guidance and his assistance in

obtaining and interpreting essential information, as well as for his wisdom on Indonesian (or rather

Javanese) culture and custom, which assisted me in my contact with the people involved. Also I’d like

to thank Dr. Wiratni Budhijanto for her assistance in determining project focal points, and for letting

me bring the project under the attention of Gadjah Mada University students, which allowed for a

more intensive dialogue with them on various topics.

Furthermore special thanks goes out to my supervisor, Dr. Reijer Boon, for coming to visit me all the

way in Indonesia and for giving insights, based on his expertise as a consultant for rural development

projects. Lastly I want to thank all the wonderful friends I’ve made in Indonesia, most notably Satria ,

a.k.a. ‘Igin', Girindra Nugraha, Awqi Gibran and Sri Jatmiko Susetyo Aji, who’ve been a tremendous

help in my carrying out of project activities.

Abstract 4

ABSTRACT

This report is centered around a rural development project in the sub-district of Samigaluh,

Yogyakarta Special Region, in Java, Indonesia. The project, for which the proposal was written by an

Indonesian and Swedish combined student team, aims to implement a zero-waste concept at a

traditional essential oil distillery, which also incorporated some other economic activities, like

production of tofu from soybeans.

The proposal formed the outline for a plan that would enhance the installation’s economic and

environmental sustainability by using waste flows as raw material for other processes. Much of the

project hadn’t been implemented yet, due to some problems being faced. The digester that had

previously been installed was not being operated, as presumably technical problems prohibited any

biogas output. The distillery itself wasn’t being run, because of the fact that Tunas Maju, the

distillery’s umbrella organization, lacks a steady flow of plant material (preferably patchouli leaves

and stems), which is partly being caused by seasonal fluctuations of its availability. Also the small tofu

unit and the fishponds, which were meant to be part of the system, were experiencing problems.

The research focused on the question how to promote the projects implementation. An initial

assessment was made into what subjects deserved priority, mindful of aspirations of all the people

involved. This resulted in the decision to prioritize the distillation process itself, the tofu unit and

digester, and education of the workforce. It was established that the necessity existed of quantifying

energy and material flows, so a system could be designed linking by-products of processes to other

processes as inputs, and thereby closing material and energy cycles.

The first part of the research consisted of a literature study on topics directly or indirectly related to

the proposed zero-waste system. Topics discussed are the backgrounds essential oil production,

integrated biosystems and sustainability in the essential oil business. During the half year project

duration, expeditions were undertaken to the project location in order to conduct interviews

regarding quantitative data and procedures, and observations were carried out, most of which during

the last month, which was spent in its entirety at the project location. Beside these main topics, also

a number of venues have been explored to generally improve the installation and corporation.

Constructing a model of the energy balance of the distillation (steam extraction) process took place

using obtained data. The result was that about 66 GJ worth of fuel wood is required to fire a batch of

8 hours. 18 GJ leaves the process through the process water and 13 GJ via the flue gas, both of which

can theoretically be employed to dry raw material and residue, increasing the profitability of the

installation, while reducing fuel use and making the installation operable throughout the year. 50 kg

of ashes, which can be used as constituent for organic fertilizer, are produced per 600 kg of raw

material. Temperature measurements were carried out to facilitate modeling of heat losses.

In the tofu unit 90 liters of wastewater are produced per 6 kg of soybeans processed. Its organic

matter content equals a BOD of 3,7 mg/l. At current digester volume (300 l), the feed should be

around 3,8 l per hour, indicating that digester size would become a limiting factor if the production

were to expand.

Abstract 5

The interviews and observations revealed that little written administration was being kept and the

workforce hadn’t yet been trained on use of the digester, showing a need for human resource

development.

The most important recommendations given in chapter 4 are briefly summarized as follows:

Further Study the possibilities for drying of raw material and residue. Profit would benefit

greatly if patchouli could be processed throughout the year. Drying of raw material, if carried

out properly, could serve this purpose, especially if currently unused energy flows, which are

significant in size are employed. This would also result in an improvement of the overall

energy efficiency, and thus sustainability;

Investigate options for improving productivity by new pre-treatment steps and a new

technology for the separation of essential oil and water. The current separation technology

is labor intensive and is unable to fully separate essential oil from water;

Organize re-use of the ashes produced by the process in order to preserve soil quality. If no

nutrients get returned to their origins, soil quality will diminish. Using the ash as constituent

of an organic fertilizer would enable nutrients to be returned without affecting soil pH;

Operate the fishponds by making use of locally available fish. Lele and Patin are species of

fish that can thrive in ambient conditions in Samigaluh. These could be bred in the fishponds,

if nets are used to keep out predators;

Continuous follow-up visits to show dedication to the community of distillers and farmers.

The distillers need to remain convinced that Gadjah Mada works to improve their position.

Often paying visits will convince them of the intention of a long term commitment, and will

motivate them to implement the suggested improvements.

Aid the corporation in adopting a system of environmental management and good

manufacturing practices. It has been a challenge to obtain numeric data on all the flows at

the facility, as little written administration is being kept. It would greatly improve the odds of

studies yielding reliable data and for external sources of funding to be found, if a more

systematic way of working would be used, which could be accompanied by procedures on

how to deal with waste materials

Aid in human resource development: specific training programs for manager(s), workers

and farmers. There would be a lot to gain from courses being organized for everyone

involved in the business. These could be trainings on how to keep a written administration

and instruction on how to operate the digester.

Establish a foundation to provide a platform for co-operation, ensure continuity and to

have better access to charity funds. Starting a foundation in which people of the university

but also distillers take seat, would be a sign of dedication to the project.

Facilitate increased co-operation between distillers. Different seem to have complementary

skills and knowledge, which creates the possibility for a synergistic collaboration. Co-

operation would also ensure fairness in dealings with the distillers: why let just one distiller

benefit from possible innovations.

Abstract 6

CONTENTS

Preface .................................................................................................................................................................... 3

Abstract ................................................................................................................................................................... 4

1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................................................... 9

1.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................................................. 9

1.2 Problem Statement ..................................................................................................................................... 10

1.3 Project Objective and Research Questions ................................................................................................. 11

Research questions ....................................................................................................................................... 11

1.4 Scope of Research ....................................................................................................................................... 12

1.5 Reading Guide ............................................................................................................................................. 12

2 Project Background ............................................................................................................................................ 14

2.1 Indonesia ..................................................................................................................................................... 14

2.2 Gadjah Mada University .............................................................................................................................. 16

The ChAIN Center .......................................................................................................................................... 17

2.3 The Mondialogo Engineering Award Project .............................................................................................. 17

Description of the Industrial cluster .............................................................................................................. 18

2.4 The Patchouli Project .................................................................................................................................. 20

2.5 Research by ITS Surabaya ............................................................................................................................ 21

2.6 Literature Review ........................................................................................................................................ 21

Essential Oils ................................................................................................................................................. 22

Integrated Bio systems .................................................................................................................................. 25

Sustainability in the Essential Oil Business .................................................................................................... 26

3 Methodology and Results .................................................................................................................................. 28

3.1 Interviews & Observation ........................................................................................................................... 28

Methodology of the interviews and observations ........................................................................................ 28

3.2 System modeling (heat balance) ................................................................................................................. 29

Temperature measurements ........................................................................................................................ 34

3.3 Results and Conclusions .............................................................................................................................. 35

Abstract 7

Size of material and energy flows Distillation Unit ....................................................................................... 35

Waste Flow Tofu Unit .................................................................................................................................... 36

Education of the Workforce .......................................................................................................................... 36

An Economically Viable Digester ................................................................................................................... 37

Small Hydropower Unit ................................................................................................................................. 37

General Conclusions ...................................................................................................................................... 37

4 Recommendations ............................................................................................................................................. 38

4.1 Technical ..................................................................................................................................................... 38

Further Study the possibilities for drying of raw material and residue ....................................................... 38

Continue the attempts at designing an appropriate separation technology ................................................ 39

Investigate Other possibilities for pre-treating raw material ....................................................................... 41

Organize re-use of the ashes produced by the process ................................................................................ 41

Operate the Fishponds .................................................................................................................................. 42

Forgo the idea of small hydropower ............................................................................................................. 42

4.2 Social and Organizational ............................................................................................................................ 42

Continuous follow-up visits ........................................................................................................................... 42

Facilitate increased co-operation between distillers. ................................................................................... 42

Environmental Management and Good Manufacturing Practices ............................................................... 43

Incorporate a CSR strategy ............................................................................................................................ 43

Human resource development ..................................................................................................................... 44

4.3 General ........................................................................................................................................................ 44

Allocating funding ......................................................................................................................................... 44

Starting a Foundation .................................................................................................................................... 45

Follow-up Study ............................................................................................................................................ 46

Organic Farming ............................................................................................................................................ 46

Organize the building of small scale processing installations nearby distilleries ......................................... 46

Organization of International Internships ..................................................................................................... 46

5 References .......................................................................................................................................................... 48

List of Appendices ............................................................................................................................................. 49

Abstract 8

6 Appendices ......................................................................................................................................................... 51

Appendix III: Interview Reports ......................................................................................................................... 51

The first visit ................................................................................................................................................. 51

Visits 2 & 3 ..................................................................................................................................................... 54

Visits 4 & 5 ..................................................................................................................................................... 56

Visit 6 ............................................................................................................................................................. 57

Visit 7 ............................................................................................................................................................. 58

Visit 8 ............................................................................................................................................................. 58

Stay in Samigaluh .......................................................................................................................................... 59

Appendix V: Questions for Tunas Maju Corporation ........................................................................................ 61

1 Introduction 9

1 INTRODUCTION

1.1 INTRODUCTION

It is a well established fact that in recent years worldwide attention for sustainable development has

skyrocketed, partly due to the scientific community reaching the consensus that global warming is

indeed occurring to a degree harmful to societies in climate sensitive areas, and that anthropogenic

sources are for a large part responsible, necessitating large scale intervention. Furthermore, Western

countries no longer have monopoly on issues related to environmental sustainability, due to rapid

economic development of other parts of the world, most notably that of Eastern countries. On the

one hand economic growth leads to more harmful emissions, on the other it empowers nations to

put more priority on environmental protection.

One country that’s particularly experiencing a state of transition is Indonesia, which is steadily

recovering from a turbulent history of colonization, authoritarian rule and an economic crisis that

struck the region of South-East Asia at the end of the 20th century. Indonesia is one of the few

countries currently succeeding in achieving positive economic growth figures, despite the recession,

currently plaguing world economy, due to a steady transition from a resource exporting country to

an industrialized nation, liberalization and legislation paving the way for foreign investments. 1

Economic growth and liberalization have also resulted in an increase in environmental awareness

amongst the Indonesian people, resulting in the undertaking of countless projects aiming at a more

sustainable development of different sectors of the economy, some of which are international in

nature. It is also reflected in the establishment of organizational structures, aimed at sustainable

development, like the ChAIN (Chemical Engineering Alliance and Innovation) Center of Gadjah Mada

University, which is aimed at technology transfer and implementation, with a strong focus on

sustainability.

In 2009 an enthusiastic group of chemical engineering students with a passion for sustainability were

assigned to a rural development project in the sub-district of Samigaluh in West Progo, 80km west of

Yogyakarta. There they undertook the rural development project, entitled ‘Zero Waste Production

System in Small/Medium Industrial Cluster’, aiming at eradicating poverty, waste management and

gender empowerment. The intent was achieving this by exploiting the resource of essential oil, while

utilizing industrial waste, and thereby employing local women. Technologies like a biodigester and a

device for separating essential oil from water were to be implemented and furthermore the

government would be incited to serve as a community organizer, while Gadjah Mada would play a

consulting role. The proposal won the 2009 Mondialogo Engineering Award (MEA), a prestigious

award, established by Daimler and UNESCO to encourage collaboration by young engineers from all

over the world. For this reason a student team from Chalmers University, Sweden, took part in the

project.

1 Indonesië: Economische Ontwikkeling, EVD Internationaal, (2009), http://www.evd.nl/zoeken/showbouwsteen.asp?bstnum=155407&location= [accessed 18th of October 2010]

1 Introduction 10

1.2 PROBLEM STATEMENT

Although the award winning UGM and Chalmers project laid down the theoretical background and

framework for the rural development project and a beginning was made with its implementation, a

large part of it is still in the process of being put into practice, due to a complex of obstacles being

faced.

Gajah Mada University has a community service (Kulia Kerja Nyata, KKN) period for third year

students, which centered around the project area, which is why it was joined, as a part of the project

(the last month). The community service team of the previous year, that had been sent to the sub

district of Samigaluh has installed a digester, which was different from the one designed by the

Chalmers team in that it was meant to take only liquid waste from the tofu production unit, instead

of the original idea in which in addition to the liquid waste cow manure was to be fermented. Its

output has been disappointing, which is why it

currently is not being operated by Pak Wandi,

the manager of the installation, and his people.

According to Pak Wandi one of the reasons the

digester is not being fed animal manure is that

he wants to use it to feed catfish. This is only a

plan at the moment, though, as an earlier

attempt at aquaculture resulted in the fish

either being stolen or eaten by predators.

During this year’s community service the

digester has been cleaned and repaired by a

group of Chemical Engineering students, who

attempted an experiment with co-fermentation

of cow manure and acidic liquid waste from the

small tofu production unit, located at the site. For unknown reasons this still has not resolved the

matter of low biogas yield.

The distillation process is not in operation during the whole year, as the relative amount of oil which

can be extracted from the raw material tends to drop (from 2,5 to 1,5 percent) during the wet

season. This is because the material then has a far higher water content. An indirect effect of this is

that the distillery is not continually manned throughout the year, which also makes it more difficult

to use the facility for alternative economic activities. For instance fish from the fish pools get stolen,

because they are not being guarded, and it would be less attractive to house cattle near the distillery

to generate a steady flow of manure as feed for the digester.

A small tofu production unit is present at the facility, which is being operated, albeit sporadically.

This is due to a combination of problems: supposedly corrosion of the boiler of the installation is

causing coloring in the product, which makes it less easy to market. Also, a generally low level of

demand causes little soybeans to be processed, on a daily basis. This is also related to the digester, as

the intention is to feed it with wastewater coming from the tofu production.

There’s also a socio-economic aspect to the problem. The distillery is principally suitable for the

production of patchouli oil, from plant material. Producing this particular kind of essential oil would

Figure 1: Chemical Engineering students digging up

the bio-digester

1 Introduction 11

greatly increase the theoretical profitability of the installation, as market prices are much higher than

those of clove oil. The problem is that the Tunas Maju corporation (the exploiting company) is

currently unable to organize farmers in the community to plant patchouli plants in sufficient

quantities.

1.3 PROJECT OBJECTIVE AND RESEARCH QUESTIONS

The objective of this project is to further the implementation of the MEA project by assessing its

current status, identifying impediments hindering implementation and listing possible steps to be

undertaken to finalize the work of the MEA project team.

During the first round of visits to the distillery and the people responsible, within the first half of the

project, information was obtained, with which to form a clear picture of the exact nature of the

problems faced, as well of a list of priorities, with a focus on the interest of the distillery and the

community. These priorities were then approved by Dr. Agus Prasetya, the project supervisor. This

was done in order to check whether they met the standards of Gadjah Mada protocol, and to be

certain of technical feasibility. The following research questions were formulated, reflecting this

prioritization:

RESEARCH QUESTIONS

Main question: What advice for improvement can be formulated, resulting in further

implementation of the project, based on the qualifying and quantifying of the

material and energy flows within the system which are most important to the

environmental and economical sustainability, with consideration for the

desires of the people most closely involved?

Sub question 1: What is the size of the waste material and energy flows associated with the

essential oil distillation process and how do they relate to the theoretical

possibility of using the chemical energy stored in the solid residue of the

process for generating steam and drying raw material, and thereby increasing

the profitability of the installation?

Sub question 2: What is the size and composition of the waste flows emitted by the tofu

production unit, and are they suitable for either biological digestion or animal

feed?

Sub question 3: How can the workforce best be educated on how to minimize the

environmental impact of the tofu production?

Sub question 4: Is it possible to make the existing digester economically viable, or to install a

new one, and what are the pros and cons of either using the cow manure as

feed for catfish, or as feed for the digester?

1 Introduction 12

Sub question 5: Could a small hydropower unit be installed to deliver electrical power to the

system? (If time permits.)

Sub question 6: What other general recommendations can be given in order to further

project implementation.

During the course of the project adjustments have been made to the research questions for the sake

of practical applicability, benefit for the owners of the facility and their community, and because of

time constraints. As the installation wasn’t being operated, much of the flow quantification had to be

based on rough estimates. During the course of the investigation it became apparent that an

important aspect of the process is the drying of raw material and residue from previous batches to

serve as fuel, which is why the emphasis was put on the energy balance of the system, in order to

determine the available waste heat, which can theoretically employed for drying.

The third research question was broadly interpreted as to encompass all organizational aspects of

furthering implementation and operation of the distillery and the facilities surrounding it.

A visual estimation of the flow of the small river, nearby the facility, led to the conclusion that

benefits of installing a small hydropower unit weren’t likely to outweigh the costs, which is why

limited attention was given to the matter.

1.4 SCOPE OF RESEARCH

As opposed to the project carried out by the Indonesian and Swedish student groups, which took a

community level approach to the problem, this project focuses emphasizes the systems level,

meaning that the installation and all the technical parts of the zero-waste system gain priority over

community related issues. However, comparisons were made with other distilleries and

recommendations are given about organizational aspects, encompassing an existing corporation of

farmers and distillers and other institutions.

1.5 READING GUIDE

In chapter 1 the problem is stated, and the research questions are formulated. Chapter 2 discusses

the various backgrounds of the project, some of which preceded it and led to its execution. It also

contains a brief summary of the literature consulted, that is not sufficiently explained elsewhere in

the text. Chapter 3 contains explanation on the methods employed and their results. The

recommendations based on these results and the research questions are given in chapter 4. A

detailed description of the interviews and observations conducted can be found in the appendices, as

well as a number of sources which provide extra background information and can serve as a starting

point for follow-up studies. Due to their size, most appendices are supplied with the paper report on

a CD-ROM. They are also available for download at http://drop.io/ZWEssential.

Although the report is written in English, the metric system of units is used, as well as the European

system of punctuation for signifying decimals. The photo’s that have been incorporated serve the

1 Introduction 13

function of enabling the reader to get a clear view on the situation in which the research was carried

out, as well as to get a taste of the prevailing atmosphere, which is what made this research unique.

2 Project Background 14

2 PROJECT BACKGROUND

2.1 INDONESIA

Indonesia is the world’s largest archipelago, having a width of about 5.000 miles and containing over

17.000 islands. The Islands are located on the edges of the Australian and Asian continental plates,

resulting in an astounding variety of geological areas, like volcanic regions and endless rainforests,

and ecosystems containing biodiversity, which is amongst the world’s richest (ranking second after

Brazil).

Just as variable is the size of the Islands: some are too small to be inhabited, while others are among

the biggest in the world, like Sumatra, Kalimantan, Sulawesi and New Guinea, of which the Western

part, Irian Jaya belongs to Indonesia. The most populous of islands is Java, which contains the thriving

capital city of Jakarta and the cultural and educational centre of Yogyakarta. 2 3

Currently the country holds more than 230 million people, of around 300 different ethnicities,

making it the 5th most populous country in the world. Although hundreds of different languages are

spoken on the different Islands, all Indonesians get taught Indonesian, or Bahasa Indonesia, reflecting

the country’s motto: Unity in Diversity. This is also signified by the many religions being practiced, of

which five are officially recognized: Islam, Protestantism, Catholicism, Hinduism and Buddhism. The

dominant religion is Islam, to which about 85% of the population adheres, making Indonesia the

world’s most populous Muslim nation.

2 Indonesia, Indonesian Benelux Chamber of Commerce (INA),

http://www.ina.or.id/inaweb/index.php?p=28&lang=eng, [accessed 18th of October 2010] 3 Asian Development Outlook, Indonesia, Asian Development Bank, April 2008,

<http://www.adb.org/Documents/Books/ADO/2008/INO.pdf>, [accessed 18th of October 2010]

Figure 2: The map of Indonesia


History and Culture

Archeological evidence suggests that some of the Indonesian Islands were inhabited for as far back as

500.000 years ago by mankind’s ancestors. Small kingdoms bloomed as early as the 1st century A.D.,

thanks to the archipelago’s excellent suitability for agriculture, and trade links were established with

Indian kingdoms and China, thanks to its strategic position. Trade has shaped Indonesian history ever

since. 4

As early as the seventh century, powerful Buddhist

and Hindu empires challenged each other for

supremacy in Indonesia. First the Srivijaya seafaring

kingdom flourished. Later the Buddhist Sailendra

and Hindu Mataram dynasties were dominant,

leaving behind the Buddhist Borobudur and the

Hindu Prambanan temple complexes. During the

13th century much of the archipelago experienced a

Golden Age, under the rule of the Hindu Majapahit

empire. Between the 13th and 16th century Islam

spread across the Islands to become the dominant

religion.

Between the beginning of the 17th century and the end of the second world war Indonesia was

colonized by the Dutch, who exploited the country, primarily for its spices, like nutmeg, clove and

pepper, which were in high demand worldwide. The end of the Japanese occupation in 1945 was

used as the opportunity to achieve independence from colonial rule, by the nationalist movement,

led by Soekarno, Indonesia’s founding president. In 1968 he was replaced by the former military

general Soeharto, who transformed the democratic republic into an authoritarian state. Under the

rule of the regime, also called the ‘New Order’, the country experienced a period of economic growth

and increased stability, partly due to foreign investments, resulting from support for Soeharto by the

United States. Unrest regarding allegations of corruption and suppression of political opposition, in

combination with an economic downturn, caused by the Asian Financial Crisis, led to the stepping

down of Soeharto in 1998. Since then Indonesia has been making large steps towards becoming a

modern democracy, signified by the first direct presidential elections, held in 2004, as well as a

program promoting regional autonomy.

Yogyakarta

Central to Indonesia’s history, as well as to its geography, is the area currently known as the Special

Region of Yogyakarta (Indonesian: Daerah Istemewa Yogyakarta, DIY). In pre-colonial times the area

was a seat of power for the Mataram and Saliendra kingdoms, still apparent, as both the Borobudur

and the Prambanan temple complex are situated within its borders. During colonial times the area

was ravaged by a civil war between Prince Mangkubumi, the builder of the Kraton (the royal palace)

in Yogyakarta city, who later became Sultan Hamengkubuwono I, and Sunan Pakubuwono I, his elder

brother. Prince Mangkubumi fought the Dutch oppressors who were engaged in the practice of

enslaving the Javanese people, while his brother cooperated with them, and, even though part of the

4 Indonesia, Wikipedia <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indonesia>, [accessed 18th of October 2010]

Figure 3: The Borobudur temple complex,

overlooking the Yogyakarta Special Region


Dutch people opposed the practice of slavery, little support came from this side. In the end

Pakubuwono I’s forces were defeated, after which the kingdom of Jogjakarta was founded, marking

the end of the civil war. In honor of the bravery of Prince Mangkubumi, the area of Yogyakarta

receives a Special Administrative Region (SAR) status, making the Province of Yogyakarta the only

province of Indonesia, that is headed by a monarchy, until this very day.

2.2 GADJAH MADA UNIVERSITY

Gadjah Madah University, named after the prime minister of the great Majapahit Island empire

during its golden age, was founded on December 19th, 1949 and is currently the largest university in

Indonesia, in terms of the number of students attending: approximately 55.000.

As one of the oldest universities of the country it has grown to encompass 18

faculties, of which the medical school is the highest ranking in Indonesia.

Its vision is to be a world class research university which is excellent,

independent, dignified, inspired by Pancasila, the five-pillar ideology, and

dedicated to the needs and welfare of the nation and the world. This it

strives to accomplish through excellence in education, research in

combination with community service. Gadjah Madah is working towards

Figure 4: Yogyakarta Special Region

Figure 5: Garuda Indonesia

with the Pancasila emblem


global interconnectivity in order to involve the world business community in its research towards

positive social change. 5 6

THE CHAIN CENTER

The CHAIN (Chemical Engineering and Innovation Alliance) Center is a special unit under the

Department of Chemical Engineering of the Gadjah Mada University Faculty of Engineering, which is

engaged in the development of application-based technology research, especially focusing on small

and medium enterprises (SME). ChAIN aims to improve these businesses by means of appropriate

technology, to be implemented in accordance with sustainable development principles. This is meant

to help producers to add value to their produce, while at the same time maximizing efficiency of the

consumption of energy and natural resources, and minimizing negative impacts on the environment.

ChAIN has the opportunity to take this pioneering role, due to year long experience and expertise in

the fields of education and technology, combined with a history of community service programs.

The name CHAIN Center, beside being an acronym, also contains three philosophies. Firstly, the

word 'chain' in English is pronounced very similarly to the word 'change'. This is a reflection of the

spirit of the CHAIN Center to form an agent of change in society that dares to open the way for

others. The second philosophy refers to the science of chemistry techniques known as chain

reactions, in which a chemical species called 'radical', which, even though it’s invisible, can trigger

reactions that continue unabated. During its short existence of only three years, the CHAIN Center

that began in the outskirts of the University of Gadjah Mada, through the 'chain reaction', which it

initiated, has been proven to encourage the people in the outposts of the Special Region of

Yogyakarta, and also to be a source of inspiration to many students to care more about Indonesia,

reflected in their behavior. The third philosophy: ChAIN is a chain that connects various strengths to

complement each other. The CHAIN Center asks others to come join in the friendship network, in

order to build a free society through economic and energy independence. 7

2.3 THE MONDIALOGO ENGINEERING AWARD PROJECT

In 2009 a student team of the Chemical Engineering Department of UGM succeeded in in winning

one of the gold medals at the finals of the Mondialogo Engineering Award (MEA) in Stuttgart,

Germany, which aims to further the United Nations Millennium Development Goals, by stimulating

corporation between teams of engineering students around the world. They did so by submitting the

report of their project: “Zero Waste Production System in Small/Medium Industrial Cluster as The

Core of Sustainable Innovative Villages”, which partly took place in corporation with a project group

5 Gadjah Mada University, Wikipedia, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gadjah_Mada_University>, [accessed 18th of October] 6 Vision and Mission, Gadjah Mada University, 2009, <http://www.ugm.ac.id/en/index.php?q=content/vision-mission>, [accessed 18th of October 2010] 7 ChAIN Centre, “Building Excellence Enterpreneurship, and Partnership”, October 2008, <http://chemeng.ugm.ac.id/chain/1/?page_id=2>, [accessed 18th of October 2008]


from Chalmers University in Sweden, a leading country in the field of biogas and other sustainable

technology. The original idea for the project came from the CHAIN

(Chemical Engineering and Innovation) center of the Chemical

Engineering department of UGM. 8

Another part of the context of the project is an investigation

performed by students of the International Business and

Management School of Avans, also in 2009, focusing on the

business aspects of the cultivation and processing of patchouli leaves

to the well known essential oil, and the trade therein. This in order to

discover and alleviate certain barriers, which may result in a less than

optimal quality of life of the farmers and processors.

The project was centered around the village of Ngargosari in the Samigaluh sub district, Kulon Progo

regency in the province of Yogyakarta, Indonesia. The goal of this project has been to improve the

lives of farmers and small industrialists in the area, by making production methods more efficient,

which could be accomplished by making optimal use of waste streams.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INDUSTRIAL CLUSTER

In the area of Samigaluh a wide range of industrial activity takes place. A multitude of crops are

grown, of which cloves and patchouli leaves for the essential oil business are important for the

project. Furthermore the cultivation of rice and miscellaneous crops like vanillin, tea, cocoa, coffee,

coconut and herbs takes place there. Another source of income for the farmers is the breeding of

cattle, to produce meat and dairy products. In the dry season the production of raw essential oils

takes place, as during this period yields of the required plant materials are high. The method

employed is a simple steam extraction process, which is able to all-in-all process 600 kg of plant

material each day, in a cycle consisting of two batches.

8 UGM is among the top 30 Finalists of the Mondialogo Engineering Award, Gadjah Mada News, September

2009, <http://ugm.ac.id/en/news/ugm-among-top-30-finalists-mondialogo-engineering-award>, [accessed 18th

of October 2010]

Figure 6: Samigaluh

subdistrict


The plan of the CHAIN centre is to integrate the production processes in the manner depicted below:

The blue lines represent valuable products, whereas the red ones signify flows, which are currently

considered to be waste streams (to become useful intermediate products in the final system). The

plantations in the diagram represent the fields in the direct vicinity of the distillery, which produce

the raw material for the oil extraction process (patchouli and clove plant material), as well as crops

like rice. These flows have been left out of the diagram.

With the right kind of organization it will be possible to make use of the waste streams from the tofu

production and the animal husbandry (liquid acid waste and manure respectively) to run a digester,

Figure 8: Diagram of the Samigaluh integration of processes,

as envisioned by the MEA student team

Figure 7: The essential oil factory, photographed during the last month of the project


producing biogas. This can serve a multitude of purposes like fuel for the steam extraction process of

the distillers (currently employing the residue of the extraction process), energy for the tofu unit and

household fuel (for cooking etc.). Beside biogas the digester also produces a residue, which can be

used as an organic fertilizer.

The waste heat from the distilleries can be used to warm water up to a temperature high enough for

fish to able to live in. This adds another by-product to people’s livelihoods, while at the same time

providing an excellent method of disposing of organic wastes from, for instance, the soybean

processing. Currently, however, the solid waste of the tofu production unit serves as food for cattle,

while the liquid waste can serve as drink for the animals, which is a sustainable solution by itself.

Another important piece of the puzzle is the river flowing nearby, which supplies all the production

processes with water. As precipitation on Java is known to fluctuate, occasionally creating water

shortages, it is of important to devise the system such, that efficient use is made of the water. As the

presence of water in Samigaluh is accompanied by great differences is height the possibility exists of

harnessing its energy. The feasibility of the deployment of micro-hydropower units is currently being

examined.

The project proposal for the MEA is attached to this report as Appendix I.

2.4 THE PATCHOULI PROJECT

In December 2009 a group of students from the International Business and Management School

(IBMS) of Avans University finished their report entitled “Patchouli Project”, in which they describe

their analysis of the essential oil business, with a focus on Patchouli oil and its production in the area

of Samigaluh. The objective of the project was to generate insight in the relationships between the

essential oil market and the local producers, so as to hand them the tools for increasing their living

standard.

The project centered around the production and marketing of Patchouli oil, as prices are high,

compared to other essential oils, due to an increase in demand and a lack of a synthetic substitute.

Also Indonesia is known to be the world leading exporter of Patchouli oil, with a market share of

around 90%. Problems standing in the way of empowerment of producers, that the student team

signaled, were, for instance, an insufficient quality of the oil, as produced locally, and what was called

a ‘cartel’ of brokers and traders. These ‘in-between’ men reportedly manage to obtain an unfair

profit margin on the merchandise, when seen in proportion to the value added, resulting in a

relatively weak bargaining position for farmers and distillers. They are said to be in this position,

thanks to a high level of organization and ties with the government. Furthermore a lack of knowledge

amongst farmers and distillers is reported to be a key problem.

Suggested solutions are reforming existing corporations into better organized structures, and

thereby increasing their bargaining position. The student team recommended to supply the

corporations with better tools for creating a network and they suggested to start a foundation which

could provide a basis for this network, education, improved ways of marketing the product, and a

platform from which to undertake legal action.


The Patchouli Project report is added as Appendix VII.

2.5 RESEARCH BY ITS SURABAYA

According to researchers from the newly founded Centre for Research and Development of Essential

Oils (Unit Penelitian dan Pengembangan Minyak Atsiri) up until now the most important problems

distillers are currently facing are low quality and low price. The centre, which is a division of ITS

(Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember Surabaya), aims to be a centre of expertise and technological

know-how on essential oils, and has been performing research on the production of Patchouli oil in

East-Java since 2006, with the aim of increasing the yield and quality.

The result has been a technology entitled Metode Pembuatan Minyak Nilam dengan Aneka Macam

Komposisi Kuantitatip (roughly translated as Method for Producing Essential Oils with Different

Quantitative Compositions), which is currently in the process of being patented. The method

employs a combined hydro and steam distillation process, and the research group claims that yields

can reach up to 3% of the dry mass weight of the plant material (which is notably higher than the 2,5

or 3 percent of the total weight of the material, reported by distillers), and that by use of Good

Manufacturing Practices (GMP) the resulting essential oil is very pure: containing less than 30

chemicals. This absence of so called ‘artefacts’ would therefore enable the oil to be sold directly on

the international market, which would constitute a great empowerment of the distillers. For this goal

to be reached the oil should also be of a consistent composition, obtainable by standardized

procedures for GMP and quality assurance, like gas chromatography tests.

The research team has been assessing the traditional distillation process of essential oils on a

systems level, also taking into account environmental considerations like energetic efficiency and

waste flows. An economic assessment will be made, comparing the current production method and

the improved hydro distillation method. The latter yields a residue that, when mixed with ashes from

burnt wood fuel and after composting, results in an excellent organic fertilizer. This should eliminate

the problem of disposal of ashes, while at the same time compensating for higher production costs,

along with the higher revenue resulting from the higher oil yield and quality. Higher production costs

are likely, due to the longer required distillation time. Also, the dried residue from previous batches

cannot be employed as a fuel, which results in higher consumption of fire wood. Nonetheless, the

longer distillation period supposedly does not influence the net energy requirement of the process. 9

2.6 LITERATURE REVIEW

During the literature study available sources relating to the project itself and similar projects were

examined. This, along with information obtained by means of interviews (described in Appendix III),

was crucial in determining the required prioritization to ensure optimal usefulness of the study, as

viewed from the perspective of the people working at the industrial cluster. Furthermore sources

were gathered, containing information on all the subtopics relating to the different parts of the

system.

9 Newsletters Unit Penelitian dan Pengembangan Minyak Atsiri, Dr. Hans Siwon, Appendix II


In this sub-chapter a summary will be given of some important theoretical backgrounds, relevant to

the project. Only the topics that are not sufficiently explained in the following chapters are treated

separately, which is due to the broad nature of the project. The most important sources of

information are referred to throughout this report.

ESSENTIAL OILS

By definition, essential oil is the volatile fraction of a plant, that can be extracted by means of steam

distillation, and it is considered to be the part of the chemical composition that gives a plant its

characteristic aroma (the essence). Often essential oils are extracted from the leaf material or stems

(e.g. lemongrass, citronella, patchouli and clove) and sometimes from the fruit, flowers, buds or

seeds (e.g. clove, nutmeg and coriander).

Essential oils are being used since the Classical era from ancient Rome to the Far East, as fragrances,

base for incense, insect repellents and antiseptic agents for embalming. 10

Essential oils consist of complex mixtures of compounds, making them difficult to synthetically

reproduce. This causes them to be a low volume, high value commodity, and thus an economically

attractive product for rural populations. Most essential oils are made up of hydrocarbons

(monoterpenes and sesquiterpenes), ogygenated compounds (alcohols, esters, ethers, aldehydes,

ketones etc.) and a non-volatile residue (paraffins and waxes). The oxygenated compounds are

primarily responsible for the oil’s characteristic odor, and to some extent the hydrocarbons. 11

Extraction methods

There are various ways to extract essential oils, of differing levels of technical complexity, which are

discussed here briefly.

Steam extraction: the most common extraction method, employed by small producers, like the ones

examined in this study. Steam is generated in a boiler, external to the vessel containing the plant

material, which prevents this from degrading thermally, resulting in a relatively high grade of

essential oil. The steam carries the oil into a condenser, where it is cooled below the dew point. The

resulting oil and water mixture is then separated using various separation methods.

10 Dewi Haryani Binti Suleiman, ‘Extraction of Patchouli Oil Using Steam Distillation’, Universiti Malaysia Pahang, May 2008, p. 5, Appendix XII 11 Intermediate Technology Foodchain 24, Practical Action document database, <http://www.practicalaction.org/docs/agroprocessing/food_chain_24.pdf>, [accessed 18th of October 2010]


Hydro distillation: a less advanced method than steam distillation, which is sometimes still

being employed in developing countries. The plant material is directly mixed with water, kept in the

distillation unit, causing it to be exposed to higher temperatures, resulting in chemical reactions

producing unwanted by-products (so called ‘artefacts’) and therefore poor quality oil.

Hydro-steam distillation: In this method the plant material is kept on a grid, suspended above

the boiling water. Less thermal degradation occurs than with hydro distillation, as the plant material

is less exposed to heat. Good quality oils can be obtained by this method, from for instance

lemongrass or citronella.

Figure 9: Steam Extraction. Source: FAO

Figure 10: Hydrodistillation. Source: FAO


Solvent extraction: This method involves the soaking of the plant material in an organic solved

(often hexane) in which the essential oil diffuses, which is later separated using alcohol. Extraction

may be enhanced by employing ultrasound, which causes pockets containing the oil to rupture. A

variation to this method is extraction by use of supercritical CO2, which eliminates the need for a

potentially harmful solvent, like hexane. The drawback of solvent extraction methods is that they

tend to be rather high-tech, ruling them out as viable options for small-scale producers, like the one

examined is this project.

Patchouli

Patchouli oil is the essential oil of the Pogostemon Cablin, a shrub of the Lamiaceae (mint) family,

which originates from Malaysia, but which is now cultivated in many places, including India,

Indonesia and China. The shrub is cropped two to three times per year, and patchouli oil is obtained

from the leaves and young shoots by means of steam distillation. Extraction of the oil often occurs

nearby the place of origins, although sometimes dried leaves are imported. Indonesia is the world’s

largest producer with around 450 tonnes per year, followed by China, producing around 50 tonnes.

Patchouli oil has characteristic penetrating earthy and woody smell, which is often associated with

the hippy era, as they favored it as a perfume. Patchouli had historically been well known throughout

Europe, as it has been used as perfume and insect repellant for Indian textiles. Currently it is widely

being used as a base note and fixative in perfumes, scenting agent in detergents and cosmetic

products and as additive in tobacco and beverages. Historically it has also been used for its medicinal

properties. Patchouli oil is said to reduce stress and stomach and skin problems. It is often used as a

constituent of preparations for aromatherapy, and as an ingredient for various kinds of incense.

Interestingly, there are attributed spiritual powers, which is why the pop star Madonna reportedly

used it to scent the first pressings of her ‘Like a Prayer’ album.

Figure 10: Hydrodistillation. Source: FAO


INTEGRATED BIO SYSTEMS

Integrated bio systems are agricultural systems in which raw nutrient (and raw material) loops are

closed as much as much as possible, in order to achieve

eco-efficient production. This is achieved by connecting

production activities with other operations, such as

waste-treatment and fuel generation. Outputs (or more

specifically by-products) from one operation become

inputs for another, whereby resources are re-used and

environmental impact minimized. The tendency to

adopt an integrated approach to (agricultural)

production has increased during recent years, to

environmental pressures and economic drivers, such as

the rising cost of water, fuel and other inputs. It deserves

emphasis that often system profitability is greatly

enhanced.

Other than this short term advantage, there are also many benefits for sustainability over a longer

period of time. For example, soil structure improves, when for instance fish pond silt is being

employed as fertilizer, which also limits soil eroding, and farms and communities become more

stable, as they are less dependent on external production inputs. An interesting and for this project

relevant side-effect of switching to integrated agriculture, aquaculture and industry, is that it fosters

co-operation between different actors in a community. This effect occurs, because often neighbors

who specialize in different products can close resource loops, by exchanging complementary inputs,

whereby creating a synergistic effect.12

Below are some examples of possible connections:

Livestock manure being used as a fertilizer;

Organic wastes converted to biogas by means of a bio-digester;

A completely closed loop of manure used as a fertilizer for crops serving as animal feed;

Nutrient recovery by treating nutrient rich wastewater with aquatic plants that can be fed to

livestock, while they reduce nutrient levels, enabling the water to be used for irrigation;

Integration with industrial processes by employing their by products. For example using

waste heat from a process to heat a fishpond to increase the grow rate of the fish, while

feeding them with an organic by-product;

Integration of agricultural and/or industrial activities with communities. For instance by using

sewage as a source of biogas, with which to run an industrial process.

Integrated aquaculture

Integration of livestock breeding, agriculture and agriculture is not a new concept, as it is being

performed for centuries in India and China. The essence of integrated aquaculture is that organic

12 Warburton et al., Integrated Biosystems for Sustainable Development, Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation, Publication Nr. 01/174, 2002, Appendix XIV

Figure 11: Schematic representation of an

integrated biosystem. Source: Integrated

Biosystems for Sustainable Development


waste materials are fed to aquatic organisms (fish or plants), whereby preventing nutrients from

getting lost from the system and polluting the environment, while generating an extra source of

income. This can be in the form of fish, or a reduced need for external nutrients, when for instance

duckweed is grown, to serve as feed for cattle.

In fish farming either plant or animal by-products can serve as a fertilizer for a pond. All nutrients

added can fertilize the bottom of the ponds, which results in more food for fish, and some species

can even be fed directly by plant or animal wastes (e.g. several species of catfish). Depending on the

circumstances an intermediate step may be required. Plant materials can be composted and animal

manure fermented in an anaerobic digester, resulting in nutritious sludge and biogas. Depending on

local market conditions, fish breeding can also be integrated with various other forms of animal

production, like ducks or pigs.

Crucial to the water quality in a pond, and therefore its productivity and profitability, are, beside its

nutrient content, oxygen level and temperature. Furthermore sunlight is important, as it is required

for growth of plants and algae and oxygen generation (photosynthesis). Other factors influencing the

amount of dissolved oxygen the climate: more oxygen can dissolve in the water if the ambient

temperature is not too high (optimally between 25 and 30 degrees Celsius, depending on the fish

species), and when there is a wind blowing, causing the water to become aerated. Care has to be

taken not to let the ponds suffer from eutrophication, caused by too many nutrients, leading to

growth of oxygen consuming algae. Fertilizer application needs to be managed carefully. (See chapter

2.3 of Appendix IV.)

SUSTAINABILITY IN THE ESSENTIAL OIL BUSINESS

Sustainability refers to the ability of an ecosystem, society or any such ongoing system to continue

functioning into the indefinite future, without being forced into decline owing to exhaustion of key

resources, weather conditions or market prices. These aspects can be seen in relation to the famous

three P’s often stated, when scientists analyze sustainability problems: People, Planet and Profit,

which need to be kept in harmony, if long term survivability of a system is to be guaranteed. 13

For the sector of essential oil production in Indonesia this means that there should be sufficiently

large and fairly distributed income for the farmers, distillers and traders and their employees, there

should be an adequate system of organization between these shareholders and their communities,

as well as an educational system, supplying a schooled workforce. Furthermore the production

processes should be organized in such a manner that harmful emissions and natural resource and

energy consumption are kept at a minimum.

According to the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), a major factor

endangering the sustainable production of essential oils in developing nations is the fact that the

products are being exported as a raw material. Thereafter they are processed in highly industrialized

countries into high grade products like drugs, fragrances and flavors, that get imported again into the

13

Microbial Metabolism and Biotechnology, Horst W. Doelle DSc, DSc [hc]


countries of origin at much higher prices. This is confirmed by the Centre for Research and

Development of Essential Oils in Surabaya, which, with their integral approach to implementing more

modern production methods, attempts to give producers the means of add value to their produce

themselves, relieving them of their reliance on foreign parties to purify the essential oils.

An important problem is the fact that demand (and thus the price) is fluctuating. This creates the

need for storage areas and small processing units nearby distilleries, which would improve distillers’

bargaining position. This could be facilitated by a greater degree of organization between distillers

and farmers. Such an organization could also tackle the problem of part of the raw materials being

harvested wild natural resources, which threatens biodiversity, as this requires coordination of

systematic cultivation. 14

14 K. Tuley de Silva, A Manual on the Essential Oil Business, UNIDO, Vienna, Austria, 1995, Appendix XI

3 Methodology and Results 28

3 METHODOLOGY AND RESULTS

3.1 INTERVIEWS & OBSERVATION

During the half year period of the project a total of eight separate excursions were undertaken, by

motorcycle, into the hills of Samigaluh, in addition to a number of trips back and forth from

Yogyakarta city, during the final month of the project. The first 6 visits were either to the home of

Pak Wandi or to the Tunas Maju headquarters. This in order to obtain crucial information from the

people most closely involved in the operation of the distillery, being first and foremost Pak Wandi,

the manager of the distillery, and also Pak Puji, the head of the Tunas Maju corporation to which the

distillery belongs. The seventh excursion was undertaken to visit the distillery of Pak Sukijan, while

the eight was to Pak Susilo’s distillery, accompanied by Pak Boon, the project supervisor from Avans

University.

Furthermore visits were made to two other

distilleries in the close vicinity, employing

more or less the same production process,

being those of Pak Sukijan and Pak Susilo,

both belonging to the Sri Wijaya

corporation. The latter visits were

undertaken to get a better understanding of

the process, by observing it while in

operation, which wasn’t an option at Pak

Wandi’s distillery, due to the fact that the

distillery has been out of service, for the

duration of the project. This with the

exeption of the small tofu production unit,

located at the facility. Also the visits to the

other facilities offered the opportunity for

a comparative analysis between individual distilleries which was helpful in order to determine what

characteristics tend to make one distillery more successful than the other.

The last month of the project I have been a guest at the house of Pak Munadi and his wife in the

village of Ngargosari, at a stone’s throw from the distillery of Pak Wandi. The house served as a base

camp for a group of students among which were my two companions mentioned above, who were

in the process of executing their community service (KKN) project there, during a two month period.

This allowed me to take part in the community, while observing the goings on, at the facility. Also

temperature measurements were taken during this period, at the distillery of Pak Susilo, located in

the nearby village of Ngargosari.

METHODOLOGY OF THE INTERVIEWS AND OBSERVATIONS

The interviews were conducted, employing a trial and error approach. During the first interviews it

was not apparent which information would be available, or in which form it would present itself.

Figure 12: A visit to Pak Susilo and his distillery, in full

operation


Soon it became clear that little written information was available, which was the reason why they

were conducted in the first place.

The people interviewed were not proficient in English, necessitating the use of a translator, during

each visit. Preceding each visit some questions were prepared with the translator, enabling him to

steer the discussion in the right direction. This was important, as the people of the Tunas Maju

corporation tended to focus on their own priorities, which were often related to the financial aspect

of their business. In an attempt to get more technical information a list of questions was prepared on

paper, so as to enable Pak Wandi to take his time in answering these accurately. This had as a

positive side effect that he got a better understanding of the project objectives.

Each visit was ‘debriefed’ by talking to the translator and writing down that information that had not

yet been translated during the interview. This also resulted in a clear view of the priorities of the

Tunas Maju corporation, resulting the project objectives to be adjusted accordingly. In order to

maximize reliability of the information obtained from interviews the questions were repeated

throughout the course of the project, and asked to different people involved. This proved necessary

as sometimes information was conflicting or became outdated.

The observations consisted at visual inspections of the process equipment and observation of the

various processes being operated. All the while questions were asked to the operators about what

exactly they were doing, to which the answers were put on paper. During the observation of the tofu

production process measurements were taken of the product volume, using improvised measuring

tools.

For a detailed description of the interviews, observations and the obtained information, see

Appendix III.

3.2 SYSTEM MODELING (HEAT BALANCE)

Why model?

The interviews with Pak Wandi made clear that there was a wish and also the ability to produce

Patchouli oil at the distillery, due to the great benefits to be gained in terms of profit. One important

reason, according to Pak Wandi, for not distilling any Patchouli at the moment is the fact that too

little essential oil can be extracted from the

plant material, resulting in a low production

efficiency, to an extent that it is no longer

profitable to run the process.

Also, the observations performed at the

distilleries of Pak Sukijan and Pak Susilo

showed that during the operation of the

process, large amounts of heat energy,

originating from the boiler in which the

steam is generated, are currently not being

put to any use. This with the exception of

Figure 13: A pile of wood fuel, photographed during the visit

to Pak Sukijan’s distillery


the relatively advanced distillery of Pak Sukijan, at which the part of the waste heat, which is

otherwise discharged through the steam, is re-used for pre-heating the water entering the boiler by

means of a counter current heat exchanger, which results in a lower consumption of fuel wood, and

therefore in a higher overall efficiency of the system.

However, even in such a relatively efficient system a large portion of the energy, originally contained

in either the fuel wood or the residue being combusted, is wasted through the smokestack. At the

facilities of Pak Wandi and Pak Susilo even more energy is available to be put to use, because of the

lack of such a recycling system.

Making more efficient use of the heat of combustion would result in an increase in the sustainability

of the distilleries, as less fuel wood, often obtained in an unsustainable fashion, would be consumed,

and less carbon dioxide emitted. There are several purposes for which the heat could be employed:

drying of raw material;

drying of residue from the process, meant to serve as fuel;

pre-heating of the water entering the boiler.

In order to determine the total quantity of waste heat available, a energy balance was made,

encompassing all process equipment. The goal was to determine separate values for the amount of

energy leaving the system through the stack, and the amount lost via the process water. These

values could be determined by subtracting the energy lost from the process equipment through

radiation and convection from the total thermal energy, contained in the fuel. This means that losses

in the boiler, due to incomplete combustion of the fuel (unburnt fuel leaving the stack or along with

the ashes). Estimates were made of the following parameters:

heat of combustion contained in the fuel wood or residue, required for one batch;

the amount of thermal energy required to heat and evaporate the required amount of

steam;

heat losses from the different pieces of process equipment.

Heating and steam

From observations carried out at Pak Sukijan’s distillery a value was gathered for the amount of

water used for steam, based on the amount leaving the system. Four drums were filled, each with an

estimated volume of 1767 liters, totaling 7069 liters. For the purpose of calculating the heat needed

to warm it up to 100˚C, the ambient temperature (and thus water temperature) was assumed to be

25˚ C. The total amount was obtained by multiplying this value by the specific heat of water

(4,180˚C/gram) and the temperature difference (100 – 25 = 75˚C), resulting in 2,22 * 109 joules

required per batch. Subsequently the amount of energy required for evaporation was calculated, by

multiplying the volume of water by the heat of evaporation of water (2257 kJ/kg), resulting in a value

of 1,6 * 1010 J. Thus, the total heat required for the creation of steam amounted to 2,22 * 109 + 1,6 *

1010 = 1,82 * 1010 J, for a process batch lasting 8 hours this equals 632 kW.

Although a rough estimation of the fuel wood used for one batch (approximately 880 kg) was made

available by Pak Sukijan, it was decided to use the energy for water heating and steam production as

a starting point for the purpose of calculating the amount of fuel required, as this would likely give a

more accurate value. When assuming all chemical energy stored in the fuel gets converted into heat


in the boiler, one can state that the total chemical energy equals the energy needed for water and

steam, plus the heat losses, leaking from the system at the various pieces of equipment.

Heat losses

The heat losses from the system at the boiler, stripping columns and condenser were calculated, with

use of generic values for thermal conductivity coefficients and radiation constants (both categories

obtained from The Engineering Toolbox website) of the two materials modeled: brick and wrought

iron. Estimates were made of the average thickness of the materials, needed for calculating the heat

losses through convection (and thus overall conductivity). The ambient temperature was assumed to

be 25˚C, and for the temperatures of the exterior surfaces the values used were those obtained

during the temperature measurements, as elaborated upon in the following paragraph. Heat losses

through piping were left out of the equation.

For overall conductive heat loss the Fourier’s law is used:15

Q = k A ΔT/s

where

A = heat transfer area (m2)

K = thermal conductivity of the material (W/m.˚C)

ΔT = temperature difference across the material (˚C)

s = material thickness (m)

For the radiation losses the law of Stefan-Boltzmann:16

Q = ε σ T4 A

where

ε = emissivity of the object

q = heat transfer per unit time (W)

σ = 5.6703 10-8 (W/m2K4) - The Stefan-Boltzmann Constant

T = absolute temperature Kelvin (K)

A = area of the emitting body (m2)

The product ε σ may be replaced by the empirically determined radiation constant. The following

values were obtained:

15 J.M. Coulson & J.F. Richardson, Chemical Engineering Volume 1, (Woburn: Butterworth-Heinemann, 2000), p. 388 16 J.M. Coulson & J.F. Richardson, Chemical Engineering Volume 1, (Woburn: Butterworth-Heinemann, 2000), p. 441

Figure 14: 3D rendition of the

contactor columns and the

condenser (middle)

Figure 15: 3D rendition of the boiler

of the Tunas Maju distillery


Heat losses boiler (brick part)

Heat losses stripper columns

Thermal conductivity W/(m K) 0,69

Thermal conductivity W/(m K) 59

Radiation constant (10-8 W/m2 K4) 5,16


Surface area (m2) 6

Surface area (m2) 13

Surface temperature (K) 326


ΔT (K) 28

ΔT (K) 31

Wall thickness (m) 0,003


Convective heat loss (kJ/s) 39

Convective heat loss (kJ/s) 7,8 *106

Radiative heat loss (kJ/s) 3,5


Total losses (kJ/S) 7,8 *106

Heat losses boiler (wrought iron part)

Heat losses condensor





Surface area (m2) 2,3

Surface area (m2) 3,0



ΔT (K) 77

ΔT (K) 31



Convective heat loss (kJ/s) 34

Convective heat loss (kJ/s) 1,8 *106



Total losses boiler (kJ/s) 77

Total losses (kJ/S) 1,8 *106

The total loss then amounts to 9,7MJ/s, which totals about 35GJ lost during one batch of a duration

of 8 hours. Only roughly 18GJ is necessary to turn the 7069 liters of process water into steam, which

shows that the overall thermal efficiency of the system is only roughly 50%.

Heat in flue gas

During combustion in a typical boiler up to 20% of the energy stored in the fuel is lost in the flue

gas. 17 This value is assumed to apply to the boiler of Pak Wandi’s distillery.

Energy Balance

With these data the energy balance over the system can take shape. The equation is as follows:

Heating value of fuel wood (Hw) = energy for steam generation (Hs) + heat losses (Hl) + energy

content of flue gas (Hg). Then, Hw – Hg = Hs + Hl. As Hg = 1/5 of Hw:

4/5 Hw = Hs + Hl

Hw = 5/4 (Hs + Hl) = 5/4 (18 + 35) = 66 GJ

17 Flue Gas Heat Recovery, Food Processing Consortium, <http://www.foodtechinfo.com/FoodPro/Efficiency/flue_gas_heat_recovery.htm>, [accessed 18th of October 2010]


Hg = 66 / 5 = 13 GJ

The equation shows that there is a substantial amount of energy which can be used to dry materials,

if a heat exchange system is installed in the drying areas. A water trap would have to be installed at

the point in the tubing at which the temperature reaches 100˚C, as water will tend to condense in

the tubing. Stainless steel or copper tubing will need to be used, as to prevent corrosion. This will

lead to sizable investment costs. More on the proposed system for drying raw material can be found

in chapter 5.

Amount of fuel needed

We’ve calculated that the total amount of primary energy, required to fuel a batch with a duration of

8 hours, equals about 66 GJ. From information supplied by UGM the heating value of the process

residue (clove leaf residue) was known to equal 18 MJ per kg. On average the lower heating value

(LHV) of wood is around 15 MJ per kg.

To fire the process using just wood, would require 66 * 103 / 15 = 4,4 * 103 kg of wood. The amount

of residue needed for a batch amounts to 66 * 103 / 18,3 = 3,6 * 103 kg.

The amount of residue available after one batch is assumed to be the mass of the raw material minus

the mass of the extracted oil. At a production efficiency of 2,5% and a batch of 600 kg the amount of

oil is 15 kg. The amount of residue available for combustion is then 600 – 15 = 585 kg. As 3620 kg is

needed, there would be a shortage of 3620 – 585 = 3035 kg, which coincides with an energy content

of 3,0 * 103 * 18,3 = 56 GJ. Thus, to compensate for the shortage, an amount of wood is needed

equaling 56 * 103 / 15 = 3,7 * 103 kg.

Generated wood ash

Assuming only wood is combusted during a process (as information on amount of ashes produced

per kg of residue is lacking) a calculation can be made of the amount of wood ash generated.

Typically between 0,4 and 1,8 mass percent of the wood burned remains as ashes, averaging 1,1

percent. For an amount of 4,4 * 103 kg of wood this results in 50 kg of ashes per process.


TEMPERATURE MEASUREMENTS

During the final month of the project temperature measurements were carried out of the process

equipment at Pak Susilo’s distillery, while this was being operated, using a thermocouple, supplied by

the faculty. It had previously belonged to Chalmers University, of which an international student had

employed it to take measurements at a pottery factory

nearby Parang Tritis.

Pak Susilo’s distillery was assumed to be representative for

the process as it is generally carried out, meaning that

values obtained should be possible to generalize to apply to

Pak Wandi’s process as well. This assumption is probably

accurate, except for one notable difference in the process:

Pak Susilo uses a water basin to condense the steam,

containing the oil, whereas Pak Wandi uses a counter

current heat exchanger to cool and condense. In the energy

balance in the above paragraph, the external surface

temperature of the condenser is assumed to be of equal

temperature to that of the stripping columns, which is

probably not entirely accurate.

The temperatures we measured by holding the tip of the

thermocouple against the interior surface of the process

equipment of was placed inside of the equipment in the

case of the boiler interior measurements. The process was

tracked, until a stable temperature was achieved after about

three hours, indicating the equilibrium of the system. The

following temperatures were measured:

Outside contactor

Top of the boiler

At startup 23

At startup 28

T = 1,5 hrs 26

T = 1,5 hrs 43

T = 3 hrs 55

T = 3 hrs 57

T = 4 hrs 55

T = 4 hrs 52

Furnace outside (above fire)

Stack Outside

At startup 103

At startup 45

T = 1,5 hrs 100

T = 1,5 hrs 58

T = 3 hrs 99

T = 3 hrs 48

T = 4 hrs 102

T = 4 hrs 57

Figure 16: Temperature

measurements at Pak Susilo’s

distillery


Cooling water basin

Furnace interior

At startup 23

At startup 214

T = 1,5 hrs 23

T = 1,5 hrs 250

T = 3 hrs 24

T = 3 hrs 284

T = 4 hrs 27

T = 4 hrs 484

Of prime importance for the heat balance were the values for the outside of the contactor (stripper),

the top of the boiler (the metal part containing water for steam), the outside of the furnace (brick

part of the boiler in the modeling) and essentially the cooling water basin, which is the equivalent of

Pak Wandi’s condenser column. The stack temperature was

measured, as this was assumed to be equal to the flue gas

temperature at the equilibrium state of the process. The

furnace interior was measured in order to get an

approximation of the combustion temperature of the fuel

wood.

As can be deducted from the values, a more or less stable state

was obtained after 3 hours. The stack and furnace interior are

an exception to this, as these fluctuate more, as a result from

momentary differences in amount of fuel being fed to the

furnace. The high temperature of the furnace interior at t = 4

hours was due to the operator demonstrating how hot he

could get it to be.

3.3 RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS

Below the results are listed per research question.

SIZE OF MATERIAL AND ENERGY FLOWS DISTILLATION UNIT

Below, the overall energy balance and mass balance are depicted based on a single production batch,

with a duration of 8 hours, processing 600 kg of raw material:

Figure 17: The operator, firing up

the boiler

Figure 18: Overall energy balance


Both the heat leaving the system through the smokestack as the energy content of the wastewater

(previously steam) can partly be used for drying of raw material and residue, or pre-heating of boiler

water, in order to increase the overall efficiency of the system. This would require the installment of

a counter current heat exchanger before the boiler, or a specially designed drying area.

WASTE FLOW TOFU UNIT

Approximately 90 liters of wastewater get emitted per batch of 6 kg soybeans, of which the BOD

equivalent is around 3,7 mg/l. Each kg of soybeans processed results in approximately 3 kg of tofu,

and 3 kg of soy pulp, which can be used as feed for cattle. At the current digester volume (300 l) the

feed should be around 3,8 l per hour, to allow for an optimal retention time, meaning that a bigger

digester would be needed if the tofu production were to be expanded.

EDUCATION OF THE WORKFORCE

Both the Tunas Maju corporation management, as well as the workers operating the facility were

shown to lack a modern day approach to their work. Workers pay little attention to hygiene and have

no manufacturing practices of sustainable waste disposal or quality control. Also, the workers

supposedly lack know-how on how to operate the bio-digester.

The management keeps limited track of quantities of raw materials, product and waste streams. No

written administration is being kept. In chapter 4.3 recommendations are given on how to improve

this problem.

Figure 19: Overall material balance


AN ECONOMICALLY VIABLE DIGESTER

Experiments by Chemical Engineering students have not resulted in any significant biogas output.

Literature sources and examples around Yogyakarta show that tofu wastewater is a suitable feed for

biogas. The volume of production (only 6 kg of soybeans per day), and thus the size of the digester

could be a limiting factor. The estimated output of methane would be 118 g per batch of 6 kg (90

liters of water), indicating that a digester might not be economically viable, unless the tofu

production is expanded.

SMALL HYDROPOWER UNIT

This has received little attention as a visual inspection and estimation resulted in an approximate

maximum power output of only 1kW, during the wet season and little to none during the dry season.

For additional information on small hydropower the Layman’s Guide on How to Develop a Small

Hydro Site, issued by the Directorate General for Energy of the European Commission, may be

consulted. (Appendix X)

GENERAL CONCLUSIONS

Production of patchouli oil was determined to constitute an increase in the facility’s

profitability. Currently, a lack of organization with local farmers, resulting in a shortage of

raw material, forms an obstruction for patchouli exploitation.

The facility seems to be suffering from a lack of maintenance.

The priority of the Tunas Maju corporation is on obtaining funds, rather than innovating the

system, although the ambition exists of becoming a force of community empowerment.

No adequate separation technology is currently available to the distillers.

The fishponds were empty due to fish being eaten by predators or stolen. No nets are

currently installed, with which to cover the ponds. It was ascertained that fish species are

available that can be cultivated in the prevailing conditions, without a need for temperature

regulation.

The corporation was interested in the concept of re-using waste heat, to compensate for

seasonal fluctuations in raw material supply.

The ashes resulting from wood combustion in the boiler of the distillation unit are currently

disposed of in the environment.

Problems experienced with the tofu unit were supposedly corrosion of the boiler and limited

marketability of the product.

4 Recommendations 38

4 RECOMMENDATIONS

4.1 TECHNICAL

FURTHER STUDY THE POSSIBILITIES FOR DRYING OF RAW MATERIAL AND RESIDUE

From the mass and energy balance it follows that a substantial amount of energy is available, which

is not currently put to use. This could be employed for drying. Drying raw material would lead to high

oil yields, even in the wet season. Drying residue would increase its heating value, whereby less fuel

would be needed.

Drying of raw material as a pre-treatment step for essential oil raw material is by no means an easy

matter, and needs to be studied further before it can be put into practice. Experiments need to be

undertaken to determine the exact conditions under which it can be done, without negatively

affecting the oil yield. Studies show that optimal yields are currently obtained when the material is

allowed to ferment for some time (77 days) under room temperature.18 This has to do with the fact

that the oil glands of the plants need to be ruptured to release the oil on the one hand, but without

allowing too much of the oil to evaporate on the other hand. This was also confirmed by both Pak

Susilo and Pak Wandi, who had both undertaken attempts at drying the material in order to extend

the period during which they can operate the process, which is currently only six months for

patchouli. Nonetheless, the gains of overcoming this constriction would be so great, due to the high

value of patchouli oil, that it deserves to be extensively studied. It also needs to be studied whether

the investment costs for a drying device would outweigh the labor and area required for drying of

residue, which is also being done by some distillers, in order to increase its heating value, and

thereby decreasing their need for an external source of fuel (wood).

After conditions are determined under which to optimally perform the drying step, a design can be

made for a system to put it into practice. The drying system could take the shape of an ordinary shed

with curved tubing mounted inside, to act as heat exchanger with an optimized surface area, which

can be calculated based on the temperature of the medium used (exhaust gas, hot steam or water).

18 Development of Patchouli Extraction with Quality Control and Isolation of Active Compounds with Antibacterial Activity, Ngampong Kongkathip et al., 2009, Appendix VIII

Figure 20: Spreading out residue for

a previous batch for drying

Figure 21: Area for convective

drying of raw material


CONTINUE THE ATTEMPTS AT DESIGNING AN APPROPRIATE SEPARATION TECHNOLOGY

The observations pointed out that they current lack an optimal method of separation of the oil and

water. A better separating technology would lead to labor cost reduction, higher oil yield and

possibly a higher oil quality.

During the course of the project it became clear that an attempt had been undertaken to provide a

better means of separating the oil from water than is currently employed: a cascade of vessels in

which the oils lighter than water (e.g. patchouli ρ ≈ 0,9) float to the top and the oils heavier (e.g.

clove, ρ ≈ 1,2) sink to the bottom. A scoop or a small valve are used to remove the oil from the

containers.

An ingenious separation device was designed by Chemical

Engineering student Made Rajendra, which has the capability of

separation resulting in very pure products, compared to the

cascaded drum system, for both patchouli and clove oil.19 The

device had been installed at the distillery of Pak Susilo, in order

to test it out. He, however, was not using it, as according to him

it does not function properly. According to Dr. Prasetya this is

because the opportunity has not yet arisen to provide the

required training. The device is also rather expensive, resulting

in long pay-back periods, which is why it is not attractive for the

distillers to invest in it.

19 Dekanter Minyak Atsiri, Dr. Agus Prasetya & Made Rajendra, 2009, Appendix IX

Figure 22: Sketch of possible heated

building for drying

Figure 23: The current method of

separation


Possibly a source of funding (grant or loan) can be found to make it

more financially attractive for the distillers to invest in the high tech

device and to enable the setting up of a training program to accompany

it. Another option would be to make a design for a separation device

that increases the obtainable amount of oil, but only makes use of

materials that are available to the distillers and can be constructed by

themselves, possibly eliminating the need for a training program. The

preliminary design depicted in picture

25 consists of a plastic drum, supported

by a frame, and two soft drink bottles,

of which the bottom has been removed.

The height of the bottles is variable and

because they are transparent, an eye

can be kept on the separation line in

between the oil and water layers. The two small valves (the lower for

clove oil and the top one for patchouli) are used to decant the oil. To

make the bottle height adjustable while keeping the drum water

tight, sheets of flexible yet durable plastic will need to be glued to

the drum and the bottles. This is only a preliminary design. A

specialist will have to assess its feasibility.

Alternatively the choice could be made to construct a pair of “Florentine flasks”, as depicted below,

which are a proven method for the separation of oils.

Figure 24: The decanter

by Made Rajendra

Figure 25: Sketch of a

possible cheap

separation device

Figure 26 & 27: Florentine flasks for light and heavy oil


INVESTIGATE OTHER POSSIBILITIES FOR PRE-TREATING RAW MATERIAL

Possibly the oil yield, and therefore the profitability of the facility could be improved by introducing a

pre-treatment process.

During the visit to Pak Susilo with Pak Boon, the idea was put forward to assess the possibilities for

pre-treating the plant material before distilling, in order to increase the yield. Possibly this could be

achieved by installing a blender, with which to rupture the oil pockets within the plant. This would

release the oil, a process which occurs during the usual drying method, as a result of light

fermentation, which is an important reason for the difference in oil yield from fresh and dried plant

material.

As was mentioned by Pak Susisilo such attempts are in fact in the process of being undertaken by

Professor Hans Siwon, at ITS in Surabaya. He has already been informed of the activities relating to

this project, and has shown interest. It is highly recommendable to intensify contacts with him and

his study group. He can be reached at: [email protected]

ORGANIZE RE-USE OF THE ASHES PRODUCED BY THE PROCESS

Currently ashes are deposited in the environment, without the nutrients contained therein being

returned to the place of origin. Closing this loop would enhance environmental sustainability.

Ashes produced by the combustion of biomass are rich in plant nutrients which make them an

excellent constituent of fertilizer, and the most sustainable use of biomass as a fuel requires closing

the loop, and thus re-applying the nutrients back to the soil. Other uses for ashes are documented as

well, like use as a fuel or as a constituent of building material, but these tend to involve rather high

tech processes, and are not generally appropriate for the project area. 20

Wood ashes contain 5 – 7 percent potassium salts, potassium chloride (KCl) being the most common.

Up to 2 percent Phosphorous, another important plant nutrient, is present although in a form that is

not easily soluble in water, except for in rather acidic soils (pH 5,0 – 5,5). Ashes contain little to no

nitrogen, as this has been converted to nitrogen oxides, during the combustion process, which is why

an external source of nitrogen is required. A form of organic matter with a low C:N ratio could be

added, like compost of food scraps or rotted manure. 21

When applying fertilizer to soil one has to take the alkalinity into consideration. It depends on the

plant species how much is ideally applied. For instance, both patchouli and clove plants tend to thrive

in somewhat acidic soils (ideally pH 5.5 – 6.2 for patchouli), which is why it’s not advisable to apply

large quantities of ashes, without mixing acidic fertilizer constituents to counteract the alkalinity.

These could be compost (decaying plant matter) or animal manure. 22

20 Utilization of Ashes from Biomass Combustion and Gasification, Pels et al., Appendix XV 21 Carbon-Nitrogen Relationships, Compost Needs, Compost Fundamentals, Washington State University, What Com County Extension, <http://whatcom.wsu.edu/ag/compost/fundamentals/needs_carbon_nitrogen.htm>, [accessed the 18th of October] 22 Soil pH, Wikipedia, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soil_pH>, [accessed the 18th of October]


Making the ashes a constituent of a quality organic fertilizer would be consistent with the ambition

of the Tunas Maju corporation to develop one. The University could play an important role in this by

performing analysis and fulfilling a consultant role in optimizing the composition.

OPERATE THE FISHPONDS

Operating the fishponds would lead to increased job opportunities, and thus higher income for the

local populace, which is why it is still recommendable to start using them as such. The objections

against it can relatively easily be overcome, by implementing the plan of KKN student Cahyo.

Covering the pond with nets would solve the problems with predators, and would not require a large

investment. Suitable species are Catfish (Lele) and Patin, which were determined to thrive under

prevailing conditions (temperature) in Samigaluh.

FORGO THE IDEA OF SMALL HYDROPOWER

Visual inspection and consultation with an Dr. Boon resulted in the conclusion that small hydropower

is not likely to be a viable option, due to a too small flow rate of the river and seasonal fluctuations.

Even though technologies are available to generate power at an order of magnitude of 1kW, the

payback time would likely be too long for it to be an attractive option for the Tunas Maju

corporation.

4.2 SOCIAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL

CONTINUOUS FOLLOW-UP VISITS

One way of improving the project effectiveness would be for preferably high ranking university staff

to visit the project location, to better educate the workers and the management. Visits from

lecturers to the facility, while it is being operated, could have a significant motivating effect on the

workers at the site, specifically because these are highly esteemed figures. This could, for instance,

partly solve the problem of workers not knowing how to put feed in the digester or prevent gas from

leaking, by observing and instructing the workers. Some follow-up visits could ensure that operation

of the digester continues, and that no new problems have arisen.

FACILITATE INCREASED CO-OPERATION BETWEEN DISTILLERS.

Co-operation would benefit the ‘people’ and ‘profit’ related aspects of the facility and the

surrounding community.

Although the three distillers taking part in the research already are on speaking terms, the amount of

information exchanged between them is of yet still limited, as a result from the fact that they belong

to different corporations: Pak Wandi is in service of Tunas Maju corporation, which also


encompasses several other kinds of economic activities (e.g. producing and marketing of herbal tea),

whereas Pak Sukijan and Pak Susilo are part of Sri Wijaya corporation.

It would seem that these distillers have supplementary qualities, which might make them an

excellent team, if they were to co-operate more closely: Pak Wandi has much technological

knowledge, which is the reason he is often asked to act as a consultant for distilleries being started

up, in addition to a sense for public relations, as is shown by his ability to market the products and to

convince financers to support his enterprise. Pak Susilo clearly has an excellent feeling for the

different aspects of the actual production process: by grinding up some of the plant material

between his fingers, he can make an estimate of the water content, and thereby an accurate

prediction of the amount of oil he can extract from it.

ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT AND GOOD MANUFACTURING PRACTICES

An integral part of modern business operation are procedures of Good Manufacturing Practices

(GMP) and an Environmental Management System (EMS). These involve documenting practices,

covering all aspects of the production processes, whereby safeguarding product quality, working

conditions for employees and care for the environment. Usually these employ a ‘Plan, Do, Check,

Act’-cycle meaning that the production process is in a continues state of being monitored and

improved.

In practice, this would mean for the distillery that procedures for the various processes get put on

paper, while being monitored by the management of the installation. A detailed administration

would be kept of all the raw materials used, and the flows being generated. This would enable the

planning of improvements to the processes by allowing them to be studied in greater detail. There

could be a great increase in the environmental sustainability of the installation, as at the moment a

lack of prescribed procedures causes employees to dump waste materials around the facility, instead

of properly disposing of them.

INCORPORATE A CSR STRATEGY

Part of the environmental management system could be a pledge of conformity to the standards of

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), a concept which is growing in popularity in Indonesia. A

growing number of small enterprises supposedly employ CSR out of principle or as a means of

increasing company image, which effectively be seen as a marketing strategy. This would be

beneficial to the Tunas Maju corporation specifically, as its ability to produce depends for a large part

on goodwill and trust from farmers in the surrounding area and its ability to market products on its

standing in the community. Incorporating a CSR strategy could possibly open up new venues for

selling essential oils on the international market. 23

Part of the CSR policy could also be to form partnerships with larger enterprises and transnational

corporations in order to obtain funding for sustainable development of the installation, while helping

23 CSR in Indonesia, a qualitative study from a managerial perspective, Bachelor thesis by S. Hendeberg and F. Lindgren, 2009, Appendix XVII


them fulfilling their legal obligations to spend a percentage of their turnover on CSR. CSR is one of

various ways of financing low carbon projects listed in ‘A Study on Local Actions In Asia Contributing

to Climate Change Mitigation and Alternative Financial Mechanisms, Country: Indonesia’, Dr. R. Boer

et al., which can be found in Appendix XVIII.

HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT

The degree to which the essential oil business in the Samigaluh area will develop further partly

depends on the involvement of multidisciplinary competence. A high level of cooperation is required

between the various skills involved, from the farmers to the distillers and the professional scientist.

There’s a great need for specific training programs, which could be set up and accommodated by

Gadjah Mada University, if an external source of funding can be found. If it were decided to have

these training programs encompass courses on Good Agricultural Practices, this could mean an extra

incentive for farmers to join the distillers’ corporations and switch to patchouli cultivation.

A free source on methods of patchouli cultivation is the Handbook of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants,

published by the Indian development bank NEDFi, of which the chapter patchouli is attached as

Appendix VI.

4.3 GENERAL RECOMMENDATIONS

ALLOCATING FUNDING

Proper allocation of funding would benefit the economic sustainability. The degree to which the

MEA-project will get implemented for a large part depends on it.

The prize money of the Mondialogo Engineering Award was €10.000, and the Gama Earth student

team that won it are still unsure whether they should spend it at the site of the project. This is

related to a trust issue, and doubts on whether Pak Wandi is truly enthusiastic about upgrading the

facility with a focus on sustainability. The reason for this is the fact that it seems unnecessary difficult

to get ideas implemented at the Tunas Maju distillery:

there are still problems with the digester, which has, during a recent inspection, shown to

have sustained damage, which bears a resemblance to sabotage. The gas holder had been

punctured, which is why the KKN students, and particularly Mas Agung, who was working on

the digester specifically, still haven’t been able to show the capabilities of the digester in

terms of gas output;

The design for a new boiler for the tofu production unit, as put forward by Mas Satria during

the KKN period, has still not resulted in a new boiler actually being put in place;


The ideas put forward by another KKN student, Mas Cahyo, on using the tube entering the

ponds to elevate the water temperature, and on covering the ponds with nets to defend

against predators, have still not been put to practice;

Reliable sources indicate that the reason Pak Wandi has difficulties obtaining raw material

for the distillation, because he broke promises he made to farmers some years ago,

regarding quota of raw material that he would buy from them.

These facts can be seen as a confirmation of doubts in regard to project feasibility, that have existed

since the earlier inspections of the project location, during which it was determined that the

installation suffers from an overall lack of maintenance. These doubts were confirmed by Pak Boon,

during the seventh visit in June, and they were added to by the fact that up until the end of the

project it remained nearly impossible to obtain any hard technical data from Pak Wandi.

If the implementation of a zero-waste system at an essential oil distillery in Samigaluh is to be a

success a change in this mentality will need to be achieved first. It is recommendable not to invest

any monetary resources into the project location on beforehand.

Possibly, it could be decided to instead invest in a distillery that has proven to be functioning well,

like the one of Pak Susilo, who has also managed to maintain good relationships with his farmers, as

shown by the fact that he does have the ability to obtain raw material for patchouli oil, as opposed to

Tunas Maju. In general, is can be advised to take into consideration the fair treatment of individual

distillers, and thus enable all of them to benefit from studies that have been undertaken.

No legal obligations of Gama EARTH exist towards Tunas Maju, as neither the corporation nor Pak

Wandi is mentioned by name in the MEA proposal.

STARTING A FOUNDATION

Implementing the recommendations put forward in this report could more easily facilitated by

founding a separate organization, as to provide platform for further co-operation. The legal form of a

foundation (or ‘Yayasan’ in Indonesian) would fit this purpose, as there are little startup costs

involved (approximately 8 million rupiah for notary costs) and it would be easy to conduct fund

raising activities. Furthermore it would ensure continuity, which is a good signal to the community.

The executive board could be comprised of Gama EARTH students, and influential persons and one or

more emissaries from the community of distillers could reside in the board of advice, partly because

of the positive effect this would have on the status towards the outside world. The distiller in the

board of advice would ensure the other distillers that their interest would be taken to heart.

The foundation could share expertise with outside parties active in the field of sustainable

development and essential oils. Possible parties to co-operate with are for instance C-BETech LPTP

Yogyakarta, the non-profit organization in Jakarta with expertise in the field of bio-digesters for tofu

industries or the Centre for Research and Development of Essential Oils (Unit Penelitian dan

Pengembangan Minyak Atsiri) in Surabaya (Prof. Hans Siwon), described in the Backgrounds chapter.


FOLLOW-UP STUDY

In order for the findings of this study to be properly put to use, it will be necessary for a follow-up

studies to take place, possibly to be carried out by either Indonesian students doing their ‘practical

work’ or international students fulfilling their internships or final projects. This is mainly due to the

broad nature and overall complexity of the problem discussed.

Of importance for the chances of success of possible follow-up studies is the likelihood of the

students involved to have to re-invent the wheel. Therefore it should be arranged that reports from

this study and previous ones are made readily accessible, which will need a certain degree of

organization from the educational institutions involved. In concordance with this, an assessment

should be made of the availability of scientific literary sources in the language of the student doing

the research. The references in this report, as listed in chapter 6, can be a starting point.

ORGANIC FARMING

Adoption of organic agriculture, as this labor intensive, due to the need for manual removal of weeds

and other farming activities which is needed because of the absence of chemical fertilizer and pest

control measures. In Samigaluh labor is no scarce commodity, which makes this a viable option. Also

the land still is not seriously polluted, which is a requisite for the possibility of organic farming.

Furthermore, organic farming leads to a steady demand for organic fertilizer, which would motivate farmers and small industrialists to start composting and fermenting organic wastes. Consequently organic farming will lead to a reduction in environmental pollution caused by chemicals applied to the land and contribute to biodiversity conservation. In order for organic farming to be successful, farmers will have to undergo training programmes to teach them all aspects of organic farming. One important aspect is the need for obtaining certification from institutions that provide monitoring and certification, which is necessary for the farmers to be able to sell crops as organic, which can be seen as added value for the right kind of buyer.

ORGANIZE THE BUILDING OF SMALL SCALE PROCESSING INSTALLATIONS NEARBY

DISTILLERIES

Building processing facilities nearby where the virgin essential oils are being produced will result in

the added value to benefit the local producers, when combined with the right kind of organization.

This kind of activity would also result in increased job opportunities for chemical technologically

trained alumni from Gadjah Mada, who now often have to go to Jakarta or other more industrialized

areas to get a job in the sector. The proximity of essential oil distillation plants to Yogyakarta would

furthermore offer excellent educational opportunities, by allowing for internships or informative

visits.

ORGANIZATION OF INTERNATIONAL INTERNSHIPS

Assigning international trainees to development projects like these are a fairly new line of business

for the Chemical Enineering Department of Gadjah Mada University (Jurusan Teknik Kimia, TK) and


the ChAIN Centre. Although the reception was warm and the guidance of and collaboration with TK

staff and students was of an excellent quality, there is still some room for improvement in the realm

of the organizational aspects.

In the case of myself, but also that of the IBMS students of the Patchouli Project, there was the

problem of a discrepancy between the educational systems of the home country (The Netherlands)

and that of Indonesia. In Dutch higher education, currently a system o f project based education is

being employed, which emphasizes practical applicability and student’s own responsibility in

managing time. This effectively means that students spend less time in class and more behind a

computer searching for information and writing reports, than used to be the case in the past.

Although the academic system in Indonesia, as employed by Gadjah Mada, does encompass the

concept of a practical work period or internship, students spend more time in class, by comparison,

which can form a problem, when, for instance, internationally collaborating student team’s work

needs to be synchronized. For this project it was somewhat problematic to arrange transportation

and translation, caused by the fact that the Indonesian students that had been involved in the

project, had many duties outside of the project, which necessitated other arrangements to be made.

It would be beneficial for these collaborations if the educational institutions involved put more effort

in the organizational aspects. This could include collaborative defining and planning of projects by

the international offices of the institutions and assigning international students to projects that are

currently the focus of the practical work assignments of Indonesian students. The latter was for

instance the case in the situation of a student from the Swedish Chalmers University that was also

performing her final project at Teknik Kimia, who had considerably less difficulties arranging

excursions to the project location.

Collaboration between international student teams could be enhanced by making use of an online

collaboration environment, enabling students to track each others’ progress, access common files

and to collectively divide tasks. A well known example is Blackboard. A free alternative would be

http://drop.io/.

It is imaginable that a system would be devised in which Indonesian students could obtain study

credits for taking part in an international practical project, enabling them to spend more time on it,

although it has already been established that this currently does not coincide with Gadjah Mada

protocol.

Furthermore it is recommendable to keep assigning international students to projects related to the

community service (KKN) projects of UGM, as this has been an extremely educational and life

enriching experience.

5 References 48

5 REFERENCES

1 - Indonesië: Economische Ontwikkeling, EVD Internationaal, (2009),

http://www.evd.nl/zoeken/showbouwsteen.asp?bstnum=155407&location= [accessed 18th of October

2010]

2 - Indonesia, Indonesian Benelux Chamber of Commerce (INA),

http://www.ina.or.id/inaweb/index.php?p=28&lang=eng, [accessed 18th of October 2010]

3 - Asian Development Outlook, Indonesia, Asian Development Bank, April 2008,

<http://www.adb.org/Documents/Books/ADO/2008/INO.pdf>, [accessed 18th of October 2010]

4 - Indonesia, Wikipedia <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indonesia>, [accessed 18th of October 2010]

5 - Gadjah Mada University, Wikipedia, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gadjah_Mada_University>, [accessed 18th of October] 6 - Vision and Mission, Gadjah Mada University, 2009, <http://www.ugm.ac.id/en/index.php?q=content/vision-mission>, [accessed 18th of October 2010]

7 - ChAIN Centre, “Building Excellence Enterpreneurship, and Partnership”, October 2008,

<http://chemeng.ugm.ac.id/chain/1/?page_id=2>, [accessed 18th of October 2008]

8 - UGM is among the top 30 Finalists of the Mondialogo Engineering Award, Gadjah Mada News,

September 2009, <http://ugm.ac.id/en/news/ugm-among-top-30-finalists-mondialogo-engineering-

award>, [accessed 18th of October 2010]

9 - Newsletters Unit Penelitian dan Pengembangan Minyak Atsiri, Dr. Hans Siwon, Appendix II

10 - Dewi Haryani Binti Suleiman, ‘Extraction of Patchouli Oil Using Steam Distillation’, Universiti Malaysia Pahang, May 2008, p. 5, Appendix XII 11 - Intermediate Technology Foodchain 24, Practical Action document database, <http://www.practicalaction.org/docs/agroprocessing/food_chain_24.pdf>, [accessed 18th of October 2010] 12 - Warburton et al., Integrated Biosystems for Sustainable Development, Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation, Publication Nr. 01/174, 2002, Appendix XIV 13 - Microbial Metabolism and Biotechnology, Horst W. Doelle DSc, DSc [hc] 14 - K. Tuley de Silva, A Manual on the Essential Oil Business, UNIDO, Vienna, Austria, 1995, Appendix XI 15 - J.M. Coulson & J.F. Richardson, Chemical Engineering Volume 1, (Woburn: Butterworth-Heinemann, 2000), p. 388 16 - J.M. Coulson & J.F. Richardson, Chemical Engineering Volume 1, (Woburn: Butterworth-Heinemann, 2000), p. 441 17 - Flue Gas Heat Recovery, Food Processing Consortium, <http://www.foodtechinfo.com/FoodPro/Efficiency/flue_gas_heat_recovery.htm>, [accessed 18th of October 2010] 18 - Development of Patchouli Extraction with Quality Control and Isolation of Active Compounds with Antibacterial Activity, Ngampong Kongkathip et al., 2009, Appendix VIII

5 References 49

19 - Dekanter Minyak Atsiri, Dr. Agus Prasetya & Made Rajendra, 2009, Appendix IX 20 - Utilization of Ashes from Biomass Combustion and Gasification, Pels et al., Appendix XV 21 - Carbon-Nitrogen Relationships, Compost Needs, Compost Fundamentals, Washington State University, What Com County Extension, <http://whatcom.wsu.edu/ag/compost/fundamentals/needs_carbon_nitrogen.htm>, [accessed the 18th of October] 22 - Soil pH, Wikipedia, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soil_pH>, [accessed the 18th of October 23 - CSR in Indonesia, a qualitative study from a managerial perspective, Bachelor thesis by S. Hendeberg and F. Lindgren, 2009, Appendix XVII 24 - Proposal: Activity Area of Compact Program, Tunas Maju corporation, 2010 25 - Utilization of Tofu (Soybean Curd) by-Products As Feed for Cattle, FFTC Publication Database, Food and Fertilizer Technology Center for the Asian and Pacific Region, <http://www.agnet.org/library/eb/419/>, [accessed the 18th of October 2010] 26 - Biogas Tofu Industry, C-BETech LPTP, Yogyakarta, Appendix XVI

LIST OF APPENDICES

Only Appenices III and V are directly attached to the report. The other ones are freely accessible at drop.io/ZWEssential Appendix I - Proposal MEA - Zero waste system in small medium industrial cluster Appendix II - Newsletters Unit Penelitian dan Pengembangan Minyak Atsiri Appendix III: Interview Reports

Appendix IV - Agrodoc 21 On-Farm Fishfarming, Agromisa Foundation, Wageningen

Appendix V: Questions for Tunas Maju Corporation

Appendix VI -The Handbook on Medicinal and Aromatic Plants, Patchouli, NEDFi, 2005

Appendix VII - Patchouli Project report, v.1, Avans IBMS, 2009

Appendix VIII - Development of Patchouli Extraction with Quality Control, Kongkathip et al

Appendix IX - Dekanter Minyak Atsiri, Dr. Agus Prasetya & Made Rajendra

Appendix X - Layman's Guide on How to Develop a Small Hydro Site, Directorate General for Energy of the

EC

Appendix XI - A Manual on the Essential Oil Industry, K Tuley da Silva, UNIDO, 1995

Appendix XII - Extraction of Patchouli Oil Using Steam Distillation, Dewi Haryani Binti Suleiman, Universiti

Malaysia Pahang, 2008

Appendix VIII - Development of Patchouli Extraction with Quality Control, Kongkathip et al

Appendix XIV - Integrated biosystems for sutainable development

5 References 50

Appendix XV - Utilization of Ashes from Biomass Combustion and Gasification, Pels et al, 2005

Appendix XVI - Biogas Tofu Industry, C-BETech LPTP, Yogyakarta

Appendix XVII - CSR in Indonesia, a qualitative study from a managerial perspective, bachelor thesis, S.

Hendeberg and F. Lingdgren, 2009

Appendix XVIII - A Study on Local Actions In Asia Contributing to Climate Change Mitigation and

Alternative Financial Mechanisms, Country Indonesia, Dr. R. Boer et al., 2008

6 Appendices 51

6 APPENDICES

APPENDIX III: INTERVIEW REPORTS

THE FIRST VISIT

The first visit I was accompanied by Mas Satria Girindra Nagrah (otherwise known as ‘Igin’) and Mas

Awqi Gibran, both students from the Chemical Engineering department of UGM and members of the

GAMA Earth student group, which allows students to undertake extracurricular activities in the field

of sustainability. The visit was partly introductory in nature, but as the GAMA Earth group was

already familiar with Pak Wandi, many matters surrounding the production processes of patchouli

and clove oil were discussed, with a focus on the economics of the business and also on the primary

workings of the steam extraction process. Satria took care of much of the conversation, while

translating what was said into English, while I made notes. The result was the following cost and

profit estimate of the clove oil production, which is currently Pak Wandi’s main focus:

Process cost estimation of clove oil production

The cost balance of the production of clove oils vary with the type or raw material used. This is firstly

due to differences in prices for the various kinds of oil, and secondly to the variability in costs for the

corresponding raw material, being, for instance clove leaves, buds or stems. Also the production of

essential oil from stems requires more time, due to the fact that oil is released from the plant

material more slowly, which influences the total wages needed to pay the workers.

The profit made from a single batch is calculated by multiplying the amount of oil produced by the

obtained selling price per kilogram, and subtracting the sum of the expenses. The production result

(the obtained amount of oil) of a batch of the oil process equals the mass of raw material used,

multiplied by the mass percentage of oil extracted (process efficiency or ‘rendemen’), which varies

with the water content of the material, and thus with the seasons.

Cost estimate clove leaf process

The time required is 5 hours. The maximum capacity of one batch is 600kg.

Production costs (clove leaf)

Raw Material 600kg * Rp 800 480.000 Rp

Employee costs (4 persons) 40.000 Rp

Food for employees 10.000 Rp

Miscellaneous 5.000 Rp

Total 535.000 Rp

Total turnover 15kg (2,5% * 600kg) * Rp 55.000 825.000 Rp

Profit 825.000 - 535.000 290.000 Rp

Production result: 600kg * efficiency (2,5 % on average in the dry season, 1,5 during wet

season) = 15kg of raw oil

The average selling price lies around Rp 55.000/kg. Total turnover is then 15 * 55.000 = 825.000rp

6 Appendices 52

Profit for one batch = 825.000 – 535.000 = Rp 290.000 for the dry season.

Cost estimate stem process:

The time required 10 hours. The maximum capacity is 800kg.

Production costs (clove stem)

Raw Material 800kg * Rp 2500 2.000.000 Rp

Employee costs (4 persons) 80.000 Rp

Food for employees 20.000 Rp

Miscellaneous 200.000 Rp

Total 2.300.000 Rp

Total turnover 40kg (5% * 800kg) * Rp 65.000 2.600.000 Rp

Profit 2.600.000 - 2.300.000 300.000 Rp

Prices of raw oil

Clove leaves: 55.000/kg

Clove stem: 60.000 – 65.000/kg

Clove flower: 95.000/kg

Patchouli oil (fluctuating)

Leaves: 340.000 – 1.000.000/kg

The prices of the clove leaves and stems, as well as Patchouli, fluctuate depending on competition

with other distillers and the harvest yield of farmers. The obtainable selling price varies per exporter

and per time of the season. It also depends on the supply and demand rate. Depending on the

availability the price for the raw material of Patchouli oil is of the same magnitude as that of clove oil,

indicating that profits can theoretically be much higher, as production costs are similar. During this

visit Pak Wandi also disclosed to us the exporters to whom he usually sells his produce: Indaroma,

Indesco and Prodesco.

Inspection of the distillery

At the end of this visit we were allowed to examine the distillation facility, which is located a few

kilometers from the building of the Tunas Maju corporation. We discovered the facility to be

unmanned and suffering from a lack of maintenance, as was apparent in part of the machinery being

covered with rust and spiderwebs. Nonetheless, this inspection gave quite a clear picture of the

workings of the distillery and on some of the problems it was facing.

6 Appendices 53

Although the steam extraction equipment didn’t show any signs of recent usage, it was clear that

some activities were taking place at the tofu production unit, which was consistent with what Pak

Wandi had told us, namely that the tofu unit was operated, albeit infrequently. This was due to some

problems being experienced, like corrosion in the boiler difficulties marketing the product. These

were addressed during subsequent visits. It was furthermore established that the fish ponds/rice

paddies (figure 23) weren’t being employed as such at the moment, although they were being used

Figure 22: The front of the distillery Figure 23: Fishpond and rice paddy with

discarded ashes at the front

Figure 24: The boiler and the bottom of the

contactors and condensor

Figure 25: … from the top

Figure 26: The boiler and pressure cooker of the

tofu unit

Figure 27: Mold and draining basin of the tofu

unit

http://www.facebook.com/

6 Appendices 54

for rice cultivation. The inspection also revealed that there is currently no useful purpose for the

ashes coming from the boiler, as they a currently disposed of as filling material for the floor of the

facility.

System layout

Another important result of the visit was that there was now a clear understanding of the system

layout of the essential oil steam extraction process:

VISITS 2 & 3

In april two expeditions were undertaken, a bit

over a week apart both to the Tunas Maju

headquarters. In advance, me and Mas Sri

Jatmiko Susetyo Aji, good friend and alumnus of

the faculty of cultural studies compiled a list of

questions that required answering. We did so in

Indonesian as well as in English so as to enable

Pak Wandi and Pak Puji to read it in their own

time, enabling them to get a good

understanding of the objectives of the project.

These lists are to be found in Appendix V.

Part of the questions handed to Pak Wandi and Pak Puji could already be answered during these two

visits:

According to Pak Wandi, shortly after the digester was first installed it had stopped being

operated, due to disappointing biogas yields. As no cows are being held near the facility it

was attempted to ferment the wastewater (acidic soaking water), which is a by-product of

the tofu production.

Figure 28: Layout of the distillation process

Figure 29: Observation visit to the facility

6 Appendices 55

It appeared the Tunas Maju corporation was in the process of obtaining funding from the

Indonesian planning agency. For this purpose, recently a 1,5bln rupiah proposal has been

submitted to BAPPENAS, the Indonesian planning agency in Jakarta. The proposal is aimed at

increasing patchouli and clove cultivation in the area and involving farmers in the

corporation. The money is required for renovation of the Tunas Maju building, acquisition of

vehicles for transportation, and as financial capital for the processing and selling of essential

oil. 24

The fish ponds were said to suffer from a complex of problems, causing them to be empty at

the moment. During a previous attempt at cultivating fish, these had either been stolen or

eaten by predators and there was also the problem of an insufficiently high temperature of

the ponds, required for the species of fish used at that time, which was due to a lack of warm

water. This had the underlying reason that the distillery wasn’t being operated, which used

to be the source of the water. Pak Wandi had also considered the use of catfish, which are

essentially omnivores. These have the advantage that the fishponds would only have to be

fed cow dung, for the fish to grow. This idea was not being executed for lack of cows in the

direct vicinity of the ponds.

Pak Wandi was quite interested in the idea of re-using using waste heat from the system. He

agreed that the theoretical possibility exists of partly overcoming the seasonal fluctuations of

the supply of especially patchouli raw material, by doing so. Earlier, attempts had been made

at drying the raw material using air convection, by installing a blower. This has had mixed

results, which is why it is not being done anymore. He expressed lacking the technical

knowledge of installing such a system, which would be effective.

Re-zoning the system in such a way that cattle could be held nearby the facility was not

considered an option at the time.

The determination of the characteristics of the residue coming from the contactors of the

installation (the plant material after extraction of essential oil) was considered by Pak Wandi

to be a job for me. The same applied to assessing the suitability of the tofu waste as feed for

the digester and determining the parameters for the heat balance. Shortly after the visit, the

results of an analyses, carried out by a chemical technology student of Gadjah Mada, were

obtained from Dr. Agus Prasetya. These contained information on the energy content of the

residue, which enabled the calculation of the amount of residue required per batch. (see

chapter 4.5)

A notable ascertainment done, during these visits was the fact that Pak Wandi (and as it later turned

out all distillers) did not employ a detailed system of written administration. Little data on quantities

of materials were available, and most information he could supply, he knew by heart. For instance no

flow chart or other diagrams of the process exist and information as the costs involved had to be

estimated and written down on the spot.

Attempts were made to make an appointment for a visit to observe the tofu production unit in

operation. This, however, did not succeed until the last month of the project, during the KKN period.

24 Proposal: Activity Area of Compact Program, Tunas Maju corporation, 2010

6 Appendices 56

VISITS 4 & 5

In april two visits were made shortly after one another, which were for a large part characterized by

the proposal the Tunas Maju corporation had sent to the Indonesian planning agency. During the

preceding visits it had become clear that the main focus of the Tunas Maju corporation is, at the

moment, to obtain funds for expansion of their operations. Although he welcomed the collaboration

with Gadjah Mada and he considers himself to be on friendly terms with some of the staff, he

expressed a certain attitude of ‘seeing is believing’, which is understandable, due to the practical

nature of his profession as manager of the installation.

Although he was interested in ideas about reducing the waste flows from the tofu unit and

optimizing the distillation process, he wasn’t enthusiastic about for instance the concept of making

soap from the ashes, as envisioned by the MEA winning team. He had no objections against

educating his employees on how to properly dispose of the tofu wastewater. The first of the visits

was attended by Nicholas Mark, a student from the University of Sydney, who was writing his thesis

on corporate social responsibility in Indonesia, and therefore was interested in the background of the

project and some views of Pak Wandi.

Often the conversation was steered back in the direction of the endeavors of Tunas Maju to generate

funds, which is why also the priority setting of this project became more attuned to this need. If it

ever were to be implemented, the need for a subsidiary would have to be taken into account. Seen in

this light, the drying of raw material became the focal point, as this was most likely to increase

profitability of the installation.

Contents of the funding proposal

The proposal had been sent to BAPPENAS just prior to the beginning of the project, for a total of

1,5bln rupiah (about 121.000 Euros), which were needed to overcome the companies’ primary stated

obstacles, being lack of capital, technology and transportation equipment. The money would be

spent as follows:

1. Factory Renovation/Building: Rp. 665.411.000

2. Truck and Pick up car: Rp. 500.000.000

3. Essential Oil Production: Rp. 70.000.000

4. Capital for Oil Trade: Rp. 300.000.000

Totalling: Rp. 1.534.411.000

Even though these planned expenditures relate directly to the core business of Tunas Maju, their

vision is claimed to be economic empowerment of the community of Samigaluh as a whole, through

their business activities. These are to include a credit and saving program and a general store

(“Waserda”) alongside their current essential oil activities. The aim is to be an economic actor that

mobilizes the community by their potential as a provider of loans and services. It is assumed that

6 Appendices 57

their expanded activities will lead to a boost in the community economy by the factors mentioned

above, as well as by a related increase in local education level, further development of goat

husbandry activities and the development of an organic fertilizer process. The latter is hoped to

restore fertility to parts of the soil that have been drained of nutrients by agricultural activity.

The corporation is said to aspire to remediate effects of the economic crisis in 1997 that are still

being felt, by obtaining a high level of support from within the community. In exchange they would

increase farmers’ income by letting them join the corporation to provide clove and patchouli plant

material, and letting them have a share of profit from selling essential oil. Next to buying plant

material from local farmers, the plan is to buy from other areas in the vicinity, using the capital for oil

trade, mentioned in the cost estimation above. Areas possibly supplying raw material are, for

instance, Klaten, Magelang, Wonosobo and Purworejo.

In the proposal, Tunas Maju also states to have the ambition of teaching the industrial practice to

secondary school children and university students.

VISIT 6

This excursion was undertaken in the company of Mas Bob Tivens and Pak Francis Erlangga, the two

co-founders with whom I had started a foundation (Yayasan Wahana Insan Negeri), aiming to further

the project and its implementation, as well as to enable myself to take part in other development

projects in Indonesia.

The visit was partly introductory in

nature. Interestingly Pak Wandi and

Pak Puji, as well as Pak Susilo were

present, which indicates that there

friendly relationship between the Tunas

Maju and Sri Wijaya corporations. The

distillers were pleased with the visit of

the foundation members and

applauded the idea of a collaboration,

whereby increasing chances of

obtaining a funding grant from the

planning agency. A possibility they also

envisioned more likely with me and other

students creating a scientific basis for a

follow-up proposal.

Again much of the conversation was about financial matters. Some obstacles were being faced in

obtaining loans or grants, like the fact that often the distillers only needed a relatively small amount

of money, for instance in the case of Pak Susilo, who needs support for building a storage area. Small

loans are relatively difficult to get, for the distillers, presumably because these are less beneficial for

officials of government or banking institutions.

Figure 30: Visit to the Tunas Maju headquarters

6 Appendices 58

Some technical and organizational matters were discussed as well:

The distillers were interested in the possibilities of producing a better quality oil (99%

eugenol content), which were said to be studied by Gadjah Mada. Currently the oil has too

dark a color (too many contaminants), to be sold to the European market directly;

Pak Susilo talked about drying raw material. He explained that simply drying it quickly by

artificial means is no guarantee for a higher profitability, as his own experiments had shown

that this leads to a drop in production efficiency. The best results were obtained when drying

the material either in the sun, for 3 days, or just by convection (wind) for about 5 days;

The fluctuating price of Nilam oil was discussed. It can be as high as 220.000Rp or as high as

1.200.000Rp. The distillers see it as their obligation to protect the farmers interest, which is

why they act like a buffer: if the market price drops below the point at which no more profit

can be made, they stop production. When the price is high, they have a relatively higher

profit for themselves, but when the price is low they pay the farmers comparably more. If

the distillers could increase their capacity, they could pay the farmers a bigger margin;

The average investment cost for the distillation equipment of a distillery of their current

production capacity is 35mln rupiah;

In Samigaluh an approximate area of 40 hectares could be converted into patchouli

plantations, if the farmers could be convinced to change the crop. This partly a matter of

trust, but also partly a money related issue.

VISIT 7

In May a visit to the distillery of Pak Sukijan was undertaken, which was joined by Mas Aji again. The

visit was the result of endeavors to make an appointment at the time the process was being

operated to enable a observation to be made. Pak Sukijan explained to us the workings of his

installation, which had just recently been built, with help of Pak Wandi, who was also present.

Although it was interesting you witness the operation of the process for the first time and to hear

about the workings of Pak Sukijan’s counter current heat exchanger for condensing steam, no new

technical data were obtained. Pak Sukijan did, however, agree that a lot of energy left his process

through the stack, which was a confirmation that we were on the right track with the plan of using

waste heat.

VISIT 8

This was a double visit, undertaken in June, to firstly the Tunas Maju headquarters and distillery, and

secondly to the distillery and house of Pak Susilo. The reason for this visit was the presence of Pak

Boon in Indonesia, and he had joined to talk to the distillers and have a look at the process location.

As seen from the project perspective, this was considered to be an excellent occasion to expand the

network of relations of the Tunas Maju corporation, which turned out to be a success, partly due to

6 Appendices 59

the fact that Pak Wandi and Pak Boon had already met previously on a trade fair in Jakarta, where

Pak Wandi had been marketing essential oils.

STAY IN SAMIGALUH

During the stay in Samigaluh during the final month of the project several visits were paid to the

distillery and close ties were kept with the KKN students, working on projects relating to the

distillery. These were Mas Cahyo, Mas Agung and Mas Satria, who were working on the fishponds,

digester and boiler of the tofu unit respectively. Also Pak Susilo and Pak Sukijan were visited again,

both times accompanied by Satria. The temperature measurements (described in chapter 4) were

carried out during the visit to Pak Susilo. The close proximity to the installation of Pak Wandi finally

enabled an observation of the tofu production unit, while it was being operated, which resulted in a

lot of useful data.

The digester

The digester, a simple bag digester with a volume of 0,3 m3 (depicted below), had been dug out of

the ground by a group of students to perform maintenance and to assess its condition. A leak was

discovered and fixed, after which the digester was fed a mixture of manure and liquid tofu waste, in

a volume ratio of 3:1. The goal was to show that a biogas yield could be obtained when properly

operating the digester. The digester was monitored until after the KKN period, in order to assess

whether the startup time had passed. Yet, according to recently obtained information, the collection

bag of the digester had been ruptured, when it was last visited, which shows that it has been treated

irresponsibly or that it even might have been sabotaged.

The tofu process

The facility was visited to observe the tofu production process, while it was performed by Pak Jono,

the operator, and his wife, who will hopefully reach a higher standard of living when the project gets

implemented. Earlier, the process had not been operated for some time, as there was supposedly a

problem with corrosion coming from the boiler, resulting in coloration and decreased marketability

of the product. This is plausible, as a visual inspection revealed heavy corrosion at the exterior, near

where the stack is mounted. Yet apparently a temporary solution had been found, as now the boiler

was functioning again, without the alternative stainless steel design of Mas Satria being implemented

yet. Another reason for not being able to operate the process every day is the fact that demand for

the product is limited and it can only be sold once every week on the village market, which gives rise

to the idea that a better marketing strategy should be devised.

Figure 31: Schematic of the bio-digester

6 Appendices 60

The tofu production method may be called somewhat unusual, as no coagulant is used to make the

tofu settle from the soy milk, as opposed to the methods found, during the literature study.

First, soybeans (6 kg per batch) are de-hulled and

soaked after which they are placed in a container.

Steam is generated in a separate boiler (see picture

26), which is then led through a pipe into the

bottom of the drum containing the soybeans,

where it is forced upwards through a manifold,

resulting in the rupturing of the soybeans. The

resulting slurry is then removed from the container,

settled in a separate container, and subsequently

filtered, leaving behind a residue (soy pulp or

‘Okara’). The filtrate (soymilk) is then placed in a fine

synthetic fabric and compressed, which results in

the water leaking from the soy protein, fat and acids, that remain in the fabric. The tofu then gets

pressed in wooden molds, resulting in 6 square blocks of 22 x 22 x 2 cm. The blocks are cut into

smaller pieces and fried immediately for preservation and marketing purposes. These were

confirmed to be of excellent taste, especially when combined with a locally grown cabe (chilli

pepper).

A block of tofu of 600 cm3 from the supermarket was known to have a mass of 325 g. Thus the

density equals 325 / 600 = 0,54 g / cm3. The 6 tofu blocks have a total volume of 6 * 22 * 22 *2 =

5808 cm3, and thus a mass of 5808 * 0.54 = 3136 g. Assuming negligible amounts of water remain in

the blocks, compared to the moisture present in the soy beans, and also excluding the mass of the

hulls from the equation, this means that of the 6 kg of soy beans 3,163 kg ends up as tofu, and the

rest, 2,864 kg, ends up as soy pulp. This material can be fed to cattle, as it still has a high nutritional

value due to present protein. 25

According to the Indonesian Ministry of Environment for each kilogram of soybeans 15-20 liters of

process water is used, which will partly end up as wastewater. Another part of it leaves the system as

discharged steam. It is assumed that 90 liters of wastewater is generated per batch. The acidic

wastewater has, according to literature, a pH of 6,25 and a biological oxygen demand (BOD) of 3,7

mg/l, which can certainly lead to eutrophication of the river if deposited therein, but can also result

in ample yield of biogas. 26

According to C-BETech LPTP, a non-profit organization in Yogyakarta, hydraulic retention time of the

tofu waste digester should be 84 hours. As the digester at the distillery has a volume 300 liters, the

mean feed to the digester should be 300 / 84 = 3,6 liters per hour, which means that the capacity of

the digester is just about the right size if a batch of 6 kg soybeans is processed every day: 90 / 24 =

3,8. If the tofu production unit were to be expanded, as is an ambition of Pak Wandi, or if co-

25 Utilization of Tofu (Soybean Curd) by-Products As Feed for Cattle, FFTC Publication Database, Food and

Fertilizer Technology Center for the Asian and Pacific Region, <http://www.agnet.org/library/eb/419/>,

[accessed the 18th of October 2010] 26 Biogas Tofu Industry, C-BETech LPTP, Yogyakarta, Appendix XVI

Figure 32: Pak Jono and his family, processing

soybeans

6 Appendices 61

fermentation will be attempted, either a larger digester would be required, or not all of the waste

could be processed.

The Fishponds

Mas Cahyo has been studying the of fish cultivation in the rice paddies next to the distillery, focusing

on two aspects: using hot water from the essential oil distillation process to raise the temperature of

the ponds and devising a method of deterring predators from eating the fish.

Even though a system of piping is in place to siphon water

from the process to the ponds, this is not as of yet a viable

option, as the distillation process is not being operated.

Even if it would be, this would likely be irregularly, due to

seasonal changes and fluctuations in supply of raw material.

Also there is no system in place to monitor the pond

temperature, which creates the risk of overheating the

ponds. It would be better to use fish species that survive in

the ambient temperature in Samigaluh, which is already

being done by some of Pak Wandi’s neighbors.

As can be seen in picture 33, also the nets are already a

proven technology. According to recently obtained

information however, these are still not installed at the

facility of Tunas Maju.

APPENDIX V: QUESTIONS FOR TUNAS MAJU CORPORATION

Menentukan kuantitas dari arus di nol-limbah cluster pertanian dan industri

Dibutuhkan informasi

Mengapa digester belum bisa dioperasikan? Karena faktor teknis, praktis, atau sosial/budaya.

Apakah ada kemungkinan lain untuk meluaskan tempat usaha penyulingan, seperti

menambah jumlah produksi, tanaman,dsb.

Organisasi/institusi apa yang bisa menyediakan dananya? Dengan syarat apa?

Bagaimana kolam ikan bisa dimanfaatkan?

Bagaimana temperatur kolam ikan bisa diawasi?

Bagaimana meningkatkan jumlah ikan?

Bagaimana menggunakan limbah untuk mengeringkan bahan baku? Apakah orang2 mau

terlibat

Apakah mungkin menempatkan ketel didekat system penyulingan? Bagaimana itu bisa

diterapkan dengan tujuan meningkatkan jumlah digester atau ukurannya

Apakah sifat dari reasidu (limbah padat) dan apa keuntungannya menggunakan itu untuk

pengeringan?

Figure 33: The neighbor of the distillery

cultivating Lele (catfish) and Patin

6 Appendices 62

Apakah mungkin untuk membuat produk (handmade) seperti sabun dari ABU, oil, water

scented?

Apakah kecocokan untuk menggunakan limbah (air) dari pabrik tahu untuk makanan ikan?

Apakah design DIGESTER optimal

Apakah tanaman utama dalam system ini dan punya siapa?

Materi padat dan kandungan air dari bahan baku( kandungan minyak dari bahan baku)

berapa jumlahnya dari keduanya masing2? Dengan tujuan untuk menjaga jumlah antara

kandungan air (waktu pada musim) dan efisiensi. (berapa jumlah kandungan materi padat

dan cair pada WAKTU MUSIM PANAS DAN HUJAN)

Jumlah steam/batang dan energy panas yang dibutuhkan dalam proses batch/bahan baku

/mambuat minyak

Berapa komposisi dan jumlah debu keluar dari perapian

Juimlah dari air yang tertuang setelah proses distilasi minyak

Berapa temperature digester?

Berapa komposisi aliran digester untuk menentukan penggunaan maksimal sebagai pupuk

Bagaimana kah metode/cara yang digunakan untuk membuat tahu dan berapa jumlah

limbah sisanya?

Quantifying Flows in the Zero-Waste Cluster

Technical Asessment

As one can deduct from the descriptions of the individual parts of the system, there is only a limited

amount of data available at the moment. The challenge will be to generate a table with the exact

values or close approximations of all the different material flows. Below is a summary of the

information gaps to be filled in the coming months, or, in other words, the activities to be

undertaken in order to establish a complete system diagram. It needs to be assessed…

why the digester is not currently being operated. Reasons could be technical, practical or

social/cultural in nature;

if there are possibilities for expansion of the capacity of the distillery, as well as net

production and productivity of the plantations;

which parties would be interested in providing funding for the project, as well as under

which conditions;

how the fish ponds could be made to work;

how the fishponds’ temperature could be most conveniently monitored;

how to optimize the yield of the fish ponds (e.g. what species will be employed);

how use could be made of waste heat or other energy sources to dry raw material, and

whether this option appeals to the people involved (e.g. Pak Wandi);

if there can be a re-zoning of the system to allow cattle to be held near to the system, and if

and how this could be organized, in order to increase digester yield or maybe even size;

what are the characteristics of the residue coming from the contactors after processing a

batch, and what benefits can be gained by increasing its heating value, by drying;

6 Appendices 63

what is the feasibility of creating a small artisanal soap factory, using the ash, the scented

water and an external source of fat or oil;

what is the suitability of the acidic wastewater from the tofu pabrik as feed for the

biodigester;

whether the design of the digester (dimensioning etc.) is optimal;

exactly what plantations are functionally or otherwise related to the central part of the

system, and to who they belong;

Furthermore, analysis needs to be conducted on the following parameters:

the dry matter and water content of the raw material and mass efficiency (rendemen,

actually the relative oil content of the material), in order to to obtain the quantitative

relation between the water content (and thus time of the season) and efficiency;

the amount of steam, and thus thermal energy, required to process a batch;

the heating value of the residue from the contactors;

the composition and amount of the ashes coming from the furnace;

the composition of the decanted water after the extraction of essential oil;

the temperature of the digester surroundings;

the composition of the digester effluent, to determine its optimal use as a fertilizer;

the exact production method of tofu, and the nature/composition of the waste flows;