DOI: https://doi.org/10.9767/bcrec.20537

Soda-Anthraquinone-Catalyzed Delignification of Coconut Husk Waste

1Doctoral Student of Environmental Engineering, Department of Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Institut Teknologi Bandung, Jl. Ganesha No.10, Lebak Siliwangi, Coblong District, Bandung, West Java, 40132, Indonesia

2Department of Occupational Safety and Health, Polytechnic of Manpower, Jl. Pengantin Ali No.71, East Jakarta, 13740, Indonesia

3Department of Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Institut Teknologi Bandung, Jl. Ganesha No.10, Lebak Siliwangi, Bandung, West Java, 40132, Indonesia

4 Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Universitas Indonesia, Jl. Lingkar Kampus Raya, Depok, 16424, Indonesia

5 Research Center for Molecular Chemistry, National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN), B.J. Habibie Science and Technology Area, South Tangerang, 15314, Indonesia

6 Institute of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, 14195, Germany

7 Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society, Berlin, 14195, Germany

8 Department of Physics, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Institut Teknologi Bandung, Jl. Ganesha No.10, Lebak Siliwangi, Bandung, West Java, 40132, Indonesia

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Received: 13 Nov 2025; Revised: 21 Dec 2025; Accepted: 22 Dec 2025; Available online: 3 Jan 2026; Published: 30 Apr 2026.
Editor(s): Istadi Istadi
Open Access Copyright (c) 2026 by Authors, Published by BCREC Publishing Group
Creative Commons License This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
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Abstract

This study investigates the role of anthraquinone (AQ) in decomposing coconut husk waste, specifically collected from Banten, to produce pure α-cellulose pulp. The process used sodium hydroxide (NaOH) at 10%, 15%, and 20% concentrations, with 0.1 g of AQ added as a catalyst, and a waste-to-liquid ratio of 1:8 throughout. The goal is to accelerate lignin degradation while protecting cellulose in the material, thereby yielding higher-quality pulp. The Banten coconut husk analysis showed an α-cellulose content of 30.38%. Higher NaOH concentrations reduced pulp yield but increased lignin removal, indicated by lower kappa numbers. AQ addition enhanced lignin removal and preserved cellulose compared to the absence of AQ. The optimal outcome was achieved with 15% NaOH and 0.1 g AQ, balancing lignin removal and cellulose preservation. These findings indicate that anthraquinone can support sustainable pulp production from agricultural waste. Copyright © 2026 by Authors, Published by BCREC Publishing Group. This is an open access article under the CC BY-SA License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0).

Keywords: Anthraquinone; catalytic pulping; coconut husk; soda delignification; α-cellulose
Funding: Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of Indonesia

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Section: Original Research Articles
Language : EN
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