ABSTRACT. Limited energy is a common problem faced by countries other than Indonesia. Countries that are abundant in natural resources can utilize energy from biomass as an effort to overcome the scarcity of raw materials. This study aims to determine the effect of variations in the mixture of alaban charcoal powder (Vitex pubescens) and oil palm waste charcoal (Elaeis guineensis Jacq) on the quality of charcoal briquettes. The Completely Randomized Design (CRD) method was used for data analysis in this study. The results showed that the average value of density 1.1676-1.5392 g/cm3; moisture content 3.4433-6.3433%; ash content 0.5400-6.7500%; fly matter 18.4967-25.9733%; bound carbon 67.7700-74.9600% and calorific value 5289.5133-6616.2267 cal/cm3. Referring to SNI 01-6232 year 2000, the density, moisture content, ash content and calorific value have met the briquette standard, but the fly matter and bound carbon are only close to the national standard of briquettes.

Keywords: Activated charcoal briquettes; Biomass energy; Palm waste; Alaban charcoal

ABSTRAK. Energi yang terbatas adalah permasalahan yang umum dihadapi oleh suatu negara selain Indonesia. Negara yang melimpah akan sumber daya alam dapat memanfaatkan energi dari biomassa sebagai upaya menanggulangi kelangkaan bahan baku. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui pengaruh variasi campuran serbuk arang alaban (Vitex pubescens) dan arang tempurung kelapa sawit (Elaeis guineensis Jacq ) terhadap kualitas briket arang. Metode Rancangan Acak Lengkap (RAL) digunakan untuk analisis data dalam penelitian ini. Hasil penelitian menunjukkanbahwa nilai rata-rata kerapatan 1,1676-1,5392 g/cm^3.; kadar air 3,4433-6,3433%; kadar abu 0,5400-6,7500%; zat terbang 18,4967-25,9733%;karbon terikat 67,7700-74,9600% dan nilai kalor 5289,5133-6616,2267 cal/cm³. Merujuk dari SNI 01-6232 tahun 2000 nilai kerapatan, kadar air, kadar abu dan nilai kalor telah memenuhi standar briket, Namun zat terbang dan karbon terikat hanya mendekati standar nasional briket.

Kata kunci: Briket arang aktif; Energi Biomasa; Limbah kelapa sawit; Arang alaban