Rubber-Tree (Hevea brasiliensis) Seed Oil Extraction by Adopting Traditional Method in Making Coconut Oil

Abstract

So far rubber-tree seeds are used only in rubber-plant propagation, while in fact the rubber-tree seeds have a high oil content that can be exploited by society into value-added products. To achieve it a simple technology is needed to extract oil out of the seeds. The extracted oil of the rubber-tree seed is expected to be a raw material for making biodiesel or other products that could provide alternative solutions to the energy crisis in Indonesia through developing alternative fuels. This study aims to determine whether the traditional coconut oil extraction method can be applied to the extraction of the rubber-tree seed oil. Targets to be achieved is to discover an extraction technology of rubber-tree seed oil which is simple and effective. The study was conducted on the rubber-tree seeds in the same way to make coconut milk and process it into oil. The process started with clearing the rubber-tree seeds of their hard shell, blended them with water, and crushed and pressed to give milk. The milk was then processed to oil with two treatments, heating and use of yeast. The result of the heating treatment suggested that the traditional oil processing methods could be applied to the extraction of rubber-tree seed oil with the highest yield reached 32,4%, a specific gravity of 0,91, average viscosity of 39,67, and the acid number of 23,66.