Republic of the Philippines

JOSE RIZAL MEMORIAL STATE UNIVERSITY

The Premier University in Zamboanga del Norte
KATIPUNAN CAMPUS Registration No.: 62Q17082
ISO – JRMSU – HRMO - 009 Katipunan, Zamboanga del Norte INSTITUTIONAL LEVEL

Conversion of Biowaste (Banana Pseudostem) Into Eco-bags

Abbygail F. Pialago
Michael E. Piang
Ma.Dulce C. Guillena

Jose Rizal Memorial State University – Katipunan Campus

Katipunan, Zamboanga del Norte

Abstract

Banana plants not only produce delicious and nutritious fruit but also provide
fibers in abundance from the pseudostem thrown after fruit harvesting. This study aimed to
produced environment friendly bags (eco-bags) from the pseudostem wastes of the three
banana cultivars (Musa acuminate (lakatan), Musa acuminate x balbisiana (cardava), Musa
Sapientum (tundan) grown in the locality and assess the quality of the paper. Handmade process
of making paper was employed and data were analysed using mean, percentage and standard
deviation. Results revealed that there is a significant difference in the qualities of the papers of
the banana cultivars. The Musa acuminate x balbisiana (cardava) paper had a very good
surface texture, very attractive color, least porous and more durable. While the two other papers
were comparably the same in terms color and durability. Eco-bags from cardava pseudostem
is recommended to help eliminate the use of plastic bags.

Keywords: (Musa acuminate, Musa acuminate x balbisiana, Musa Sapientum, eco-bags,

pseduostem

Introduction

Banana is an herbaceous plant of the family Musaceae. It is the second most produce
fruit place after citrus, accounting for about 16% of the world’s total fruit production
(Deharveng et al., 1999). Bananas are abundant natural resources in tropical and subtropical
countries of the world. It is divided into three parts: pseudostem, peduncle and leaf. The
pseudostem is the part of the banana plant that looks like a trunk. The true stem is underground
and it produces pseudostem above it. It is formed by the tightly overlapping leaf sheaths.
The banana pseudostem has been used as material for paper, furniture and forage
(Buragohain et al., 2010; Umaz et al, 2005). It has a good source of cellulose. It contains
39.12% of cellulose and 11.34% of lignin (Hossain et al, 2014). As cited by Preethi, et al.
(2013), the strong property of pseudostem as a fiber is an advantage for it to be a main product
in making rope since it contains an indigestible or insoluble substance, making it hard.
Moreover, it has a relatively high tensile strength and stiffness, which indicate its prospect as
a promising fiber material. Banana fiber can be an alternative raw material of paper industries
like writing paper, anti-grease paper, cheque paper as well as hard board industries. It is also
used to prepare shopping bags, files, visiting cards invitation cards, scribing pads, envelopes,
printing paper, etc. (Uma et al., 2005; Muraleedharan et al. 2010).
The Philippines is one of the top five exporters of bananas, which are shipped to Japan,
China and South Korea. Most of the banana producers are found in Mindanao. As observed,
once pseudostem bears fruit, it is cut down from base because each plant produces only one
bunch of bananas. This crop generates large amount of residue after harvesting usually left on
plantation or burned, which could ultimately cause environmental issues (Cordeiro et al.
20014). Hence, the utilization of the banana waste—pseudostems has gained more attention in
recent years.
Exploitation of the banana pseudostem wastes from three cultivars (Musa acuminate
(lakatan), Musa acuminate x balbisiana (cardava), Musa Sapientum (tundan) grown in the
locality will be significantly beneficial to environment and bring additional profits not only to
farmers but also to environmentalists. The biggest challenge is to convert this huge biomass
of banana pseudostem into value added products such as the ecobags, thus this study was
conceptualized. It will further assess the paper quality of the three cultivars such as the texture,
color, porosity and durability. These banana pseudostem ecobags can bear a stronger load than
the conventional bags. It will help eliminate the use of plastic bags that have proven to harm
the environment. Moreover, production of ecobags provides a sustainable source of income
and as a result the communities may become more aware of environmental issues.

Methods

This study utilized experimental method to determine the paper quality of the three
cultivars of banana locally grown. This study was conducted in Barangay Lower Irasan, Roxas,
Zamboanga del Norte, in an open area with direct source of sunlight.
The banana pseudostems were collected, taken and washed with water to remove soil
particles and dust. Then the pseudostems were scraped and the fibers were separated by using
scraper of a flat blunt blade. Fibers were dried under the heat of the sun to reduce the water
content. The pseudostems were cut into pieces of about 10 cm long and 5 cm wide and weighed
at 1 kg per cultivar. The 1000 g were divided into three replicates. Each of the samples were
cooked with 25 ml of sodium hydroxide (NaOH) for about 1-2 hours to loosen the
lignocellulose bonds and soften the material. The cooked fiber was set aside and allow to cool
down. The cooked materials were rinse with water to remove the sodium hydroxide. The
samples were then put in a blender with water and blend it until the material reached pulpy
consistency.
The blended material was put in a vat (tub full of water) and disturbed it using the
fingers in order to scattered it. Put the mold and deckle in the vat and scoop the blended
material. Remove mold and deckle from the vat and allow water to drain completely and place
the deckle under the heat of the sun until it dry. Peel the sheet, cut in desired shape ready for
eco-bags production.
In this research, the variables studied in the development of paper for eco-bags from
pseudostem of the three cultivars include the texture, color, porosity and durability. After the
completion of the eco-bags, the respondents were asked to evaluate the quality of the paper on
a scale of 1- 5 where the criteria are: 4.50-5.00 (very good); 3.50-4.49 (good); 2.50-3.49
(medium); 1.50-2.49 (less); and 1.0-1.49 (least) to Data were analysed using mean, percentage
and standard deviation.
Results and Discussion

Table 1 presents the analysis of the quality of the eco-bag paper in terms of its texture.
Texture is described as the quality of something that can be decided by touch; the degree to
which something is rough or smooth, or soft or hard. Surface finish, also known as surface
texture or surface topography, is the nature of a surface as defined by the three characteristics
of lay, surface roughness, and waviness. It comprises the small, local deviations of a surface
from the perfectly flat ideal (a true plane). Results revealed that, cardava has a very good
surface texture compared to tundan (good) and lakatan (medium).
Table 1. Texture of the paper of the three species of banana
Banana Cultivars Mean Description
Musa acuminate (lakatan) 3.47 Medium surface texture
Musa acuminate x balbisiana (cardava) 4.52 Very Good surface texture
Musa Sapientum (tundan) 4.45 Good surface texture

Presented in table 2 is the color quality of the paper of the three species of banana. Most
papers sold in the market are white, which is a result of the bleaching process. In this study,
no bleaching chemicals were added since an environment-friendly product was developed. As
shown in the table, it is the Musa acuminate x balbisiana (cardava) had the very attractive color
while the Musa Sapientum (tundan) had the least attractive color.

Table 2. Color of the paper of the three species of banana

Banana Cultivars Mean Description
Musa acuminate (lakatan) 2.04 Less attractive color
Musa acuminate x balbisiana (cardava) 4.55 Very Attractive color
Musa Sapientum (tundan) 1.25 Least Attractive color

Porosity is a measure of the extent to which a paper surface will allow the penetration
of a gas or liquid, such as air or ink, through its surface. The nature of paper is such that the
bonding of the paper fibers produces many tiny air passages throughout the paper, which can
either be completely submerged in the paper, extend from the surface down into the interior of
the paper, or penetrate completely through the sheet. Shown in table 3 is the porosity of the
papers of the three species of banana. The Musa acuminate x balbisiana (cardava) and Musa
acuminate (lakatan) had the highest time before the liquid absorbed into the paper. On the
other hand, water absorbed immediately into the Musa Sapientum (tundan) paper, thus it is
concluded that it has very high porosity.

Table 3. Porosity of the paper of the three species of banana

Banana Cultivars Mean Description
Musa acuminate (lakatan) 1.35 Least porous
Musa acuminate x balbisiana (cardava) 1.20 Least porous
Musa Sapientum (tundan) 1.25 Very porous

Table 4 shows the durability of the papers of lakatan, cardava and tundan. In this study,
durability is defined as the ability of the paper to withstand wear, pressure or damage. The
researchers test by putting small weights on the paper one at a time and record the weight the
paper can hold before tearing. The results showed that the mean durability value for cardava
is 3.52 interpreted as more durable while the tundan and lakatan mean values is 1.19 and 1. 25
respectively interpreted as least durable.
 Table 4. Durability of the paper of the three species of banana
Banana Cultivars Mean Description
Musa acuminate (lakatan) 1.19 Least durable
Musa acuminate x balbisiana (cardava) 3.52 More durable
Musa Sapientum (tundan) 1.25 Least durable

Conclusion

The Musa acuminate x balbisiana (cardava) paper had a very good surface texture, very
attractive color, least porous and more durable. While the two other papers were comparably
the same in terms color and durability. Furthermore, analysis of variance showed that there is
a significant difference in the qualities of papers of the three banana cultivars.

References

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Texture = rough/smooth
Color = brown/dark brown/light brown
Porosity = full of tiny holes
Topography= surface shapes