FMIPA UI Plant Ecophysiology Expert Says Tobacco Can Be Used as an Environmentally Friendly Alternative Energy and Paper Processing Products

Lecturer of the Department of Biology, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, University of Indonesia (FMIPA UI) Dr. Ratna Yuniati, M.Sc., said that tobacco plants and tobacco waste can be used as alternative energy that is environmentally friendly and has high economic value and can be used as processed paper products.

He conveyed this when he was a speaker at the World No Tobacco Day (HTTS) webinar, which was organized by the UI Occupational Safety, Health, and Environment Technical Implementation Unit (UPT K3L), on June 6, 2023 via the Zoom meeting application.

“Tobacco is not always about cigarettes, the benefits of tobacco are now more directed at significant capabilities in botany and biotechnology, such as genetics, phytopathology, plant nutrition, and plant growth,” said Dr. Ratna.

The FMIPA UI plant ecophysiology expert then explained that almost all parts of the tobacco plant, including tobacco waste, can be used for various purposes and have high economic value.

Tobacco leaves, continued Dr. Ratna can be extracted to be used as an antiparasitic against nematodes and fleas. Crude extracts of tobacco leaves containing nicotine are as effective as pure nicotine. Ethnobotanically, the various alkaloids contained in them mean that tobacco leaf extracts can be used in many countries as a substitute for expensive synthetic acaricides.

Tobacco stem waste also has many benefits, namely as an alternative solid material for briquettes producing heat energy with a calorific value of 3,177 cal/g. The cellulose content of 35-40% in stem waste also has the potential to be developed as processed products such as paper, bioethanol, and bioplastic.

In addition, the alkaloid, flavonoid, essential oil and nicotine content in tobacco stem waste has the potential to be used as a plant larvicide against larvae. Aedes Aegypti environmentally friendly which is able to kill 31.25% of larvae.

Another potential of tobacco stem waste is that it can be developed as an effective organic pesticide to control insects such as leaf-destroying caterpillars. aphids, triphs, and fungus control.

"The advantages of organic pesticides produced from this waste are certainly environmentally friendly, the raw materials are easy to obtain, the manufacture is quite simple, and it has economic value, so the use of chemical pesticides can be reduced," said Dr. Ratna.

Tobacco plant stems still contain various nutrients, which can be returned to the soil through fertilization. Tobacco root and stem waste fermented using the decomposer Effective Microorganisms (EM4) can produce organic fertilizer.

In the textile industry, tobacco stem waste can also be converted into natural batik dyes. The process of extracting stem waste can be done with two methods according to the available raw materials, namely wet stems and dry stems. The results of extracting dyes from dry tobacco stems tend to be more stable, namely producing a brown color.

Tobacco is also studied in the environmental sector which focuses on green energy or environmentally friendly energy. Tobacco seeds can be processed into energy and biofuels. Selected tobacco varieties are genetically modified to increase the volume of oil in the tobacco seeds. Tobacco-based biofuels can reduce CO2 emissions.₂ sekitar 75% lebih besar dibandingkan bahan bakar fosil.

"The oil produced from tobacco seeds can be processed into biofuel. This is quite potential as an alternative to replace fossil fuels," said Dr. Ratna.

UI has implemented a smoke-free area that has been running for 10 years, supported by continuing to socialize and provide education to UI residents about the negative impacts of cigarette smoke. Even the prohibition of smoking in public places is seen with stickers in various locations around the UI campus.

"Through this webinar, it is hoped that it can provide new understanding for smokers to be able to prioritize health and the use of tobacco for life other than cigarettes," said Head of UPT K3L UI Dr. Ir. Sjahrul M. Nasri, M.Sc.

News source : https://sci.ui.ac.id/