زيت نواة النخيل الخام — Frequently Asked Questions

CPKO comes from the kernel inside the palm nut, while CPO comes from the fruit's fleshy mesocarp. CPKO is a lauric oil, about half lauric acid, with an iodine value around 16–20; CPO is palmitic and oleic, with an iodine value around 50–55. They are processed, valued and used differently.

It can be hydroprocessed, but its C12 and C14 chains crack into a larger share of lighter products than C16/C18 feedstocks, which lowers jet yield. It is also a crop-based oil excluded from the ReFuelEU Aviation SAF obligation. SAF producers therefore rarely treat it as a core feedstock.

Lauric fatty acids are the preferred raw material for many soaps, surfactants and fatty alcohols. That demand often gives CPKO a higher value in oleochemical markets than as a fuel feedstock, so fuel use tends to be limited to specific blends or regional situations.

It is a food and feed crop oil, not listed in Annex IX, and as a product of the oil palm it is generally discussed together with palm oil under the EU's high ILUC-risk rules. Confirm its treatment in your market and the certificate scope for the lot with your certification body before contracting.

Crude grades are commonly traded at a maximum of about 5 % FFA expressed as lauric acid. Because lauric acid has a lower molecular weight than oleic acid, the same acidity reads numerically lower when expressed as lauric acid, so align the expression basis, or specify acid value, when comparing lots or contracts.

It melts at about 24–28 °C, so it is liquid in tropical climates but sets in cooler conditions. Heated ISO tanks, flexitanks with heating pads or heated ship tanks are used, with discharge commonly at around 40–45 °C. Avoid overheating, which raises FFA and darkens the oil.