Classification of oil palm Fresh Fruit Bunches (FFB) using Raman spectroscopy

Abstract

The current practice in determining oil palm fresh fruit bunches (FFB) ripeness is by its colour which could be inaccurate. This study investigates the classification of oil palm FFB ripeness using Raman spectroscopy. A feature extraction model is developed based on the different organic compositions that contribute to the ripeness classification. Samples are collected according to the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) standards which are unripe, underripe, ripe, overripe, and rotten. Different characteristics of the Raman shift were detected which represent the material composition for each sample. The Raman intensity of the oil palm fruit increases from unripe to ripe before decreasing to rotten due to the carotenoid content in the fruit. In conclusion, Raman spectroscopy is a suitable technique to observe the changes in the composition of oil palm fruit classified by its ripeness.