Speaker 1
Dr. Jedol Dayou
Energy, Vibration and Sound Research Group (e-VIBS),
Universiti Malaysia Sabah.
Title: 2-D and 3-D Acoustics Tomography for Monitoring of Health Condition of Oil Palm Tree and Beyond
Abstract
Palm oil has been reported with many health benefits when taken into diet. It has also become very important in various industries from biodiesel to cosmetics and pharmaceutical. Unfortunately, the palm oil industry suffers severely from a disease called Basal Stem Rot (BSR) which is caused by
Ganoderma boninense (GB) that attack the palm tree. The losses due to this disease is huge with yearly recorded value of more than USD 1.5 billion. To date, no effective control of this disease could be implemented. This is especially because no practical detection method of the disease especially at the early stage of infection. Several lab based detection methods such as molecular polymerase chain reaction-DNA (PCR-DNA), DNA-microarray, Ganoderma Selective Media (GSM) and Ergosterol analysis, as well as field methods including hyperspectral remote sensing, ergosterol thin layer chromatography, electrical resistance (ERCT), gamma (GCT) and acoustics computed tomography (ACT) have been investigated for early detection purpose. Recently, a technique was developed based on two- (2-D) and three-dimensional (3-D) ACT method for early detection of the GB infection. Healthy, asymptomatic and severely infected trees where tested and the constructed images at the tree cross section were compared with the actual conditions by visual inspection after the trees were cut. Strong correlation between the constructed image and the tree internal conditions were found. Detail study of the result shows that some tomography image properties could be associated with the stage of infection. In addition, the technique may also provide information on the overall health condition of palm tree.
