P. O. ALONGE

This study evaluated the effect of acid fermentation using varying concentrations ofhydrochloric acid (HCl) 0.025 M, 0.050 M, 0.075 M, and 0.100 Mon the bleachingefficiency and quality characteristics of crude palm oil (CPO), with untreated oil (0.00M) ascontrol. Physicochemical parameters analyzed included moisture content, iodine value, saponification value, peroxide value, free fatty acid (FFA) content, refractive index, andspecific gravity. Results from one-way ANOVA and Tukey’s post-hoc tests revealed that HCl concentration had a highly significant influence (p < 0.001) on all parameters except moisturecontent. The moisture content remained relatively constant (0.015 ± 0.003 %to 0.022±0.002 %), indicating stable processing conditions. Iodine value markedly decreasedfrom48.80 ± 5.00 g/100 g in the control to between 14.21 and 20.31 g/100 g in treated samples, confirming saturation increase. Saponification value slightly declined from211.48 ±5.00mgKOH/g to 198.71–206.54 mg KOH/g, while peroxide value dropped sharply from24.03±5.00 mEq/kg to 2.02–6.62 mEq/kg, indicating improved oxidative stability. Conversely, FFAcontent increased significantly from 0.89 ± 5.00 % to 16.7–20.3 %, reflectingpartial triglyceride hydrolysis under acidic conditions. The refractive index values varied marginally(1.361–1.368), and specific gravity increased slightly from 0.8842 ± 5.00 to 0.887–0.893, suggesting limited compositional alteration. Statistical analyses confirmed that moderateacidconcentrations (0.05–0.075 M) yielded optimal bleaching performance, achieving effectivepigment and peroxide reduction while maintaining desirable stability and nutritional integrity. The findings establish acid-fermentation bleaching as a sustainable and cost-effectivealternative to conventional refining methods for enhancing palm-oil quality.