Determination of fixed carbon of blended briquettes of sawdust, maize stalks and coffee husks a case study of tea industry in Kericho County, Kenya

Benard C. Ronoh; Peter T. Cherop; Barasa H. Masinde

doi:10.51867/scimundi.5.2.2

Authors

Benard C. Ronoh
boche03@yahoo.com
Masinde Muliro University of Science and Technology, Kenya https://orcid.org/0009-0008-1352-9540
Peter T. Cherop Masinde Muliro University of Science and Technology, Kenya https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8991-1972
Barasa H. Masinde Masinde Muliro University of Science and Technology, Kenya https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0090-8874

Keywords:

Briquettes, Coffee Husk, Fixed Carbon, Maize Stalks Sawdust

Abstract

The tea industry in Kericho is among the main consumers of firewood for its intensive thermal energy demand used in industrial steam boilers. There have been growing concerns about firewood depletion and tea factories have begun transitioning to alternative fuels to power their boilers. Briquettes made of biomass residues are among the promising solutions; however, they are not yet widely adopted and implemented. This study has identified the possible source of briquettes to fire boilers that will utilize agricultural by-products produced within Kericho. The blended briquettes have arrived at the best ratio by determining the physical and combustion properties of blended briquettes of sawdust, maize stalks, and coffee husks. Blended briquettes have gained attention as a sustainable alternative to traditional fuels due to their potential for reducing environmental impact utilizing agricultural and forestry residues and reducing the dependency of wood pellets. The combustion properties of the blended briquettes have also been examined, focusing on fixed carbon. The calorific value will be determined using calorimetric techniques to measure the amount of heat energy released upon combustion. The ideal combustion parameters of blended briquettes were determined via numerical optimisation. Design-Expert® Software's optimization method is based on a technique created by Derringer and Suich (1980). Experiment design and analysis were done with Design-Expert® Software Version 10-Stat-Ease. The response surface methodology was utilized to investigate the fixed carbons blended briquettes manufactured from coffee husks, maize stalks, and sawdust. The interaction of the parameters was also explored. The results of this study have blended briquettes developed from coffee husks, maize stalks, and sawdust, measuring 45mm by 45mm by 35mm. From the analysis of individual briquettes, Individual briquettes fixed carbons range between 8.58% and 13.08%. Sawdust gave 9.36%, coffee husks 8.58% and maize stalks at 13.08%. The quality of bio-briquettes improves as the fixed carbon value rises. Fixed carbon serves as a primary source of heat during combustion. The optimal mix ratio of coffee husks: maize stalks: sawdust is 2.3:1.1:1. This ratio gave a 6.986% fixed carbon. This has verified that blended briquette fuel has better combustion properties than individual briquettes. It is recommended that further research should be done to investigate the influence combustion properties and binders for uncarbonized briquette binders when varied above 10%. This should be adjusted to see if it impacts both the physical and combustion properties under investigation.

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