Comprehensive experimental assessment of Samanea saman wood and leaves waste combustion in the aspect of ash-related problem

Abstract

This research focuses on a comprehensive investigation of the combustion characteristics of Samanea saman wood and leaves, especially addressing ash-related problems. The evaluation consisted of theoretical calculations, experimental combustion, and ash analysis using scanning electron microscope (SEM) and x-ray diffraction (XRD). The slagging and fouling tendencies are similar in both biomass samples. However, S. saman wood has cleaner probe in slagging area than the other probe samples. This finding is in line with SEM and XRD analysis which, showing that S. saman wood ash is characterized by a porous angular shape and fine particles which are dominated by calcite 38.79 wt% and 29.22 wt% in slagging and fouling probe, respectively. On the other hand, S. saman leaves contain albite 62.94 wt% and 53.33 wt% in slagging and fouling probe respectively. In addition, S. saman wood demonstrates comparable combustion characteristics to other solid fuels, suggesting its potential for broader utilization as a biomass fuel.