Preparation and Characterization of Sawdust Derived Bio-Fuel Pellets Depending on "Solid Bridge" Intertwining Action of Hyacinth Fiber

Abstract

Densified biomass pellets named as H/S-BPs were prepared from waste wood sawdust (S) in the presence of water hyacinth fiber (H) as solid bridge under room temperature and 6 MPa lower than in the previous study. Mechanical properties including relaxed density (ρr), resiliency (R), abrasion resistance (AR) and impact resistance index (IRI) were evaluated. Results showed that adding H greatly reduced negative effect of resiliency on the mechanical properties of H/S-BPs during storage. For example, H/S-BPs compressed at 6 MPa in an H/S mass ratio of 1 to 3 presented lower resiliency of 10% and higher relaxed density of 1.04 kg dm-3 than pellets without H fiber. This is due to the intertwining action of H fiber, what fabricates solid bridge, replacing the bonding creating by applying high pressure to resist the disruptive force caused by elastic recovery. Thus, compression of waste H and S in a mass ratio of 1 to 3 at room temperature under 6 MPa is a cost-effective process to produce densified sustainable bio-fuel pellet as well as dispose waste S and H, combining the economical and environmental benefits.