Production of fuel pellets from a mixture of sawdust and rye bran

Abstract

The purpose of the research was to assess the suitability of the milling industry waste, in the form of rye bran, as a supplement to sawdust, as a component of a granular blend, with its purpose for fuel purposes. The specific purpose of the study was to determine the effect of rye bran content in the mixture with sawdust on the power demand of a granulating-briquetting prototype device and on the quality of obtained granules (density, kinetic strength and calorific value). The experiment was conducted on a prototype granulating-briquetting unit using a flat die with a hole diameter of 12 mm and a thickness of 28 mm. The influence of rye bran content (5, 10, 15 and 20%) in the wood waste mixture on the power demand and on the density, kinetic strength and calorific value of the obtained granulate was determined. The research has confirmed that rye bran is an excellent binder material to obtain better quality granules at lower energy costs of the compaction process. The rye bran binder used is also a high energy content (high calorific value), leaving little ash content after the combustion process. Combustion studies have also shown that the addition of 20% rye bran does not significantly affect the pellet combustion conditions and the composition of the flue gases.