Waste Rice Husk Research Articles

Green extraction of uranium (238U) from natural radioactive resources

Numerous strategies have been devised to effectively extract uranium (U[VI] or 238U) from raw materials because it is a significant energy source. This study focused on the highly selective extraction of 238U isotopes from altered granite rock (AGR) utilizing bio-absorbents/extracts from Three-dimensional mesoporous silica monoliths (MSMs), which have been successfully created from affordable and sustainable resources like rice husk (RH). The MSMs exhibited micrometric particle sizes, mesoscopic hexagonal geometry, and irregular nano/microspace voids and grooves along their surfaces. To establish specific binding sites for the extremely selective adsorption/trapping/capturing of ultratrace levels of 238U isotope at pH 3, the MSMs were modified with (2-diethylphosphatoethyl) triethoxy silane chelating agent. Considering that the spent adsorbent/extractor could be recycled/regenerated by using H2SO4 as a stripping agent, the recycled bio-adsorbents could be reused several times with high retention efficiency. The isotherm, kinetic models, and thermodynamic parameters of U(VI) extraction were investigated to describe the nature of adsorption between the bio-adsorbents/extractors and adsorbate species. Results indicated that the MSM and MMSM biosorbents were promising effective extractors for 238U isotopes due to (i) their natural sources; (ii) their contribution to the management of RH waste; (iii) their low cost and eco-friendliness; (iv) their high efficiency, sensitivity, selectivity, and capacity for the target ions; (v) their minimization of waste volume by enabling multiple reuse/cycles; (vi) and their retention of structural performance for several reuse/cycles that resulted in a cost-effective extraction/capture process. Our proposed natural, sustainable porous material and efficient approach might enable the efficient extraction of uranium species from different resources and the appropriate exploitation of natural/agro-waste for clean energy production.

Rice Husk Waste: Impact on Environmental Health and Potential as Biogas

Indonesia is an agricultural country with dry-milled grain production reaching 55.6 million tons in 2022. Besides producing an abundance of rice, milled dry rice also results in waste in the form of rice husks. The handling of rice husk waste is mostly by burning. The smoke from burning is toxic, so it has a poor impact on environmental health. This study is regarding the effect of improper management of rice husks on environmental health, the utilization of rice husks in biogas energy, and its potential in Indonesia. Air quality measurement in areas burning rice husks on the parameters SO2, CO, NO2, and PM10 regarding the method of the Indonesian National Standard. Then anaerobic laboratory-scale research to convert rice husk into biogas. Chemical pretreatment was carried out with 3% NaOH and the C/N ratio determined was 25. Condition variations were determined for L-AD with 7% TS and SS-AD with 17% TS. We found that burning rice husks harm on environmental health. It is indicated by the SO2 and PM10 parameters exceeding the quality standards, namely 167 and 132 µg/m3.The NO2 parameter almost reached the quality standard, namely 178 µg/m3. Generated rice husk can be converted into renewable energy in biogas with good productivity in SS-AD conditions, with biogas production reaching 75.2 mL.gTS-1. Biogas potential from rice husks reached 1.5 million liters. It can support energy security for Indonesia.

Ceramic microfiltration membrane development from rice husk waste and kaolin and application as pre-treatment of paper industry effluent

RESUMO A indústria de processamento de papel está entre as três maiores produtoras de águas residuais de significativa contaminação ambiental. Com o objetivo de minimizar os impactos nos corpos d’água e se adequar aos padrões exigidos pela legislação, são necessárias soluções avançadas de tratamento. Neste trabalho, uma membrana cerâmica de microfiltração foi desenvolvida, tendo como base 60% da composição correspondente ao resíduo de cinza de casca de arroz e 40% de Caulim, para ser aplicada como pré-tratamento do efluente real da indústria de papel. A membrana foi obtida por compactação uniaxial a 27 MPa em uma prensa elétrica, com posterior sinterização em mufla a 1.200°C por 1 hora. Os materiais foram caracterizados por análises químicas e físicas. A membrana apresentou porosidade aparente de 34,59%, densidade de 1,30 g/cm³, retração linear de diâmetro e espessura de 1,7 e 2,5%, respectivamente, perda ao fogo de 9,3% e boa estabilidade química em ácido e base. A permeabilidade hidráulica correspondeu a 11,3 × 10-3 m3/m2 s MPa-1, com diâmetro hidráulico de poros de 2,29 μm e tamanho médio de poros de 1,727 μm. A caracterização do efluente bruto revelou altos teores de demanda química de oxigênio (1.125,4 mg•L-1), turbidez (1.300 UNT) e cor (253,8 UC). O estudo de filtração indicou resultados satisfatórios de eficiência da membrana, com remoção de turbidez (99,3%), demanda química de oxigênio (95,7%), cor (83,0%), compostos fenólicos (82,1%) e sólidos (85,1 a 90%). O uso da cinza de casca de arroz desempenhou a função de agente formador de poros e adsorvente de compostos fenólicos, representando promissora alternativa para a incorporação do resíduo ao ciclo produtivo.

Adsorption potential of pristine biochar synthesized from rice husk waste for the removal of Eriochrome black azo dye

Water contamination is a severe problem in today‘s world and it is progressively increasing day by day due to exponential industrial growth. The main contaminants found in water are dyes, heavy metals, pesticides, PFAS, etc. which are difficult to segregate with normal filtration units. In recent times, there has been a lot of focus on the removal of contaminants by ion exchange, filtration, distillation, adsorption, etc. Biochar derived from feedstock has been an excellent adsorbent and is therefore used in many applications like the removal of various heavy metals, azo dyes, inorganic and organic pollutants, etc. Azo dyes, which are mostly used in leather and textile industries are carcinogenic in nature, making them a great threat to mankind. In this article, we have synthesized pristine biochar at 600 °C through pyrolysis and explored its potential in the removal of anionic azo dye (Eriochrome black T). The biochar showed good porosity, as confirmed by FESEM images. The synthesized biochar showed excellent adsorption capacity for the 94 % removal of Eriochrome black T dye at 2.0 pH, 1.5 g catalyst dosage, 2 hr time, and 20 ppm initial dye concentrations. This work showed effective removal efficiency of pristine biochar in the removal of dyes from the contaminated water in the near future.

Eco-friendly production of silica particles and fertilizer from rice husk, rice straw, and corncob wastes

Agroindustrial wastes represent a rich and underutilized source of valuable minerals. Because the amount of biomass wastes generated by the agroindustry is increasing and the demand for sustainability is arising, there is a growing need for improving agroindustrial waste utilization and valorization. One of the major industrial interests has been obtaining silica from biomass wastes. The synthesis of silica from agroindustrial waste materials typically involves the use of high energy input for calcination or incineration and chemicals for extraction. To reduce energy consumption and chemical waste generation, we modified a sol-gel method to yield a by-product that can be used as a fertilizer. High purity silica was obtained from rice husk (95.1%), rice straw (91.4%), and corncob (95.9%). The silica particles were amorphous and white in color. The mean diameters of the silica particles obtained from rice husk, rice straw, and corncob were 72.4, 68.1, and 52.9 µm, respectively. The acid waste generated from the process was neutralized to yield potassium chloride. This by-product had mineral contents that could be used for inorganic fertilizer. In addition to supporting sustainability, the development of agroindustrial waste utilization methods is important for the establishment of inexpensive processes that are adaptable for large-scale manufacturing.

Standalone hybrid system energy management optimization for remote village considering methane production from livestock manure

Recently, many efforts have been done to overcome increasing fuel consumption. One of the vital solutions is utilization of standalone renewable energy resources hybrid systems. This paper attempts to develop a cost-effective methodology to ascertain optimal design and energy management for a remote village. Different energy resources such as wind and solar, fuel cell, and energy storage systems are employed to satisfy total demands including agriculture, residential, school, and health center. Different hydrogen production methods are proposed to verify the efficiency of the developed methodology. In the proposed village, different waste types such as rice husk, maize straw, livestock, and residential wastes are used to generate the required hydrogen for fuel cells to generate electricity. The main objective of the proposed methodology is minimizing the total cost of the village including total costs of each Distributed Generation (DG), cost of natural gas consumption, penalty for interruption the demands, and cost of CO2 emission. A Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) algorithm is employed to solve the optimization problem by minimizing the total system costs while the customers required Loss of Power Supply Probability (LPSP) is satisfied. The suggested hybrid system not only increases the renewable energy penetration but also decreases the natural gas consumption. The results achieved in the course of the present study depict that utilization of energy produced from different types of wastes plays a significant role in conserving fossil fuels and overcoming the fossil fuels depletion. It is concluded from the results that there is about a 17.46% reduction in natural gas consumption when all available waste is utilized. In addition, considering 100% availability for the animal manure reduces the natural gas consumption by reformer from 2.373 to 1.605 million liters which means reduction of the natural gas consumption is 32.35%. The results conclude that H2 produced by livestock waste is dominating among available wastes. However, there is about 18% reduction in the Cost of Energy (COE), when 100% availability is considered for this type of waste.

Diseminasi kelompok Karang Taruna Desa Pationgi dalam pembuatan Biofoam kemasan pengganti Styrofoam

Bio foam is an alternative packaging to replace Styrofoam made from natural raw materials such as starch, with the addition of fiber to strengthen its structure. Bio foam is a product that is not only biodegradable but also renewable. The raw material for packaging bio-foam in this service activity is peanut shell waste, a combination of rice husk waste. Peanut shell and rice husk waste are used as ingredients in manufacturing bio-foam because these materials contain high carbon elements, producing K-dots compounds that can benefit human life if processed. This service activity was carried out in Pationgi Village, Patimpeng District, Bone Regency, with three main stages: counseling, training, and mentoring. This community service activity aims to provide knowledge and skills to Karang Taruna Group partners in processing peanut shell waste and rice husks into environmentally friendly alternative packaging (bio-foam) as a substitute for Styrofoam. As a result of this community service, the Pationgi Village Youth Group partners now have more knowledge and skills about how to process nutshell and rice husk waste to make bio-foam packaging that is better for the environment and can be used instead of Styrofoam.

Biogenic Amine Sensing Based on Rosamine a N-Methylpyridinium Derivative Supported on Silica Materials from Rice Husk.

In this work new rosamine-silica composites were prepared and their sensing ability towards different amines was assessed. Rice husk wastes were used as a biogenic silica source. Silica was extracted by thermal treatment, before rice husk ash and after acid leaching with citric acid-treated rice husk ash. Mesoporous material (SBA-15) was also prepared using the extracted silica. The prepared materials were characterized by several techniques such as FTIR, XRD, SEM and N2 adsorption. The materials were then used as adsorbents of the chromophore N-methylpyridinium rosamine (Ros4PyMe). The obtained loaded composites were tested in solution for amines sensing (n-butylamine, aniline, putrescine and cadaverine). The detection studies were analyzed by fluorescence and revealed 40% and 48% quenching in fluorescence intensity for the composite Ros4PyMe@SBA in the presence of the biogenic amines cadaverine and putrescine, respectively. The composite was also sensitive in the powder form, changing the color from violet to pale pink in the presence of putrescine vapors with a fast response (around 2 min), the process being reversible by exposure to air.

Pemanfaatan Digital Marketing dalam Pemasaran Briket Arang dari Sekam Padi di Desa Pangkoh Hulu, Kalimantan Tengah

The higher the production produced in agriculture, the higher the waste generated. For example, such as rice, the waste produced is very large, namely rice husks. Rice husk that can be utilized and developed for fuel needs. The method used was preparation, socialization and training which was carried out in Pangkoh Hulu Village, Pandih Batu District, Pulang Pisau Regency, Central Kalimantan. Charcoal briquettes are made from rice husks that are burned, mashed, and filtered until clean then mixed with tapioca flour and water, after which the briquettes are molded and dried to harden for 3-5 days. Digital marketing training in the form of packaging and branding is carried out to obtain added value so that it can be marketed by local residents. The participants who attended were the surrounding community, PKK women, and the X 2022 National Community Service Program students. There were approximately 30 participants who attended the activity and the Pangkoh Hulu Village community received and welcomed the training that we carried out. Making rice husk charcoal briquettes is one way to process rice husk waste so that it can become a selling point that can be marketed

Comparing Acid and Enzymatic Hydrolysis Methods for Cellulose Nanocrystals (CNCs) Obtention from Agroindustrial Rice Husk Waste

Agroindustrial residues represent a serious environmental problem in the world; in this case, the polluting rice husk, present in the rice fields of Morelos State, is one source of incalculable biomass. The aim of this study was to assess two viable and optimized procedures for obtaining nanocellulose from these wastes. The sieved samples included 4 treatments with different grain sizes (sieves # 10, 15, 30, and 50) and three replicates. They were then processed by an alkaline treatment (NaOH) 5%, bleaching with sodium hypochlorite, followed by pretreatment with 0.65% hydrochloric acid (HCl). After drying, the cellulose was subjected to acid hydrolysis with (H2SO4) at 64%, and was compared to an enzymatic hydrolysis complex. This complex was formed of D-(+) cellobiose and endo-1,4-β-D-glucanase from Acidothermus cellulolyticus. End products were sonicated and dialyzed until they reach a neutral pH. Finally, the nanocellulose was characterized by FTIR, DSC, XRD, SEM, and TEM. Evident results recognize the nanocellulose (NC) synthesis by both routes, with greater contaminants generated in the medium by the acid hydrolysis. It is much more feasible and faster to achieve with enzymatic hydrolysis, less aggressive for the environment, and higher performance. In future trials, the cost-benefit of using the enzyme complex should be assessed as an alternative to replace acid hydrolysis.Key words: acid hydrolysis, enzymatic hydrolysis, waste, rice husk, Oryzasativa L, cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs).

Natural Rubber Composites Reinforced with Green Silica from Rice Husk: Effect of Filler Loading on Mechanical Properties

Natural rubber (NR) composites filled with silica are typically used for tire tread applications owing to their low energy consumption and low rolling resistance. Tire tread properties vary broadly depending on the compound formulation and curing conditions. Silica loading is recognized as a critical factor influencing the mechanical properties of the composites. In this work, we aim to investigate the effect of silica loading (10–50 phr) on the mechanical properties of NR composites. Silica was prepared from rice husk waste via chemical treatment and subsequent calcination at 600 °C. Prior to the compound mixing process, silica was modified by a silane coupling agent to improve compatibility with the NR matrix. The NR compounds reinforced with silane-modified silica from rice husk were prepared using a two-roll mill machine. The scorch and cure times increased as the silica loading increased. The mechanical properties of the NR composites, including tensile strength, elongation at break, modulus, hardness, and abrasion loss, were examined as a function of silica loading. Tensile strength increased and reached the maximum value at 20 phr but decreased at high loading owing to the agglomeration of silica in the NR matrix. With increasing silica loading, hardness and modulus increased, whereas elongation at break and abrasion resistance decreased slightly. These results indicate that NR composites filled with silica are stiffer and harder at a higher silica loading due to the strong interaction between silica and the NR matrix, inhibiting the segmental mobility of rubber chains. We anticipate that the compound formulation presented in this work could potentially be adapted to tire tread applications.

Comparative study of fly ash and rice husk ash as cement replacement in pervious concrete: mechanical characteristics and sustainability analysis

ABSTRACT Pervious concrete is a special type of concrete consisting of cement, coarse aggregate and water. Cement is a widely used raw material for construction including pervious concrete and had led to the release of huge amounts of CO2 to the environment. Therefore, there is lot of research interest in finding supplementary cementitious materials. The present study examined and compared the feasibility of using industrial waste fly ash (FA) and agricultural waste rice husk ash (RHA) for sustainable pervious concrete production. An experimental program was performed with substitution of FA and RHA contents of 5%, 10%, 15% and 20% as cement replacement and water to binder ratio of 0.3, 0.35, 0.4 and 0.45. The characteristics of pervious concrete and sustainability analysis were compared for both FA and RHA replacement with control concrete mortar. The results showed that both FA and RHA have a negative effect on permeability. The compressive strength was optimum for FA content lies between 10% and 15% replacement level and RHA content of 5% replacement level. Furthermore, the utilisation of FA and RHA decreased production cost, the total embodied energy and carbon emission, resulting in cost-effective and eco-friendly pervious concrete.

Insight into enhanced degradation of tetracycline over peroxymonosulfate activated via biochar-based nanocomposite: performance and mechanism.

Rice husk biochars (BCs) doped with ferric chloride were prepared by one-pot method, characterized by SEM, EDS, BET, XRD, and FTIR, and utilized to catalyze peroxymonosulfate (PMS) for tetracycline (TC) degradation. Various influencing factors in the BC/PMS/TC system were investigated, as well as the recycling performance of the optimal BC. The mechanism of BC activation of PMS and degradation of TC were analyzed based on the free radicals quenching experiment and the pathways of TC degradation. The results demonstrated that bBC3 was an excellent catalyst with large specific surface area; the amounts of oxidant and catalyst were important factors affecting the catalytic performance of PMS, while pH had less effect on TC degradation; 10mM of chloride ions inhibited the TC degradation, while 20mM promoted the TC degradation; other ions and humic acid inhibited the TC degradation at the set concentrations; activation of PMS by bBC3 yielded species with strong oxidative activity, which were primarily responsible for TC degradation. The bBC3 obtained stable performance for removing TC. This study provided a pathway for the deep utilization of waste rice husks besides an effective method for degrading TC.

Efficient removal of microplastics from aqueous solution by a novel magnetic biochar: performance, mechanism, and reusability.

Microplastics' (MPs) pollution removal from water bodies has become an urgent task to ensure water quality safety and water ecological security on a global scale. In this work, coprecipitation was employed to investigate the adsorption of MPs by magnetic biochar (MRB) prepared from agricultural waste rice husks in an aquatic system. The results showed that MRB can adsorb up to 99.96% of MPs in water; acidic conditions were favorable for the effective MPs' adsorption reaction, and competing anions had a greater effect on adsorption. The adsorption mechanism results revealed that the adsorption of MPs by MRB was a spontaneous process, and electrostatic attraction, surface complexation, hydrogen bonding and π-π interactions were present in the adsorption process. Furthermore, after the adsorption of MPs, MRB can be recovered by thermal treatment (500°C) and still exhibits up to 90% MPs adsorption (after four uses). This work reveals that MRB is an inexpensive, efficient, and reusable nanoscale adsorbent for MPs pollution removal in water, which may provide new ideas for microplastic pollution control in the aqueous environment.

Synthesis, characterization and energy gap of silica quantum dots from rice husk

This study aimed to reveal roles of KOH and HCl in a synthesis process of Silica Quantum Dots (Si-QDs) from environmentally friendly rice husk waste, the morphological characteristics, size and crystal structure of particles as well as the energy gap of Si-QDs. The results showed that High Energy Milling (HEM) caused electron excitation, delocalized bonding, nanocrack and fracture. KOH played a role in producing Si-QDs sizes around 0.386–2.5 nm. The most efficient hexagonal crystal structure absorbed the peak wavelength of about 250–400 nm and glowed a purplish-blue color. The Si-QDs produced Si and O content was 97 % with 3 % of K, Fe, and Ca impurities. The obtained energy gap 1.59–2.36 eV and HOMO-LUMO 127 99.5 kcal/mol. The smaller size of Si QDs, the higher energy gap which was associated with the quantum confinement effect.

Enhanced adsorption-oxidation performance of PMo12 immobilized onto porous MCM-41 derived from rice husk for H2S at room temperature

In this study, a novel adsorbent (PMo12@RH-MCM-41) was synthesized through impregnation method using waste rice husk and phosphomolybdic acid (PMo12) as the silica source and active center, respectively. The regular fibrous-like structure of RH-MCM-41 with hierarchical pores provides a high percentage of exposed PMo12 sites, enhancing the desulfurization activity of PMo12. PMo12@RH-MCM-41 exhibited excellent desulfurization ability in comparison with PMo12 and RH-MCM-41, demonstrating the synergistic effect between PMo12 and RH-MCM-41. The efficient transformation of H2S to elemental S with a yield of 61.3 % was achieved at room temperature. The PMo12@RH-MCM-41 regenerated by hot air purging can maintain the stable desulfurization ability for more than 8 cycles. The mechanism analysis demonstrated the redox ability of PMo12 in the heterogeneous desulfurization system. This work provides important insights for the application of polyoxometalates in solid-phase desulfurization, and broadens high-value utilization patterns of agricultural waste biomass.

Modelling the extraction process parameters of amorphous silica-rich rice husk ash using hybrid RSM−BPANN−MOGA optimization technique

This study was aimed to optimize process conditions for recovery of amorphous silica-rich rice husk ash (RHA) as a highly reactive precursor of silicon compounds for valorization of a non-conventional agricultural waste rice husk. The optimization was accomplished using a hybrid multi-objective genetic algorithm (MOGA) coupled with back-propagation artificial neural networks (BPANN) and response surface methodology (RSM). Herein, process conditions, namely leaching temperature (65–85 °C) & time (0.5–1.5 h) and calcination temperature (450–650 °C) & time (1−3 h) were considered as independent variables. The influence of process parameters on % crystallinity and volume % of silica in RHA were studied based on X-ray diffraction analysis and RHA recovery. In the hybrid RSM−BPANN−MOGA model, predicted data of BPANN were used as initial score and regression equations of RSM were used for development of fitness function. A set of optimal solutions were obtained as Pareto front and the final optimum design point was selected using TOPSIS (Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to an Ideal Solution) decision-making tool. The optimized process conditions were: leaching temperature: 75 °C, leaching time: 1 h, calcination temperature: 550 °C, and calcination time: 2 h. The optimized model was validated with observed results and found to be a well-fitted with absolute errors of 7.42%, 2.03%, and 4.26% for % crystallinity, RHA recovery, and vol% of silica, respectively. Further, a comparative study was performed between non-leached RHA and optimized RHA using several material characterization techniques. This study showed relative superiority of optimized treatment parameters with increased purity and decreased crystallinity and porous particle morphology.

Preparation of an environmentally friendly demulsifier using waste rice husk as raw materials for oil–water emulsion separation

Demulsification of crude oil emulsions still face many difficulties in the petroleum industry. Therefore, it is very important to develop innovative materials to achieve the effective separation of oil–water emulsions. In this work, an environmentally friendly RHC-0.5 demulsifier was prepared via a simple one-step hydrothermal route using rice husk (RH) as raw materials. It was characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, field-emission scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectrometer and thermogravimetric analysis. The possible breaking mechanism was analyzed by particle size analysis, Zeta potential, interfacial activity, interfacial tension, self-assemble of interfacial film and microscopic analysis. The influence of some important factors such as dosage, temperature, standing time and salinity on the demulsifying efficiency (DP) was explored through bottle tests. The optimal DP of 95.01 % could be obtain with 300 mg/L of RHC-0.5 at 70 °C for 10 min. Meanwhile, RHC-0.5 had a good salt tolerance even at the salinity of 40000 mg /L. In addition, its DP was compared with that of commercial demulsifiers such as SP169, CH-66 and AR-32. This work not only can promote the efficient utilization of biological waste (RH), but also provides an insight into the exploration of new demulsifying materials with excellent performance.

Effect of Cow Manure on Biogas Production Based on Rice Husk Waste in SSAD Conditions

The development of biogas technology is currently very fast along with the increasing need for energy and expensive costs used to buy fossil energy. Rice husk-based biogas has begun to be widely developed because of the high potential that can be utilized from the biomass. The aim of this study was to study the effect of the addition cow manure combined with rice husks for biogas production under SSAD conditions. Variable comparison of rice husk and cow manure as follows: 4:1, 3:1, 2:1, 1:1, 1:2, 1:3, and 1:4. The study was carried out in duplicate on laboratory scale with C/N ratio 35, 27% total solids and rumen fluid as a source of methanogenic bacteria. Biogas is observed every two days until its productivity decreases. It was found that the best biogas productivity was in the 2:1 variable range, namely 39.49 mL/grTS followed by 1:1 21.91 mL/grTS, 3:1 13.80 mL/grTS, 1:2 13.31 mL/grTS, 1:3 10.90 mL/grTS, 1:4 82 mL/grTS and 4:1 9.41 mL/grTS. After calculating the biogas production rate constant with Gompertz, the highest productivity was obtained at 1:1 variable, with maximum biogas (A): 65.69 mL/grTS, daily biogas production (U): 0.37 mL/grTS.day, and minimal time for biogas formation (\U0001d706): 25th day.

Synthesis and Characterization of Copper Metal Matrix Composite Reinforced with Ceramic Oxide Extracted By The Green Route

The paper presents the synthesis and characterization of Copper metal matrix composite reinforced with silica using powder metallurgy route. The 5%wt of silica is reinforced with copper metal as matrix material. 5% wt Magnesium was added as wetting agent as copper shows poor wettability towards silica. The reinforced silica was extracted from agro waste rice husk ash under controlled conditions of sintering temperature and duration of heating from rice husk ash using alkali extraction method. Reflux method was used to extract nanosilica from silica. Silica and the composite were characterized for microstructural studies, elemental composition and surface morphologies using X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Energy Dispersive X-Ray (EDX) and Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM). The synthesized copper silica composite was studied for structural, compositional and mechanical properties. The results showed that the copper metal matrix composite reinforced with silica showed improved mechanical behavior and can be used in all such applications where light weight and better mechanical strength from copper metal are expected. As the filler material silica is extracted from green route which partially replaces the expensive metal, this work reports a non-toxic, cost effective, light weight and improved mechanical strength substitute for copper metal applications.