Development of Carbonized Fuel Briquettes from Sugarcane Crop Waste

Sugarcane production generates field trash, including fresh leaves, dry leaves, and tops. Field trash by sugarcane varies between 11 and 21 t/ha, depending on the variety and quality of growth. Consequently, an enormous amount of crop residue is produced every year. However, the crop residues are poorly managed. They are either burnt or left in the field, thus causing environmental pollution. A feasible alternative is to convert this field trash into densified fuel briquettes, changing low-bulk-density biomass into high-density, energy-concentrated fuel. This study aimed to develop fuel briquettes using sugarcane dry leaves (field trash) and investigate their physicochemical and thermal properties. The influence of pressing time (30, 60, and 90 s), binder content (5, 10, and 15 % wt/wt), and briquette height (3, 4, and 5 cm) on the physical and mechanical properties of the briquettes were examined using the Response Surface Methodology to achieve the maximum bulk density, shatter resistance, abrasive resistance, and compressive strength. Results showed that the optimal conditions were 80 s pressing time, 15 % wt/wt binder content, and 5 cm briquette height, resulting in briquettes with a bulk density of 340 kg/m3, 99.6 % shatter resistance, 80.2 % abrasive resistance, and 230.2 kPa compressive strength, respectively. The fuel briquettes contained 23.7±0.6 % volatile matter, 41.5±0 % fixed carbon, and a calorific value of 16.59±0.06 MJ/kg. It took 3.1±0.2 min to ignite and 12.5±1.8 min to boil 1.59 L of water, with an average burning time of 79.7±4.7 min. The average thermal efficiency of PHilMech fabricated cooking stove using the optimized carbonized sugarcane dry leaves-based fuel briquettes was 31.5±3.3 %.