Abstract:
In this study preparation and characterization of four biomass pellets i.e. bamboo leaf, mustard straw, rice husk and wood mix were carried out with cow dung that is considered to be a potential binder to improve the physicochemical properties of pellets. Prior to pelletizing, the biomass samples were pretreated thermally and mechanically. Initially the samples were dried at 105oC to remove moisture content up to 85% and then pellets were crushed and ground to attain particle size of 1mm to 4mm. Then samples were prepared using biomass and cow dung in 1:1. The pelletized samples were then characterized using XRD, FT-IR, SEM-EDS, Compressive Strength and TGA. The other thermal and mechanical properties of biomass pellets were measured using Calorific value, Ultimate and Proximate Analysis, Durability, Pellet density and Energy density. During characterization the compositional, mechanical, thermal and physicochemical properties were analyzed. Bamboo leaf and wood mix being the promising candidates exhibited improved properties compared to other biomass pellets with maximum compressive strength along with enhanced structural properties. The lignin content present in cow dung is one of the main sources that makes it good biofuel. The experimental results revealed that cow dung is a most suitable binder as it is abundantly available and also increases the durability of biomass pellets comparative to other binders used in different studies.
