Physical and calorific properties of wheat straw briquettes and pellets

Abstract

Wheat straw briquettes are high performance combustible products obtained by densification from the wheat straw biomass without the use of additional adhesives or additives. The purpose of the paper is to analyze and to detail the physical properties (SR EN ISO / CEI 322 for moisture content by method of drying and weighing, and effective density method according to SR EN ISO / CEI 323: 2005) and calorific properties of these briquettes (high and low calorific value according to ÖNORM M7135 using the XRY-1C / China Calorimeter and ash content according to ASTM D1102-84: 2013 and ISO 18122: 2015) and to make a comparison between these briquettes and other briquettes obtained from wooden biomass. The tested briquettes had a moisture content of 8%, an effective density of 1214 kg/m3, a high calorific value of 17.670 MJ/kg, the low of 17.525 MJ/kg and an ash content of 5.6%. All these values correspond to the permissible limits of the standards in the field. The final conclusion of the paper shows that wheat straw briquettes had physical and calorific properties similar to those of wooden biomass.