Physical and energetic characteristics of pellets produced from Movingui sawdust, corn spathes, and coconut shells

Abstract

This study aims to perform a physical and energetic characteristics investigation of pellets produced from agricultural and forest biomass. Caloric Value, unit density, bulk density, volatile matter, ash contents, and fixed carbon content were evaluated according to international standards. Biomass pellets (10S30M60C) had the highest fixed carbon content (i.e., 25.52 ± 1.91%) and the highest HHV (i.e., 24,984.60 kJ/kg). The Movingui wood pellets had the highest volatile matter content (71.18 ± 0.57%). The highest ash content was observed in corn spathes pellets (7.07 ± 0.92%) and sawdust pellets had the lowest ash content (3.91 ± 0.36%). Thermogravimetric analysis shows that the pellets from the mixtures degrade over a large temperature range (about 220–540 °C); hence, the pellets from the mixtures of residues are more resistant thermally than the pellets from the unmixed residues. The pellets produced are eligible for industrial application according to their characteristics.