Physical properties of rice husk and bran briquettes under low pressure densification for rural applications

Agriculture generates large amount of by-products that could be used to produce energy and reduce the amount of fuelwood required to meet the daily cooking needs, especially in developing countries. Rice is a major crop grown in West Africa and rice husk is a by-product of the milling process. The goal of this study was to develop a low cost system to produce biomass briquettes from rice husks in the context of a rural village. A manual press generating a pressure of 4.2 MPa was developed and used. The influence of the briquette formulation (type of binder, binder content, water addition, and bran content) was studied. The binders investigated were cassava wastewater, rice dust, and okra stem gum. The physical properties (density, moisture content, calorific value, durability, and compressive strength) were tested to identify the briquettes with the highest quality, i.e. greatest physical integrity. The briquettes made with rice dust had the highest durability (91.9%) and compressive strength (2.54 kN), while the briquettes made with cassava starch wastewater had the greatest density (441.18 kg m⁻³). Water added to the rice husk before densification positively influenced the briquette quality while bran seemed to mostly increase the density, but not necessarily the briquette quality. The briquette formulation did not significantly influence the calorific value. With a higher heating value of 16.08 MJ kg⁻¹ dry basis, rice husk briquettes represent an interesting alternative to fuelwood.     

Conversion of rice husk into amorphous silica and combustible gas

Results of the studies on thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) of raw and 1(N) HCl acid treated rice husk (in still air) reveal that its thermal degradation takes place in three main stages of mass loss, namely (i) drying, (ii) devolatilization and (iii) slow oxidation of fixed carbon. Hydrochloric acid leaching of husk at 75° for 1 h prior to combustion is necessary for production of amorphous silica of complete white colour. For production of low calorie-combustible gas along with amorphous silica from the rice husks containing 5.5–7% (wb) moisture, a furnace set temperature of 450°C appears to be optimal.     

Rice husk combustion evolved gas analysis experiments and modelling

Rice husk is a major agricultural waste which could be a major source of fuel for boilers and furnaces if its calorific value could be realized efficiently. The oxidation kinetics of rice husks combustion were investigated using an evolved gas analysis technique. Rice husk samples were heated from 100 °C to 500 °C at a constant rate inside a small pressurised reactor. An oxygen-containing gas was passed through the reactor at a controlled flow rate and the evolved gas was continually analysed for its oxygen, carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide contents after moisture had been removed. A model for the oxidation of the rice husks samples is proposed that considers that the many simultaneous and competing oxidation reactions may be adequately represented by grouping them into three overlapping and competing reaction regimes in which CO₂, CO and H₂O are the only reaction products. The activation energies, and peak oxygen consumption temperatures were all found to be linear functions of the oxygen partial pressure in the reactor. Increasing the oxygen partial pressure decreased the temperatures at which peak oxygen consumption occurred. The total system pressure had no effect on the combustion behaviour other than through the oxygen partial pressure. At a heating rate of 80 K h⁻¹ and a system pressure of 500 kPa values for E/R for the low temperature, medium temperature and high temperature oxidation reactions are 14.7, 19.2 and 17.4 respectively.     

生物质与煤混烧灰的熔融性实验研究

为解决生物质与煤混燃存在的结渣积灰问题.以稻秸秆、白杨木屑、稻壳和煤在不同配比下混合燃烧的灰分作为研究对象,利用HR-3C灰熔融性测定仪研究了生物质与煤混合燃烧的熔融特性.研究表明:生物质燃料中碱金属含量比煤中的含量要高,提高生物质的掺入比总体上会使灰熔融温度降低;此外,对于二氧化硅含量不同的生物质燃料其灰熔融性有所差...     

酸洗预处理对生物质热解焦物理化学特性的影响

选用松木、杨木、玉米秸秆和稻壳4种生物质为原料,采用3%（体积分数）乙酸溶液进行洗涤除灰后,进行快速热解实验,对比研究酸洗预处理对4种生物质热解焦物理化学特性的影响。结果表明：乙酸酸洗可有效去除松木、杨木、玉米秸秆和稻壳灰分中的大部分无机元素,从而促进热解过程中挥发分的释放、显著改善热解焦的表面化学特性。酸洗可促进热解焦孔隙结构的形成,提高比表面积和总孔容积,但会使平均孔径减小,这表明酸洗主要提高微孔率,对微孔的形成有较大的促进作用。同时,酸洗使得更多的含氧官能团保留在生物质热解焦表面,这种影响对玉米秸秆和稻壳尤为明显。气化焦油的吸附实验结果表明酸洗后热解焦的吸附能力有所增加。     

Refuse-derived fuels as a renewable energy source in comparison to coal,rice husk,and sugarcane bagasse

The calorific potential of refuse-derived fuels (RDFs) was investigated with different coals, rice husk, and sugarcane bagasse. Carbon-sulfur analysis, gross calorific value (kJ/kg), and proximate analysis (%) were carried out. Total carbon of coal samples was found to be in the range from 62.65 to 79.19%, while RDF samples were ranged from 40.21 to 57.34% which were almost similar to rice husk (49.13%) and sugarcane bagasse (46.13%). Comparison of the total sulfur content of the coal (Duki) (10.52%) was very high as compared to RDF samples ranged from 0.17 to 0.46% and almost similar to rice husk (0.34%) and sugarcane bagasse (0.187%), while other coal samples ranged from 2.1 to 4.5%. The gross calorific value of the coal (Duki) (6,163 kJ/kg) was higher to other coal samples ranged from 4,935 to 4,972 kJ/kg, while found to be almost double to rise husk (3,518 kJ/kg), sugarcane bagasse (3,285 kJ/kg), and RDF samples (3,125–4,689 kJ/kg). The moisture content, volatile matter, and ash content were found higher in RDF 1 (42.14%), RFD 2 (66.55%), and coal (stone) (33.14%), respectively. Appropriate gross calorific value and very low sulfur content of the RDFs, especially RDF 2, appeared adequate to be used as a fuel with a lesser pollution potential and as an alternative fuel in mega cement industry of Pakistan.     

生物质灰化学特性的研究

采用灰成分分析及X-ray衍射方法,对甘蔗渣、松木屑、花生壳及谷壳四种常见的生物质灰特性进行了研究。研究表明：在气化过程中,甘蔗渣和松木屑的积灰、结渣倾向严重,花生壳次之,谷壳相对轻微。对其灰中碱金属的固留研究,分析了甘蔗渣和松木屑的积灰、结渣倾向严重的原因。     

稻壳变工况反应动力学研究

采用热重分析仪研究了稻壳变工况气化特性,考察了气化反应温度、气化介质流量和操作压力对稻壳气化反应特性的影响,利用反应动力学理论对压力影响反应活化能的变化进行了计算。结果表明:稻壳气化反应过程中,碳转化率随温度的升高而增加,气化剂流量在60 ml/min以上时可以消除气化剂向外扩散的影响,随着气化压力的提高,气化反应速率加快,稻壳试样的碳转化率有所增加,在同一反应时刻,该增加关系并不是线性的,当压力较高时,空气与稻壳的还原反应所受影响较弱,稻壳气化反应活化能随压力增加先降低后上升,该现象说明压力过高对气化反应有抑制作用。     

Energy and chemicals from rice husk

Rice husk is the only agro residue having maximum siliceous ash content and available in dry form. The present work on rice husk describes processes for producing controlled carbon-silica mixtures in amorphous form, electronic-grade potassium silicate and activated carbon.

Rice husk is first pyrolised in a reactor at less than 973 K to obtain the char which is subsequently heated and activated with steam at 1073–1173 K for about 1 h in another reactor. The char is leached with HCl. Analysis of the leached char indicates that it is amorphous in nature and contains mainly 40% carbon and 56% silica with small quantities of volatile matter. The utility of the material as filler for reinforcement of rubbers is tested. Test results show that a tenfold increase in tensile strength and modulus of elasticity can be achieved with 100 phr.

In another development, the leached char is digested with 10–15% KOH solution in the temperature range of 303–373 K for about 1–10 h. It is found that electronic-grade potassium silicate could be easily produced compared to the conventional method of fusion of sand with alkali at 1273–1473 K. The residue from this process is a good-quality activated carbon. A process flowsheet is presented for producing these chemicals with energy recovery aspects from rice husk.     

秸秆类生物质燃烧特性的研究

利用热重分析仪对江苏宿迁地区的玉米秆、稻秆和麦秆三种生物质的燃烧特性进行了分析，测定了生物质的灰熔点和灰组成，用XRD和TEM表征了生物质灰的物相结构和形貌。研究结果表明，三种生物质的燃烧规律基本一致，燃烧过程可分为四个阶段：干燥过程，热解过程，晶型转变过程和熔融过程；三种生物质中，玉米秆灰熔点最高。灰量最少且碱金属含量最低；生物质灰为形态各异的纳米颗粒。     

Sustainable gasification–biochar systems? A case-study of rice-husk gasification in Cambodia,Part I: Context,chemical properties,environmental and health and safety issues

Biochar is a carbon- and energy-rich porous material produced through slow pyrolysis of biomass, which has been proposed as a way of storing carbon in soils for the long-term (centurial to millennial timescales) but its production incurs an energy penalty. Gasification of rice husks at paddy mills combines the benefits of reasonably efficient delivery of energy with a reasonably high carbon char and ash mixture. The ca. 35% carbon content of the rice husk char is possibly a consequence of the protective shield of silica, preventing full exposure of the biomass to oxidation in the gasifier. In this paper we undertake an evaluation of the sustainability of this ‘gasification–biochar system’ (GBS) in Cambodia, where a rapid deployment of gasifiers is underway. In Part I, we describe the context and analyse (some of) the physical and chemical properties of the biochar. While there are some potential health, safety and environmental issues that require further analysis, they are problems that could be readily addressed in further research and appear to be resolvable. In Part II, we present results from field trials, summarise the data on the carbon abatement of the gasification–biochar system and present some preliminary economic data.     

Electricity generation from rice husk in Indian rice mills: Potential and financial viability

Rice husk generated as a by-product of rice processing is an important energy resource. The availability of this resource in India has been assessed and the technologies for exploitation of its energy potential in rice processing industry discussed. Nomographs have been developed for estimation of the husk required to meet the energy demand of parboiling, drying and milling operations. The unit cost of electricity using rice husk gasifier-based power generation systems has been calculated and its financial feasibility assessed in comparison with utility-supplied and diesel-generated electricity. With the cost and efficiency data assumed here, the unit cost of electricity produced by rice husk gasifier-dual fuel engine-generator system varies between Rs 2/kWh and Rs 7/kWh. (Note: 35 Rs approximates to $US 1.)     

Electricity generation from rice husk in Indian rice mills: potential and financial viability

Rice husk generated as a by-product of rice processing is an important energy resource. The availability of this resource in India has been assessed and the technologies for exploitation of its energy potential in rice processing industry discussed. Nomographs have been developed for estimation of the husk required to meet the energy demand of parboiling, drying and milling operations. The unit cost of electricity using rice husk gasifier-based power generation systems has been calculated and its financial feasibility assessed in comparison with utility-supplied and diesel-generated electricity. With the cost and efficiency data assumed here, the unit cost of electricity produced by rice husk gasifier-dual fuel engine-generator system varies between Rs 2/kWh and Rs 7/kWh. (Note: 35 Rs approximates to $US 1.)     

Overview of combustion and gasification of rice husk in fluidized bed reactors

Rice is cultivated in more than 75 countries in the world. The rice husk is the outer cover of the rice and on average it accounts for 20% of the paddy produced, on weight basis. The worldwide annual husk output is about 80 million tonnes with an annual energy potential of 1.2 × 10⁹ GJ corresponding to a heating value of 15 MJ/kg. India alone generates about 22 million tonnes of rice husk per year. If an efficient method is available, the husk can be converted to a useful form of energy to meet the thermal and mechanical energy requirements of the rice mills themselves. This paper provides an overview of previous works on combustion and gasification of rice husk in atmospheric bubbling fluidized bed reactors and summarizes the state of the art knowledge. As the high ash content, low bulk density, poor flow characteristics and low ash melting point makes the other types of reactors like grate furnaces and downdraft gasifiers either inefficient or unsuitable for rice husk conversion to energy, the fluidized bed reactor seems to be the promising choice. The overview shows that the reported results are from only small bench or lab scale units. Although a combustion efficiency of about 80% can normally be attained; the reported values in the literature, which are more than 95%, seem to be in higher order. Combustion intensity of about 530 kg/h/m² is reported. It is also technically feasible to gasify rice husk in a fluidized bed reactor to yield combustible producer gas, even with sufficient heating value for application in internal combustion engines. A combustible gas with heating value of 4-6 MJ/Nm³ at a rate of 2.8-4.6 MW_th/m² seems to be possible. Only very little information is available on the pollutant emissions in combustion and tar emissions from gasification. The major conclusion is that the results reported in the literature are limited and vary widely, emphasizing the need for further research to establish suitable and optimum operating conditions for commercial implementations.     

掺烧稻壳对煤粉炉飞灰特性的影响

在某300MW机组煤粉锅炉上进行稻壳掺烧试验,掺烧后飞灰的性质发生变化。对掺烧后锅炉飞灰的微观形貌、化学性质和稻壳灰的孔隙结构等性质进行试验分析。发现:掺烧稻壳后飞灰的物相中出现鳞石英和方石英晶形,飞灰中稻壳灰呈现熔融后块状的不规则颗粒物和黑色的大粒径的不规则片状灰粒,SiO2的含量从掺烧前的55.93%增加到75.05%。利用压汞仪对稻壳灰的孔隙特性进行分析。稻壳和煤共燃的飞灰的利用方式需要重新评估,而分离的稻壳灰可用作多孔材料。     

电厂废弃稻壳灰水热合成ZSM-5分子筛

以电厂废弃稻壳灰为原料,通过KOH溶液水热处理制取硅溶胶,采用水热合成法制备ZSM-5分子筛。考察了KOH溶液浓度、反应温度和反应时间对Si溶出率的影响,探索出最佳碱溶工艺条件;研究了在复杂合成体系中,模板剂用量、Si/Al等因素对ZSM-5分子筛合成过程的影响;采用XRD,SEM,ICP,TG-DSC,N2吸附脱附等手段进行表征,结果表明,以电厂废弃稻壳灰为原料,在较宽Si/Al范围内(15～2002)均可合成出ZSM-5分子筛;当Si/Al为30～2002时,分子筛产物晶形较为完备,热稳定性好,比表面积较大,微孔分布集中于0.53 nm。     

混燃的稻壳飞灰特性的试验研究

在某300MW机组煤粉锅炉上进行稻壳掺烧试验,对掺烧的稻壳灰的微观形貌、化学性质和孔隙结构等性质进行了试验分析。主要结论为:稻壳灰的物相以石英、鳞石英和方石英晶形为主,存在少量莫来石晶体。稻壳灰形状呈现大粒径的不规则片状灰粒,稻壳灰的凸面形成波状的熔融的状态伴有少量泡状孔隙,稻壳灰的凹面有丰富的孔隙结构。在常量元素分析结果中,稻壳灰中SiO2的含量高达97.42%,稻壳灰中的Al2O3、K2O、CaO含量低。稻壳灰的孔隙的平均孔径为9.704nm,注汞体积为0.1811cm3/g,样品的比表面积为74.6332m2/g,从共燃飞灰中分离出的稻壳灰可以作为多孔材料使用。     

稻壳燃烧特性与动力学模型的研究

采用热重分析仪,在空气气氛下对稻壳的燃烧热失重状况进行了研究,并分析了四种升温速率（5,10,20,50℃／min）对燃烧特性指数的影响。利用Coats-Redfern模型,Freeman—Caroll模型和Flynn—Wall-Ozawa模型分别计算了稻壳燃烧的活化能及频率因子。实验表明：随着升温速率的升高,燃烧性能得到良好改善,但反应起始温度和终止温度由于受热滞后性影响,向高温区偏移使着火温度升高。模型计算结果表明：稻壳燃烧的表观活化能较低,升温速率对活化能的影响并不明显,Coats—Redfern模型、Freeman-Caroll模型可用于估算,Flynn—Wall—Ozawa模型可作为重要数据参考。     

稻壳灰高值利用制备ZSM-5分子筛

以稻壳灰制备的硅溶胶为硅源，采用水热合成法制备ZSM-5分子筛。通过XRD、SEM、ICP及XRF等测试手段，系统考察反应时间、模板剂（TPABr）用量及未加铝源对ZSM-5分子筛形貌、结晶度及合成残液组成的影响。结果表明：当反应时间达到10 ~ 12 h，反应物料基本完全进入分子筛中，继续延长反应时间，虽能进一步促进物料反应和提高产品结晶度，但同样会造成分子筛颗粒增大和单位能耗增加；随模板剂用量的减少（SiO₂/TPABr = 0.05、0.04和0.01），分子筛结晶度逐渐降低（89.41%、81.97%和69.77%），但分子筛的形貌、颗粒大小及产率并没有明显变化；由于稻壳灰本身特性，制备的硅溶胶含有一定量的铝（0.0143%），在未外加铝源的情况下可成功制备出ZSM-5分子筛，且分子筛的形貌、结晶度及产率均未受到明显影响。     

Drying kinetics of pumpkinseeds

The drying of pumpkinseeds was investigated in the present study. Pumpkinseed has a thin liquid film on its surface and has rough‐surfaced peel. The most important parameter affecting its drying kinetics and increasing the drying rate is the temperature of the drying air. Drying was carried out with the surrounding air first at ambient temperature, and secondly an experimental rig was built to increase air temperature by using solar energy. A single layer of the pumpkinseed was dried in two different ways by free and forced convection. In these methods, pumpkinseeds were either placed in the tray exposed to the natural environment or placed in sieves on the experimental rig. The drying curves and variation of drying rate curves obtained were dependent on product moisture content. The drying air velocity can take moisture until saturation has a secondary effect on the moisture transfer. In the analysis, pumpkinseed was considered like a measurable rectangular prism. Fick's analytical solution, including effective diffusion coefficient, was applied to the present model. The results obtained from the present analytical model were compared with the experimental data and a good agreement was found. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.