Preliminary characterisation and valorisation of Ficus benjamina fruits for biofuel application

Ficus benjamina (FB) is a perennial plant that serves ornamental purposes. Its fruits are nonedible and considered ‘waste’ with no defined application. This paper discusses the valorisation and identification of the potential of Ficus benjamina fruits as a suitable biofuel feedstock. The whole fruit was characterised by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray (EDS), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and bomb calorimeter. In addition, the proximate and ultimate analyses were performed to determine their physical, thermal, and chemical properties for potential biofuel application. Pulverised Ficus benjamina fruits (PFB) have a porous morphology that makes them less dense with a crystallinity index of 25.5%. The moisture, ash, volatile matter, and fixed carbon contents were 9.29, 6.26, 64.35, and 20.10%, respectively. The higher heating value (19.74 MJ/kg) and lower heating value (18.55 MJ/kg) are comparable to other biomass feedstocks. The results establish the possibility of using PFB as a solid biofuel. Graphical abstract: [Figure not available: see fulltext.]This research was partially supported by the Ramon y Cajal Programme (grant number: RyC-2015–17516) of the Government of Spain, co-financed by the European Social Fund.Peer reviewe

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