Torrefaction treatment on fuel properties of bambusa vulgaris and Gigantochloa scorthecinii

There is a great potential for bamboo to be applied as a biofuel for the future due to its good fuel properties with low alkali index and fast growth rate. Torrefaction treatment can increase the fuel quality of biomass in terms of the calorific value, energy density and storability. The aim of this research was to explore the effect of torrefaction temperature and reaction time on the fuel properties of B. vulgaris and G. scorthecinii. The bamboos were treated at varioustorre faction temperatures (200, 250 and 300 ̊C) and reaction time (15, 30, 45 mins). In overall, the highest higher heatingvalue was obtained from bamboos torrefied at 300ºC for 45 mins. In general, the temperature used in torrefaction has a relatively stronger effect on the higher heating value while the impact of the residence time was considerably lesser

PHYSICAL-MECHANICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF CEMENT-BONDED KENAF BAST FIBRES COMPOSITE BOARDS WITH DIFFERENT DENSITIES

This study was carried out to explore the potential of kenaf bast fibres (KBFs) for production of cement-bonded kenaf composite boards (CBKCBs). More than 70% of the KBFs were of size >3.35 mm and length of 31±0.4 mm, therefore, they were used for CBKCBs production. The CBKCBs with the dimensions of 450 × 450 × 12 mm were produced using cement (C): KBF with proportion of (2:1) and different board densities (BD) namely 1100, 1300 and 1500 kg/m3. The CBKCBs were first cured in a tank saturated with moisture for 7days, and then kept at room temperature for 21 days. Mechanical and physical properties of the CBKCBs were characterized with regards to their modulus of rupture (MOR), modulus of elasticity (MOE), internal bond (IB), water absorption (WA), and thickness swelling (TS). Results of the tested CBKCBs revealed that the MOR increased while the MOE decreased due to uniform distribution of KBFs. It was found that loading of KBFs has a negative influence on the internal bond (IB) of the CBKCBs; the IB was reduced as KBFs tend to balling and making unmixed aggregates with the cement. These results showed that the CBKCB is a promising construction material that could potentially be used in different structural applications due to their good mechanical characteristics