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Blends of charcoal fines and wood improve the combustibility and quality of the solid biofuels

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Abstract

The effects of the blends of charcoal fines and Schizolobium parahyba var. amazonicum (paricá) wood on the briquette quality and on the combustibility of this solid biofuel is not fully understood, especially from fast-growing plantations with Amazonian tree species. In addition, this paper presents new information about the occurrence of inorganic elements that may contribute to increase the emission of toxic compounds in the combustion of paricá wood, for example, Cl. Thus, this study evaluated the composition of charcoal and S. parahyba var. amazonicum wood for briquettes, investigating the occurrence of inorganic elements responsible for the toxic organochlorine contaminants. Different formulations between charcoal and S. parahyba var. amazonicum wood were analyzed and later compacted in a laboratory briquetting machine with temperature of 90 °C and pressure of 5 MPa. The chemical and elemental composition of S. parahyba var. amazonicum wood was determined using X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (μ-XRF). The briquettes produced were tested for bulk and energy densities, proximate composition, heating value, equilibrium moisture, and resistance to diametral compression. S. parahyba var. amazonicum wood had chlorine levels below the recommended by international standards for solid biofuel intended for non-industrial use (< 300 mg kg−1). S. parahyba var. amazonicum, despite being a fast-growing species, has ideal chemical characteristics for energy purposes (Cl, S, and ashes). The most suitable briquettes were those produced with 50% of charcoal and 50% of S. parahyba var. amazonicum wood. This solid biofuel showed higher heating value of 22.74 MJ kg−1 and ash content of 2.65% db.

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Acknowledgments

We would like to thank the reviewers and editor, whose suggestions have made this research scientifically fit.

Funding

This project is funded by the Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education (CAPES/Brazil–financing code 001), National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq/Brazil), and the Wood Quality Research Center (NUQMAD/UFES).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Wood and Forest Science Department, Federal University of Espírito Santo (UFES), Av. Governador Lindemberg, Jerônimo Monteiro, ES, 316 29550-000, Brazil

    Ananias Francisco Dias Júnior, Mariana Aya Suuchi, João Gabriel Missia da Silva & Álison Moreira da Silva

  2. Forest Science Department, University of São Paulo (ESALQ/USP), Av. Pádua Dias, 11, São Dimas, Piracicaba, SP, 13418-900, Brazil

    Analder Sant’Anna Neto & José Otávio Brito

  3. Forest Products Department, Rural Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRRJ), Rod. BR 465, km 07, University Campus, Seropédica, RJ, 28900-000, Brazil

    Natália Dias de Souza

  4. Rural Federal University of Amazonia (UFRA), PA 275, Km 13, Parauapebas, PA, 68515-000, Brazil

    Thiago de Paula Protásio

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  1. Ananias Francisco Dias Júnior
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  2. Mariana Aya Suuchi
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  3. Analder Sant’Anna Neto
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  4. João Gabriel Missia da Silva
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  5. Álison Moreira da Silva
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  6. Natália Dias de Souza
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  7. Thiago de Paula Protásio
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  8. José Otávio Brito
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Contributions

Ananias Francisco Dias Júnior: conceptualization, methodology, roles/writing–original draft; Mariana Aya Suuchi, Analder Sant’Anna Neto, João Gabriel Missia da Silva, Álison Moreira da Silva, Natália Dias de Souza: investigation and writing–review and editing; Thiago de Paula Protásio: conceptualization, formal analysis, and writing–review and editing; José Otávio Brito: supervision, resources, funding acquisition, and project administration. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Álison Moreira da Silva.

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Dias Júnior, A.F., Suuchi, M.A., Sant’Anna Neto, A. et al. Blends of charcoal fines and wood improve the combustibility and quality of the solid biofuels. Bioenerg. Res. 14, 344–354 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12155-020-10179-8

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