Experiment analysis on the characteristic of empty fruit bunch, palm kernel shell, coconut shell, and rice husk for biomass boiler fuel

SIVABALAN KANIAPAN; H. Suhaimi; Y. Hamdan; Jagadeesh Pasupuleti

doi:10.15282/jmes.15.3.2021.08.0652

Authors

Sivabalan Kaniapan Mechanical Engineering Department, Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS, 32610 Seri Iskandar, Perak, Malaysia. Phone: +6053688000; Fax: +6053654082
H. Suhaimi Mechanical Engineering Department, Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS, 32610 Seri Iskandar, Perak, Malaysia. Phone: +6053688000; Fax: +6053654082
Y. Hamdan Mechanical Engineering Department, Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS, 32610 Seri Iskandar, Perak, Malaysia. Phone: +6053688000; Fax: +6053654082
Jagadeesh Pasupuleti Faculty of Engineering, University Tenaga Nasional, 43000 Kajang, Selangor, Malaysia

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15282/jmes.15.3.2021.08.0652

Keywords:

Renewable energy, proximate analysis, ultimate analysis, low bulk density, biomass chemical characterization

Abstract

It has been a necessary option for most developing countries moving towards renewable energy options as part of the Paris Agreement, which minimizes conventional energy sources’ reliance. In Malaysia, biomass is a profitable renewable option compared to solar and hydro sources for energy production due to the abundance of agricultural biomass availability for immediate use. However, most of the biomass power plants in Malaysia depend on empty fruit bunch as fuel, causing problems when there is a shortage of fuel supply and other circumstances. Variations in the fuels’ properties provide a new challenge to the power plant output; however, mixing biomass fuels can overcome the issue. Hence, this article aims to study the empty fruit bunch (EFB) with other abundant biomass fuels like “palm kernel shell (PKS),” “rice husk (RH),” and “coconut shell (CS)” for biomass boiler fuel. Therefore, the biomass’s composition and characteristics need to be known, which was done through the proximate analysis (PA), ultimate analysis (UA), and high heating value (HHV). As a result of PA, UA, and HHV, RH is the least favourable fuel due to lowest ((moisture (4.92%), volatile matter (63.20%), carbon (42.50%), hydrogen (5.42%), nitrogen (0.43%) and sulphur (0.01%)) and highest ash content (18.19%), whereas CS exhibits the most favourable option with highest (carbon (50.25%) and oxygen (42.57%)) and second highest in HHV (20.53%) compared with PKS. Thus, the experiments have provided the least and highest favourable feedstock ratios option for biomass boiler fuel application.

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