Investigating the Composition of Sugarcane Bagasse and Rice Straw Biomass with Natural Binders on the Mechanical and Thermal Properties of Fuel Pellets

Biomasses are one of the major sources of renewable energy and suitable alternatives to fossil fuels. An application for biomass energy is fuel pellets which are made from agricultural waste, plant residues and manure, are compacted and contain higher energy per unit of volume. In this research, different proportions of pellets were prepared from two types of rice straw biomass and sugarcane bagasse (25%, 50%, 75% and 100%) and their combination with natural binders (frankincense, Arabic gum, eremurus) at three levels (5%, 10%, 15%). The effect of these variables were investigated on the density, fracture resistance, stability and calorific value of the manufactured fuel pellets. The comparison of results means showed that the optimum proportion for fuel pellet production is a combination of 75% sugarcane bagasse and 25% rice straw, which combined with the frankincense natural binder. This proportion has the highest failure strength, durability, and heating value at 15% binder level.