THE EFFECT OF VARIATIONS IN INITIAL HEATING TEMPERATURE AND MESH SIZE ON THE HARDNESS VALUE AND CALORIFICATION VALUE OF CANDLECRON SHELL BRIQUETTE

Abstract

One of the promising renewable energy sources is biomass, particularly underutilized candlenut shells, which can be processed into briquettes as a superior alternative to charcoal. This study aimed to utilize candlenut shell waste for briquette production, evaluating hardness and calorific value under varying carbonization temperatures (400°C, 500°C, 600°C) and mesh sizes (30 and 100). Briquettes were produced via carbonization and compression. Hardness was measured using a durometer, yielding the highest value of 76.33 HA at 600°C and 100 mesh, and the lowest of 43.58 HA at 400°C and 30 mesh. Calorific value, determined by bomb calorimetry, peaked at 7834.70 cal/g for 500°C and 30 mesh, while the lowest was 5085.24 cal/g at 500°C and 100 mesh. These results demonstrate that optimized carbonization and particle size enhance briquette quality, promoting sustainable biomass utilization for energy applications.