Abstract: Developing countries are faced with the huge problem of sawmill residues management. These residues are burnt on roadside or dump yards, which results in environmental pollution.This waste management problem has necessitated the need for turning such waste into a product that will provide alternative energy to the people rather than constituting environmental problems. In order to solve this problem, a low-cost briquetting machine that converts this sawdust into dense briquette for domestic use was designed and fabricated. The machine was designed so as to compress sawdust. The machine comprised a hopper, die/barrel, compaction chamber, feed screw housing, feed screw extruder, power transmission shaft and the frame.The machine was designed to produce briquette at the rate of 7 kg/hr. The briquetting machine designed has production efficiency of about 80 % and can be operated by one operator. The design parameters include: a power requirement of 10hp, belt tensions of 215.78 N and 19.6 N, and shaft diameter of 35mm with screw and die diameter of 70 mm and 50 mm respectively. The machine produced briquettes which have high resistance to mechanical action, better handling and fuel characteristics for household use. The machine was tested by producing sawdust briquette. The briquettes produced are strong; easy to handle and well compacted.

Keywords: Briquette, Sawdust, Fabrication, Densification, Heated die, Screw

Pages: 267-272

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