Evaluation of physical and chemical parameters of the briquettes obtained with the briquetting machine built in FAREM - Estelí

Abstract

The main purpose of this research is to evaluate the physical and chemical parameters of the briquettes produced in Farem - Estelí. It is a quantitative, exploratory and descriptive research. Seven different briquettes of forest substrates were produced. The instruments used were: The efficiency evaluation was determined by water boiling test (WBT for its acronym in English) version 4.2.2, emissions of carbon monoxide (CO) were measured, and the calorific power of the different types of briquette was calculate too. The results show that the briquettes emit fewer gas emissions to the environment than the firewood, the thermal efficiency was approximately 92 % in three of the tested briquettes, and the firewood got efficiency between 45 and 63 %. It is concluded that the development of the briquettes was successful with an excellent compaction, briquette of Granza 50% + fine sawdust 25 % + paper 12.5 % + paper of pine flower 12.5 % is the best option according to the research, being this the one that emits smaller amounts of CO that are almost nil, this obtained a thermal efficiency of 92 % since its specific consumption is low with only 143 grams per liter of water.

Keywords: Briquettes, carbon monoxide, thermal efficiency