ISSN: 2578-4994
Authors: Edwin Wosu NL
Nearly half the world’s population is dependent on wood as their primary source of energy. Consequently, deforestation and ecosystem degradation has become increasingly prevalent in many regions of the developing world, therefore is an urgent need to improve the combustion efficiency of domestic source of fuel or/ and find alternative fuel sources. This investigation was aimed at exploring the energy production potential of Eichhornia crassipes (Mart) Solms and Nypa fruticans Wurmb as alternative source of waste utilization; with the objectives of waste to wealth conversion of loose biomass to biochar as a sustainable approach to aquatic weed management, and evaluating their potential as source of biofuel and combustion characteristic in relation to environmental consequences. Standard procedures of sample collection, processing by drying, carbonization, and densification methods and data analyses by ANOVA were adapted. Result indicated E. crassipes with significantly higher moisture (28.20+1.51), ash (54.55+3.48), and volatile matter (8.30+1.34) than N. fruticans which recorded significantly faster ignition time (19.00+2.65), higher fixed carbon (54.39+5.76), water boiling rate (740.00+69.74),bulk density (0.002+0.00),shatter resistance (94.83+2.63), heat of combustion (3196.55+230.55) and burning time (13480.00+570.26). Conclusively, the low moisture content of the produced briquette, the low volatile matter content of the briquettes are affirmation that they are environmentally friendly hence harmful substances like carbon and sulphur are not released into the ecosystem and with the proficiency in thermal capacity the ecosystem balance can be checked with the use of briquettes from these plant species.
Keywords: Proximate Analysis; Thermal Analysis; Carbonization; Densification; Biofuel
