Techno-economic study of a biomass briquetting unit

The present study analyses the ongoing efforts to solve the fuel crisis of The Western India Plywoods Ltd (WIP), a large wood-based panel industry in Kerala via fuel briquettes made from wood wastes generated from its own various manufacturing units with a well proven technique called biomass briquetting. Saw dust and other wood wastes and residues from all types of primary and secondary wood processing operations are generally bulky in nature and are therefore expensive to store and transport. Also, the thermal efficiency of these wastes is quite low, so that the densification method is considered as an ideal way to reduce the bulk, to increase the density, and thus to increase the calorific value. The paper summarizes the different operational stages for the production of briquettes followed in WIP. An economic analysis of this method carried out shows the viability of using briquettes as a partial replacement of the conventional fuels available. The use of wood residues for briquette production will help in reducing deforestation and environmental degradation by minimizing wastes in the wood-based industry.