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Characterization of pellets manufactured from plant waste and farm waste residues blended with distillery sludge as a prospective alternative fuel source

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Abstract

The conversion of agro-residues to value added products is a potential opportunity for all agrarian countries. This study involves the utilization of agro-waste sourced from farmlands, and plant foliage waste collected from university premises, both blended with the distillery sludge in a ratio of 1:1 to prepare pellets. The pellet samples were tested with proximate analysis and ultimate analysis. The gross calorific value of the coal sample was 8967.23 kcal/kg, whereas the plant waste and sludge blend sample indicated a value of 7121.70 kcal/kg. The pellets produced from farm waste and sludge showed a value of 8621.334 kcal/ kg which is close to the gross calorific value of coal. The burning rate of the pure coal was found to be the highest with a value of 0.156 mg/min, followed by a mixture of farm waste and sludge with 0.129 mg/min and a blend of plant waste and sludge with 0.00745 mg/min, respectively. This research highlights the possibility of converting distillery sludge, plant waste, and farm waste into alternate fuel source.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the Centre of Excellence in Bio-resource utilization and management, Vignan’s Foundation for Science, Technology, and Research, Vadlamudi, Guntur, Andhra Pradesh, India, for the support in sample analysis.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biotechnology, Centre of Excellence, Vignan’s Foundation for Science, Technology and Research, Vadlamudi, Guntur, 522213, Andhra Pradesh, India

    Charles David & Jerusha Ganduri

  2. Department of Chemical Engineering, A.C. Tech Campus, Anna University, Chennai, 600025, Tamil Nadu, India

    Venkataraghavan Ragunathan

  3. Faculty of Engineering, Sohar University, PC:311, Sohar, Oman

    Rajamohan Natarajan

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  1. Charles David
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  2. Jerusha Ganduri
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  3. Venkataraghavan Ragunathan
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  4. Rajamohan Natarajan
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Correspondence to Rajamohan Natarajan.

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David, C., Ganduri, J., Ragunathan, V. et al. Characterization of pellets manufactured from plant waste and farm waste residues blended with distillery sludge as a prospective alternative fuel source. Appl Nanosci 13, 1235–1243 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13204-021-01982-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13204-021-01982-6

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