Abstract
The article is devoted to the actual problem of utilisation of agricultural and industrial waste as a solution to the problem of replacing traditional energy sources. As an alternative fuel, researchers suggest using briquettes from biomass (leafy debris, waste paper, sunflower and buckwheat husks), as well as their combination with industrial waste (coal dust). The choice of these sources of raw materials is determined by their presence in the north-eastern part of Kazakhstan. Studies of the physical and mechanical and thermophysical characteristics of fuel briquettes from organic mass and bio-charcoal briquettes were carried out. The studies showed the following results: the moisture content of the samples we studied lies in the range from 3.86 to 8 %; ash content of briquettes from vegetable raw materials varies from 2.05 % to 3.6 %, combined briquettes from foliage and coal dust varies from 10 % to 14 %; average density values varies from 979.91 to 1172.63 kg/m3; mechanical strength is in the range from 90 to 100 %; the yield of volatile studied samples ranges from 9 to 21.4 %. Analysis of the obtained characteristics of fuel briquettes demonstrated that they meet the requirements of existing standards. Herewith, the lower calorific value of briquettes (15290‑19048 kJ/kg) is comparable to the calorific value of coal from the Ekibastuz deposit. The authors studied the influence of the parameters of the briquetting process on the briquette’s strength characteristics from leaves and waste paper, and obtained a regression dependence of these briquette’s calorific value on their characteristics. The analysis of regression dependencies showed that the pressure and pressing time have the greatest influence on the briquette strength, and its composition, i.e., the ratio of leaves and waste paper in the feedstock, has the greatest influence on the lower calorific value