FOT325:FOOD INDUSTRY WASTE MANAGEMENT

Lecture 15
Utilization of food industry waste for Non food application:
Composting and Briquetting

By
Dr. Manmath Sontakke
Assistant Professor
Lovely Professional University
 What is Compost?
• Composting is the natural process of
decomposition and recycling of organic
material into a humus rich soil amendment
known as compost.

• Composting can be defined as “the biological

degradation of organic materials under aerobic
conditions into relatively stable products,
brought about by the action of a variety of
microorganisms such as fungi, bacteria, and
protozoa”.

• E.g. Food Processing industry producing food waste, this organic

material can be easily decomposed into high quality compost for
soil enrichment
 Food Waste as compost agent
• Food waste has unique properties as a raw compost agent.
• Because it has a high moisture content and low physical
structure, it is important to mix fresh food waste with a
bulking agent that will absorb some of the excess moisture
as well as add structure to the mix.
• Bulking agents with a high C:N ratio, such as sawdust and
yard waste, are good choices
Mechanism of Composting
The process of composting may be divided into two main
stages: stabilization and maturation
1. Stabilization
• During stabilization, three phases may be distinguished:
1. Phase of rising temperature,
2. Mesophilic phase where the temperature gradually
decreases to ambient.
3. Thermophilic phase where high temperature is maintained,
and,
• During the first phase, a vigorous multiplication of mesophilic
bacteria is observed, and a transformation of easily oxidized
carbon compounds, rich in energy, to compounds of lower
molecular structure takes place.
• Excess energy results in a rapid rise in temperature and leads
to the thermophilic phase when less easily degraded organic
compounds are attacked.
Cont..
• When the energy source is depleted the temperature
decreases gradually to ambient.
• Actinomycetes and fungi become active in the mesophilic
phase, during which biological degradation of the remaining
organic compounds is slowly continued.
• At this stage the composting material is stabilized but not yet
matured.

2. Maturation
• During maturation, mineralization of organic matter
continues at a relatively slow rate until a carbon : nitrogen (C :
N) ratio of 10 : 1 is reached and the volatile matter content
falls below 50%.
• Only then is the compost completely matured.
 What is Briquetting?
• The process of compaction of
residues into a product of
higher density than the
original raw material is
known as densification or
briquetting.

• Briquetting of biomass is a densification process which

improves the handling characteristics of the biomass,
enhances its volumetric, calorific value, and reduces the
transportation cost.
 Briquetting of agro waste
• Briquetting is one of the compaction
methods for densification of waste
materials and converts them into something
useful.

• Some of the raw materials used in preparing

Briquetting
Briquetting are compressed in particular
briquette press machine to generate a
uniform shaped briquette that can be used
to ignite a fire and generate energy.

• The briquettes arranged to come in

different shape and size depending on the
application for which it is to be used
 Raw material for Briquetting
• The raw materials suitable for Briquetting are rice straws,
wheat straws, cotton stalks, corn stalks, sugar cane waste or
baggage, fruit branches, etc.
• However, in the recommended complex cotton stalks and fruit
branches are best utilized by Briquetting.
 Briquetting process
• The Briquetting process starts with the
collection of wastes followed by size
reduction, drying, and compaction by an
extruder or by the press.
• The idea of Briquetting is using raw
materials that are not usable due to a lack
of density, compressing them into a solid
fuel of a convenient shape that can be
burned like wood or charcoal.
• The briquettes have improved physical
and combustion characteristics than the
initial waste.
• Briquettes will develop combustion
efficiency using the existing traditional
furnaces
Hydraulic piston press briquetting technology
 Rice waste Briquetting

• Rice husk briquette is a very much popular fuel alternative to

wood fuel.
• Rice husk materials were briquetted with screw type
briquetting machine with electric heater.
• Rice straws were compressed with piston-mold between
heating plates, and solid fuel briquette from rice straw was
obtained
 Manufacturing of rice waste Briquettes

• Rice straws were collected from agricultural areas and

dried outside up to a moisture content of 9%.

• Dried materials were milled in hammer mill with screen

opening size of 6 mm with the aim of making them in
suitable sizes for briquetting process.

• Then, materials were briquetted in briquetting machine

without binding material.
Cont…
• Therefore, before the briquetting process, the die was heated
to approximately 300°C, and then, the briquetting machine
was started.

• Materials were manually loaded to the hopper on the

briquetting machine, and the loading process was periodically
repeated during briquetting process.

• At the end of the briquetting process, 56 mm diameter

cylindrical briquettes with a central hole of 25 mm and the
outer surface partially carbonized due to heating system were
obtained
 Uses for Briquettes
 The most frequent applications for this type of fuel
are of both a domestic and industrial nature; from
fireplaces or stoves to boilers generating hot water
and steam.

 Tea industries, wine distilleries, textile industries,

and farms are the major sectors using briquettes.

 Briquettes are also used in gasification process for

electricity production
 Advantages of agro residual briquettes

 The process increase the net calorific value of

material per unit volume
 End product is easy to transport and store
 The fuel produced is uniform in size and quality
 Helps solve the problem of residue disposal
 Helps to reduce deforestation by providing a
substitute for fuel wood.
 The process reduce/eliminates the possibility of
spontaneous combustion waste
 The process reduces biodegradation of residues