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PRODUCTION OF BRIQUETTES FROM BIOMASS AND URBAN WASTES USING A

HOUSEHOLD BRIQUETTE MOLDER

Conference Paper · February 2011

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PRODUCTION OF BRIQUETTES FROM BIOMASS AND URBAN WASTES USING
A HOUSEHOLD BRIQUETTE MOLDER

By:
Aries Roda D. Romallosa 1), and Kristofer John C. Hornada 1) & Johannes G. Paul2)
1) Central Philippine University, Jaro, Iloilo City, Philippines
2) AHT GROUP AG, GTZ-AHT Project Office, c/o DENR-EMB, Region 6. Iloilo City, Philippines

ABSTRACT

Converting biomass and urban wastes using a simple briquette molder has great prospects when
utilized as fuel for household use and eventually as substitute fuel to charcoal. Five different types of
briquettes with their respective mixing proportions were produced, namely: Briquette 1) paper
(100%); Briquette 2) CRH (71%) and binding material (29%); Briquette 3) paper (50%) and CRH
(50%; Briquette 4) paper (50%) and sawdust (50%); and Briquette 5) paper (50%), CRH (25%) and
sawdust (25%). Results of the study revealed that the most viable mixtures for the production of
briquettes based on practicality and high rate of production and performance when used and
compared to charcoal as fuel in boiling water and cooking rice are Briquettes 1, 4 and 5. The
briquettes produced were pillow-shaped with approximate dimensions of 5 cm length x 5 cm width x 4
cm height. Paper was found to be an ideal substitute binding material for briquetting. Briquette p
production can be a viable business enterprise and source of income; for Uswag Calajunan Livelihood
Association, Inc., the informal waste pickers can be an expert in recycling waste products like paper
and other biomass wastes for profit, thereby providing the populace with a new and cheap alternative
source of cooking energy.

1. INTRODUCTION

Briquetting involves the compression of a material into a solid fuel product of any convenient
shape that can be utilized as fuel just like the use of wood or charcoal. The conversion of combustible
materials found in the waste stream has been found to be a better way of turning waste into wealth
(Adegoke, 2002). Hence, these materials which were of low density prior to being converted into
briquettes is compressed to form a product of higher bulk density, lower moisture content and uniform
size and shape making these materials easier to package and store, cheaper to transport, more
convenient to use, and their combustible characteristics are better than those of the original waste
material.

In a report presented by Baconguis (2007), the Philippines’ government agencies such as the
Department of Energy (DOE), Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR),
Department of Science and Technology (DOST) and other entities are currently promoting the
development and widespread use of biomass resources through pilot testing, demonstration and
commercial use of technologies such as biomass charcoal briquetting. The production and use of
briquettes from abandoned resources like biomass and urban wastes are growing due to increase in
fuel prices. Converting them, among others into briquettes, gives an opportunity to dispose of
cellolusic wastes and at the same time cleans the community of unwanted wastes, conserve the
forest and reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, provide alternative/additional livelihood to the
urban and rural poor communities.

With the Philippines being an agricultural country, production of biomass wastes has not been a
problem at all. Biomass has been defined as any organic matter that is available on a renewable or
recurring basis, including agricultural crops and trees, wood and wood wastes and residues, plants
(including aquatic plants), grasses, residues, fibers, and animal, municipal, and other waste materials

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(from http://www.epa.gov/sustainability/pdfs/Biomass%20Conversion.pdf). Most of these wastes are
not utilized properly, often dumped at the back of the processing mills or along the roads. In worst
cases, these wastes are openly burned, contributing more problems to the atmosphere. However,
when these wastes are properly managed and utilized as briquettes for cooking operations, they
could become a renewable alternative source of energy.

This paper focuses on the production of briquettes from biomass and urban wastes that can be
utilized as fuel for cooking using a simple household briquette molder.

1.1 Biomass Wastes

One third of the agricultural lands in the Philippines are cultivated for crop production (FAO,
2000). With the country’s increasing population, the demand for rice is also increasing. During rice
milling, the outer covering of paddy, known as rice husk, has to be removed before it can be
processed further for human consumption. Rice husk accounts for 20-25% of paddy’s weight.
According to data, the total rice husk potential of the country was estimated to be 3.14 million metric
tons in 2005. The Province of Iloilo, which is the leader in terms of rice production in the Western
Visayas region of the Philippines generates about 165,000 metric tons annually (from
ttp://www.aseanenergy.org/download/eaef/105-2004%20Project%20%20Summary%20for%20web.
pdf). Rice husks, however, has to be converted in carbonized form before it can be made as pure
material or mixture in briquette production. This can be attained by exposing the materials into
carbonization or pyrolysis process or it could be that the carbonized rice husks (CRH) can be obtained
directly as a by-product when rice husks are used as fuel in direct combustion stoves or from
gasifiers.
Another important source of biomass waste in the Philippines is sawdust which comes from
logging and milling operations. The established forest plantation in 2005 that is 2.06 million ha is
projected to even increase in the next ten years. Wood production from new plantations is also
estimated to increase thereby increasing the generation of an abandoned biomass waste in the form
of sawdusts. This waste material, however, is seldom used as fuel for cooking stoves because of its
high moisture content, but it can be utilized further as an added material for briquetting.

1.2 Urban Wastes

Based on the 20-day segregation test run conducted by Paul, et. al. (2007), the volume of wastes
brought daily to the materials recovery facility (MRF) of Iloilo City located in Brgy. Calajunan varied
from 3.85 to 13.48 tons. These wastes were segregated mechanically at first. Then all materials of
oversize fraction were further segregated manually by local waste pickers. Results of the study further
revealed that for the 20-day test, 4,554 kg of paper were collected or a daily production of 227 kg.
These waste papers are presently sold by the waste pickers at US$0.03 (Php1.50) per kilogram.

2. OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

The purpose of this study was to produce briquettes as an alternative source of energy from abundant
biomass and urban wastes using a briquette molder specifically designed for household or small-
scale level of production. Specifically, it aimed to determine further the following:
1. Viable mixture in utilizing pure biomass and urban wastes or its combination;
2. Production requirements such as briquetting time and number of briquettes produced out
of total materials used;
3. Quality of the briquettes produced based on its physical dimensions and appearance, bulk
density, percentage and percentage of ash content;
4. Operating performance of briquettes when used for boiling water and cooking rice, a staple
food in Philippine meals; and
5. Potential daily production and gross earnings when adapted as an income generating project
by the Uswag Calajunan Livelihood Association, Inc. (UCLA), an association formed by
informal waste pickers of the Calajunan dumpsite of Iloilo City, Philippines.

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 3. MATERIALS AND METHODS

Technical Description of Machine Used for Briquette Production

A simple household briquette molder was designed and developed to produce briquettes even at
the household level. The briquette molder was constructed using locally available materials and was
fabricated at a local welding shop making it easier for adoption should a local community decide on
small-scale production of briquettes using any ideal materials for briquetting. The machine, as
presented in Figure 1, is basically composed of the following major parts: briquette molders, handle,
and frame.

Figure 1 Household briquette molder used for briquette production, showing from left to right: the
pictorial view of the machine and the schematic showing its dimensions

1. Briquette molders – The machine consisted of five symmetrical molders which were connected
on both sides by a hinge creating a movable top that could be opened to receive the prepared
mixture. The five symmetrical molders each have a dimension of 5 cm length x 5 cm width with 2.5 cm
thick molder. A cutting allowance was provided giving a total length and width of 27 cm and 6 cm,
respectively. The molders were fabricated using a 1/8 in. thick flat bar and were welded together to
attain the pillow-shaped briquettes. This was where the prepared mixtures were placed for
compaction.

2. Handle – This is the part of the machine that maneuvers the movement of the upper half of the
molder. This was also responsible in creating the pressure needed in the compaction of the mixtures.
A 3/4 in. schedule 20 galvanized iron (GI) pipe with a length of 20.5 cm was welded on the center of
the upper half of the molders and were braced with two similar pipes each having a length of 14 cm.

3. Frame – A 1/8 in. thick by 1 in. width square bar was used as frame of the briquette molders.
One side of the frame was used as support during compression of the prepared mixtures while the
handle was being pushed downward to create more pressure.

The operation of the briquette molder works on the principle of compacting the prepared mixture
through the two symmetrical molders fastened together by two hinges on one side and with a handle
on the other side. The movable upper half portion of the molder is opened while the fixed bottom part
is the one receiving the mixture. Then the mixtures are compacted by closing down the upper half
molder. Pressure is created by pushing the handle down using one hand while the other hand would
hold the frame for stability.

3.1 Preparation of Materials

Three materials were prepared for this study, namely, papers, carbonized rice husks (CRH), and
sawdust. The papers used were wastes generated from the office of the Appropriate Technology
Center (Approtech Center) of Central Philippine University (CPU). These papers were a combination
of mostly computer print outs and corrugated paper (cartons) that were soaked and pulped from a
range of 4 to 10 min. using a locally developed pulping machine that was driven by a 1 Hp electric
motor. Excess water from pulped papers was squeezed using a plastic net bag.

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 The biomass wastes, on the other hand, were made available in sacks. The CRH and sawdust
were smaller in a range of 0.1 to 0.6 millimeter. A binding material in the form of cornstarch was mixed
when pure CRH was attempted to be produced.

Cornstarch was weighed first and was carefully mixed with tap water in the container. It was then
boiled to produce a gelatinous material. The material was cooled down and then it was mixed with the
CRH by hand until a homogeneous state was reached. No cornstarch was used for tests which
contained paper because the papers were themselves used as binding material.

3.2 Production of Briquettes from Biomass and Urban Wastes

This study was performed at the Approtech Center which is under the College of Agriculture,
Resources and Environmental Sciences of Central Philippine University, Iloilo City, Philippines from
July to September 2010 in order to produce fuel briquettes ideal for household cooking. A simple
household briquette molder which can be operated by one person was used in this study.

Five different types of briquettes utilizing biomass and urban wastes were produced for this study.
These briquettes made use of the following mixing proportions: Briquette 1: paper (100%); Briquette
2: CRH (71%) + cornstarch (29%); Briquette 3: paper (50%) + CRH (50%); Briquette 4: paper (50%) +
sawdust (50%); and Briquette 5: paper (50%) + CRH (25%) + sawdust (25%).

The dry weight of biomass and urban wastes and their combinations were all fixed to 1000 g.
However, the total fresh weight of briquettes produced per type varied due to the added weight of
water after the papers used underwent pulping. Once homogeneous mixture was attained, smaller
sizes of balled materials were placed on each of the molder of the machine. The materials were
compacted by closing and pressing down the movable upper half portion of the molder. One hand of
the operator clutches the handle while the other hand prevents the machine from tipping down by
holding its frame securely. Excess water especially in mixtures with paper was also removed during
compaction. After which the movable top is opened to take out the briquettes produced and were
placed on trays for sundrying until ideal for fuel used. The following Figure 2 shows how briquetting of
materials was performed.

The summary of the procedure in briquette production is also presented in Figure 3 in which four
major steps were followed, namely: preparation of materials used (pulped and squeezed waste paper,
carbonized rice husks, and sawdust), mixing of the prepared materials by hand, after which the
materials were compacted using the developed household briquette molder, and sundrying of the
briquettes to produce the finished products.

All data presented in the results were averaged figures after the test was performed for three
runs.

Figure 2 Briquetting of wastes, showing from left to right: placement of balled mixtures in the molder,
compaction of the materials, and pillow-shaped briquettes produced

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 Figure 3. Summary of procedure in producing briquettes

4. RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS

4.1 Findings related to tested mixtures, performance and quality

Five different types of briquettes were produced using biomass and urban wastes. Presented in Table
1 are the different mixing proportions of the tested materials. Briquette 1 was produced using 100%
paper that was pulped prior to being converted into briquettes. Briquette 2, on the other hand, was
made of 71% biomass waste in the form of carbonized rice husks (CRH) with 29% cornstarch as
binding material. Briquettes 3 and 4 were from a combination of 50% paper with the remaining 50%
with CRH and sawdust, respectively. For Briquette 5, 25% of sawdust was added in the mixture with
50% paper and the remaining 25% with CRH. No binding material except for Briquette 2 was used
since paper was the one utilized as binder at a higher percentage. In a study conducted by Demirbas
and Sahin (1998), it was found out that waste paper may be used as a partial binding material alone.
With the mixing compositions used, briquettes mixed with paper were even more compact compared
to the briquettes produced without paper.

Table 1 Mixing compositions of tested mixtures

Paper (P) CRH Sawdust (SD) Cornstarch

Briquette
g % g % g % g %
1 1000 100 - - - - - -
2 - - 1000 71 - - 400 29
3 500 50 500 50 - - - -
4 500 50 - - 500 50 - -
5 500 50 250 25 250 25 - -

Shown in Table 2 are the production requirements during the briquetting of wastes. All briquettes
had the same total dry weight of mixture at 1000 g except for Briquette 2 which had 1400 g because
the weight of the binding material (cornstarch) at 400 g was included in the mixture. Mixing time,
which refers to the time allotted in mixing the ingredients by hand, were all the same at 4 min, except
for paper, which did not anymore required any mixing since the material utilized was just the same.
Briquettes which made use of paper as material required pulping in order to disentangle its fibers. A
low cost pulping machine was utilized for this procedure. For pure paper briquettes, it took 10 min to
pulp the 1000 g dry material, while only 4 min for both Briquettes 3, 4 and 5 since all made use of
same amount of paper at 500 g. The production of briquettes was limited to 30 min briquetting. For
this time period, more briquettes were produced for Briquette 4 with 80 pcs followed closely by
Briquette 1 with 74 pcs. Briquettes 5 and 3 had 63 and 62 pcs, respectively, whereas, Briquette 2 only
produced 30 pcs. It can be noted numerically that more briquettes were produced with paper alone
and with paper as binding material due to its ease in compacting it. The compacted briquettes can

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easily be taken from the molders. Briquettes with pure CRH were more difficult to be taken from the
molders due to the effect of cornstarch in the mixture making it at times difficult to get hold of the
compacted briquettes. Instead of producing 5 briquettes in one compaction, there were instances
during the test that only 2 or 3 whole briquettes were formed making the rate of production less. The
briquettes produced were then sundried for 48 hours or almost 4 days since sundrying took place only
during the day. On the average, the range of the fresh weight per briquette for all types of mixtures
ranges from 50 to 60 g, except for Briquette 4 which were made of paper and sawdust only at 40 to
45 g. When all briquettes produced per type of material were weighed, Briquettes 1, 3, 5 and 4 were
heavier at 4040 g, 3325 g, 3315 g, and 3200 g, respectively due to the additional effect of water when
the papers used underwent pulping and squeezing prior to being mixed with other materials. In terms
of production, more briquettes can be produced when a combination of paper and sawdust (Briquette
4) are used at 160 pcs/hr followed by paper (Briquette 1) at 148 pcs/hr. The combination of paper,
CRH and sawdust (Briquette 5) produced 126 pcs/hr and that of paper and CRH had 124 pcs/hr. This
high rate of production can be attributed to the ease in molding materials. Since pure CRH (Briquette
2) was difficult to be compacted and taken out from the molders, the rate of production tended to
become lower also with only 50 pieces of briquettes produced per hour, way lower when compared to
the other four types of briquettes.

Table 2 Production requirements during briquetting of wastes

Briquette 1 Briquette 2 Briquette 3 Briquette 4 Briquette 5

Parameters Measured
(P) (CRH) (P+CRH) (P + SD) (P+CRH+SD)
Total dry wt. of mixture, g 1000 1400 1000 1000 1000
Mixing time, min - 4 4 4 4
Pulping time, min 10 - 4 4 4
Briquetting time, min 30 30 30 30 30
Briquettes produced out of
dry materials, pcs 74 25 62 80 63
Fresh wt. per briquette, g 50 – 60 55 – 60 50 – 60 40 – 45 52 – 55
Fresh wt. of all briquettes, g 4040 1425 3325 3200 3315
Dry wt. per briquette, g 14 – 16 25 – 30 18 – 20 10 – 12 15 – 20
Dry wt. of all briquettes, g 1050 700 1125 950 1055
Drying time, hr 48 48 48 48 48
Production rate, pcs/hr 148 50 124 160 126

Table 3 and Figure 4 present the quality of briquettes based on the physical dimensions and
appearance of briquettes produced, including their computed bulk density and percentage ash
content. As presented in the table, the length, width, and height of the five different briquettes
produced were approximately similar at 5 cm x 5 cm x 4 cm, respectively, since the shape of the
briquettes produced would normally follow the dimensions of the molders. In terms of bulk density,
which refers to the mass of the substance per unit volume (Faires, 1970), the CRH briquettes
(Briquette 2) had the highest at 0.28 g/cc primarily because of the additional weight created by the
binding material, whereas that of the four other fuels were almost numerically similar with data ranging
from 0.16 to 0.19 g/cc. Ash content, which refers to the approximate measure of the mineral content
and other inorganic matter in biomass, was measured by getting the ratio between the weight of ash
produced and the initial weight of fuel used multiplied by 100
(http://cobweb.ecn.purdue.edu/~lorre/16/research/LAP-005.pdf). Results reveal that Briquette 5 and 2,
which contained both of CRH produced numerically the highest percentage of ash at 55.56% and
44.44%, respectively. Higher production of ash for Briquettes 5 and 2 were due to the presence of
CRH, since not all of its form was totally converted into ash due to the presence of silica in its
property. Briquette 3 which contained 50% both of paper and CRH also produced a commanding
amount of ash due again to the high amount of CRH in the mixture. Briquette 4 which also contained
50% of two types of materials produced a lower amount of ash since sawdust when burned was
completely converted into. Briquette 1 gave the lowest amount of ash produced due to the complete
conversion of paper into ash.

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Figure 4 shows the physical appearance of the briquettes produced. Briquette 1 or briquettes
produced from paper appeared to be white in color due to the quality of waste paper utilized which
contained mostly of computer printouts. The fuels produced were hard and bulky with uneven
surfaces. Briquette 2 which was made from CRH was also black in color similar with the main material
used and the fuel was hard when pressed by hand. It had an even surface with fine texture. For
Briquette 3, the fuels produced were porous with slightly bulky and dusty surface. White was the
dominant color due to the pulped paper used with accents of black because of the CRH used. The
combination of paper and sawdust (Briquette 4) produced a slightly uneven and dusty surface. It was
light brown in color and the fuel appeared to be porous. Briquette 5, which were a combination of
paper, CRH and sawdust produced an uneven surface, slightly bulky and porous fuel. The color of the
briquettes was a darker shade of brown due to the presence of CRH, a black material, in the mixture.

Table 4 presents the operating performance of briquettes was tested based on the potential of the
fuels produced when used as fuel for boiling water and for cooking rice where the same type of
concrete stove was used for this specific test. The data gathered were also compared numerically
with that of charcoal, one of the most common fuels used by households in the rural areas of the
Philippines. Briquette 4 had the fastest start-up time when used as fuel at 0.33 min, whereas, all the
other briquettes, except for Briquette 2, can be fired-up at 2 min. Briquette 2, however, was able to be
ignited after 5 min due to the effect of the binding material on the mixture delaying the combustion of
the fuel. Initially when the briquettes were being started-up, smoke were also emitted but once the
fuel were already glowing, smoke gradually dissipated also. For Briquettes 2 and 3, however,
significant amount of smoke was emitted during their entire operation.

Table 3 Quality of briquettes produced

Briquette 1 Briquette 2 Briquette 3 Briquette 4 Briquette 5

Parameters Measured
(P) (CRH) (P+CRH) (P + SD) (P+CRH+SD)
Length of briquette, cm (≈) 5 5 5 5 5
Width of briquette, cm (≈) 5 5 5 5 5
Height of briquette, cm (≈) 4 4 4 4 4
Bulk density, g/cc 0.17 0.28 0.19 0.16 0.17
Ash content, % 11.11 44.44 29.79 12.24 55.56

Figure 4 Five types of briquettes produced using biomass and urban wastes, from left to right: paper,
CRH, paper and CRH, paper and sawdust and paper, CRH and sawdust

Among the five briquettes produced, it was Briquettes 4 and 5 which boiled the 2000 g water the
fastest at 15 min followed closely by Briquette 1 at 17 min. These three briquettes were numerically
comparable to that of Charcoal at 18 min. On the other hand, it took more than half an hour (35 min)
for Briquette 3 to boil while Briquette 2 was not able to boil water. The maximum temperature that was
recorded for the pure CRH briquette was only 79ºC. The weight of briquettes used in boiling water
was also less and numerically comparable to that of charcoal for Briquettes 1, 4 and 5. Similar results
were established when the briquettes were used as fuel in cooking rice. As presented in the same
table, 750 g of rice was used because this amount represented the usual quantity cooked by a typical
household having 4 to 5 members. Results revealed that it took only 10 min for Briquette 1 to cook
rice while 15 min for Briquettes 4 and 5.

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 Results further showed that they were numerically higher than that of Charcoal which took the
cooking time 19 min. The three briquettes which had a faster rate of cooking over charcoal were due
to the presence of paper in their mixture. It was observed that more blazes were produced in these
types of briquettes which had little or no amount of CRH at all. Charcoal when used as fuel produced
more glow than blaze. Briquette 3 was only able to boil water but not in cooking rice. The amount of
heat generated by the fuel may not be enough to supply the necessary energy needed in cooking a
750 g of rice. In addition, a pure CRH briquette revealed that it cannot both be recommended as pure
fuel since it cannot perform its operation as a fuel. In terms of the weight of fuels used, Briquette 1
had the same number with of charcoal at 200 g, followed by Briquettes 4 and 5 at 275 g and 300 g,
respectively.

Table 5 presents the potential daily production and gross earnings of the different briquettes
produced when adapted as an income generating project by the Uswag Calajunan Livelihood
Association, Inc. (UCLA), an association formed by informal waste pickers of the Calajunan dumpsite
of Iloilo City, Philippines. Results of the briquette production in dry weight were achieved based on the
production rate determined during the test and based on the assumption that when adapted as a
project, production time would be managed in 8 hours. With Briquettes 4, 1 and 5’s high production, it
was also automatic that these briquettes will have the highest production at 1280, 1184, and 1008
pcs/day, respectively. When these fuels are to be sold at a current price of Php15/kg (US$0.33/kg) of
briquettes based on prices quoted during exhibits, a gross income ranging from a minimum of Php180
(US$4) to a maximum of Php270 (US$7) may be earned in one day by one member of UCLA. If more
members of the association would concentrate into this income generating project, a higher amount
may be achieved.

Table 4 Operating performance of briquettes as fuel

Parameters Briquette 1 Briquette 2 Briquette 3 Briquette 4 Briquette 5

Charcoal
Measured (P) (CRH) (P+CRH) (P + SD) (P+CRH+SD)
A. Boiling Test
Wt. of water
used, g 2000 2000 2000 2000 2000 2000
No. of briquettes
used, pcs 20 18 28 22 18 20
Wt. of briquettes
used, g 270 450 470 245 270 245
Initial temp. of
water, ºC 29 29 29 28 29 28
Final temp. of
water, ºC 100 79 100 100 100 100
Start-up time,
min 2 5 1.5 0.33 2 2
Boiling time, min 17 - 35 15 15 18
Total operating
time, min 20 55 60 18 30 44
B. Cooking Test
Wt. of rice
cooked, g 750 750 750 750 750 750
No. of briquettes
used, pcs 15 20 15 23 19 16
Wt. of briquettes
used, g 200 400 245 275 300 200
Cooking time,
min 10 - - 15 15 19

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 Table 5 Potential daily production and gross earnings in briquetting of wastes

Briquette 1 Briquette 2 Briquette 3 Briquette 4 Briquette 5

Parameters Measured
(P) (CRH) (P+CRH) (P+SD) (P+CRH+SD)
Production rate, pcs/hr 148 50 124 160 126
Production time, hr 8 8 8 8 8
Briquette production (dry wt.)
in, kg/day 16 – 17 10 – 11 17 – 18 16 – 17 16 – 17
pcs/day 1184 400 992 1280 1008
Gross earnings @ Php15/kg,
Php 240 - 255 150 - 165 255 - 270 225 – 240 180 – 195
US$ (@ 1 US$ = Php46) 5-6 3-4 6-7 4–5 4-5

4.2 Impacts of Briquetting as a Potential Income Project

Conversion of the 227 kg of paper recovered daily from the Calajunan dumpsite of Iloilo City in
the Philippines (Paul, et. al., 2007) into briquettes would create more income to the members of
UCLA. When sold as paper only at a current rate of Php1.50 (US$0.03) per kilogram would only give
them an approximate income of Php338 (US$7). But when these urban wastes are processed further
as an add-on material to other locally available generated biomass wastes, these quantity may even
double. Assuming that the same weight of briquettes is produced at 227 kg and sold at the prevailing
price of Php15 (US$0.33), a potential income of Php3,405 (US$74) less the cost of machine, labor
and other costs may be achieved. And when these waste papers would be mixed further to other
biomass waste, higher income is also expected.

The use of briquettes as fuel for cooking could also serve as an alternative fuel for households
reducing their expenses on fuel cost thereby giving them more savings. Briquetting is also a great
way of utilizing wet papers which cannot anymore be sold as a recyclable material.

5. LESSONS LEARNED AND CONCLUSIONS

Briquetting is one alternative method that may be utilized in achieving the utilization of biomass
and urban wastes into a useful product. Converting these wastes like waste papers, rice husks in
carbonized form, and sawdusts using a simple technology such as the designed briquette molder has
great prospects when utilized as fuel for household use and eventually as substitute fuel to charcoal.
With the briquette molder’s ease when operated together with the simplicity in the preparation of
mixtures used, a potential income generating project for an association may be achieved. The
following are the conclusions and recommendations derived from this study:

1. The most viable mixtures for the production of briquettes based on practicality and high rate of
production and performance when used and compared to charcoal as fuel in boiling water and
cooking rice are Briquette 1 (100% Paper), Briquette 4 (50% Paper + 50% Sawdust), and Briquette
5 (50% Paper + 25% CRH + 25% Sawdust).
2. The briquettes produced using the household briquette molder were pillow-shaped with
dimensions of approximately 5 cm length x 5 cm width x 4 cm height.
3. Paper can be a substitute binding material for briquetting.
4. A gross income ranging from Php180 (US$4) to Php270 (US$7) may be earned in one day by
one member of Uswag Calajunan Livelihood Association, Inc. (UCLA) if they would convert the
waste paper recovered from the Calajunan dumpsite of Iloilo City, Philippines.

The following are the benefits and limitations observed in this study:

1. Recycling biomass and urban wastes into fuel briquettes can help protect the environment by
helping reduce the dependence of the households in using charcoal, a still commonly used
fuel for cooking in the Philippines.

International Conference WASTESAFE 2011, Khulna, Bangladesh Page 9

 2. Production of briquettes can be a viable business enterprise and source of income; for UCLA,
the informal waste pickers can be an expert in recycling waste products like paper and other
biomass wastes for profit, thereby providing the populace with a new and cheap alternative
source of cooking energy.

3. CRH produced as by-products of rice husk stoves and gasifiers together with sawdusts would
find their value as an essential add-on mixture for briquette production.

4. Waste papers that cannot be sold as recyclable materials can still be utilized and molded
properly as briquettes increasing their worth when sold as cooking fuel.

5. The use of cornstarch as binding material for CRH is not a viable option since its presence in
the mixture affects the combustibility of the briquette.

6. Pure CRH briquette is difficult to be formed using the manually operated household briquette
molder.

7. PROPOSED NEXT STEPS

Eight units of the developed household briquette molders have already been fabricated and delivered
to UCLA Center in Brgy. Calajunan, Mandurriao, Iloilo city, Philippines. A 14-day briquetting test for an
8-hr daily operation is proposed for the UCLA members using the three mixtures recommended by
this study. Further tests will be done on the quality of briquettes produced particularly to determine
general physical and chemical properties such as water content, volatile compounds, fixed carbon
content, and heating value.

8. ACKNOWLEDGMENT

The Authors wish to express their sincerest thanks to Central Philippine University - College of
Agriculture, Resources and Environmental Sciences and the Appropriate Technology Center for
providing the use of equipment and instruments in the conduct of this study and the German
Technical Cooperation for providing the technical and financial support in developing this low cost
briquette molder and for providing the materials used in producing briquettes. Heartfelt thanks are
extended to all the Student Research Assistants for their invaluable help during the conduct of the
study, and also to Friends and Colleagues in the University for the assistance extended especially in
editing the paper.

9. REFERENCES

Adegoke, C.O. (2002). Energy as veritable tool for sustainable environment. Inaugural Lecture Series
31 of the Federal University of Technology, Akure, Nigeria.

Agricultural and Forest Residues - Generation, Utilization and Availability. 1998. Retrieved from
http://144.16.93.203/energy/HC270799/RWEDP/acrobat/p_residues.pdf.

Baconguis, S.R. (2007). Abandoned biomass resource statistics in the Philippines. 10th National
Convention of Statistics. Manila, Philippines. 12 pages.

Biomass Conversion: Emerging Technologies, Feedstocks, and Products. Retrieved from

http://www.epa.gov/sustainability/pdfs/Biomass%20Conversion.pdf.

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 Biomass for Electricity Generation in ASEAN. Retrieved from http://www.ied-asean.
com/upload/BR52.pdf.

Chemical Analysis and Testing Task Laboratory Analytical Procedure. Retrieved from
http://cobweb.ecn.purdue.edu/~lorre/16/research/LAP-005.pdf.

Demirbas, A. and Sahin, A. (1998). Briquetting waste paper and wheat strae mixtures. Fuel
Processing Technol. 55(2).

Faires, V.M. (1970). Thermodynamics. New York: The MacMillan Company.

FAO Statistics. (2000). Retrieved December 4, 2006 from http://apps.fao.org.

Paul, J.G., Jaque, D.; Kintanar, R.; Sapilan, J. & Gallo, R. (2007). ”End-of-the-pipe” material recovery
to reduce waste disposal and to motivate the informal sector to participate in site improvements at
the Calahunan Dumpsite in Iloilo City, Panay, Philippines. International Conference Sardinia 2007,
Eleventh International Waste Management and Landfill Symposium, Italy, 16 pages.

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