An ASABE Meeting Presentation

Paper Number: 066174

Densification Characteristics of Corn Stover and

Switchgrass

Nalladurai Kaliyan, Ph.D. Candidate

Department of Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering, University of Minnesota,
1390 Eckles Ave, St. Paul, MN 55108, USA. <[email protected]>

R. Vance Morey, Professor

Department of Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering, University of Minnesota,
1390 Eckles Ave, St. Paul, MN 55108, USA. <[email protected]>

Written for presentation at the

2006 ASABE Annual International Meeting
Sponsored by ASABE
Portland Convention Center
Portland, Oregon
9 - 12 July 2006

Abstract. Densification characteristics of corn stover and switchgrass were studied under uniaxial
compression. The effects of pressure (100 to 150 MPa), moisture content (10 to 15%), particle size
(0.56 to 0.80 mm), and preheating temperature (75 to 150oC) on the densification characteristics of
corn stover and switchgrass were studied. Under room temperature (about 25oC), corn stover
briquettes (about 19.2 mm diameter) with relaxed densities of 830 to 1000 kg m-3, and switchgrass
briquettes (about 19.4 mm diameter) with relaxed densities of 420 to 690 kg m-3 were produced.
Densification at 25oC resulted in briquette durability of 50 to 84% for corn stover, and zero percent for
switchgrass. Preheating corn stover and switchgrass to 75, 100 or 150oC increased the density
further, and resulted in briquettes with maximum durability of 97% for corn stover and 67% for
switchgrass. Specific energy required for densification including the preheating energy for both
biomass materials was about 0.7 to 1.7% of the energy content of the biomass material. This study
suggests that more research is required to improve the durability of switchgrass briquettes.

Keywords. Biomass, Briquetting, Corn stover, Densification, Switchgrass.

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Introduction
Using biomass feedstocks to produce fuels, chemicals, heat and power has recently received
greater attention in the U.S. About 80% of the agricultural residues in the U.S. are corn (Zea
mays L.) stover (Walsh et al., 2005). Corn stover is the aboveground portion of the corn plant,
including stalks, leaves, cobs and husks, but excluding the corn kernels. Annually about 230
million dry tons of corn stover can be collected in the U.S. (Walsh et al., 2005), which can be
used for producing ethanol, chemicals, biomaterials, process heat, and electricity. Switchgrass
(Panicum virgatum L.), a native perennial warm-season grass, has been identified as a
dedicated energy crop for producing bio-fuels and renewable energy (McLaughlin and Kszos,
2005; ORNL, 2005). Use of biomass such as corn stover and switchgrass in place of fossil fuels
could reduce the nation’s dependence on foreign oil, reduce greenhouse gas emissions,
increase farm income, and create job opportunities in the rural areas (DOE, 2005).
Corn stover and switchgrass can be collected only during a limited harvest season and,
therefore, they should be stored to feed the processing facilities year-round. Corn stover and
switchgrass are often stored in baled forms, which involve a lot of handling, storage and
transportation cost because of low bulk density. One of the solutions to reducing handling,
storage, and transportation costs is densification of the biomass material into pellets, briquettes,
or cubes. Densified biomass will be in more consistent form, and easier to handle and feed into
the processing equipment. Densification (pelleting, briquetting, cubing, or compaction) of
particulate matter is achieved by forcing the particles together by applying a mechanical force to
create inter-particle bonding, which makes well-defined shapes and sizes such as pellets,
briquettes, and cubes. Densification characteristics of several biomass residues such as alfalfa,
wheat straw, barley straw, rice straw, rice husk, and sawdust have been studied in the past
(Mani et al., 2003). However, only limited studies have been conducted to study the
densification behaviors of corn stover and switchgrass because of the recent interest on these
biomass materials (Jannasch et al., 2004; Mani et al., 2004; Colley et al., 2005). Therefore,
extensive research is required to study the densification characteristics of corn stover and
switchgrass in order to produce highly durable pellets/briquettes from corn stover and
switchgrass.

Objectives
The objective of this research was to study the effects of pressure, moisture content, particle
size, and preheating temperature on the densification characteristics of corn stover and
switchgrass.

Materials and Methods

Biomass Samples
Corn stover (cv. Pioneer 38W21) used for the study was harvested during November 2004 and
stored outdoors in round bales at the West Central Research and Outreach Center (WCROC),
University of Minnesota, Morris, MN. About two weeks after harvest, corn stover was collected
from these round bales and transported to the lab and stored in a –10oC freezer until used. To
obtain switchgrass samples, whole switchgrass plant (about 50-mm above the ground) was
manually harvested during August 2005 from a field at WCROC.
A hammer mill (J.B. Sedberry Inc., Franklin, TN), which operated at 3600 rpm, and was
powered by a 5.6-kW motor, was used to grind the corn stover and switchgrass. Corn stover

2
had an initial moisture content of about 42% (wet basis). Therefore, corn stover was dried at
room temperature for 48 h before grinding. The initial moisture content of the switchgrass was
about 48% (wet basis). Before grinding, the switchgrass was sun-dried to about 10% moisture
content and then it was chopped into lengths of about 100 to 150-mm. Two hammer mill
screens (with 3.0- and 4.6-mm round holes) were used to grind the corn stover and switchgrass
to obtain corn stover and switchgrass grinds with two different particle sizes. After grinding, both
grinds had about 10% (wet basis) moisture content. To increase the moisture content of the
grinds to 15% (wet basis), a predetermined amount of distilled water was added to the grinds,
thoroughly mixed and stored in zip-lock plastic bags at 5oC for 48 h for tempering.
Moisture content of the grinds was measured using the procedure given in ASAE Standard
S358.2 (ASAE Standards, 2003). The moisture content values reported in this paper are on wet
basis. Bulk density of grind was calculated from the mass of grind that occupied in a 250-mL
glass container. Particle size distribution of the grinds was determined based on ASAE
Standard S319.3 (ASAE Standards, 2003a).

Briquette Compression and Ejection Apparatuses

An INSTRON model 4206 universal testing machine (Instron Corporation, Canton, MA) was
used for applying the mechanical pressure required for briquetting the biomass grind. Figure 1
shows the piston-cylinder (die) apparatus used for compressing the biomass grind. The inner
diameter and height of the steel cylinder were 18.8 mm and 300 mm, respectively. The piston
was made of brass and was 50-mm longer than the cylinder to help eject briquettes from the
cylinder.
A separate apparatus was made to allow ejection of briquettes from the cylinder after
compression (fig. 2). The ejection apparatus was a steel cylinder of 60-mm ID and 100-mm
high. Circular plates (20-mm width) were welded at the top and bottom edges of the cylinder.
During briquette ejection, the top plate with pin connections would support the cylinder (die),
and the bottom plate would be bolted on the base plate of the INSTRON.
Figure 3 shows the modifications to be made to the densification cylinder to allow preheating of
the biomass grind before compression.

Briquetting Procedure
All briquetting experiments were conducted under uniaxial compression using the INSTRON.
The INSTRON was controlled by a computer loaded with TestWorks 4.0 software (MTS
Systems Corp., Eden Prairie, MN). The top of the piston was connected to the crosshead of the
INSTRON by a pin connection. The bottom of the cylinder was mounted on the base plate of the
INSTRON. About 5.0-g of biomass grind was added to the cylinder with a funnel. Using a steel
rod, the grind was stirred to help the flow of grind from the funnel. The TestWorks 4.0 software
was programmed to actuate the crosshead to compress the grind to a set maximum pressure at
a constant speed of 25.4 mm min-1 (1.0 in. min-1). The crosshead speed was kept constant for
both loading and unloading processes. The set maximum pressure was achieved within 0.001
to 0.01%. During compression, the piston goes down during loading and compresses the grind,
and goes up during unloading and the briquette relaxes. After completion of compression, the
piston is taken out of the cylinder. A typical compression curve is shown in figure 4. During
compression, TestWorks 4.0 software recorded the time, force, and distance traveled by the
crosshead at a data collection rate of 40 Hz. To calculate the specific energy consumption for
compression (i.e., compression energy), the area under the force-displacement curve was
estimated using the trapezoidal rule (Cheney and Kincaid, 1985).

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After compaction of biomass grind into briquettes, the cylinder was removed from the base of
the INSTRON. The ejection apparatus was attached to the base of the INSTRON and the
cylinder (die) was placed on top of the ejection apparatus (fig. 2). Then, a separate TestWorks
4.0 program was used to operate the crosshead-piston to push the briquette out of the cylinder.
A constant crosshead speed of 25.4 mm min-1 was used for briquette ejection. Figure 4 shows a
typical briquette ejection cycle. Also, time, force and distance traveled by the crosshead were
recorded during the briquette ejection cycle to estimate the specific energy consumption for the
briquette ejection (i.e., ejection energy). In this study, the cylinder was not lubricated during
briquetting but periodically cleaned using a vacuum cleaner.

Preheating of Biomass Grinds

To preheat the biomass grinds, the bottom opening of the briquetting cylinder was closed tightly
with a steel base that had an O-ring seal, and about 5.0 g of sample was filled into the cylinder.
The top opening of the cylinder was closed with a specially designed cap. On the cap, a
pressure relief valve (RL3 Series Relief Valve; Swagelok Company, Solon, OH) and a 450-mm
long K-type thermocouple were installed. The pressure relief valve was set constantly at 506.6
kPa for all preheating temperatures. This would allow preheating the grind to 150oC because
water boils at 475.8 kPa pressure when the temperature is 150oC. This procedure would also
reduce the amount of moisture loss from the grind during preheating. On the outside of the
cylinder wall and bottom of steel base, heating tapes (volt = 120, amps = 2.58, watts = 310, and
phase = 1; BH Thermal Corporation, Columbus, OH) were covered to heat the biomass grind
along with the cylinder. About 50-mm thick fiberglass insulation was used to cover the heating
tapes to avoid heat loss. Temperature of the grind was measured inside of the cylinder at the
center and about 50-mm above the bottom of the cylinder. Figure 3 depicts the preheating
arrangement including the above mentioned accessories.
A hand-held thermocouple-temperature sensor (DIGI-SENSE®, Model No. 91100-40; Cole-
Parmer Instruments Co., Vernon Hills, IL) was used to monitor the temperature of the grind.
When the biomass grind reached the predetermined temperature, the power to the heating
tapes was shut-off, heating tape and insulation at the bottom of the cylinder were removed, the
cylinder was mounted on the INSTRON, pressure inside the cylinder was released through the
pressure relief valve, the cap was removed from the cylinder, and the grind was compressed
immediately. Since the cylinder was air- and vapor-tight during preheating of the biomass grind,
temperature of the grind inside the cylinder might be considered uniform everywhere. The
specific energy required for preheating biomass grind (i.e., preheating energy) was theoretically
calculated by assuming a specific heat value of 2.0 kJ kg-1 K-1 for both corn stover and
switchgrass as:
Preheating energy (MJ/t) = Specific heat of biomass × [preheating temperature – room
temperature]
In some of the briquetting cases at 100oC and all of the cases at 150oC, it was observed that
moisture was deposited on the grind and at the bottom of the briquetting cylinder. Movement of
water from the grind either as vapor or liquid to the bottom of the sample was probably a result
of the inability to perfectly insulate the cylinder during preheating. Also, the bottom of the
cylinder was difficult to insulate during compression resulting in lower temperature at the bottom
of the cylinder, which caused moisture to migrate and accumulate on the bottom of the sample.
The amount of water that was deposited was more at 150oC than at 100oC. Due to the liquid
water at the bottom of the briquetting cylinder, about 0.5 to 1.0-g of grind at the bottom of the
briquette did not get compressed well, and sometimes stayed as loose grind. These loose
particles were scraped off using a sharp knife, and the remaining part of the briquette was used
for the study. It was observed that these loose particles lost the moisture quickly after removal

4
from the briquettes. This may be due to their small particle size. However, these loose particles
were stored immediately in zip-lock plastic bags, and their moisture contents were measured
after one week of storage at room temperature. At the time of moisture measurement, it was
observed that these loose particles were somewhat drier than the condition observed
immediately after removal from the briquettes.

Differential Scanning Calorimeter Experiments

To select the preheating temperatures, tests were conducted in a Differential Scanning
Calorimeter (DSC) (Pyris-1, PerkinElmer Life and Analytical Sciences, Shelton, CT) to
determine the glass transition temperatures of corn stover and switchgrass. The DSC was used
to obtain thermograms in the temperature range of 20 to 150oC. The DSC was calibrated with
indium and zinc standards before the tests. All DSC tests were conducted using aluminum
sample pans under nitrogen environment. An empty aluminum pan was used as a reference.
About 5 to 20 mg of biomass samples were heated from 20 to 150oC at a heating rate of
10oC/min, and the thermogram showing heat flow (W/g) versus temperature (oC) was recorded.
The DSC thermograms for corn stover and switchgrass were obtained at about 10, 15, and 20%
moisture contents. Three replications were made at each moisture content. For comparison,
DSC thermogram for lignin (Lignin-hydrolytic; Aldrich, www.sigma-aldrich.com) at about 10%
moisture content was also obtained. The DSC thermograms were analyzed to determine the
temperatures of onset, mid-point, and end of the glass transition phase (fig. 5). In this study,
glass transition temperature (Tg) was measured as the temperature at the midpoint of the
change in the slope of the DSC thermogram change [i.e., the midpoint of the change in heat
capacity (Cp)] (Zhong and Sun, 2005). The overall average of glass transition temperature (i.e.,
75oC) and the temperature at the end of the glass transition phase (i.e., 100oC) for corn stover
and switchgrass at the three measured moisture contents, and the maximum temperature used
for the DSC tests (i.e., 150oC) were selected as preheating temperatures.

Briquetting Experiments
Using corn stover and switchgrass grinds obtained from the hammer mill screen that had 4.6-
mm openings, briquettes were made for the following conditions: (1) Maximum pressures of 100
and 150 MPa, grind moisture contents of 10 and 15%, and a temperature of 25oC (i.e., room
temperature); and (2) Maximum pressure of 150 MPa, grind moisture contents of 10 and 15%,
and preheating temperatures of 75, 100, and 150oC. Using corn stover and switchgrass grinds
obtained from the hammer mill screen that had 3.0-mm openings, briquettes were made for the
following conditions: (1) Maximum pressures of 100 and 150 MPa, grind moisture content of
10%, and a temperature of 25oC (i.e., room temperature); and (2) Maximum pressure of 150
MPa, grind moisture content of 10%, and preheating temperatures of 75, 100, and 150oC. At
each briquetting condition, ten briquettes were made. In this study, no binders (additives) were
used for briquetting.

Briquette Properties
Immediately after ejection from the die, unit density of the briquettes (i.e., density of individual
briquettes) was measured. Then, the briquettes were transferred to zip-lock plastic bags and
stored for one week at room temperature. Durability, percentage expansion in axial and radial
directions and volume, particle density, porosity, and moisture content of briquettes were
measured after one week of storage.
Durability of briquettes was measured according to ASAE Standard S269.4 (ASAE Standards,
2003b). Durability was calculated as the percentage of briquette mass retained on 16.0-mm

5
screen after tumbling in a durability tester (Continental-Agra Equipment, Inc., Newton, KS) at 50
rpm for 10 min. Only two replications were done for the durability measurement because of lack
of samples. For each replication, five briquettes were used. Unit density of briquettes was
calculated from the mass, diameter and height of the briquettes (ASAE Standards, 2003b).
Particle density of individual briquettes was measured using an air comparison pycnometer
(Beckman Model 930, Beckman Instruments Inc., Fullerton, CA). From the unit density and
particle density of the briquettes, porosities of the individual briquettes were calculated. Axial,
radial, and volume expansions of briquettes were calculated as the percentage increase in
height, diameter, and volume, respectively. Moisture content of the briquettes was measured
based on ASAE Standard S358.2 (ASAE Standards, 2003).

Results and Discussion

Biomass Grinds
Corn stover grind used for briquetting had initial bulk density of about 100 to 130 kg m-3, and
geometric mean particle diameter of 0.66 to 0.8 mm (table 1). Switchgrass grind used for
briquetting had initial bulk density of about 180 to 200 kg m-3, and geometric mean particle
diameter of 0.56 to 0.64 mm (table 1). On average, the length of switchgrass particles was
longer than that of corn stover particles for both hammer mill screen sizes of 3.0 and 4.6 mm.
The shape of the corn stover particles was almost like spheres whereas the shape of the
switchgrass particles was like needles/flakes.

Glass Transition Temperature

Glass transition temperature is defined as the temperature at which the material softens due to
the onset of long-range coordinated molecular motion (Roos, 1995). During glass transition,
amorphous materials change their state from a hard glassy to a soft rubbery sate. Within the
glass transition region, many macroscopic properties of the materials such as viscosity and
mechanical properties, for example, modulus of elasticity would change their values
dramatically (Irvine, 1984). Using DSC, the glass transition region is detectable by a step
change in the heat capacity of the material that is being heated or cooled under a constant rate
in the DSC equipment. Figure 5 shows the typical DSC thermograms for corn stover,
switchgrass, and lignin. In table 2, the glass transition temperatures of corn stover, switchgrass,
and lignin are provided.
The glass transition occurred from 50 to 115oC for both corn stover and switchgrass (Table 2).
The average glass transition temperature for both biomass species at the three measured
moisture contents was 75oC. Also, the average end point of the glass transition temperature
was 100oC for both biomass materials. In general, increasing moisture content from 10 to 20%
decreased the glass transition temperature (Table 2). This is because water acts as a plasticizer
which would help decrease the glass transition temperature (Irvine, 1984; Zhong and Sun,
2005). Irvine (1984) found that the glass transition temperature of lignin ranged from 60 to 90oC.
In this study, glass transition of lignin occurred from 62 to 101oC. This result is comparable to
the values given by Irvine (1984). There were no previous studies on glass transition
temperatures of corn stover and switchgrass. However, Zhong and Sun reported that the glass
transition temperature of corn starch was 60oC at 11.9% (w.b.) moisture content. This result is
well within the value measured for corn stover in this study. Since the glass transition
temperature represents the softening of the amorphous components in the materials such as
lignin and hemi-cellulose in biomass, the average temperatures corresponding to the mid-point
and end point of the glass transition region (i.e., 75 and 100oC) for both corn stover and

6
switchgrass were used as preheating temperatures to study their densification behaviors at
these elevated temperatures. A preheating temperature of 150oC was also used to observe any
improvements on the densification behaviors of the biomass materials when the preheating
temperature was beyond the glass transition temperature region.

Effect of Pressure
The average time of compression was about 340 and 215 s for corn stover and switchgrass,
respectively, when compressing the grind obtained from the hammer mill screen size of 4.6 mm
at about 10% moisture content at the maximum pressure of 100 or 150 MPa under room
temperature (about 25oC). Switchgrass grind required lower compression time than corn stover
grind because switchgrass grind had higher initial bulk density than that of corn stover grind.
Also, switchgrass contains about 20% more fiber than corn stover (Mani et al., 2002), which
resulted in higher resistance to compression and thus switchgrass grind reached the set
maximum pressures faster than corn stover grind. The average time required for ejecting the
briquettes from the die was about 35 and 40 s for corn stover and switchgrass briquettes,
respectively. The relaxed diameter and height of both corn stover and switchgrass briquettes
ranged from 19.0 to 20.0 mm, and 14.0 to 36.1 mm, respectively, depending on the pressure,
moisture content, particle size, and temperature.
Preliminary studies showed that pressures less than 100 MPa resulted in unstable and
unsatisfactory briquettes. Increasing the applied pressure from 100 to 150 MPa at a
temperature of 25oC increased the unit density and reduced the porosity of corn stover and
switchgrass briquettes (tables 3a and 3b). Mani et al. (2002 and 2004) also observed this
pressure effect on density while pelleting wheat straw, barley straw, corn stover, and
switchgrass. At 25oC temperature, increasing the pressure from 100 to 150 MPa increased the
durability of corn stover briquettes from 50 to 62% for the geometric mean particle size of 0.8
mm at 10% moisture content. The durability of switchgrass briquettes was zero at both 100 and
150 MPa pressures when densified at 25oC. For briquettes made at 25oC, due to relaxation of
briquettes after ejection from the die, and surface particle loss and moisture loss during storage,
about 11 to 15% reduction in the unit density of corn stover briquettes and about 24% reduction
in the unit density of switchgrass briquettes were observed after one week of storage at room
temperature (tables 3a and 3b). Tables 4a and 4b give the percentage expansion in axial and
radial directions, and volume of the briquettes after one week of storage at room temperature. In
general, switchgrass briquettes relaxed more than corn stover briquettes when briquettes were
made at 100 or 150 MPa and at 25oC (tables 4a and 4b).
Increasing the pressure from 100 to 150 MPa at the temperature of 25oC increased the specific
energy required for briquetting corn stover and switchgrass. Switchgrass consumed slightly less
energy than corn stover at either pressure condition. For the pressures of 100 to 150 MPa for
the grind obtained from the hammer mill screen size of 4.6 mm, 10% moisture content, and
25oC temperature, the specific energy required for briquetting corn stover (32.8 to 44.1 MJ/t)
was estimated at about 0.16 to 0.22% of the energy content of the corn stover if the energy
content of the corn stover was taken as 20 MJ/kg (Pordesimo et al., 2005). Whereas for
briquetting switchgrass, the specific energy required (29.2 to 40.6 MJ/t) was estimated at about
0.17 to 0.24% of the energy content of the switchgrass if the energy content of the switchgrass
was taken as 17 MJ/kg (Lemus et al., 2002; Mani et al., 2004a). The briquette ejection energy
ranged from 0.1 to 1.3 MJ/t for all briquetting cases (tables 5a and 5b).

7
Effect of Moisture Content
For the corn stover grind obtained from the hammer mill screen size of 4.6 mm, relaxed
briquette densities for 10 and 15% moisture contents were similar at an applied pressure of 100
MPa and at the temperature of 25oC (table 3a). However, at 150 MPa, corn stover grind with
15% moisture content resulted in about 9% less density briquettes than that for 10% moisture
content. At 25oC temperature, increasing the moisture content from 10 to 15% resulted in 30 to
40% decrease in the relaxed densities of switchgrass briquettes (table 3b). Chancellor (1962)
reported that the higher the moisture content of alfalfa hay the less the compact density. Mani et
al. (2002) also reported that increasing the moisture content decreased the density of pellets
made from wheat straw, barley straw, corn stover, and switchgrass.
At 25oC temperature, increasing the moisture content from 10 to 15% increased the durability of
corn stover briquettes from 50 to 80% at 100 MPa pressure, and from 62 to 84% at 150 MPa
pressure. Switchgrass briquettes made at 25oC were not stable at 15% moisture content and
resulted in zero percent durability. Mohsenin and Zaske (1976), Smith et al. (1977), and Coates
(2000) found that higher moisture content (15 to 20%) produced more durable compacts for
alfalfa, wheat straw, and cotton plant residues, respectively. The axial expansion of briquettes
was accelerated by an increase in moisture content (tables 4a and 4b). Mohsenin and Zaske
(1976) reported that the expansions of pellets are due to the residual stress in the pellets after
ejection from the die, and due to water loss from the pellets during storage. Also, Mohsenin and
Zaske (1976) reported that lower moisture content of hay pellets resulted in lower residual
stress and thus less expansion. Faborode (1989) found that increasing moisture content
increased the axial expansions of compacts made from barley straw.
At 25oC temperature, increasing moisture content decreased the specific energy required for
briquetting. Increasing moisture content from 10 to 15% reduced the specific energy
consumption by about 25% for corn stover briquetting, and by about 16% for switchgrass
briquetting when briquetted at 25oC. This may be due to the fact that at high moisture content
the wall friction is less. Also, due to high resistance created by the high moisture grind during
compression, the maximum forming pressure was reached in shorter time than for low moisture
grind. It was noted that increasing the moisture content from 10 to 15% reduced the
compression time by about 20 and 10% for corn stover and switchgrass densified at 25oC,
respectively.

Effect of Particle Size

Decreasing the geometric mean particle size of corn stover grind from 0.8 to 0.66 mm resulted
in about 5 to 10% increase in relaxed density of briquettes made at 25oC (table 3a). Mani et al.
(2002 and 2004) found similar trends when pelleting corn stover grind obtained from the
hammer mill screen sizes of 3.2, 1.6 and 0.8 mm. They reported that corn stover pellets made
from the grind obtained from 1.6 mm hammer mill screen was 5 to 16% more dense than the
pellets made from the grind obtained from 3.2 mm hammer mill screen. For switchgrass,
reducing geometric mean particle size from 0.64 to 0.56 mm did not show much impact on the
relaxed density of briquettes made at 25oC; however, this resulted in less porosity briquettes
(table 3b). Mani et al. (2002) also showed that the density of switchgrass pellets had no trends
with geometric mean particle size in the range of 0.25 to 0.46 mm.
At the briquetting temperature of 25oC, decreasing the particle size of corn stover grind from 0.8
to 0.66 mm increased the durability of briquettes from 50 to 58% at 100 MPa pressure, and from
62 to 75% at 150 MPa pressure at 10% moisture content. This may be due to the fact that more
particle surface area is available to make bonding at smaller particle size than at larger particle
size. From table 3a, it can be concluded that moisture content is a more important factor than

8
particle size in determining the durability of corn stover briquettes made at 25oC, although high
moisture resulted in less density briquettes. Switchgrass briquettes made with the particle sizes
of 0.56 and 0.64 mm resulted in zero percent durability of briquettes at 100 and 150 MPa
pressures, 10% moisture content, and 25oC temperature. At 25oC, decreasing the particle size
of corn stover grind from 0.8 to 0.66 mm increased the specific energy consumption by 0.8 to
1.3 MJ/t (table 5a). Whereas for switchgrass briquetting, decreasing the particle size from 0.64
to 0.56 mm decreased the specific energy consumption by 2.5 to 4.3 MJ/t (table 5b).

Effect of Preheating Temperature

To study the effect of preheating temperatures in the range of 75 to 150oC, all briquetting
experiments were conducted at 150 MPa because 150 MPa resulted in higher density and
durability of briquettes made under 25oC. In general, preheating the biomass grinds from 25 to
75, 100 or 150oC resulted in briquette densities of more than 1000 kg m-3. Relaxed briquette
densities at 75oC were about 16 to 24% higher than those at 25oC for corn stover. For
switchgrass, the relaxed densities at 75oC were about 50 to 100% higher than those at 25oC.
Generally, particle density of briquettes increased with increasing preheating temperature
(tables 3a and 3b). This shows that briquetting at elevated temperatures increased the particle
bonding.
Our goal was to preheat at elevated pressures to allow heating without moisture loss. However,
after preheating, pressure was released before the piston was inserted in the densification
cylinder. Some moisture was lost during the compression process as the material was exposed
to atmospheric conditions. The higher the temperature the greater the moisture loss or the lower
the final moisture content of the briquettes (tables 4a and 4b). For the initial moisture contents of
10 and 15%, about 2 to 6 percentage points, and 5 to 11 percentage points of moisture loss,
respectively, occurred for both biomass materials due to preheating. Also, due to preheating of
both biomass materials, at the small particle size about 0.5 to 1% higher moisture loss occurred
than at the large particle size. Unfortunately, we did not measure the moisture content of the
briquettes made under room temperature. It appeared that the moisture loss from the briquettes
made under room temperature was very small compared to the preheating cases.
At nominal 10 and 15% initial moisture contents, preheating the corn stover grind with geometric
mean particle size of 0.8 mm from 25 to 75oC, the durability values increased by 35.7, and 13.1
percentage points, respectively (table 3a). At about 10% moisture content, preheating the corn
stover grind with geometric mean particle size of 0.66 mm from 25 to 75oC, the durability of
briquettes increased by 21.6 percentage points. Durability of corn stover briquettes was about
97% for the preheating temperature of 75 or 100oC for both the moisture contents and particle
sizes tested. At equal preheating temperatures, the low moisture content (10%) and small
particle size (geometric mean particle size of 0.66 mm) of corn stover resulted in numerically
higher density than for the high moisture content (15%) and large particle size (geometric mean
particle size of 0.8 mm). At equal preheating temperatures, the two moisture contents and
particle sizes did not show much impact on durability of corn stover briquettes. Increasing the
preheating temperature from 25 to 150oC resulted in briquette durability of 92 to 94%.
The decrease in the durability values at 150oC than that at 100oC was due to the higher
moisture migration problem encountered during the preheating process at 150oC than at 100oC.
As previously mentioned, at 100 or 150oC, it was observed that moisture was deposited in thin
layer of the grind at the bottom of the briquetting cylinder, which corresponded to about 0.5 to
1.0-g of the grind. It appeared that there were zones of low moisture grind (i.e., top part of the
briquette) and high moisture grind (i.e., bottom part of the briquette). The particles in top part of
the briquette compressed better than those in the bottom part of the briquette. Presence of high
amount of free moisture in the bottom layer of the grind could have hindered the effective

9
particle bonding during compression. This moisture migration problem and its effect on the
amount of particles that did not get compressed were higher at 150oC than at 100oC, which
could have resulted in less durable part of the briquette at 150oC than at 100oC. So, the net
effect was less durability of briquettes at 150oC than that at 100oC. Also, tables 4a and 4b
present the moisture content of the loose particles that were scraped off from the briquettes
made at the preheating temperatures of 100 and 150oC. Clearly, the moisture contents of the
loose particles were higher than those of the briquettes. This confirms that during preheating
and compression, moisture migrated to the bottom of the sample.
At nominal 10 and 15% initial moisture contents, preheating the switchgrass grind with
geometric mean particle size of 0.64 mm from 25 to 75oC, the durability values were increased
by 54.7, and 46.5 percentage points, respectively (table 3b). At nominal 10% initial moisture
content, preheating the switchgrass grind with geometric mean particle size of 0.56 mm from 25
to 75oC, the durability was increased by 62.9 percentage points. Preheating the switchgrass
from 25 to 75 or 100oC resulted in briquette durability of 63 to 67% at both the moisture contents
and particle sizes tested. However, durability of switchgrass briquettes made at 100oC was
about 4.4 to 16 percentage points higher than the briquettes made at 75oC. Increasing the
preheating temperature from 75 to 150oC increased the briquette durability by 2.8 to 14.6
percentage points. The maximum durability of switchgrass briquettes obtained was 67.3%. At
equal preheating temperatures, the low moisture content (10%) and small particle size
(geometric mean particle size of 0.56 mm) of switchgrass resulted in numerically higher density
and durability than for the high moisture content (15%) and large particle size (geometric mean
particle size of 0.64 mm). Assuming that all natural binders in the switchgrass were effectively
activated/softened due to elevated temperatures used in this study, it can be concluded that
there is a need to further increase the durability of switchgrass briquettes by some other means
such as by adding external binders (additives). In a commercial scale pelleting of switchgrass,
Jannasch et al. (2004) found that switchgrass lacked natural binding properties compared to
alfalfa and resulted in poor durability pellets.
Tables 4a and 4b show that briquetting at elevated temperatures of 75 to 150oC resulted in less
percentage of volume expansion for corn stover and switchgrass briquettes than briquetting at
room temperature. This shows that elevated temperatures may have caused more plastic
deformation of the particles than room temperature.
The specific compression and ejection energy consumption for briquetting corn stover and
switchgrass at 75 to 150oC were similar to those at 25oC. Including the preheating energy
required in the temperature range of 75 to 150oC, the specific energy required for corn stover
was 0.7 to 1.5% of the energy content of the corn stover (table 5a). For switchgrass, the
specific energy required was 0.8 to 1.7% of the energy content of the switchgrass (table 5b) for
the preheating temperatures of 75 to 150oC.
This study shows that preheating corn stover and switchgrass to 75 to 100oC has potential to
activate the natural binding components in corn stover (protein = 8.7% of dry matter [DM], fat =
1.33% DM, lignin = 3.12% DM, hemi-cellulose = 21.08% DM; Mani et al., 2002) and switchgrass
(protein = 1.59% DM, fat = 1.87% DM, lignin = 7.43% DM, hemi-cellulose = 30.0% DM; Mani et
al., 2002) because the temperature range of 75 to 100oC corresponds to the glass transition
(i.e., softening) temperature of both of these biomass materials. Lignin and hemi-cellulose were
found to be amorphous thermoplastic materials which would undergo plastic deformation at
temperatures in the range of their glass transition regions (Back and Salmen, 1982). In addition,
during compression at these elevated temperatures, the natural binding components may come
out of the particles and make solid bridges between particles. After cooling, these solid bridges
will be hardened. This would make the briquettes strong and durable (Rumpf, 1962). This may

10
explain why corn stover and switchgrass briquettes made at elevated temperatures (i.e., 75 to
150oC) had higher durability than at room temperature (i.e., 25oC).

Summary and Conclusions

The following summary and conclusions are drawn from this study.

• Briquetting under room temperature (about 25oC), corn stover briquettes with relaxed
densities of 830 to 1000 kg m-3 and durability of 50 to 84% can be made at pressures of 100
to 150 MPa, geometric mean particle sizes of grind from 0.8 to 0.66 mm, and moisture
contents of 10 to 15%. Briquetting at elevated temperatures of 75 to 150oC and at 150 MPa,
corn stover briquettes with relaxed densities of 985 to 1162 kg m-3 and durability of 92 to
97% can be produced. Specific energy required for briquetting corn stover ranged from 0.12
to 0.22%, and 0.7 to 1.5% of the energy content of the corn stover for briquetting at room
temperature, and at elevated temperatures of 75 to 150oC, respectively.

• Briquetting under room temperature (about 25oC), switchgrass briquettes with relaxed
densities of 420 to 690 kg m-3 can be produced at pressures of 100 to 150 MPa, geometric
mean particle sizes of grind from 0.56 and 0.64 mm, and moisture contents of 10 to 15%.
However, durability of siwtchgrass briquettes made under room temperature was zero
percent. Briquetting at elevated temperatures of 75 to 150oC and at 150 MPa, switchgrass
briquettes with relaxed densities of 834 to 1065 kg m-3 and durability of 55 to 67% can be
produced. Specific energy required for briquetting switchgrass ranged from 0.15 to 0.24%,
and 0.8 to 1.7% of the energy content of the switchgrass for briquetting at room
temperature, and at elevated temperatures of 75 to 150oC, respectively. Clearly, more
research work needs to be done to improve the durability of switchgrass briquettes.

Acknowledgements
We acknowledge the following: Initiative for Renewable Energy and the Environment (IREE),
University of Minnesota for providing support for this study; West Central Research and
Outreach Center (WCROC), University of Minnesota, Morris, MN for providing biomass
samples; and Department of Bio-based Products (DBP), University of Minnesota for access to
INSTRON testing machine. We thank Dr. Greg Cuomo (WCROC), Mr. Mike Reese (WCROC),
Dr. Bob Seavey (DBP), and Dr. William T. Y. Tze (DBP) for their assistance.

References
ASAE Standards. 2003. S358.2: Moisture measurement - Forages. St. Joseph, Mich.: ASAE.
ASAE Standards. 2003a. S319.3: Method of determining and expressing fineness of feed
materials by sieving. St. Joseph, Mich.: ASAE.
ASAE Standards. 2003b. S269.4: Cubes, pellets, and crumbles – Definitions and methods for
determining density, durability, and moisture content. St. Joseph, Mich.: ASAE.
Back, E.L., and N.L. Salmen. 1982. Glass transitions of wood components hold implications for
molding and pulping processes. Tappi 65(7): 107-110.

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Chancellor, W.J. 1962. Formation of hay wafers with impact loads. Agricultural Engineering
43(3): 136-138,149.
Cheney, W., and D. Kincaid. 1985. Numerical Mathematics and Computing. Monterey, CA:
Brooks/Cole Publishing Company.
Coates, W. 2000. Using cotton plant residue to produce briquettes. Biomass and Bioenergy
18(3): 201-208.
Colley, Z., O.O. Fasina, D. Bransby, and C.W. Wood. 2005. Compaction behavior of poultry
litter and switchgrass. ASAE Paper No. 056053. St. Joseph, Mich.: ASAE.
DOE. 2005. Biomass as Feedstock for a Bioenergy and Bioproducts Industry: The Technical
Feasibility of a Billion-Ton Annual Supply. Oak Ridge, TN: U.S. Department of Energy
(DOE), Office of Scientific and Technical Information. Available at:
http://www/osti.gov/bridge. Accessed 18 June 2005.
Faborode, M.O. 1989. Moisture effects in the compaction of fibrous agricultural residues.
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Irvine, G.M. 1984. The glass transitions of lignin and hemicellulose and their measurement by
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Jannasch, R., Y. Quan, and R. Samson. 2004. A Process and Energy Analysis of Pelletizing
Switchgrass. Ste. Anne de Bellevue, QC: Resource Efficient Agricultural Production
(REAP-Canada). Available at: http://www.reap-canada.com/library.htm. Accessed 26
August 2004.
Lemus, R., E.C. Brummer, K.J. Moore, N.E. Molstad, C.L. Burras, and M.F. Barker. 2002.
Biomass yield and quality of 20 switchgrass populations in southern Iowa, USA.
Biomass and Bioenergy 23(6): 433-442.
Mani, S., L.G. Tabil, and S. Sokhansanj. 2002. Compaction behavior of some biomass grinds.
AIC Paper No. 02-305. Saskatoon, Saskatchewan: AIC 2002 Meeting, CSAE/SCGR
Program.
Mani, S., L.G. Tabil, and S. Sokhansanj. 2003. An overview of compaction of biomass grinds.
Powder handling & Processing 15(3): 160-168.
Mani, S., L.G. Tabil, and S. Sokhansanj. 2004. Evaluation of compaction equations applied to
four biomass species. Canadian Biosystems Engineering 46(3): 3.55-3.61.
Mani, S., L.G. Tabil, and S. Sokhansanj. 2004a. Grinding performance and physical properties
of wheat and barley straws, corn stover and switchgrass. Biomass and Bioenergy 27(4):
339-352.
McLaughlin, S.B., and L.A. Kszos. 2005. Development of switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) as a
bioenergy feedstock in the United States. Biomass and Bioenergy 28(6): 515-535.
Mohsenin, N., and J. Zaske. 1976. Stress relaxation and energy requirements in compaction of
unconsolidated materials. J. Agric. Engng Res. 21(2): 193-205.
ORNL. 2005. Biofuels from Switchgrass: Greener Energy Pastures. Oak Ridge, TN: Oak Ridge
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http://bioenergy.ornl.gov/papers/misc/switgrs.html. Accessed 18 June 2005.
Pordesimo, L.O., B.R. Hames, S. Sokhansanj, and W.C. Edens. 2005. Variation in corn stover
composition and energy content with crop maturity. Biomass and Bioenergy 28(4): 366-
374.
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Rumpf, H. 1962. The strength of granules and agglomerates. In Agglomeration, W.A. Knepper,
ed., 379-418. New York, NY: John Wiley and Sons.

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Smith, I.E., S.D. Probert, R.E. Stokes, and R.J. Hansford. 1977. The briquetting of wheat straw.
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and D.E. Ray. 2005. Biomass Feedstock Availability in the United States: 1999 State
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http://bioenergy.ornl.gov/resourcedata/. Accessed 18 June 2005.
Zhong, Z., and X.S. Sun. 2005. Thermal characterization and phase behavior of cornstarch
studied by differential scanning calorimetry. J. Food Eng. 69: 453-459.

Pin connection for connecting the load cell-

crosshead of the INSTRON and the piston

350 mm Piston

Gap between the piston and

the cylinder wall = 0.025 mm

6.0-mm thick wall

300 mm
18.8-mm ID cylinder (Die), which was filled with
5 g of biomass grind before compression

Connection to the base of the INSTRON

Figure 1. Schematic of briquette compression apparatus (figure not to scale).

13
 Pin connection to the
crosshead of the INSTRON

Briquette

Pin connection

40-mm wide × 90-mm high slot (opening) for

easy collection of briquettes after ejection

60-mm ID × 100-mm high cylinder

(briquette ejection apparatus)

Bolted connection to the

base of the INSTRON

Figure 2. Schematic of briquette ejection apparatus in operation (figure not to scale).

Pressure relief valve

Gas out
Removable cap

Cylinder (die)

Heating tape
Fiberglass insulation

Thermocouple (temperature of the grind was measured

at center, 50-mm above from the bottom of the cylinder)

O-ring

Heating tape

Fiberglass insulation

Figure 3. Modifications to the densification cylinder during preheating of biomass grind.

14
 200 2
A B

Pressure (MPa)
Pressure (MPa)

150 1.5

100 1

50 0.5

0 0
0 100 200 300 0 10 20 30 40
Tim e (s) Time (s)

Figure 4. Typical briquette compression (A) and ejection (B) curves.

Heat flow , Endothermic up (W/g)

Corn stover, MC = 7.9% wb

8
Switchgrass, MC = 10.9% wb
Lignin, MC = 9.7% wb
5
End

2
Mid-point = Tg
Onset
-1
10 30 50 70 90 110 130 150
o
Temperature ( C)

Figure 5. DSC thermograms for corn stover, switchgrass, and lignin.

15
Table 1. Properties of corn stover and switchgrass grinds.

* Hammer mill screen ** Grind moisture content *** Particle size ** Bulk density
used for grinding (mm)
(%, w.b.) (n = 3) (n = 3) (kg m-3) (n = 3)
Corn Stover
3.0 10.1 ± 0.3 0.66 ± 0.32 130.6 ± 2.0
4.6 10.0 ± 0.3 0.80 ± 0.41 108.7 ± 0.5
4.6 15.0 ± 0.5 0.80 ± 0.41 103.1 ± 1.4
Switchgrass
3.0 9.7 ± 0.2 0.56 ± 0.29 200.5 ± 3.6
4.6 9.8 ± 0.3 0.64 ± 0.30 181.3 ± 3.8
4.6 15.1 ± 0.5 0.64 ± 0.30 190.1 ± 6.2
* Diameter of the holes on the screen.
** Mean ± standard deviation.
*** Geometric mean particle diameter (mm) ± geometric standard deviation.

Table 2. Glass transition temperatures of corn stover, switchgrass, and lignin.

Sample * Moisture content n * Glass transition temperature (oC)

(%, w.b.) (n = 3) Onset End 1
Tg ( ∆C p )
2
Corn stover 7.9 ± 0.2 3 51.4 ± 6.6 102.1 ± 7.2 79.6 ± 0.5
14.1 ± 0.2 3 55.0 ± 5.7 101.2 ± 9.6 77.5 ± 5.9
19.8 ± 0.1 3 54.0 ± 9.5 100.0 ± 8.4 74.7 ± 7.9
Switchgrass 10.9 ± 0.1 3 57.8 ± 10.5 113.2 ± 9.7 78.7 ± 8.2
14.5 ± 0.3 3 54.6 ± 12.1 100.7 ± 6.3 75.3 ± 9.8
20.2 ± 0.2 3 50.2 ± 4.6 91.6 ± 4.6 63.4 ± 3.6
Lignin 9.7 ± 0.1 2 61.5 ± 9.2 100.7 ± 16.5 81.7 ± 10.8
* Mean ± standard deviation.

16
Table 3a. Unit density, particle density, porosity, and durability of corn stover briquettes.

Maximum Preheating * Grind Immediately after

After one week of storage at room temperature
pressure temperature moisture ejection from the die
(MPa) (oC) content
* Unit briquette density *Unit briquette * Particle density * Porosity * Durability
(%, w.b.) density (kg m-3) (kg m-3) (n = 5) (%) (n = 2)
(kg m-3) (n = 5) (%) (n = 5)
# (n = 5)
(n = 3)
Corn stover grind from hammer mill screen size of 4.6 mm (** Particle size = 0.80 mm ± 0.41)
100 25 10.0 ± 0.3 972.5 ± 6.8 828.5 ± 7.4 1359.9 ± 32.1 39.1 ± 1.3 49.5 ± 4.3
150 25 10.0 ± 0.3 1074.5 ± 12.2 954.7 ± 17.0 1356.1 ± 25.0 29.6 ± 1.2 61.6 ± 2.9
150 75 10.3 ± 0.2 1189.2 ± 12.2 1153.9 ± 17.5 1598.7 ± 83.5 27.7 ± 3.5 97.3 ± 0.1
150 100 10.3 ± 0.2 1191.7 ± 9.4 1148.8 ± 32.2 1539.7 ± 82.1 25.2 ± 5.2 96.8 ± 0.01
150 150 10.3 ± 0.2 1105.7 ± 10.2 984.6 ± 30.5 1581.8 ± 39.9 37.7 ± 2.7 91.8 ± 4.9
100 25 15.0 ± 0.5 981.1 ± 16.1 825.4 ± 10.8 1411.3 ± 22.7 41.5 ± 0.6 80.2 ± 7.3
150 25 15.0 ± 0.5 1020.0 ± 11.7 873.0 ± 7.4 1365.0 ± 16.2 36.0 ± 1.0 83.5 ± 2.0
150 75 15.4 ± 0.3 1111.0 ± 17.4 1084.4 ± 10.1 1514.7 ± 29.4 28.4 ± 1.7 96.6 ± 0.5
150 100 15.4 ± 0.3 1129.8 ± 18.8 1078.6 ± 22.7 1603.5 ± 83.1 32.5 ± 4.9 95.7 ± 0.6
150 150 15.4 ± 0.3 1146.0 ± 21.4 1106.4 ± 44.1 1669.2 ± 111.2 33.6 ± 2.1 92.0 ± 0.7
Corn stover grind from hammer mill screen size of 3.0 mm (** Particle size = 0.66 mm ± 0.32)
100 25 10.1 ± 0.3 1020.9 ± 9.6 904.7 ± 10.4 1463.4 ± 17.4 38.2 ± 1.4 58.3 ± 2.6
150 25 10.1 ± 0.3 1117.9 ± 9.1 997.4 ± 11.1 1428.0 ± 11.7 30.2 ± 0.7 75.2 ± 0.6
150 75 10.1 ± 0.3 1191.2 ± 7.0 1153.9 ± 8.8 1820.6 ± 334.7 35.1 ± 10.4 96.8 ± 0.04
150 100 10.1 ± 0.3 1197.6 ± 14.9 1161.7 ± 25.6 1586.0 ± 26.2 26.7 ± 2.5 96.6 ± 0.04
150 150 10.1 ± 0.3 1161.1 ± 19.8 1114.8 ± 21.6 1647.0 ± 35.2 32.3 ± 2.3 94.2 ± 0.1
* Mean ± standard deviation. #
Moisture content of the grind before densification and preheating (if applicable).
** Geometric mean particle diameter ± geometric standard deviation (n = 3).

17
Table 3b. Unit density, particle density, porosity, and durability of switchgrass briquettes.

Maximum Preheating * Grind Immediately after

After one week of storage at room temperature
pressure temperature moisture ejection from the die
(MPa) (oC) content
* Unit briquette density *Unit briquette * Particle density * Porosity * Durability
(%, w.b.) -3 density (kg m-3) (kg m-3) (n = 5) (%) (n = 2)
(kg m ) (n = 5) (%) (n = 5)
(n = 5)
(n = 3) #
Switchgrass grind from hammer mill screen size of 4.6 mm (** Particle size = 0.64 mm ± 0.30)
100 25 9.8 ± 0.3 824.2 ± 11.6 631.1 ± 15.4 1402.5 ± 190.6 54.3 ± 6.2 0.0 ± 0.0
150 25 9.8 ± 0.3 901.2 ± 6.9 688.1 ± 7.7 1317.7 ± 54.4 47.7 ± 2.5 0.0 ± 0.0
150 75 9.6 ± 0.1 1066.8 ± 12.8 1034.0 ± 22.6 1497.5 ± 41.9 30.9 ± 1.9 54.7 ± 0.4
150 100 9.6 ± 0.1 1094.5 ± 14.7 1063.4 ± 57.1 1514.0 ± 48.1 29.7 ± 3.8 63.8 ± 2.4
150 150 9.6 ± 0.1 1061.2 ± 17.2 1003.6 ± 19.5 1544.1 ± 40.3 35.0 ± 2.1 65.1 ± 3.2
100 25 15.1 ± 0.5 652.7 ± 23.5 437.3 ± 23.6 *** No Data No Data 0.0 ± 0.0
150 25 15.1 ± 0.5 664.5 ± 10.9 417.2 ± 18.3 No Data No Data 0.0 ± 0.0
150 75 14.9 ± 0.6 901.7 ± 14.1 833.7 ± 17.1 1408.4 ± 20.5 40.8 ± 0.6 46.5 ± 2.2
150 100 14.9 ± 0.6 1017.6 ± 40.8 961.4 ± 76.6 1421.5 ± 14.0 32.4 ± 5.1 62.5 ± 7.4
150 150 14.9 ± 0.6 1085.4 ± 27.5 1043.8 ± 24.3 1446.5 ± 17.3 27.8 ± 1.5 61.1 ± 2.6
Switchgrass grind from hammer mill screen size of 3.0 mm (** Particle size = 0.56 mm ± 0.29)
100 25 9.7 ± 0.2 849.8 ± 10.9 645.1 ± 14.5 1165.4 ± 38.0 44.6 ± 2.8 0.0 ± 0.0
150 25 9.7 ± 0.2 889.0 ± 7.4 678.9 ± 10.9 1127.6 ± 8.3 39.8 ± 0.9 0.0 ± 0.0
150 75 9.8 ± 0.2 1093.8 ± 7.4 1045.2 ± 15.8 1434.9 ± 17.9 27.1 ± 2.0 62.9 ± 0.2
150 100 9.8 ± 0.2 1099.7 ± 12.5 1053.5 ± 61.7 1464.0 ± 30.5 28.0 ± 5.4 67.3 ± 1.5
150 150 9.8 ± 0.2 1095.5 ± 25.2 1065.1 ± 33.0 1501.2 ± 16.4 29.0 ± 2.0 65.7 ± 2.2
#
* Mean ± standard deviation. Moisture content of the grind before densification and preheating (if applicable).
** Geometric mean particle diameter ± geometric standard deviation (n = 3).
*** No Data = Data were not taken because the briquettes were not stable.

18
Table 4a. Stability and moisture content of corn stover briquettes measured after one week of
storage at room temperature.

Maximum Preheating * Briquette * Moisture Mean expansion (%)

pressure temperature (oC) moisture content of the
(n = 5)
(MPa) content briquette
particles Axial Radial Volume
(%, w.b.)
(%, w.b.) direction direction
(n = 3)
(n = 2) #
Corn stover grind from hammer mill screen size of 4.6 mm (** Particle size = 0.80 mm ± 0.41)
Nominal initial moisture content of the grind = 10%
100 25 *** NA - 14.1 1.1 16.7
150 25 NA - 11.2 0.6 12.6
150 75 8.4 ± 0.2 - 2.7 0.1 2.9
150 100 7.9 ± 0.1 - 3.0 0.3 3.7
150 150 5.8 ± 0.3 10.2 ± 0.7 12.0 1.2 14.7
Nominal initial moisture content of the grind = 15%
100 25 NA - 15.8 0.7 17.4
150 25 NA - 13.4 0.8 15.2
150 75 10.3 ± 0.1 - 0.7 0.04 0.8
150 100 8.6 ± 0.2 10.4 3.2 0.2 3.7
150 150 4.1 ± 0.2 10.2 3.9 0.6 5.2
Corn stover grind from hammer mill screen size of 3.0 mm (** Particle size = 0.66 mm ± 0.32)
Nominal initial moisture content of the grind = 10%
100 25 NA - 11.6 0.4 11.6
150 25 NA - 10.7 0.6 11.9
150 75 7.7 ± 0.1 - 2.3 0.2 2.6
150 100 7.0 ± 0.2 - 2.6 0.1 2.7
150 150 4.1 ± 0.2 10.4 3.5 0.7 4.8

* Mean ± standard deviation.

** Geometric mean particle diameter ± geometric standard deviation (n = 3).
*** NA = Data were not taken. However, moisture loss from the briquettes made at room temperature was
small.
#
Moisture content of the loose particles that were scraped off from the bottom of the briquettes for
preheating at 100 and 150oC. For two of the preheating cases at 100oC, no loose particles were found. In
some of the preheating cases, the amount of loose particles was small. Therefore, one replication of
moisture measurement was made for those cases, and thus, there were no standard deviations.

19
Table 4b. Stability and moisture content of switchgrass briquettes measured after one week of
storage at room temperature.

Maximum Preheating * Briquette * Moisture Mean expansion (%)

pressure temperature (oC) moisture content of the
(n = 5)
(MPa) content briquette
particles Axial Radial Volume
(%, w.b.)
(%, w.b.) direction direction
(n = 3)
(n = 2) #
Switchgrass grind from hammer mill screen size of 4.6 mm (*** Particle size = 0.64 mm ± 0.30)
Nominal initial moisture content of the grind = 10%
100 25 *** NA - 26.1 0.9 28.4
150 25 NA - 26.1 1.2 29.1
150 75 7.2 ± 0.1 - 2.3 0.09 2.5
150 100 6.8 ± 0.3 9.0 ± 0.2 2.5 0.3 3.2
150 150 4.7 ± 0.2 8.9 ± 0.2 6.2 0.7 7.9
Nominal initial moisture content of the grind = 15%
100 25 NA - 36.0 2.0 41.6
150 25 NA - 41.9 3.2 51.1
150 75 10.0 ± 0.2 - 4.4 0.6 5.8
150 100 7.4 ± 0.2 10.0 ± 0.1 5.4 0.2 6.0
150 150 4.8 ± 0.5 8.9 ± 0.9 3.5 0.6 4.7
Switchgrass grind from hammer mill screen size of 3.0 mm (*** Particle size = 0.56 mm ± 0.29)
Nominal initial moisture content of the grind = 10%
100 25 NA - 26.0 1.0 28.6
150 25 NA - 26.0 0.9 28.2
150 75 7.0 ± 0.2 - 4.0 0.3 4.5
150 100 6.1 ± 0.4 10.4 3.3 0.5 4.8
150 150 3.7 ± 0.1 10.4 ± 0.3 3.6 0.5 4.4

* Mean ± standard deviation.

** Geometric mean particle diameter ± geometric standard deviation (n = 3).
*** NA = Data were not taken. However, moisture loss from the briquettes made at room temperature was
small.
#
Moisture content of the loose particles that were scraped off from the bottom of the briquettes for
preheating at 100 and 150oC. In one of the preheating cases, the amount of loose particles was small.
Therefore, one replication of moisture measurement was made for this case, and thus, there was no
standard deviation.

20
Table 5a. Specific energy required for briquetting corn stover.

Maximum Preheating Compression Ejection Preheating Specific energy

pressure temperature energy (MJ/t) energy energy (MJ/t) consumption #
(MPa) (oC) (MJ/t)
(n = 10)* ** MJ/t Percentage of
(n = 10)* energy in
material (%) &
Corn stover grind from hammer mill screen size of 4.6 mm (** Particle size = 0.80 mm ± 0.41)
Nominal initial moisture content of the grind = 10%
100 25 32.3 ± 0.3 0.5 ± 0.1 0.0 32.8 0.16
150 25 43.6 ± 0.6 0.5 ± 0.1 0.0 44.1 0.22
150 75 38.9 ± 0.8 1.2 ± 0.2 100.0 140.1 0.70
150 100 38.3 ± 1.0 1.0 ± 0.2 150.0 189.3 0.95
150 150 44.0 ± 1.2 1.3 ± 0.3 250.0 295.3 1.48
Nominal initial moisture content of the grind = 15%
100 25 24.4 ± 0.8 0.4 ± 0.1 0.0 24.8 0.12
150 25 33.4 ± 0.4 0.6 ± 0.1 0.0 34.0 0.17
150 75 30.0 ± 0.7 0.7 ± 0.1 100.0 130.7 0.65
150 100 33.5 ± 1.5 1.0 ± 0.2 150.0 184.5 0.92
150 150 41.1 ± 0.5 0.7 ± 0.2 250.0 291.8 1.46
Corn stover grind from hammer mill screen size of 3.0 mm (** Particle size = 0.66 mm ± 0.32)
Nominal initial moisture content of the grind = 10%
100 25 32.6 ± 0.5 1.0 ± 0.1 0.0 33.6 0.17
150 25 44.3 ± 0.4 1.1 ± 0.1 0.0 45.4 0.23
150 75 40.0 ± 0.7 1.1 ± 0.1 100.0 141.1 0.71
150 100 38.6 ± 1.1 1.0 ± 0.2 150.0 189.6 0.95
150 150 42.6 ± 1.1 0.7 ± 0.2 250.0 293.3 1.47

* Mean ± standard deviation.

** Preheating energy (MJ/t) = Specific heat of corn stover × [preheating temp. – room temp.]
Assumed specific heat of corn stover = 2.0 kJ kg-1 K-1; room temperature = 25oC.
*** Geometric mean particle diameter ± geometric standard deviation (n = 3).
#
Specific energy consumption = Compression energy + ejection energy + preheating energy.
&
Percentage of energy in material (%) = Specific energy consumption (MJ/t) * 100 / Energy content of
corn stover (MJ/t)
Energy content of corn stover = 20 MJ/kg (Pordesimo et al., 2005).

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Table 5b. Specific energy required for briquetting switchgrass.

Maximum Preheating Compression Ejection Preheating Specific energy

pressure temperature energy (MJ/t) energy energy (MJ/t) consumption #
(MPa) (oC) (MJ/t)
(n = 10) * ** MJ/t Percentage of
(n = 10)* energy in
material (%) &
Switchgrass grind from hammer mill screen size of 4.6 mm (*** Particle size = 0.64 mm ± 0.30)
Nominal initial moisture content of the grind = 10%
100 25 28.9 ± 0.4 0.3 ± 0.1 0.0 29.2 0.17
150 25 40.3 ± 0.7 0.3 ± 0.1 0.0 40.6 0.24
150 75 39.9 ± 0.6 0.4 ± 0.1 100.0 140.3 0.83
150 100 39.3 ± 1.2 0.3 ± 0.1 150.0 189.6 1.12
150 150 41.6 ± 1.0 0.3 ± 0.1 250.0 291.9 1.72
Nominal initial moisture content of the grind = 15%
100 25 24.5 ± 0.4 0.5 ± 0.1 0.0 25.0 0.15
150 25 32.9 ± 0.6 0.6 ± 0.1 0.0 33.5 0.20
150 75 32.0 ± 0.7 0.3 ± 0.1 100.0 132.3 0.78
150 100 35.8 ± 1.8 0.4 ± 0.2 150.0 186.2 1.10
150 150 37.5 ± 1.3 0.1 ± 0.1 250.0 287.6 1.69
Switchgrass grind from hammer mill screen size of 3.0 mm (*** Particle size = 0.56 mm ± 0.29)
Nominal initial moisture content of the grind = 10%
100 25 26.4 ± 0.3 0.3 ± 0.1 0.0 26.7 0.16
150 25 36.0 ± 0.3 0.3 ± 0.1 0.0 36.3 0.21
150 75 38.5 ± 1.1 0.4 ± 0.1 100.0 138.9 0.82
150 100 37.5 ± 1.4 0.2 ± 0.1 150.0 187.7 1.10
150 150 40.0 ± 0.9 0.2 ± 0.1 250.0 290.2 1.71

* Mean ± standard deviation.

** Preheating energy (MJ/t) = Specific heat of switchgrass × [preheating temp. – room temp.]
Assumed specific heat of switchgrass = 2.0 kJ kg-1 K-1; room temperature = 25oC.
*** Geometric mean particle diameter ± geometric standard deviation (n = 3).
#
Specific energy consumption = Compression energy + ejection energy + preheating energy.
&
Percentage of energy in material (%) = Specific energy consumption (MJ/t) * 100 / Energy content of
switchgrass (MJ/t)
Energy content of switchgrass = 17 MJ/kg (Lemus et al., 2002; Mani et al., 2004a).

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