Characterization of Torrefied Biomass from Sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum) Bagasse Blended with Semirara Coal

Abstract

Utilizing and improving the quality of Philippine indigenous coal is getting more important in order to sustain the country’s high dependence on coal over the next 10 years and to keep up with the country’s growing energy demands. Also, environmental problems and negative impacts of agricultural wastes are drawing more and more attention since the quantity of agricultural wastes has been rising rapidly all over the world. In the Philippines, sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum) bagasse has been identified as one of the significant contributor to the country’s biomass energy resource. Hence, in this study, coal blending technique has adopted as a proper approach to improve the quality of indigenous coal reserves while concurrently reducing and reusing agricultural wastes. This paper aimed to establish recommended blending ratios for Semirara coal, a sub-bituminous type of coal from Semirara Island in the province of Antique, Philippines and sugarcane (S. officinarum) bagasse. Proximate analysis, ultimate analysis, and calorific value were determined to characterize and understand the physical conditions and coal properties during combustion. Results showed that blending torrefied sugarcane (S. officinarum) bagasse with Semirara coal would generally improve its quality in terms of its combustion properties thereby making these combinations of coal and biomass advantageous.