Effect of Water Temperature, Contact Time and Particle Size on the Leaching Characteristics of Organic and Inorganic Matter from Sugarcane Trash Briquettes
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: Global depletion of fossil fuels and the environmental costs of their use motivate renewable alternatives. Sugarcane trash is abundant but rich in potassium, silica, chlorine, and alkali/alkaline earth metals, which drive ash formation, slagging, fouling, corrosion, and hazardous air pollutants during combustion. This study evaluates water leaching as a pretreatment to reduce problematic inorganic/organic constituents and to improve combustion and emission performance of sugarcane trash briquettes. Raw cane trash (CO 421, Migori County) was collected, size-reduced (1, 5, 10 mm), and leached in ultrapure water at 25, 50, and 100 °C for 20, 40, and 60 min using a 3×3×3 full factorial design (27 runs; triplicates). Post-leach solids were densified via hydraulic press (18 MPa; DIN 54385:2016-08). Elemental and ash-forming species (K, Na, Ca, Mg, Si; Cl, S, P) were quantified by standard methods; leachates were analyzed for pH, EC, TOC, and organic acids. Leaching increased C from 46.27 to 49.73 wt% and eliminated detectable Cl; N and S decreased by 39.5% and 66.7%, respectively. Ash-forming K and Mg in solids fell by 63.09%and 44.00%, while Si declined slightly (≈4.3%) and Ca rose (≈15.9%). Leachates were mildly acidic (pH ≈ 5.5) and contained organic acids totaling 2.91% of TOC. Electrical conductivity trends and performance gains were strongest with smaller particle size, higher temperature, and longer contact time. The optimum temperature, time and size were 50 °C, 60-minute and 1 mm, respectively.
Language: English
Subfield: Fuel Technology
Field: Energy
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W7225386587