2nd Annual Conference on Health and Food Science Technology (ACHOST 2021) IOP Publishing

IOP Conf. Series: Earth and Environmental Science 1104 (2022) 012034 doi:10.1088/1755-1315/1104/1/012034

The Development of Sustainable Energy Briquettes Using

Coconut Dregs Charcoal and Tapioca Flour as Adhesives

Dina Asmaul Chusniyah1* Reno Pratiwi2, Benyamin3, Suliestiyah4

Universitas Trisakti, Jakarta, Indonesia

Email: [email protected]*, [email protected], [email protected],

[email protected]

Abstract. The growing human population results in an increase in energy needs and consumption.
Energy is one of the basic needs of human life. An example of this case is the increase in the need for
fuel. Biomass is an alternative energy source that is processed from solid waste and used as a fuel
source. In this study, researchers used coconut dregs charcoal and tapioca flour as materials and went
through several processes. The first was the drying process of raw materials (coconut dregs). The
second was the carbonization process of coconut dregs which took about 1 hour until the dregs turned
into black like charcoal. The third was the process of grinding and filtering. The fourth was the
process of mixing adhesive materials and molding briquettes. The fifth was the drying process using
an oven with a temperature of 100°C. The sixth was the drying process and determining the quality of
briquettes based on moisture content, ash content, and density. The percentage composition between
coconut dregs charcoal and tapioca flour as adhesives was set into several formulas starting from
formula 1 to formula 6. In the measurement of moisture content with the ASTM D-3173-03 standard,
the researchers obtained the lowest moisture content value of 4.459 and a highest moisture content
value of 13.216. Meanwhile, in the measurement of ash content with the ASTM D-3174-04 standard,
the researchers obtained the lowest value of 4.459 and the highest value of 10.113. Furthermore, in the
measurement of the density, the researchers obtained the lowest value of 0.521237 and the highest
value of 0.970579. Coconut pulp charcoal biobriquettes with 50% tapioca adhesive produced have the
potential to be used as an alternative energy source. This is evidenced by the results of the
measurement of water content which shows a very low average water content, namely 4.459%, the
average ash content of the biobriquettes produced is 4.459%, the density of the briquettes produced is
0.518%.

Keywords: moisture content; ash content; density

1. Introduction
The increase in energy consumption in the era of globalization affects Indonesia’s economic
development in all sectors of activity (Syamsiro et al., 2012). Based on the white paper on research,
development, and application of science and technology in the field of new and renewable energy
sources to support the security of energy availability in 2025 with the title SMRTI (The State Ministry
of Research and Technology, Republic of Indonesia), Indonesia’s national energy needs have
increased from 674 million BOE (Barrel Oil Equivalent) in 2002 to 1680 million BOE in 2020. In
other words, there was an increase of 2.5 times or an average annual growth of about 5.2%. The
increasing national energy demand causes the national energy reserves to decrease if new energy
sources are not found. Therefore, it is necessary to make a policy that formulates an activity to prevent
the occurrence of an energy crisis. The increasing impact of emissions on the environment is caused
by an increase in this demand. Based on data obtained from SMRTI, CO2 emissions increased from
183.1 million tons in 2002 to 584.9 million tons in 2020, or an increase of 3.2 times (Syamsiro et al.,
2012). The Indonesian government has published a blueprint for the National Energy Management
(2005 – 2025) based on the obtained data to prevent an energy crisis. This policy aims to reduce

Content from this work may be used under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 licence. Any further distribution
2nd Annual Conference on Health and Food Science Technology (ACHOST 2021) IOP Publishing
IOP Conf. Series: Earth and Environmental Science 1104 (2022) 012034 doi:10.1088/1755-1315/1104/1/012034

energy elasticity and achieve optimal renewability of energy to contribute to the realization of new and
renewable energy.
Energy is one of the basic needs of human life. An example of this case is the increase in the need
for fuel (Patabang, 2012). One of the renewable energy sources that have great potential in Indonesia
is biomass. Biomass has been used as an energy source since ancient times and has become one of the
oldest significant energy sources, especially in rural areas. It is estimated that around 35% of the total
national energy consumption comes from biomass, including the traditional use of biomass in the
informal economy. Biomass is an alternative energy source that is processed from solid waste and
used as a fuel source (Lestari et al., 2019). The produced energy has been used for various purposes,
such as for household needs, drying agricultural products, wood, ceramics, bricks, & tiles, and power
generation in several industries. Some biomass wastes, such as coconut dregs, wood waste, rice husks,
sugarcane bagasse, palm oil shells, and urban solid waste, have great potential for further use.
Biomass, if used optimally, can replace fossil fuels as heat and electricity generators. In addition, it
can reduce the problem of global CO2 emissions because CO2 emitted by burning biomass can be
absorbed by plants. Biomass also has a lower sulfur content when compared to coal. Therefore, CO 2
emissions can be minimized (Kpalo et al., 2020).
In this study, the biomass energy is obtained from coconut dregs charcoal as raw materials which
can provide a solution to overcome the dwindling availability of petroleum. Apart from coconut dregs
charcoal, biomass energy can be obtained from plant waste or organic materials that are easily found
and abundantly available, such as wood waste, rice husks, bagasse, and coconut shells. The abundance
of plant waste certainly makes this alternative energy easy to create. In addition, this is a form of
utilizing waste that has economic value (Lestari et al., 2019). The components of biomass usually
consist of cellulose, hemicellulose, lignin, lipids, proteins, simple sugars, starch, water, hydrocarbons,
ash, and others (Vasconcellos & Brisolla, 2009). The concentration of each compound varies from
species to species. Biomass is carbon-based and consists of a mixture of organic molecules containing
hydrogen, usually including oxygen atoms, often nitrogen, and small amounts of other atoms, such as
alkali, alkaline earth, and heavy metals. According to Mârza (2014), biomass generally consists of
cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin. Cellulose is composed of many sugar molecules linked together in
long chains or polymers. The lignin fraction consists of non-sugar-type molecules that act as adhesives
that hold cellulose fibers together and contribute to the structural rigidity of plant tissues. It has a very
high energy content structure and is difficult to decompose. It is available in the form of complex
macroscopic polymers as cellulose (C6H10O5) x, hemicellulose (C5H8O4) y, and Lignin
(C9H10O3(CH3O)0.9–1.7) z, where x, y, and z represent the magnitude parameters that determine the
composition of a particular biomass material (Commons, 2014).
Utilizing biomass residue that can be used as raw material for making briquettes usually needs to
consider several factors, apart from its availability in large quantities, such as having a low moisture
content generally in the range of 10 – 15%. High moisture content will cause problems in milling and
require excessive energy for the drying process (Grover & Mishra, 1996). The ash content and
composition of charcoal briquettes residue usually have a low ash content of around 20%. The density
value of briquettes made from coconut dregs charcoal ranges from 1 – 1.4 gm/cm3 (Grover & Mishra,
1996). In this study, its characteristics were investigated using proximate analysis, involving several
parameters, such as moisture content, ash content, and density. Through this study, researchers
expected that briquettes with the process of proximate level testing for charcoal will provide better
performance than briquettes without an activation process.

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2nd Annual Conference on Health and Food Science Technology (ACHOST 2021) IOP Publishing
IOP Conf. Series: Earth and Environmental Science 1104 (2022) 012034 doi:10.1088/1755-1315/1104/1/012034

Table 1. Quality of charcoal briquettes

(Gde Gianyar et al., 2012)
No Properties of Charcoal Briquettes Japan English USA Indonesia
1 Moisture content (%) 6–8 3–4 6 7.57
2 Content of volatile substances (%) 15 – 30 16 19 16.14
3 Ash content (%) 3–6 8 – 10 18 5.15
4 Bonded carbon content (%) 60 – 80 75 58 78.35
5 Calorific value (cal/g) 6000 – 7000 7300 6500 6814.11
6 Density (g/cm3) 1–2 0.84 1 0.4407
7 Compressive strength (kg/m2) 60 12.7 62 0.46

2. Materials and Methods

In this study, researchers used coconut dregs charcoal as materials and went through several
processes. The first was the drying process of raw materials (coconut dregs). The second was the
carbonization process which took about 1 hour until the dregs turned into black like charcoal. The
third was the process of grinding and filtering. The fourth was the process of mixing adhesive
materials and molding briquettes. The fifth was the drying process using an oven with a temperature of
100°C. The sixth was the drying process and determining the quality of briquettes based on moisture
content, ash content, and density. The percentage composition between coconut dregs charcoal and
tapioca flour as adhesives was set into several formulas starting from formula 1 to formula 6. Each
percentage formula was tested to find out moisture content, ash content, and density.

3. Measurement Stage

3.1 Measuring moisture content

The moisture content of the sample was determined using the oven method by weighing the
material with an analytical balance of 5 g in an aluminum dish whose dry weight had been measured.
After that, the sample was dried in the oven at a temperature of 105°C until the weight was constant.
Furthermore, the sample was cooled in a desiccator and then weighed again. Determination of
moisture content was carried out three times. After that, the average moisture content was calculated.
The percentage of moisture content contained in the briquettes was calculated using the ASTM D-
3173-03 standard with the following equation.

Moisture content, % = (1)

Where:
a = Initial mass of briquettes (g)
b = Mass of briquettes after heating (g)

3.2 Measuring ash content

The percentage of ash content contained in bio-charcoal briquettes was calculated using the ASTM
D-3174-04 standard with the following equation.

Ash content, % = (2)

3.3 Measuring density

The density of the briquette mass after being compressed was found by measuring the mass of the
briquette sample, which was then divided by the volume of the briquette. The density of briquettes was
calculated using the following formula.

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2nd Annual Conference on Health and Food Science Technology (ACHOST 2021) IOP Publishing
IOP Conf. Series: Earth and Environmental Science 1104 (2022) 012034 doi:10.1088/1755-1315/1104/1/012034

(3)

Where:
𝜌 = Density (g/cm3)
M = Mass (g)
V = π x r2 x t = The volume of the cylinder (cm3)

4. Results and Discussion

The rapid increase in industrial development and population growth has caused an energy crisis
around the world. Renewable energy needs to be pursued to reduce dependence on fossil energy.
There are two main energy sources that have been prepared by Pakistan Academy Science, namely
renewable and non-renewable sources, in which both sources can be utilized at the same time (Javed et
al., 2016). Many materials can be a source of renewable energy, including water hyacinth (Munjeri et
al., 2016), rice straw, and sugarcane leaves (Jittabut, 2015). Table 2 and Figure 1 show that the lowest
average moisture content of briquettes is found in formula 3 with a composition of 50% coconut dregs
charcoal, 50% tapioca flour as adhesives, and 100 ml water. The combination generates an average
moisture content value in the range of 4.459%. Meanwhile, the highest average moisture content of
briquettes is found in formula 5 with a composition of 50% coconut dregs charcoal, 60% tapioca flour
as adhesives, and 100 ml water. The combination generates an average moisture content value in the
range of 13.216%. Based on Table 2 and Figure 1, the moisture content is the percentage of water in a
material expressed based on wet weight. The moisture content has a big role in the quality of a
briquette. The moisture content in formulas 1, 2, and 3 have been in the quality standards of charcoal
briquettes in Indonesia, Japan, the UK, and the USA. Meanwhile, formulas 4, 5, and 6 have a moisture
content above the quality of charcoal briquettes in Indonesia, Japan, the UK, and the USA. Briquettes
with high moisture content will inhibit the combustion process. High moisture content will make the
briquettes difficult to ignite and cause the briquettes to be more easily damaged. The calorific value
and combustion rate of briquettes with high moisture content will decrease because the heat is used to
convert water into vapor in the briquettes.

Table 2. Results of the measurement of moisture content in briquettes of coconut dregs charcoal
Coconut Dregs Tapioca Flour as Average Moisture
Formula Water (ml)
Charcoal (%) Adhesives (%) Content (%)
Formula 1 50 50.000 100 5.559
Formula 2 60 120.000 140 5.867
Formula 3 80 80.000 100 4.459
Formula 4 40 40.000 80 9.802
Formula 5 50 60.000 100 13.216
Formula 6 60 60.000 120 10.113

Figure 1. Average moisture content (%)

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2nd Annual Conference on Health and Food Science Technology (ACHOST 2021) IOP Publishing
IOP Conf. Series: Earth and Environmental Science 1104 (2022) 012034 doi:10.1088/1755-1315/1104/1/012034

Table 3. Results of the measurement of ash content in briquettes of coconut dregs charcoal
Coconut Dregs Tapioca Flour as Average Ash Content
Formula Water (ml)
Charcoal (%) Adhesives (%) (%)
Formula 1 80 20.000 100 5.560
Formula 2 75 25.000 240 6.355
Formula 3 70 30.000 100 4.459
Formula 4 65 35.000 80 9.802
Formula 5 60 40.000 100 7.890
Formula 6 55 45.000 120 10.113

Figure 2. Average ash content (%)

Table 3 and Figure 2 present the results of the measurement of ash content. It was carried out to find
out the ability of the briquettes to burn. The lowest average ash content of briquettes is found in
formula 3 with an average ash content value of 4.459%, while the highest average ash content of
briquettes is found in formula 6 with an average ash content value of 10.113%. Based on Table 3 and
Figure 2, the ash content in formulas 1, 2, and 3 has been in line with the quality standards of charcoal
briquettes in Indonesia and Japan. Meanwhile, formulas 4, 5, and 6 have an ash content around the
quality of charcoal briquettes in the UK. The measurement of ash content was carried out by
comparing the weight of the combustion ash and the initial weight of the briquettes. The lower the ash
content is, the better the quality of the briquettes will be and the greater the mass of the burned
briquettes will be.

Table 4. Results of the measurement of density in briquettes of coconut dregs charcoal

Formula Volume (cm3) Mass (gr) Density (gr/cm3)
Formula 1 40 25 0.625
Formula 2 29 27 0.931034483
Formula 3 34 28 0.823529412
Formula 4 56 29 0.517857143
Formula 5 29 28 0.965517241
Formula 6 29 27 0.931034483

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2nd Annual Conference on Health and Food Science Technology (ACHOST 2021) IOP Publishing
IOP Conf. Series: Earth and Environmental Science 1104 (2022) 012034 doi:10.1088/1755-1315/1104/1/012034

Figure 3. The density of briquettes of coconut dregs charcoal

Density is one of the important characteristics in determining charcoal quality. The higher the value is,
the higher its energy/volume ratio will be. The density value of briquettes depends on the raw material
and the force applied in the energy densification stage (Zanella et al., 2016). Table 4 and Figure 3
concerning the results of the density measurement indicate that there are differences in the density
values of the six formulas. The lowest density value is found in formulas 1 and 4, namely 0.518 g/cm 3
and 0.625 g/cm3, respectively. Meanwhile, the highest density value is found in formulas 2, 3, 5, and
6, namely 0.824 g/cm3, 0.931 g/cm3, 0.931 g/cm3, and 0.966 g/cm3, respectively. Based on the data in
Table 4 and Figure 3, the density values in formulas 1, 3, and 4 have been in line with the quality
standards of charcoal briquettes in Indonesia and the UK. Meanwhile, formulas 2, 5, and 6 have a
density value in line with the quality standards of charcoal briquettes in the US and Japan. The density
values from Table 4 and Figure 3 support that the density value will increase if the mass of the tapioca
flour as adhesives is added. Based on these results, it can be seen that the increase in the mass of
tapioca flour can increase the density value. This is because the increase in the mass of tapioca flour
causes the bonds between the charcoal molecules to become stronger and provide a tendency for the
adhesive to flow throughout the surface of the charcoal so that it can reduce the voids or gaps that will
be filled by water (Sunardi et al., 2019).

5. Conclusion
The results of this study concerning the development of sustainable energy briquettes by utilizing
coconut dregs charcoal and tapioca flour as adhesives indicate that the produced briquettes have the
potential to be used as an alternative energy source. This is evidenced by the results of the
measurement of moisture content which show a very low average moisture content, namely 4.459%.
This low average moisture content is in line with the standards of the moisture content of charcoal
briquettes in the UK, which is in the range of 3 – 4%. In addition, the results of the measurement of
ash content indicate that the average ash content of the produced briquettes is 4.459%. This low
average ash content is in line with the standards of the ash content of charcoal briquettes in Japan,
which is in the range of 3 – 6%. Furthermore, the results of the measurement of the density of
briquettes of coconut dregs charcoal indicate that the density of the produced briquettes is 0.518%.
This low density is in line with the standards of the density of charcoal briquettes in Indonesia and the
UK, which is in the range of 0.4407 – 0.84%. Coconut pulp charcoal biobriquettes with 50% tapioca
adhesive produced have the potential to be used as an alternative energy source. This is evidenced by
the results of the measurement of water content which shows a very low average water content,
namely 4.459%, the average ash content of the biobriquettes produced is 4.459%, the density of the
briquettes produced is 0.518%.

Acknowledgments
We would like to thank the management of the Faculty of Earth and Energy Technology, the
Faculty-Level Featured Research Program, and the Research Institute from Universitas Trisakti that
have helped fund this study so that the authors can complete the research process, compile the research
report, and publish the research article on time.
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2nd Annual Conference on Health and Food Science Technology (ACHOST 2021) IOP Publishing
IOP Conf. Series: Earth and Environmental Science 1104 (2022) 012034 doi:10.1088/1755-1315/1104/1/012034
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