Abstract. The paper presents the energy and economic comparison of two technologies of maize straw utilization: solid biofuel production (briquettes) and methane fermentation. The research experiments have shown that maize straw is the material which can be efficiently implemented in both technologies. Maize straw usage as briquettes can generate more energy (10.956 GJ Mg -1 ) than methane fermentation (9.74). In Europe, biogas is used in co-generation units for production of electric and heat energy. Due to higher price of electricity, economic profitability of maize straw usage for biogas production is over twice higher (182 USD) than in case of briquettes production (96 USD).
The paper presents the results of a study on the water absorption capacity and solubility of biodegradable starch foams produced with single-screw extruder TS-45 with L/D=12. Two different moulding dies were used: one with a circular hole with the diameter of 3 mm and one with a ring hole with the inner diameter of 5 mm. During the extrusion process, the temperature of the cylinder ranged from 80 to 130°C and the screw speeds applied were: 100 and 130 rpm. For the application of the ring die, it was observed that regardless of the speed of the screw, the use of the raw material of higher moisture content led to the production of materials with higher solubility. As a result, the obtained materials revealed solubility at a level of 40%. The results demonstrate good solubility of the starchy fillers of the packaging, which may indicate their susceptibility to decomposition in the conditions of high ambient humidity. A statistical analysis showed a significant impact of moisture of the raw material on the WSI of starch foams used irrespective of the other parameters of the extrusion-cooking process. The raw material moisture had a significant effect on the water absorption capacity of only TPS foams produced in the ring die at the screw speed of 100 rpm.
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