Over the year, agricultural establishment produced many types of waste in its daily operation. Coconut fibre for example is one of the most abundant agricultural wastes produced in Malaysia. Despite the massive amount of the waste produced, the standards of waste management in Malaysia are still poor. The main purpose of this study is to focus on the potential of coconut fibre utilization into fired clay bricks. The objectives of this study are to determine the characteristics of coconut fibre, to identify the gas emissions during firing process from coconut fibre brick and to investigate the physical and mechanical properties of from coconut fibre (1%, 3% and 5%) incorporation into fired clay brick. All the bricks were fired in a furnace up to 1050°C at 1°C/min. The gas emissions that were measured are carbon monoxide (CO), carbon dioxide (CO2) and sulphur dioxide (SO2). Based on the three gases, the results showed that CO2 is the highest gas emission produced during the firing process. Physical and mechanical properties tested are total shrinkage, dry density and compressive strength. Results found that by adding different percentages of coconut fibre, most of the properties were complied with the standards except for the compressive strength of 5% of coconut fibre in clay brick. Therefore, the utilization of coconut fibre could be one of the alternative disposal methods for agriculture waste and it will also provide low-cost material for brick that produce adequate physical and mechanical properties.

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Abstract. Worldwide, cigarette butts (CBs) are among the most common type of litter. The United States Department of Agriculture estimates that in 2004 over 5.5 trillion cigarettes were produced in the world. This is equivalent to an estimated of 1.2 million tonnes of cigarette butt waste per year. These figures are expected to increase by more than 50% by 2025 according to American Cancer Society, mainly due to an increase in global population. This paper presents a review of the environmental problems associated with CBs, which have been found to be the number one littered item in Australia over the past years. It is estimated 25 to 30 billion filter cigarettes are smoked each year; of these, an estimated 7 billion become litter. The CBs accumulate due to the poor biodegradability of the cellulose acetate filter, and the toxicity constituent trapped within threatens human life, marine ecosystems as well as the environment if not disposed in an appropriate manner. With the increasing concern arising from insufficient landfill sites and the growing environmental awareness about toxic incinerator emissions, there is a critical need for an alternative method for CB waste disposal which is environmentally acceptable.

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