THE USE OF BIOMASS RESIDUES IN THE BRAZILIAN SOLUBLE COFFEE INDUSTRY

The objective of this paper is to discuss the use of coffee grounds in the Brazilian soluble coffee industry. This residue is used as a fuel in the boilers of the same industry; so, data about their utilization are presented and analysed, discussing the actual technology and the advantages of improving the drying of the biomass with the exhaust com bustion gases. After that, an experimental study is reported on the ch aracteristics of this material, which are important for the combustion process, including the transport, storage and drying, the mean diamet er of the particles, talus angle, apparent and real density, sphericit y, surface area, terminal velocity, spontaneous ignition temperature a nd heat of combustion. (C) 1998 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.