Characteristics Of Coconut Husk Briquettes Using Tapioca And Rice Flour Binders At Various Concentrations

Abstrak

This study aimed to evaluate the effects of binder type and concentration on the quality of coconut husk charcoal briquettes and to assess the potential of rice flour as an alternative binder to tapioca flour. A two factorial Completely Randomized Design (CRD) with three replications was employed. The first factor was binder type (tapioca flour and rice flour), while the second factor was binder concentration (10%, 15%, and 20%). The quality parameters evaluated were moisture content, ash content, and calorific value. Data were analyzed using two-way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) followed by Duncan’s Multiple Range Test (DMRT) at a 5% significance level. The results showed that binder type and concentration significantly affected the quality characteristics of the briquettes (p < 0.05). Moisture content and ash content increased with increasing binder concentration, whereas calorific value decreased. Moisture content ranged from 6.6% to 7.7%, while ash content ranged from 6.5% to 7.9%. The highest calorific value was obtained from briquettes produced with 10% tapioca flour binder (5405 cal/g), whereas the lowest value was observed in briquettes produced with 20% rice flour binder (4780 cal/g).. All treatments met the moisture and ash content requirements of SNI 01-6235-2000, while only briquettes containing 10–15% binder satisfied the minimum calorific value standard. Overall, 10% tapioca flour binder produced the best briquette quality, although rice flour showed potential as an alternative binder at appropriate concentrations.