Reactivity of biomass crop residues based on MEC and flame speed

There is increasing use of biomass powders as an alternative green energy source within the rural ennvironment of developing countries ad in full or partial replacement of coal in the more developed nations. However, biomass substances in pulverised form carry fire and explosion hazards due to their higher reactivity in comparison to coal [2]. The associated fire and explosion risks with the solid biomass dusts need to be accessed accurately to maintain the safe working environment [1]. In this work, corn cob and peanut shell powders that are the second generation biomass crop residues were tested for explosibility characteristics and combustion properties as a function of particle size distribution and their reactivities were compared to those of coal and other biomass substances.