Physicochemical and energy characterization of solid biofuels based on carpentry wood residues of Tabasco, Mexico

In rural Mexico, firewood meets 72% of families’ energy demand. As deforestation and high prices of firewood deepen energy poverty, we analyze whether solid biofuels produced from wood residues of furniture carpentry in Tabasco, Mexico may complement energy provision from firewood. We determined proximal, energy, and physicochemical properties in wood residues and solid biofuels. Wood residues showed low ash content (< 2.86%) and attractive energy content (> 17,041 kJ/kg). The solid biofuels obtained fulfilled the ISO 17225 standard for biomass pellets. Solid biofuels showed 17% higher energy properties than their raw materials. Pellets of commonly used tree species had similar thermal behavior and elemental composition and attractive mechanical properties for handling and transportation processes. Our results show that the transformation of carpentry residues in solid biofuels is a technically feasible alternative to complement the use of firewood in rural communities and thus contribute to mitigating energy poverty based on local biomass resources.