Wednesday, September 12, 2018
Siempelkamp has developed methods to process a low-cost waste product- millions of tons of rice straw burned in the fields every year in China and other Asian countries, into high-quality fiberboard. New techniques and innovative building components for the entire plant solve silicate problems (impurities and extraneous material such as sand and clay) and filter substances found in raw materials through a two-stage separation process.
Around the world, more than 500 million tons of rice straw accumulate as a waste product in the agricultural sector each year. However, most of this remains unused and is incinerated or decays in the fields. Rice straw is predominantly produced in China (about 210 million tons), India (about 160 million tons), Indonesia (about 80 million tons) and Bangladesh (about 53 million tons).
“Only about three percent of the rice straw is used as a raw material in the industry. We assume that this percentage will increase significantly in the coming years. This is based on information we have obtained through in-depth conversations with our customers,” explains Samiron Mondal, Managing Director at Siempelkamp Maschinen- und Anlagenbau GmbH, who oversees the Asian-Pacific region and other areas.
With rice straw, panels can be produced in a climate-neutral manner with a zero carbon footprint. They are recyclable and merely require a suitable bonding agent for production. MDF, oriented strand board (OSB) and particle board from annual plants fully consist of annually renewable raw materials. As this is a natural waste product of the rice harvest, its use does not compete with food production.
Siempelkamp has developed a dry-gluing process for the production of rice straw panels using a newly developed continuous mixing system. This mixing system allows optimal adaptation of the glue system to the production conditions. Glue consumption levels are lower than in conventional gluing processes, since pre-curing losses are avoided.
The newly developed NEO Blender ensures uniform and continuous gluing of the fibers and is wear-resistant. The screw-type mixing chamber cover makes the system particularly easy to maintain.
Siempelkamp’s product strategy for China: German engineering made in China
With Wuxi Machinery Co. Ltd, Siempelkamp has been producing locally in China since 2004, directly for the needs of Asian customers. Components with manually intensive procedures are mainly produced at this production location. In addition, Wuxi handles the procurement, quality control and pre-assembly of parts for systems delivered within China. The advantage for our customers: with this presence in Asia, we are one step ahead and are more targeted in China – both when it comes to new plants and the maintenance, upgrading and modernization of existing plants.
The new Siempelkamp production facility in Qingdao has large production capacities. The plant in the port city of the province of Shandong was recently enlarged to include a second production hall. As part of its enhanced production strategy in China, Siempelkamp plans to expand its manufacturing depth to build complete production plants.
Tags: fiberboard, low cost waste product, MDF, rice straw, Siempelkamp
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