Research and Development of the New Progressive Construction Press Machines

Throughout the world in the last two decades, solid noble biofuels produced on the basis of wood and agricultural biomass have been widely used. Many European Union countries have enacted legislation for solid noble biofuels oriented primarily to energy carriers manufactured from wood raw materials. The production of noble biofuels is a fitting direction for the recovery of biomass and other energy wastes. Fuel in the twenty-first century must, in addition to environmental and economic criteria, fulfil the criterion of high comfort and safety in its combustion. Modern energy carriers must have uniform size, density, moisture and shape. One of the most progressive means of waste recovery is the compaction of particulate matter into different shapes and sizes. The technologies of transforming biomass into biofuels with the required properties are compacting, briquetting and pelleting. I am working on a research of compaction technologies and the development of compacting machine design at the Institute of Production Systems, Environmental Technology and Quality Management of the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering of STU in Bratislava for more than 26 years. In its scientific research activity, the definition of equations describing the dynamic process of compaction, experimental tests of the compaction process, design and testing of new press machine were undertaken. Over the stated period, we have designed and developed several machines that are today in serial production. Chief among these is the BL 55-280 briquetting press, the DZ 240 disintegrating machine, the KUDO 2009 mobile unit for treatment of wood waste, the TR 200 solid material separator, the PLG 150 round pelleting press, the ZBL-2-860 double-screw briquetting press or the RCM 650 ring compacting machine. We have submitted over 53 patents and industrial models. The aim of this chapter is to describe the new original and progressive designs of these press machines.