Charcoal Briquetting Machine

What is Charcoal Briquette Machine

Charcoal briquette machine or charcoal briquetting machine is a kind of making machine mainly for charcoal briquettes, which is carbonized from biomass like wood chips, shavings, corn stalks, coconut shells, rice husks, bamboo and any other waste ligno-material.

For the outstanding performance as fuel, like high density, small volume and good combustibility, charcoal is extensively used in industry and household. Therefore, charcoal briquette machine is also one of the favorite choices among investors with single machine operation or large-scale briquetting line.

Besides, charcoal briquette machine is also applicable for press other kinds of powder into balls like coal, DRI, lime, aluminum, etc.

Applications of Charcoal Briquette Machine

Charcoal briquette machine can produce charcoal briquettes with shapes of square, ball, round, oval, column, bar, bread, pillow and other special shapes. This kind of briquette machine is widely used in various fields especially in barbeque, home heating, power plant, energy, industrial and civil boiler. It can also be used for dust reduction, controlling unit weight, recycling, and improved transportation in industries such as carbon powder coal.

Here are the details of charcoal briquette machine applications:

● In barbeque, charcoal briquette machine is used to produce specially designed shape of charcoal briquette to attract customers and improve the profits;
● In industrial and civil boiler, charcoal briquette machine produces normal shaped charcoal briquette as fuel;
● In thermal power plant, charcoal briquette machine can be used to press coal powder into briquettes to improve the burning efficiency.

Applications of Charcoal Briquetting Machine

Which Biomass Wastes Can You Use?

You can make high-value charcoal from almost any type of organic waste. This is one of the best things about this business. You are taking a low-cost or even free material and turning it into a valuable product. The key is that the material must first be turned into charcoal through a process called carbonization.

Here are some of the best raw materials for a biomass briquette machine:

• Wood Waste: Sawdust, wood chips, and shavings from sawmills are perfect.
• Agricultural Residues: Rice husks, coconut shells, sugarcane bagasse, straw, and corn cobs are all excellent choices.
• Nut Shells: Peanut shells, palm kernel shells, and walnut shells work very well.
• Bamboo: Bamboo dust and scraps are a great renewable source.
• Other Wastes: You can even use things like paper sludge or municipal solid waste after proper processing.

Why Make Charcoal Briquettes?

Making briquettes is about creating a better, more profitable fuel. Your first job is to be an expert in your raw material. The biggest mistake new businesses make is using poor-quality charcoal. If the wood is not fully carbonized, it still contains oils and tars. When your customer lights this briquette, it will produce thick, smelly white smoke. This “white smoke of death” will ruin their food and destroy your brand’s reputation instantly. You must source or make fully carbonized charcoal with low volatile matter.

When you use a good raw material with a charcoal maker machine, you gain several key advantages:

• Higher Profitability: Briquettes sell for a much higher price than raw charcoal powder or lump charcoal.
• Waste Reduction: You turn a waste product into a source of income, which is good for the environment and your wallet.
• Consistent Quality: The machine produces briquettes of the same size, density, and heating value. This is what customers want.
• Longer Burn Time: Briquettes are denser than lump charcoal, so they burn for a much longer time.
• Easy to Transport: Uniform shapes are easy to pack in boxes and ship without breaking.

What are Different Types of Charcoal Briquette Machine?

People often confuse two very different types of machines. It is critical to understand the difference so you buy the right tool for your specific business. Trying to use the wrong machine for your raw material will lead to complete failure.

• Roller Briquette Press: This is the most common machine for making BBQ or shisha briquettes. It takes fine charcoal powder as its raw material. You mix the powder with a binder and water, then feed it into the machine. Two large rollers with molds press the material into pillow shapes, cubes, or other forms. This is a high-volume machine designed specifically for pre-made charcoal dust.
• Screw Extruder (Pini-Kay Machine): This machine is completely different. It takes raw biomass like sawdust, not charcoal powder. It uses a screw to force the sawdust through a die under extreme pressure and heat. The natural lignin in the wood acts as the binder. The result is a very dense log or hexagon-shaped rod. You must then take this log and cook it in a carbonization furnace to turn it into charcoal.

You must know which business you are in. Are you pressing charcoal powder, or are you making charcoal from raw wood? They require completely different machines and processes.

What is the Structure of a Charcoal Briquette Machine?

A roller briquette press is a strong and relatively simple machine. Its design is focused on applying immense pressure consistently. While there are many variations, the core components are almost always the same. Understanding these parts helps you understand how it works and what to look for when buying one.

The main parts include:

• Hopper: This is where you feed the mixed charcoal powder. It holds the material before it goes into the pressing area.
• Forced Feeder: Many good machines have a small screw or agitator in the hopper. This pushes the light charcoal powder down into the rollers to ensure a consistent feed.
• Rollers: These are the heart of the machine. They are two large, heavy rollers made of hardened steel. They have molds or pockets on their surface that form the briquette shape.
• Motor and Gearbox: This provides the power to turn the heavy rollers and create the pressure needed for compaction.
• Frame: A very heavy and rigid steel frame holds everything together and absorbs the immense forces during operation.

How Does a Charcoal Briquette Machine Work

As the indispensable equipment for making charcoal, charcoal briquetting machine mainly works based on high-pressure from two rollers that rotate at a reverse direction.

The feeding device sends carbonized biomass materials into the charcoal briquetting machine feeding port. The main motor drives the V-shaped belt and rotate the rollers rolling. These two rollers are made of Mn steel with grooves of specific shape. When rotating, the materials are shaped by the grooves at the top of the charcoal briquette machine and then released and discharged at the bottom.

If needed, a screw pre-pressing device can be equipped as a feeding assistance. This device is to improve the briquette making efficiency and ensure a stable performance of the charcoal briquetting machine.

Charcoal Briquette Size and Moisture Requests

In order to ensure the good quality and mechanical strength of the final product, special attention should be paid to keep the particle size into the machine below 3mm, preferably 1-2mm of the material size, and the moisture within the range of 30-40%. Material over 2 mm, the moisture content should be no more than 10%.

What is the Complete Process?

Making good briquettes is a multi-step process. The briquette press is just one part. If you miss a step or do it poorly, your final product will be weak and crumble. Here is the full process from start to finish.

1. Crushing: You start with lump charcoal. You must crush it into a very fine powder, usually less than 3mm. A hammer mill crusher is perfect for this.
2. Mixing: This is the most important step. Charcoal dust is light and repels water. A simple paddle mixer is useless. You need a Wheel Mill Mixer. This machine uses heavy wheels to knead and smear the materials together. This is where you add your binder. The secret is to use a food-grade starch binder and cook it with water first to create a gel. This “activates” the starch, so you use less and get a stronger briquette with less ash. The mixer’s job is to coat every single particle of charcoal with this binder gel.
3. Briquettes: Now you feed the perfectly mixed, damp material into your charcoal briquette machine. The machine presses it into the desired shape.
4. Drying: This is the hidden factory. A fresh briquette is 25% moisture and very fragile. It is useless until it is dry. You must dry it to below 5% moisture. This requires a large, dedicated drying room with good airflow from fans and racks for the briquettes. This drying facility can often cost as much as the press itself and is the biggest bottleneck in production.

What is the Price of a Charcoal Briquette Machine?

A charcoal briquette machine can cost anywhere from $5,000 to over $50,000. The price depends heavily on its size, capacity, and build quality. A small machine for a startup might be at the lower end. A large, industrial machine for high-volume production will be at the higher end.

Here are the main factors that affect the charcoal briquette machine price:

• Capacity: How many tons per hour can it produce? Higher capacity means a bigger, more expensive machine.
• Roller Material: The rollers are a key wear part. Rollers made from high-manganese or chrome alloy steel cost more but last much, much longer.
• Brand and Build Quality: A machine from an experienced manufacturer like ZONEDING with a heavy frame and quality components will cost more than a lightweight machine.
• Additional Features: Things like variable speed drives, forced feeders, and stainless steel components will add to the cost.

Remember to budget for the other essential machines, like the crusher, mixer, and especially the drying system.

How Do You Choose the Right Charcoal Briquette Machine?

Choosing the right machine means thinking about your entire business, not just the press. You need to match the machine to your raw material, production goals, and budget. Rushing this decision is a recipe for failure.

Here are the key questions to ask yourself:

1. What is my final product? Are you making BBQ briquettes or shisha cubes? This determines the shape and size of the roller molds you will need.
2. What is my required capacity? Be realistic about how much you can produce and sell. Start with a machine that fits your initial needs, with a plan to expand later.
3. What is my budget for the entire line? Do not spend all your money on the press. Remember you also need a crusher, a good mixer, conveyors, and a large drying area.
4. What is the machine made of? Look at the details. The mix of starch and water is slightly acidic and will corrode standard steel. For long-term production, it is a smart investment to get a machine where all the parts that touch the wet mix, like the hopper and feeder, are made of stainless steel. This prevents rust and contamination.

How Easy is the Machine to Install, Operate, and Maintain?

A well-designed machine is straightforward to use, but proper training is essential. Installation involves placing the machine on a solid, level concrete foundation and connecting the electricity. At ZONEDING, we provide detailed drawings and instructions to make this simple. We can also send an engineer to your site to help with installation and training.

Operating the machine is about controlling the feed rate and monitoring the output. Your main job is to ensure the mix has the perfect moisture content. Too dry, and the briquettes will be weak. Too wet, and they will stick to the machine. Maintenance is also simple. It involves daily lubrication of bearings, checking belt tension, and regularly inspecting the rollers for wear. A good supplier will provide a clear maintenance schedule.

General Specification