3.2. Preparation of Raw Materials
Leaves were taken from a mature Makopa tree weighed and were dried for 3½ days.
Strips of newspaper were cut (weighing 50 grams) and soaked into 25 liters of water for three
days. On the third day, the soaked newspaper strips were stirred and crushed until only the
fibers of the newspaper were seen. This mixture will serve as the binder for the biomass
briquette. The dried leaves were then weighed and the moisture content was calculated using
Equation 2. The leaves were shredded into about 4mm.