Basic handling characteristics of wood fuels: angle of repose, friction against surfaces and tendency to bridge for different assortments

Basic handling characteristics were measured for sawdust, fuel pellets, fuel chips, hog fuel and chunkwood. The aim was to find relations between the basic handling characteristics and easily measurable fuel properties to facilitate the design of feeding systems in heating plants. The angle of repose was 25–55° and increased with the increasing ratio of particle length to thickness and with the increasing content of hooked or long particles. The angle of static friction, 10–40°, was affected more by the kind of surface than the fuel and followed the ascending order: coated plywood, urethane rubber, particle board, stainless steel, concrete and rubber belt conveyor. The tendency to bridge varied considerably and increased with greater content of hooked or long particles, a deeper fuel bed depth over the opening and a higher moisture content. The results indicate that more attention should be paid to the particle shape.