THE USE OF RICE HUSK FOR BUILDING RESILIENT INFRASTRUCTURE FOR SUSTAINABLE INDUSTRIALIZATION

Abstract

Increasing interest and focus is given to agro-based materials in recent years owing to environmental awareness and economic considerations. The desire for a bio-based society with sustainable products and transformative solutions to engineering problems as relating to renewable energy and no waste policy is evident. This paper discussed the use of rice husk as a reinforcing material for co1Corresponding author: +234 809 4011 123; paschalubi@unical.edu.ngmposites and their potential applications as substitutes in engineering manufacture. Samples of rice husk were sourced from mills in Kakuri (Kaduna State), Obudu (Cross River State) and Kwakuti (Niger State). X-Ray Fluorescence analysis of the samples showed that the percentage composition of the rice husk varied according to varying location with silicon oxide being the predominant compound. The sample obtained from Kwakuti exhibited the highest silica content of 70.30% among the tested samples. FTIR analysis on the three samples also showed that the band were located in similar range for the wave numbers. The band at 3425cm-1 assigned to O – H stretch of the hydroxyl groups (adsorbed water) showed that the samples possessed hydrophilic properties.