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Abstract
Excerpts: The experimental development of agricultural residues, particularly bagasse, for the production of low-cost molding compounds has received increasing attention in recent years. The United States Department of Agriculture estimated the average annual production, on the dry basis, of strands, corncobs, hulls, corn stover, bagasse and other residues for the period 1931-1935 at more than 173,000,000 tons, of which more than 84,000,000 tons has considered to be available for industrial use. A considerable amount of bagasse has been used in the production of structural and insulating board in the last twenty years. However, the total consumption for this purpose in the United States and its insular possessions probably does not exceed 250,000 tons annually. A small amount of the bagasse is used for livestock bedding, poultry litter, stock feed, and for other purposes. The major portion is burned for fuel at the sugar factories. It may be seen from the foregoing studies on bagasse that it appears to be a suitable raw material for the production of low-cost molding compounds. Its ready availability in sizable quantities at the sugar mills is a factor which favors this raw material at the present time. Experimental bagasse molding powders have produced plastic materials with dielectric and other strength characteristics and with resistance to moisture absorption similar to those of phenol-formaldehyde and phenol-furfural molding compounds. The relatively low cost of molding powders produced from bagasse and other agricultural residues should be of considerable interest to the automotive, rubber, electrical, furniture and building industries where large volume production is practiced.