RICHI MACHINERY

Project Background

Turkey, a country with vast agricultural production, generates millions of tons of straw, husks, pruning residues, and wood-processing by-products each year. Historically, a significant portion of this material was either burned in open fields or discarded, creating both environmental challenges and economic waste. Recognizing this, a mid-sized Turkish agricultural cooperative — operating primarily in cereal and sunflower farming — sought a new way to transform their straw residues and purchased wood by-products into marketable fuel.

The client is not a multinational corporation but a regional farmer’s cooperative based in northwest Turkey. Their main concern was the rising cost of natural gas and coal for heating, as well as the tightening EU-aligned Turkish regulations on emissions and agricultural waste disposal. By investing in a wood straw pellet production line in Turkey, the cooperative aimed to:

1. Utilize waste efficiently – turning straw and sawdust into fuel pellets.
2. Create an additional income stream – selling pellets to industrial boilers and heating plants.
3. Support local households – supplying affordable, clean-burning biomass fuel.
4. Comply with environmental policies – preventing uncontrolled straw burning, which is under stricter regulation.

The new site was strategically chosen in an industrial park near Izmit, close to both agricultural areas and existing wood-processing industries, ensuring consistent supply of raw materials.

The wood straw pellet plant has a designed hourly output of 2 tons, equivalent to 48 tons per day under two shifts, and 15,000 tons annually. The primary products are biomass pellets made from straw, wood chips, sawdust, and furniture residues, suitable for both industrial boiler fuel and residential heating markets.

RICHI MACHINERY

Raw Materials and Energy Consumption

1. Raw and Auxiliary Materials

The straw wood pellet production line is designed to process straw, sawdust, wood residues, and furniture offcuts transported by truck from local farms and wood industries. The annual consumption is expected to be:

• Straw: ~200 tons/year
• Wood residues (planks, offcuts, bark): ~5,800 tons/year
• Sawdust: ~3,000 tons/year

These raw materials are low-cost or even free-of-charge in Turkey, as many farmers struggle to dispose of residues properly. The cooperative benefits from both waste supply agreements and partnerships with furniture factories.

2. Utilities

• Freshwater: 300 tons/year (for cooling, dust suppression, sanitation).
• Electricity: 400,000 kWh/year (sourced from municipal grid).
• Fuel use: none; the factory itself can use rejected pellets or dust briquettes as auxiliary fuel.

The total annual utility costs in Turkey, with industrial electricity priced at 0.12–0.14 USD/kWh, amount to roughly 50,000 USD.

RICHI MACHINERY

Wastewater and Emissions Management

The wood straw pellet production line in Turkey implements a rainwater and wastewater separation system.

• Rainwater: collected via drainage and discharged into the municipal rainwater network.
• Wastewater: about 240 tons/year of domestic sewage from staff facilities, treated through a septic tank and then transferred to the municipal wastewater treatment plant. Effluents meet Turkey’s wastewater standards, aligned with EU norms.

Air emissions, primarily dust particles from crushing, grinding, and screening, are managed through a centralized dust collection system, bag filters, and a 15m exhaust stack. Test runs confirmed that particulate matter emissions remain within the limits of Turkey’s Industrial Emission Standards.

Noise from pelletizers and grinders is reduced by soundproofing workshops, installing silencers, and using low-noise motors, ensuring boundary noise does not exceed 65 dB (daytime) and 55 dB (nighttime).

Solid waste includes:

• Metal scraps from maintenance (sold to recyclers).
• Dust and off-spec pellets (reused as boiler fuel).
• Domestic garbage (collected by municipal sanitation services).
• Lubricating oil (disposed of via licensed hazardous waste contractors).

RICHI MACHINERY

Engineering Content and Plant Layout

• Project Nature: Relocation and Expansion
• Investment: 690,000 USD
• Annual Capacity: 15,000 tons of pellets
• Workforce: 20 employees
• Operation: 330 days/year, 24-hour pelleting with daytime crushing and screening

Plant Layout

• Production Workshop: 2,308.8 m², containing crushing, grinding, pelletizing, screening, and packaging lines.
• Raw Material Storage: 100 m², located northwest of the workshop.
• Finished Product Warehouse: 200 m², northeast of the workshop.
• General Solid Waste Warehouse: 50 m².
• Hazardous Waste Storage: 5 m².

Material flows from the west (input) to the east (finished products), ensuring smooth logistics and avoiding cross-contamination.

RICHI MACHINERY

Production Process Description

The wood straw pellet production line in Turkey follows a standard dry pelleting process adapted to Turkish raw materials:

1. Raw Material Reception & Storage
   Trucks deliver straw bales, sawdust, and wood residues to the factory. Straw is shredded with a bale breaker.
2. Crushing
   Large wood pieces are broken down with a 2 t/h crusher.
3. Fine Grinding
   Crushed straw and wood residues are ground in a 2 t/h hammer mill to 3–5 mm particle size.
4. Magnetic Separation
   Metal impurities are removed with a magnetic drum to protect pellet dies.
5. Screening
   The ground material is screened for uniformity. Oversized particles are sent back for re-grinding.
6. Pelletizing
   Material is fed into 4 biomass pellet mills (2 operating, 2 standby), each with a 2 t/h capacity. Pellets are compressed through ring dies under high pressure, forming dense biomass fuel pellets.
7. Cooling & Screening
   Hot pellets are cooled in air coolers and re-screened to remove fines.
8. Packaging & Storage
   Finished pellets are packed into 20 kg and 25 kg bags for households, and 1-ton jumbo bags for industrial buyers.

RICHI MACHINERY

Environmental Protection Measures

The wood straw pellet production line in Turkey project allocated 42,000 USD to environmental protection facilities:

• Dust Collection & Emission System: Central vacuum + bag filters + 15m chimney.
• Wastewater Management: 10 m³ septic tank connected to municipal sewage treatment.
• Noise Reduction: Equipment layout optimization + silencers + insulated walls.
• Solid Waste Management: New warehouses for general and hazardous waste, with safe disposal contracts.

All measures ensure compliance with Turkish environmental regulations and EU standards.

RICHI MACHINERY

Project Economic Analysis

• Total Investment: ~690,000 USD
• Annual Output: 15,000 tons of pellets
• Average Market Price of Pellets in Turkey: ~170–200 USD/ton
• Expected Annual Revenue: 2.55–3.0 million USD
• Payback Period: ~3 years

Turkey’s pellet prices are slightly lower than in the EU but higher than coal, making pellets attractive for urban heating, greenhouses, and industrial boilers, particularly given subsidies for renewable heating.

RICHI MACHINERY

Future Prospects of Pellet Production in Turkey

Turkey is rapidly transitioning towards renewable energy sources, supported by EU-aligned climate policies and growing domestic demand for clean heating fuels. The government is discouraging open-field burning of straw and promoting biomass energy projects. With large agricultural residues available, the country has the potential to become both a domestic supplier and an export hub to Europe and the Middle East.

The wood straw pellet production line in Turkey demonstrates how agricultural cooperatives can modernize their operations, diversify income, and contribute to environmental goals. This project provides a replicable model for other Turkish regions such as Konya, Bursa, and Adana.

RICHI MACHINERY

Why Choose Us

We specialize in designing customized biomass pellet production lines suited to local raw materials, regulations, and market conditions. In Turkey, we provided not only machines but also site relocation services, engineering support, and environmental compliance consulting.

For investors and cooperatives considering biomass energy, we ensure:

• Tailor-made design for straw, wood, or mixed feedstock.
• Efficient equipment with low electricity consumption.
• Environmental compliance meeting EU/Turkish standards.
• After-sales service with local installation support.

The success of this wood straw pellet production line in Turkey proves the viability and profitability of such projects. With Turkey’s abundance of raw material and growing renewable market, now is the best time to invest.