Rice-Husk

Rice husk constitutes to be the largest by-product of rice milling and one third of the paddy by weight consists of rice husk. Rice husk has a considerable fuel value for a variety of possible industrial uses. Hence, the major use of husk at the moment is as boiler fuel, wherever parboiling is practiced. Rice husk is tough because of its silica-cellulose content. The silica content is husk is the highest among plant offal. It contains 15 to 18 % silica; therefore, it is a potent source of silica for the manufacture of silicates or in glass manufacture. Also pulverized husk is available wherever paddy is parboiled and it is mixed with other mill fractions as cattle feed. Pulverized husk has a low feed value and it has low protein content. It contains more than 30% crude fibre. If nitrogen content in pulverized husk is increased by blending with other nitrogen rich feeds and fibre content is brought down to around 10%, pulverized husk can be used as cattle feed on large scale.