Feather waste as a thermal insulation solution: Treatment, elaboration and characterization

The adoption of sustainable behaviors in terms of reducing energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions leads us to search for green, biodegradable, renewable and abundantly available materials. Chicken feather waste is an abundant by-product and its valuation offers a potential solution to these problems. The aim of this work is to improve energy efficiency in construction by developing new insulation materials based on feather waste. Feathers are hazardous, odiferous waste and unfit for direct valorization. It was necessary to carry out different treatments (ethanol, acetone, sodium dodecyl sulfate, hydrogen peroxide and conventional detergents) in order to evaluate their effectiveness in eliminating various foreign bodies resulting from the slaughter, storage or transport of these wastes, also their effects on the physicochemical properties of these residues. The second part of this work is devoted to the development and characterization of new insulation materials, which answers to the energy efficiency regulations in the building in the form of needle-punched nonwoven. The results of the treatments showed efficacy at concentrations between 1 and 2%, but the best results were attributed to treatment with the detergent imopon DPL-V and sodium dodecyl sulfate with no significant differences in structure and the chemical composition; this finding was confirmed by energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The treated fibers were then separated from the rachis manually and inserted into the industrial manufacturing line, with different percentage of wool and cotton waste have been added. Six samples have been developed and characterized in terms of physical and thermal properties. The developed samples have a competitive characteristic in terms of thermal conductivity with values between 0.0313 and 0.04465 W/(m.K). Thus, these insulators will provide an alternative solution for building insulation and environmentally friendly materials.