Author(s)

Bernard Morino Ganou Koungang^1,2*, Dieunedort Ndapeu^1*, Gilbert Tchemou¹, Paul William Huisken Mejouyo¹, Bernard Wenga Ntcheping¹, Josepha Tendo Foba¹, Luc Courard², Ebenezer Njeugna¹

¹Laboratoire de Mécanique et Matériaux Adaptés (LAMMA), Université de Douala (UDo), Douala, Cameroon.
²Urban and Environmental Engineering (UEE), Laboratoire des Matériaux de Construction (LMC), Université de Liège (ULiège), Allée de la Découverte, Liège, Belgique.

The purpose of this study is to determine the morphological, microstructural characteristics and water diffusion parameters of the Canarium schweinfurthii (CS) shellnut. This work is part of a vast project to valorize the above-mentioned cores for possible industrial use as charges in composites or abrasives materials. The study was based on the characterization of intrinsic physical characteristics of the coreshells scanning electron microscopic (SEM) observations desorption, adsorption and absorption kinetics. The water diffusion phenomenon was modeled and it appears that the Page model well predicted the kinetic of drying, absorption and adsorption. The effective diffusion coefficient and the energy of activation were calculated at three isothermal temperatures (50°C, 70°C and 90°C). There was a tendency for hysteresis in the sorption-desorption cycles. These results strongly predicted the possibility of using these products as a filler in composites, clay building materials and cement because of their high water diffusion stability on a macroscopic scale.

Bioresources, Shellnut, Canarium Schweinfurthii Engl, Microscopy, Water Absorption, Moisture Adsorption, Desorption

Koungang, B. , Ndapeu, D. , Tchemou, G. , Mejouyo, P. , Ntcheping, B. , Foba, J. , Courard, L. and Njeugna, E. (2020) Physical, Water Diffusion and Micro-Structural Analysis of “Canarium Schweinfurthii Engl”. Materials Sciences and Applications, 11, 626-643. doi: 10.4236/msa.2020.119042.