Insulation Effectiveness of Rice Hull

Abstract

A previous study showed loose rice hull had reasonable shock absorption even though it was not as effective as bubble wrap and anti-vibration pad. Another study showed rice hull’s shock absorption was better than larger grain size crumb rubber, but worse than finer grain size crumb rubber and coconut fiber. A comparative study showed that rice hull was more effective as an insulation material than coconut fiber sheet but less effective than crumb rubber. In this study, a new insulated container was envisioned. Its wall consisted of two layers of single-wall corrugated boards with rice hull filled in the gap between them. Temperature data was collected for three thickness of rice hull, i.e., 0.5”, 1.0”, and 1.5”. For each thickness, nine combinations of three outside temperatures (90°F, 120°F, and 150°F) and three starting interior temperatures (35°F, 45°F, and 55°F) were used. A neural network was trained to recognize the patterns of the interior temperature changes over time. The trained network can then be used for any combinations of exterior and starting interior temperatures. It assists packaging professionals in determining a proper thickness of rich hull needed for distribution. Rice hull insulated containers are suitable for a short distribution route.