EFFECT OF BINDER VARIATION IN RICE HUSK AND SAWDUST BRIQUETTE SMOKERS ON THE QUALITY OF SMOKE DURING HONEY BEE (APIS MELLIFERA) HARVESTING Santi Fitria Rahmasari, Sri Minarti, Eka Nurwahyuni
Universitas Brawijaya
Abstract
This study aimed to determine the burning rate, smoking duration, and the number of bees leaving the hive using briquette smokers with adhesive concentrations of 5%, 10%, 15%, and 20%. The briquettes were produced from rice husks and sawdust as raw materials. The analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed that adhesive concentration significantly affected (P<0.01) all observed parameters. The highest average burning rate was obtained in treatment P1 (2.23 (plus/minus) 0.12 g/min), while the lowest was found in treatment P4 (1.40 (plus/minus) 0.00 g/min). The longest smoking duration was observed in treatment P4 (29.20 (plus/minus) 0.46 seconds), whereas the shortest occurred in treatment P0 (19.37 (plus/minus) 0.16 seconds). The highest number of bees leaving the hive was recorded in treatment P1 (5.43 (plus/minus) 0.50 bees), while the lowest was in treatment P0 (2.63 (plus/minus) 0.12 bees). Based on these results, it can be concluded that the briquette composition in treatment P0 provided the most efficient performance, producing sufficient smoke in a shorter duration and minimizing bee disturbance, which makes it more suitable for honey harvesting activities.
Keywords: briquette, bee smoker, tapioca flour, Apis mellifera, smoker material
