Results of the comparative chemical analysis of the rind and pith of totora (Schoenoplectus californicus (C.A. Mey.) Soják) stems
Description
The research hypothesis is that the chemical characteristics of the rind and pith of totora stems are different. These differences have not been reported elsewhere. The data is a spreadsheet that includes the results of the chemical analysis conducted to test this hypothesis that was proven true.
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The stems were cut in February 2016, during the flourishing stage of the plant. The cut was made at around 5 cm above the water level. Stems were kept lying extended on the ground for sun-drying for two weeks until they turned yellowish and then they were transported to a covered storage to complete their drying process at ambient temperature. Material preparation: The material for the analyses was extracted from 20 different stems randomly selected from a stock of 200 dry stems. The stems were easily peeled off by manually pulling the outer layer in order to separate the epidermis and the palisade parenchyma tissues from the internal aerenchym tissue. The rind and pith were hammer milled and sieved. The particle sizes used for the analyses were 0.71 mm to 0.3 mm. TAPPI and NREL standards were used to conduct the tests.