The study investigated the potential of water hyacinths and phytoplankton scum, an aquatic weed, as binder for production of fuel briquettes. It also evaluated some physical and combustion characteristics. The water hyacinths were manually harvested, cleaned, sun-dried, and milled to particle sizes distribution ranging from <0.25 to 4.75？mm using hammer mill. The water hyacinth grinds and binder (phytoplankton scum) at 10% (B1), 20% (B2), 30% (B3), 40% (B4), and 50% (B5) by weight of each feedstock were fed into a steel cylindrical die of dimension 14.3？cm height and 4.7？cm diameter and compressed by hydraulic press at pressure 20？MPa with dwell time of 45 seconds. Data were analysed using analysis of variance and descriptive statistics. Initial bulk density of uncompressed mixture of water hyacinth and phytoplankton scum at different binder levels varied between 113.86 ± 3.75 (B1) and 156.93 ± 4.82？kg/m3 (B5). Compressed and relaxed densities of water hyacinth briquettes at different binder proportions showed significant difference . Durability of the briquettes improved with increased binder proportion. Phytoplankton scum improved the mechanical handling characteristics of the briquettes. It could be concluded that production of water hyacinth briquettes is feasible, cheaper, and environmentally friendly and that they compete favourably with other agricultural products. 1. Introduction The Niger Delta of Nigeria is characterized by extensive network of rivers and creeks which discharge their waters into the Atlantic Ocean. As a result, fishing is the major occupation of its inhabitants [1]. One of the most invasive and prolific aquatic weeds that devastate lakes, canals, rivers, and ponds in the Niger Delta is water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes). This aquatic weed blooms heavily in the Niger Delta due to favourable climatic condition [2]. In Niger Delta, the average weight or volume of fuelwood per day (16.45？kg or 7.5？m3) exceeds the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) average allowance (0.46？m3) [1]. The major source of energy in the rural community is fuelwood as other sources of energy are either not available or grossly inadequate. The demand for fuelwood is expected to rise to about 213.4 × 103 metric tonnes, while the supply will decrease to about 28.4 × 103 metric tonnes by the year 2030 [3]. Increasing pressure on forest resources for energy has led to what is called “other energy crisis of wood fuel” [4]. This has led to environmental degradation, deforestation, and misuse of soil forests and water resources. The uncontrolled level of
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