Design Construction And Commissioning Of A Chalk Extrusion Machine

Abstract A chalk extrusion machine has been designed fabricated and commissioned in the Department of Mechanical Engineering University of Maiduguri as part of the campaign in the local sourcing of educational consumables. The presence of large gypsum deposits a major raw material for chalk production in the North Eastern part of Nigeria is a justification for going into the project for utilizing available raw materials rather than imports that result in the countrys foreign exchange. The machine requires one operator and is capable of producing 20000 pieces of high quality chalk per day for six hour working per day which translates into 6000 six thousand USD turnover per day. The chalk is tapered with dimensions of 12mm X 9 mm in diameter and 81mm overall length and was tested on a blackboard and found to be non-toxic dustless easily erased smooth writing and does not scratch the board. Arrangement for patenting the machine is in progress.