Cashew (Botanical name AnacardiumOccidentale) was introduced in India by the Portuguese four centuries ago mainly to prevent soil erosion. Cashew ranks second among the nine tree nuts which figure prominently in international trade circles, first being Almond.
Cardanol is a phenol obtained from anacardic acid, the main component of cashew nutshell liquid (CNSL), a byproduct of cashew nut processing. Cardanol finds use in the chemical industry in resins, coatings, frictional materials, and surfactants used as pigment dispersants for water-based inks. Distillation of CNSL under reduced pressure gives cardanol. The residue will be rich in cardanol and is generally known as residol, which is conveniently used in the preparation of friction dust for brake linings, and also in rubber compounding formulations.
The cashewnut shell liquid is an important raw material for a number of polymer based industries like paints and varnishes, resins, industrial and decorative laminates, brake linings and rubber compounding resins. There are many medicinal uses of cashew apple and its juice. It is a good remedy for survey, cough and cold and is considered an excellent purgative. The wood of cashew nut is used for firewood and charcoal making. Its wood pulp is used to fabricate corrugated and hard board boxes. The cashew nut shell is having a soft feathery outer skin and a thin hard inner skin. Between these skins is the honeycomb structure containing the phenolic material known as Cashew Nut Shell Liquid and is generally abbreviated as CNSL.That the cashew nut consists of kernel, shell and testa and on an average distribution is 20 to 25% kernel, 60-70% cashew nut shell and 2-5% testa.
Cashew nut shell Liquid (CNSL) is an important industries raw material for resin manufacture and the shells can be burned to provide heat for the decorticating operations. The liquid contained within the shell casing of the cashew, known as Cashew Nut Shell Liquid (CNSL) has a variety of industrial uses.
Few Indian Major Players
1. Golden Cashew Products Pvt. Ltd.
2. Kerala State Cashew Devp. Corpn. Ltd.
3. Padmavathi Cashews & Coffee Ltd.
4. Pratap Cashew Co. Ltd.