They are also used in making nitroglycerin, an explosive. Peanut oil has also been tested as an alternative fuel source. The solid that remains after the oil is removed from peanuts is a high-protein livestock feed. Peanut protein can also be used to make a textile fiber that is called Ardil. Even the shells of peanuts have uses.
Manufacturers grind the peanut shells into powder.
This powder is an ingredient in plastics, cork substitutes, wallboard, and abrasives. Peanut foliage makes good hay. But most farmers return the harvested plants to the ground to fertilize the soil. The peanut is grown as an annual crop. Peanut plants range in type from bunch plants to runner plants.