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<span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family:
"Calibri","sans-serif"; color: rgb(31, 73,
125);"><o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-size: 11pt;
font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; color:
rgb(31, 73, 125);"></span>Dear Tom,<br>
Several years ago, I coupled 11 Adam retorts together. Each kiln was
almost 4 m3 capacity. We load the kilns with sawdust wooden
briquettes, 2613 kg average and yield was 31.6 % good quality
charcoal. As you know we had 2 chimneys, one in the front where the
burning wood and later burning woodgas come out, and the second one
in the back connected to the wood chamber. Briquettes were very dry,
it took about 12-18 hours to get the wood gas. Than back chimney was
closed and wood gas was pushed in to fire chamber in front of the
kiln. And it burned none stop for almost 48 hours. I started
wondering, what can we do with this gas? Briquettes were high
density and very dry about 6000 Kcal. per kg. The energy was burned
equaled 18233 Kwh. I was amazed and started asking questions how to
use this energy? The gas we burned was dirty. Than I find out about
wood gas, gasifiers... After long research and with the help of many
people from this forum, I build my first gasifier. <br>
While in operation, I coupled all the back chimneys, put a long
galvanize pipe 38 cm diameter, with 10 degrees slant. I distilled
the smoke coming out of drying wood, every day we were getting wood
vinegar 400 liters and more. Unfortunately no one was interested, I
even offered to local farmers associating free of charge, I gave
samples to universities to some research, nobody was interested.
Wood vinegar is highly used in Japan for vegetable gardens, flowers,
in bathtub water as detoxification the body and clean the skin and
so an... <br>
The back chimney was filled with tar in no time. This was the tar at
the beginning of coming out the wood gas. Still was bad enough for
us to clean the back chimney every month. The rest of the wood gas
was burned in the chamber. <br>
We tried to get the gas with out burning and move to the kiln where
we dry the sawdust. The result was very good until the tar clogged
the pipes in less than a week. Finally I gave up trying the gas was
extremely dirty.<br>
There are couple of problems taken gas from the kilns. One we can
not suck the gas, than we would introduce extra oxygen to the kiln,
that would effect the quality of the charcoal. Second if we use the
small chimney to collect the gas and collect from there, we would
taken extra air and mix with the wood gas, I think that would be
dangerous..<br>
Now we are working with 47 ovens, still every day I look at the wood
gas that we burn, and still we are buying wood and rice husk to burn
in my oven to dry the saw dust.<br>
If anybody has an idea, how to collect this gas, I am willing to
try. <br>
Regards,<br>
Robert<br>
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