[Stoves] Anila Stove

[Ray Menke]

The Anila Biomass stove designed by Professor Ravikumar has led me to
build a version using a six gallon steel propane tank with a heavy
steel cylinder running down the center, complete with the conical
grate in the bottom.  On the side of the propane tank I built an
airtight porthole (for loading and unloading char) held on with 8
bolts and sealed with furnace cement.  There are four quarter inch
holes to bring gas from the outer cylinder compartment to the area
near the top of the conical grate, near the bottom of the inner
cylinder.
Big question:  Where is the secondary air, like all of my other stoves
have?  How to burn the excess smoke?
So, I filled the interior sealed cavity with about 3 gallons of paper
slices and wood chips that have been sitting inside in a 5 gallon
bucket for over a year.  (Very Dry)  I filled the inner cylinder with
dry hardwood slices and started the charge with a bit of sliced candle
wax and alcohol.  It burnt nicely until the heat reached the lower
third of the inner cylinder, and even though I could see charcoal
glowing, it started to belch excessive smoke...clouds of smoke that
was NOT burning!  I added more dry softwood pieces, hoping to build
more flame, but got even more smoke.  I blew some compressed air in
via the top, and got a couple feet of flame shooting out of the top,
but it soon went out, and then even more smoke.
After about two hours, the smoke diminished, and I added some hunks of
wood charcoal and heated 5 gallons of water, and then left it to burn
itself out.  (Tomorrow I can empty the char, when things are cold.)
The whole tank is very hot, so I'm considering insulating the whole
works..
Should I add a fan under the tank, blowing upward in the direction of
the grate?  Should I introduce secondary air somehow?  Any ideas? I
really need to USE all this smoke, so I need some way to get to burn!
I'm even willing to inject some propane at the top, if it will get rid
of the smoke.  Or perhaps a small computer fan?  Have any readers used
this stove?  How did it work? (Oh, BTW, I forgot the magic rocks.)
Thanks.

-- 
Ray  Menke
User of Wood gas camp stove XL, Anderson Champion TLUD-ND, many forced
air Midge sizes, and a very small Peko Pe.  (Most are non-smokers!)