[Stoves] Atten Henry Godfrey

[Richard Stanley]

Thanks Jesic de Klerk for bringing this very interesting site in Guatemala to our attention:
 http://www.mayapedal.org/machines.html

Estimado Henry,  (I will have to remain in English for this disucssion as my espanol is still only slightly above tourist level..)

I co-manage the non profit Legacy Foundation (www.legacyfound.org). It is and are focussed on extension of a simple agro residue biomass based fuelbriquetting technology for micro entrepreneurs worldwide,  since 1994. (Please see the 12 minute descriptive video on our website as much of the footage was taken from our work in Peru and southern Mexico) 

The limitation to higher production is not  so much the pressing (you can find so many hand operated biomass briquette presses online already ).  
The limitation is the processing of materials.  (Up to 70% of the labor of briquettemaking goes into processing these materials..They have to be chopped then mashed or tumbled so that their fibers are exposed, softened and made flexible, but yet still strong. The fibers are what will eventually bind the briquette together.. The final product is  much like something between paper marche and a birds nest.

We have devised our own version of hand operated threshing chopping mashing machines, see our website, and while the machine is technically is efficient it is compicated to build and meant more for the urban producer.  I mention the above " stoves and biofuels network" g because there are others, namely Crispin Piggot  and Lee Hite who are intersted in resolving the same issue through different approaches. 

What sparked my own interest as an early bicycle, and trailer and recumbent builder with prof David Wilson's classic  text {Bicycling Science, MIT press (1989)-in hand, was the potenetial for a bicycle hookup for this purpose. I am cautious about the limited sustained power output of the human being and the need to conserve momentum for most applciations. With that said however, with your impressive experience gained already, you may have several options yourselves...

I would be happy to work with you in the development of such a mechanism. We are a non profit and if it works out, we'd would be happy to promote what would become your final product, for sale by you, but for use  by many who are making enquiries about briquetting in the region. 

I'm headed down to the PCIA conference in Lima at the end of this month. Will any of your staff be attending: If so, perhaps we can have a more detailed discussion there.

Kind regards, and I look fwd to your reply. 

Attentamente,

Richard Stanley
www.legacyfound.org
NW Obamaland


PS., I am also using Sketchup (pro7.1) but cannot open your version. I alos have the free version 8 but thattoo fails to open it. I ould lok fwd to a version I could open but perhaps better still, as so few of us use Sketchup in the development professions,  do you think it might not be better to save it or a few persepctives of your 3d model, as simple still shots---.jpgs for example ? 





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