[Stoves] Pyrolysing side draft stove, 1982

Tom Miles tmiles at trmiles.com
Mon Jan 24 17:35:49 CST 2011


Crispin,

 

This was the Stickwood Boiler by Richard Hill, University of Maine at Orono.
In 1979 it was the highest efficiency wood burner that we had seen. I had
the privilege of working with Dick on the First International Conference on
Solid Fuel Appliances which we held in Portland as part of an effort to
improve wood stoves. Dick was part of the group of us working on improved
wood heating appliances in the 1970s that lead eventually to the EPA smoke
tests and standards for wood stoves.  See the pdf report on how to make it
at:

http://www.bioenergylists.org/en/node/117

 

The home boiler was produced commercially in Maine in the 1980s as the
"Jetstream". Dick is now an emeritus professor at the university. 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jetstream_furnace

 

It really was a staged combustor. By inducing a draft through a small hole
Dick created a jet that would impinge on the firewood creating a blast
furnace effect. The idea was to limit air entry but create an airblast that
would create high local turbulence and wipe the boundary layer of gases from
the wood as it burned. The products of starved air combustion were burned
out by introducing secondary air. His theory was that CO and O2 molecules
could travel along in the gas stream and never react unless forced them to
at high temperatures. It worked. 

 

Tom

 

  

 

From: stoves-bounces at lists.bioenergylists.org
[mailto:stoves-bounces at lists.bioenergylists.org] On Behalf Of Crispin
Pemberton-Pigott
Sent: Monday, January 24, 2011 2:25 PM
To: Stoves
Subject: [Stoves] Pyrolysing side draft stove, 1982

 

Dear Friends

 

Interesting set of features on this stove:

 

 <http://www.freepatentsonline.com/4309965.pdf>
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/4309965.pdf

 

It looks like it is a wood-pyrolysing sidedraft gas-burning concrete-lined
combustor attached to a water heater.

 

It claims to be creating pyrolysis gases, feeding them sideways from the
bottom of the hopper together with (fan-driven) secondary air creating a
flaming zone separate from the combusting/pyrolysing biomass zone. It does
this in a very restricted primary air environment and burns whole logs. It
can be refuelled continuously because the fire is on the bottom of the
chamber.

 

It makes frequent mention of refractory materials cast in situ and the
complete burning of the gases.

 

Another one might be of interest to the jatropha cake burners:

 

 <http://www.freepatentsonline.com/1469600.pdf>
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/1469600.pdf

 

It claims to be able to burn duff coal (small, to dust). Maybe with a wire
grate instead of the cast iron shown. Note that it has an updraft channel
for getting the fire started. Many stoves this size have such a feature. It
is often re-invented as a solution to the difficulties faced getting
downdraft stoves started.

 

Regards

Crispin

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