[Stoves] material processing for briquettes few tips ontechnique

[Pat]

Slaked lime is used to remove the shells from maize kernels. A more primitive way of doing it was to use wood ashes instead. Ashes provide additional minerals to maize that is soaked in it. Sometimes, particular species of wood were chosen for extra value.

Pat

On 08/08/2012, at 10:47 AM, Richard Stanley <rstanley at legacyfound.org> wrote:

> Anybody with experience in rural meso american agriculture out there who can tell us if its slaked or unslaked lime that would most likely be in use there ?
> Richard 
> 
> On Aug 7, 2012, at 2:35 PM, ajheggie at gmail.com wrote:
> 
> On Tue, 7 Aug 2012 10:42:17 -0300, Kevin wrote:
> 
>> Very interesting possible explanation for why "spent agricultural lime" 
>> helps with the anaerobic retting process!
>> 
>> While Ca(OH)2, or "Hydrated lime" can have a pH as high as  about 12.5, and 
>> is indeed very caustic, CaCO3 or "Limestone", "agriculture lime, "land 
>> lime", has a pH in the range of about 8, which is not very caustic at all
> 
> Yes Kevin I was thinking this was burnt limestone, CaO which had been
> slaked to Ca(OH)2 and then used in a process before being used for the
> retting. Here in UK fine chalk CaCO3  is used to lime fields in where
> it is available locally ( often settled out from borehole water), but
> in areas to the west it was derived from burnt limestone. Unless
> Richard can test the pH I cannot speculate further. Slaked lime was
> added to wheat and barley straw to make it more digestible.
> 
> AJH
>