[Stoves] Equipment required for testing stoves

Tue Dec 4 16:08:50 CST 2012

Dear Frank

What about 2 steel pie plates? Put char in one and cover with the other.

If char was very hot, to enhance cooling rate, set the bottom plate on a paper towel soaked in water, and spray the top plate with a water mist. 

Best wishes,

Kevin
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Frank Shields 
  To: 'Discussion of biomass cooking stoves' 
  Sent: Tuesday, December 04, 2012 5:14 PM
  Subject: Re: [Stoves] Equipment required for testing stoves

  Paul,

  I like the vase. And having a pot of water on top collecting 'energy' as the WACW cools seems like a great method of measuring energy loss during the cooling that can be added on to the values determined from a ground and tested WACW. Wonder if that would work - Crispin? 

  Frank

  From: Stoves [mailto:stoves-bounces at lists.bioenergylists.org] On Behalf Of Paul Olivier
  Sent: Tuesday, December 04, 2012 12:41 PM
  To: Discussion of biomass cooking stoves
  Subject: Re: [Stoves] Equipment required for testing stoves

  Frank,

  Getting an accurate dry weight of biochar is indispensable in being able to sell it.
  If we douse the biochar with water, then we no longer have an accurate measurement of dry weight.
  Also biochar right out of the gasifier contains valuable heat that could be used in keeping food warm.

  Therefore I designed a terracotta vase to contain the hot biochar.
  A pot placed on top of the vase prevents oxygen from entering.
  The vase shown in the drawing below can hold six liters of biochar.
  This is the volume of rice hull biochar produced in my 150 gasifier.
  https://dl.dropbox.com/u/22013094/150%20Gasifier/Terrecotta%20Vase/Drawing/Terracotta%20Vase.pdf

  Thanks.
  Paul Olivier

  On Wed, Dec 5, 2012 at 3:20 AM, Frank Shields <frank at compostlab.com> wrote:

  Hi Crispin,

  Weighing the fuel when removed (hot and burning) and dry weight after
  soaking with water, draining (screen) and drying is not a convenient
  procedure to determine moisture left -and prone to error - but only method I
  can think of at the moment.
  Water puts out a fire by taking away its heat. So wondering if there is
  another method that could be used? Combination nitrogen gas and pieces of
  steel in a tumbler? Must be some way besides water.

  Frank

  Frank Shields
  Control Laboratories, Inc.
  42 Hangar Way
  Watsonville, CA  95076
  (831) 724-5422 tel
  (831) 724-3188 fax
  www.biocharlab.com

  -----Original Message-----
  From: Stoves [mailto:stoves-bounces at lists.bioenergylists.org] On Behalf Of
  Crispin Pemberton-Pigott
  Sent: Tuesday, December 04, 2012 11:26 AM
  To: Stoves
  Subject: Re: [Stoves] Equipment required for testing stoves

  Dear Frank

  You are on the right track, in my view. The assumed energy for the wood and
  char is a major source of imprecision in the test.

  As for quenching with water: unfortunately we need to know the residual
  moisture content of the fuel 'as removed'. That varies a lot depending on
  the stove type. Quenching it with nitrogen is an alternative.

  Regards
  Crispin
  -----Original Message-----
  From: "Frank Shields" <frank at compostlab.com>
  Sender: "Stoves" <stoves-bounces at lists.bioenergylists.org>
  Date: Tue, 4 Dec 2012 10:19:39
  To: 'Discussion of biomass cooking stoves'<stoves at lists.bioenergylists.org>
  Reply-To: Discussion of biomass cooking stoves
          <stoves at lists.bioenergylists.org>
  Subject: [Stoves] Equipment required for testing stoves

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