[Stoves] Wood/charcoal price in Cambodia

[Paul Anderson]

Dear Robert,

Thank you for your informative reply.

The bamboo of almost any size will be valuable for making biochar.   
Especially collect all the OLD and used bamboo (dry and of no use to 
anyone else except to burn it, so make biochar and still have the heat 
from the burn).

You should see    www.biobamboo.org    See the excellent video there (15 
minutes, WELL DONE).   I understand that Charlotte O'Brien is now in 
Cambodia.    Attempt to make contact with her.

I do not know about mimosa as a potential biomass for biochar production.

You mention retorts for making biochar.   Please consider the TLUD methods.

Look at

ETHOS 2012 presentation:

Barrel-size Micro-gasification for Combined Heat and Biochar (CHAB) in 
"Mini" IndustriesPR12001
Barrel-size Micro-gasification for Combined Heat and Biochar (CHAB) in 
"Mini" Industries 
<http://www.drtlud.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/ETHOS-2012-Barrel-Size-Micro-gasification.pdf>

Available at my website and elsewhere.    That presentation of 20 months 
ago is being essentially updated next week with multiple presentations 
by several presenter at the North American Biochar Symposium.

We are glad that you are getting started with biochar.

Suggestion:  Look around you and *tell us* about WHATEVER use is made of 
heat in your area.    Any fires whatsoever.   Big or small.   THEN we 
can guide about having biochar production (perhaps) self-financed by 
the  value of the thermal energy.

Paul

Doc  /  Dr TLUD  /  Prof. Paul S. Anderson, PhD
Email:  psanders at ilstu.edu
Skype: paultlud      Phone: +1-309-452-7072
Website:  www.drtlud.com

On 10/7/2013 12:20 AM, Robert Deutsch wrote:
> Dear Stovers,
>
> I am a (currently unemployed) American consultant married to a lovely
> Cambodian women.  We have both worked in the NGO world for a number of years
> in rural development, HIV and health, urban poverty issues and slum
> improvement projects, parenting skills, etc., but not much in agricultural.
>
> Together we have a small mango orchard in Prey Vieng province along the
> Mekong river (about 45 kms from Phnom Penh) with about 200, one-year old
> mango trees planted.  The land was actually built up with local clay to get
> the trees' leafy area above the normal annual flood level.  Trees are on
> approx 4-6m spacing.  We are advised by locals to inner crop papayas on
> 1-1.5m spacing for a quick cash crop.  Depending on what floods do for the
> next year or two, we may get only 10 months growing time from the papayas,
> or we my get 2-3 years.  However I think the soil (mostly heavy clay and
> some reddish top soil) is pretty poor and lacks good drainage for papayas.
> I would like to try adding bio-char mixed with compost and cow manure to
> improve the soil structure, bio-activity and drainage.  We hope to plant
> around 4000 papaya seedling before the end of the year (the flood waters are
> just starting to recede).
>
> Can you point me to a good design for a small-farm scale biochar retort,
> keeping in mind that I have good mechanical and fabrication skills, but very
> little cash at the moment?
>
> By the way, there is some large bamboo (3-4inch variety) and some smaller
> types grown in the village. Also, mimosa plant is a major problem here.
> Could the bent/broken bamboo and mimosa be used for biochar?
>
> Best regards,
>
> Robert
> Prey Tasor Village
> Prey Vieng, Cambodia
>
>

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