[Stoves] Char from Corn cobs ??

[K McLean]

Hi Teddy,

Where do your customers collect their cobs?  As Christa points out,
smallholders usually burn their cobs themselves.  Commercial maize farms
are successful in Kenya, though.  Do commercial farmers leave the cobs in
the field as waste - as I have read?

There is a factory in Eldoret that uses cobs to produce chemicals.
Bio-Corn appears to be closing down, though.  It consumed 60,000 tonnes of
cobs per year.  I have contacted Bio-Corn to determine its sources of
cobs.  My guess is that its sources are commercial farms.   This is from an
article
<https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/business/article/2001251825/company-to-make-chemicals-from-maize-cobs>
announcing the opening of the factory:
*"[T]he factory is expected to be a major boost to maize farmers who can
now earn from the cobs, which often end up as waste or domestic fuel."*
[image: image.png]

Sun24 is looking at more efficient ways to burn cobs.  Your Cookswell KCJ
(Kenya Ceramic Jiko) would work well.  Smallholders already burning cobs
can increase efficiency by burning them in charcoal jikos like the KCJ.

Maize cobs may be an underutilized, renewable cooking fuel source.  And a
source for char.

Kevin


On Tue, Jan 21, 2020 at 12:28 AM Cookswell Jikos <cookswelljikos at gmail.com>
wrote:

> Hi Ron,
>
> We have quite a few customers here who buy kilns for maize cob charcoal
> making -
> http://kenyacharcoal.blogspot.com/2012/10/make-and-use-maize-cob-charcoal.html
> the wood vinegar from it seems particularly useful in organic farming
> according to 2 farmers who had bought them.
>
> Corn cob charcoal itself is pretty awesome - it burns super fast and hot
> which makes it good for blending with regular charcoal or quick cooking of
> things like tea or rice.
>
> Best,
>
> Teddy
>
>
> Teddy Kinyanjui
> Sustainability Director
>
>
>
>              <https://www.facebook.com/CookswellJikos>
> <https://www.instagram.com/cookswelljikos>
> <https://twitter.com/cookswelljikos?lang=en>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> On Tue, Jan 21, 2020 at 4:10 AM Ronal Larson <rongretlarson at comcast.net>
> wrote:
>
>> List:
>>
>>         Kevin McLean and I have been supporting some research in Uganda
>> on making char from corn cobs.  They seem perfect to me - the right costs,
>> shape, and size.  Mostly left in the field, but would be much more valuable
>> if converted to both energy and char (the latter to go back to the field).
>>
>>         Anyone know of any place where this is now happening - in stoves
>> (TLUD or other)?
>>
>>         This is somewhat similar to using rice husks, which is happening
>> a lot.  Besides corn cobs, what other crop residues should be used for
>> combined cooking and char-making?
>>
>> Ron
>>
>>
>>
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