<html><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html charset=windows-1252"></head><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space;"><div>Thomas:</div><div><br></div><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>1. I agree. It is about time. You have an interesting story to tell - and seem well qualified to be doing this very interesting stove work. I think I have now viewed all 10 of your videos and more at your (well done) company website </div><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span></div><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span><a href="http://www.unitystoves.com">www.unitystoves.com</a> - which eventually led me to these as well:</div><div><br></div><div><a href="https://www.facebook.com/unitystoves">https://www.facebook.com/unitystoves</a> and <a href="http://prezi.com/f4yjjgigf5un/the-unity-stove-concept/">http://prezi.com/f4yjjgigf5un/the-unity-stove-concept/</a></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>2. This list obviously can’t be supporting single companies, and I certainly don’t know enough about yours to want this to be an endorsement. However, you do seem to have a production approach that is very promising and presumably you can eventually supply materials to list members. Even if that is not the case, you have plenty of new stove design ideas that I want to recommend all serious stove designers to see what Thomas has introduced us to today.</div><div><br></div><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span></div><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>3. Not at all below, but on your website, there is a hope for financial backing. Since this could be of interest to some on this list - can you describe what you have in mind?</div><div><br></div><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>4. It seems likely that the main new key feature of your work is what you have called “Ksial”. Could you explain more on when that will be available from you. Is it proprietary? What is behind this most unusual word? </div><div><br></div><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>5. I found a single 2013 unanswered question on whether you were planning a char-making stove. This is the only type of interest to me. The reason is one you have yourself given in the “story” part of your site, where you say: </div><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span> <i>"<span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); color: rgb(20, 20, 18); font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px;">Just to provide one million stoves will make a huge difference with a CO2e reduction in the order of one million to three million tonnes every year."</span></i></div><div>That is a carbon neutral number - interesting, but nowhere near the much larger carbon negative number if you had a char-making version (which should be cheaper and easier to make with your nice mold approach). And you could still have about the same carbon neutral number you give - and that is obviously important to you.</div><div><br></div><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>6. I have talked to a few list members about what I consider most interesting and will test as soon as some promised material is received. Thomas used the term “basalt” - and showed some soft (like cotton candy) “rock wool”. I hope we can have a discussion of this general class of high temp insulative material. I am looking (as I think Thomas is) at a more rigid variety.</div><div><br></div><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>7. Your design (CO5??) with a sleeve in a night-time WBT was very interesting. Can you share any numerical data for that - and compare to that without a sleeve? The pot was interesting (new to me) as well. I hope we can see/hear more of that - with such pots appearing on the market. I was surprised that you had such a tight fit.</div><div><br></div><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>8. I hope to stamp out all char-consuming stoves however. That char is too valuable for atmospheric and soil reasons to be burnt. I did like though that you made your own char - and the tandoor video showed how that was happening. With a char-making stove, it would be much easier to obtain that char - and more of it.</div><div><br></div><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>9. I could go on with a few more observations - but hopefully this note will direct more list members to your most interesting site. Best of luck in what I hope will be a new surge of interest in low weight, high temperature stove materials.</div><div><br></div><div>Again - Thomas - thanks for one of the most interesting stove messages we have ever had on this list. It only hints at what is at your several sites. I should add that you have made excellent use of Facebook. I don’t think I am ready yet, though, to try the same.</div><div><br></div><div>Ron</div><div><br></div><br><div><div>On Jul 12, 2014, at 6:39 AM, T Hastings <<a href="mailto:mrthomhastings@gmail.com">mrthomhastings@gmail.com</a>> wrote:</div><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"><blockquote type="cite"><div dir="ltr">Hi All,<div>I've been reading this list for a while and thought it was about time I introduced myself and the work I have been doing.</div><div><br></div><div>I am Thomas Hastings from Australia and have been doing the citizen-scientist and design, prototyping and testing work that it seems many people are doing to help reduce emissions and improve the life and health for the billions who cook with solid fuels.</div>
<div><br></div><div>My background is in Industrial Design and my "day job" is design and managing the production of retail displays. My passion is for cookstoves and the geopolymer material I have been developing.</div>
<div><br></div><div>As I designer, I know how much the cost of material in today's manufacture with super low labour costs (well relative to Australian labour costs) affects the end cost of production.</div><div><br></div>
<div>FeCrAl alloys <span style="white-space:nowrap">or stainless steels are expensive and always will be. They can only be produced in capital intensive factories and the pricing is mature and well developed.</span></div>
<div><span style="white-space:nowrap"><br></span></div><div><span style="white-space:nowrap">I have pursued a material class that could be, in volume, produced at a cost comparable to cement. There is a lot of work going on to develop Geopolymer as a replacement for OPC in building construction. It is very close nowe, its out of the lab and buildings have been made.</span></div>
<div><span style="white-space:nowrap"><br></span></div><div><span style="white-space:nowrap">The material developed by Unity Stove is a bit different to but similar to these Geopolymer construction materials. It does perform exceptionally well in cookstoves and does not crumble like cement. It can be moulded easily and unlike fired ceramics, reinforcing and insulating materials can be incorporated. </span></div>
<div><span style="white-space:nowrap"><br></span></div><div><span style="white-space:nowrap">We have made prototypes stoves to show how a stove could be made. Whilst the Unity Charcoal Stove you will see works very well, the Unity Stove concept is actually a material and method for making stoves using low cost tooling to many designs. </span></div>
<div><br></div><div><span style="white-space:nowrap">Whilst I could talk about this for another twenty pages it may be best if you have a look at some videos for a quick into. Hopefully you will see that high performance stoves can be made locally and at minimal cost</span></div>
<div><span style="white-space:nowrap"><br></span></div><div><span style="white-space:nowrap">Thank you,</span></div><div><span style="white-space:nowrap"><br></span></div><div><span style="white-space:nowrap">Thomas Hastings</span></div>
<div><span style="white-space:nowrap"><br></span></div><div><span style="white-space:nowrap">2 minute introduction</span></div><div><span style="white-space:nowrap"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wth9cwc3_Mc">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wth9cwc3_Mc</a></span><br>
</div><div><span style="white-space:nowrap"><br></span></div><div><span style="white-space:nowrap"><br></span></div><div><span style="white-space:nowrap">15 minute video WBT 4.2.3 Test using the Unity Charcoal CO5 stove</span></div>
<div><span style="white-space:nowrap"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O3GN0HVMXG4&list=UU3kB6NKWunKR-dcZb3CRYGg">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O3GN0HVMXG4&list=UU3kB6NKWunKR-dcZb3CRYGg</a></span><br></div>
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