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Julien,<br>
<br>
Thank you for the detailed report. The non-metalic components are
of great interest.<br>
<br>
Question: You wrote:
<blockquote type="cite"> About 24 small holes in the side wall of
the metal reactor make the gasification of chunks of wood more
reliable, and less prone loosing the gas flame. </blockquote>
Is that shown in a photo? Or please describe with more detail.
AND is there also a gap (how large?) for secondary air entry at the
top of the reactor?<br>
<br>
Of the current cost of about $20, please break that down into metal
(what pieces?), cement/ceramics, and labor (and any other type of
cost that you can estimate.).<br>
<br>
Paul<br>
<pre class="moz-signature" cols="72">Doc / Dr TLUD / Prof. Paul S. Anderson, PhD
Email: <a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="mailto:psanders@ilstu.edu">psanders@ilstu.edu</a>
Skype: paultlud Phone: +1-309-452-7072
Website: <a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="http://www.drtlud.com">www.drtlud.com</a></pre>
<div class="moz-cite-prefix">On 12/6/2017 11:05 PM, Julien Winter
wrote:<br>
</div>
<blockquote type="cite"
cite="mid:CALv4xTxCWH5xFEXTDWLH-JnS=F8e3N34dOpG0pyCVpsVOzdOJw@mail.gmail.com">
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<div>Hello all;</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>Thanks for you comments on the Akha-Biochar Project in
Bangladesh.</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>The cost and payback is not fully worked out, because it
will take about a year for TLUD-biochar ecosystem to become
established in community, and it will continue to evolve. The
stove costs about $20 to make, this could be brought down as
numbers of stoves increase. Also, we are still at the
stove-prototype stage, so we can expect some modifications and
fine tuning. Payback is developing, as farmers and
gardeners discover the value of biochar for food production.
We have "Farmer Biochar User Groups" that are conducting field
trials, so they can learn from first-hand experience what
biochar can do for them. There are also graduate students
involved in gathering evidence to make recommendations on
optimum application rates. It could take a couple of years at
any one location for the local population to be able to place
their own value on biochar, and what they are willing to pay
for it. </div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>Whether people use the char themselves or sell it depends
on their personal opportunities. There are many families that
are landless. Presently, they see char sales as a way to earn
cash or barter. They think that is a great idea; save fuel,
cook faster, AND make biochar! People with land, especially
farmers, see biochar as a way of making permanent improvements
to the quality of their land, so expect that using biochar
could have very substantial impact on their family's economic
well being.</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>
<div>I have been advocating using biochar in composting, or
mixing it with manure before it goes onto the field. We
need work on using it in human waste management.<br>
</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>There is no shortage of good soil scientists and
agronomists in Bangladesh to work on biochar technology. </div>
</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>The outer concrete cylinder of the Akha stove is cast. We
have made stoves with concrete reactors (lined with clay
slip), but their smoke-free combustion was less reliable, and
there were some gas burner issues to solve. That is not to
say that concrete reactors will not work, but they need quite
a bit of research and development, and a laboratory. Metal
TLUD reactors, on the other hand, are well understood. About
24 small holes in the side wall of the metal reactor make the
gasification of chunks of wood more reliable, and less prone
loosing the gas flame. We use cast concrete (rather than
clay) because it is easy to get concrete rings with flat
surfaces at the top and bottom. The concrete components are
made specifically for the Akha. There are many small business
around who can cast concrete. </div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>Mahbubul has been working with different ratios of Portand
cement, sawdust and biochar dust in the concrete. The more
organics, the lower the heat capacity and heat conductivity of
the stove body. Micro porosity is supposed to make concrete
more resistant heat by providing spaces for minerals to expand
into. Obviously there is a trade-off between adding organics
and strength of the concrete. Different recipes are being
tested in the field. It is all trial and error.</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>Mahbubul has also worked with local ceramic artisans to
make the massive stove components from clay. There very
skilled people to work with, and kaolinitic clay, so ceramic
components are possible. The more metal components on the
stove that we can replace with ceramics the better, because
all metal in Bangladesh is imported.</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>The Akha is about 25% more efficient than a traditional
stove. The Akha has gone through a water-boiling test at a
laboratory in Dhaka, and was about 30% efficient at getting
energy from wood into the water. The main view that the Akha
saves 25% of the wood comes from household feedback. That is
what the women tell us.</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>The Akha-Biocahr Project has funding for its current
intervention until 2019. It is enough to see if the
TLUD-biochar technology will take root. If it does, then the
technology may spread all by itself as local entrepreneurs see
an opportunity. In fact, I think that if these technologies
viable, then they will out of our control and unstoppable.
The 'market' is 25 million homes. All the same, I am trying
to raise money so that Mahbubul and crew remain as proponents
and stakeholders in what they started. There is work to be
done in developing compressed fuels, because there is not
enough wood in the country. We need to monitor the impact on
forest cover, and make sure that poorest households don't
become energy-starved if the price of wood goes up.</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>One other thing that will push TLUD-biochar technology
forward is that sea-level rise could flood a third of the
country, so soil productivity needs to increase.</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>Cheers,</div>
<div>Julien.</div>
<div><br>
</div>
-- <br>
<div class="gmail_signature">
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<div>
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<div>
<div dir="ltr">Julien Winter<br>
Cobourg, ON, CANADA<br>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
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</div>
<br>
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