[Gasification] energy for villages

Ken Boak ken.boak at gmail.com
Wed Apr 25 14:39:09 CDT 2012


Dear Tom

Thankyou for your always appreciated input and wisdom.

The IISc has published a few papers describing diesel engines modified
specifically for producer gas  - see foot of page 977  here regarding 17:1
compression ratio

http://cgpl.iisc.ernet.in/site/Portals/0/Publications/NationalConf/Producergasengine.pdf

At APL we have set the Lister type engine up as a research engine - to
characterise operation, output and efficiency at 17:1 CR and to confirm the
IISc findings.

We believe that the high CR and low rpm is most suitable for woodgas and
will run without predetonation and with increased power output and
efficiency.

We are working on this at APL - as and when other work/projects permit it.


Ken



On 25 April 2012 11:34, Thomas Reed <tombreed2010 at gmail.com> wrote:

> Dear Ken and All
>
> Several years ago I urged the Community Power Corporation (CPC) to
> increase the compression ratios of the engines they sold with their
> gasifiers.  My memory is that they tried 17/1 and found a considerable
> increase in both efficiency and power output.
>
> I am copying this to RobbWalt, head of CPC in hopes that he will have
> comments on this.
>
> Tom Reed
> The Biomassenergyfndn.com
>
> Thomas B Reed
>
>
> On Apr 24, 2012, at 12:59 PM, Ken Boak <ken.boak at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > Dear A.D. Karve & Gasification Colleagues
> >
> > Is there any documentation of this village scale electrification
> project?  Is the project currently running?
> >
> > I have read the IISc Papers on the Hosahalli Village project - but that
> was more than 20 years ago.
> >
> > I have been working on an experimental spark ignition conversion of the
> Lister type single cylinder engine - so that it can be run either on
> woodgas or diesel/biodiesel.
> >
> > The intention is a diesel start-up (for convenience) and then a rapid
> switch over to woodgas, when the gasifier is up to temperature. This
> minimises the amount of diesel needed over the whole run time - yet
> provides the convenience of a quick start-up cycle.
> >
> > We have retained the 17:1 compression ratio of the Lister engine - and
> are currently re-tracing the work - initially done in India to prove that
> woodgas can be used at these compression ratios - without pre-detonation
> (knock). So far, the results look promising and we have achieved between
> 2500 and 3000 electrical watts from the 6HP Lister engine running in this
> mode.
> >
> > The project has been ongoing for some time now  - and we hope that it
> will result in a spark ignition kit being offered for owners of small
> diesels.  The Lister type engines are particularly suitable for conversion
> - but we hope that other small diesels - such as Kirloskar are also fairly
> easily converted - with the addition of the sparkplug.
> >
> > This work is being undertaken at All Power Labs in Berkeley, California
> - and was recently demonstrated at a Weekend Workshop earlier this month.
> >
> >
> >
> > Ken Boak
> >
> > Principal Electronic Engineer
> > All Power Labs
> > Berkeley
> > CA 94710
> >
> > 510 684 2640
> >
> >
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