Science Forums 2

[rebelcat1]

Thank you for the prompt reply. From my perspective the advantage of angering is that the whole process becomes automated. I'm thinking of a system where you're loading material into the feed hopper with a loader, 1+ cubic yards at a time, with a throughput on the order of 10 to 500 cubic yards per day. Of course any prototype I build will be much smaller, but that's why I want to aim for an auger.

Also, once we get above even a fairly small scale the mechanics of hand loading a tube get very arduous. Other advantages include charcoal will be mostly powdered, especially if starting with material like straw and the larger scale make capture and use of the 'woodgas' or 'syngas' more feasible.

Another idea I had, if you were going to encase the thing in a vacuum tube you could have the top 25* of the pipe covered with some high temp insulation in such a way that it supported the vac. tube, adding to mechanical resiliency.

I still need to read the entire thread (I'm half way through) and more info on reflector design. I saw some really cool looking stuff about Fresnel reflectors, could be lighter and more resource efficient.

rc1