Biochar at YouTube

[Nitack]

So I started browsing YouTube for biochar videos and was rather disappointed. It seems like there are some enthusiastic people out there, but I think they don't quite understand the difference between charcoal and charred wood. Maybe I am the one mistaken, but these two appear to be burning the wood. In order to actually produce charcoal the wood itself should not be burning at all correct?

YouTube - Simple biochar making gasifier

YouTube - Modern charcoal producing stove with...

I think they saw something about wood gas stoves like the next video and didn't quite understand.

YouTube - Biogas Wood Stove Demonstration

Am I missing it?

[Turtle]

Originally Posted by Nitack

So I started browsing YouTube for biochar videos and was rather disappointed. It seems like there are some enthusiastic people out there, but I think they don't quite understand the difference between charcoal and charred wood. Maybe I am the one mistaken, but these two appear to be burning the wood. In order to actually produce charcoal the wood itself should not be burning at all correct?

There are some chuckleheads for sure, but exactly how do you differentiate between 'charred wood' and 'charcoal'? Keep in mind that 'biochar' is charcoal that is not taken to the 'activated' charcoal stage, i.e. pure carbon.

I can't believe this chucklehead is apparently using his stove indoors!!!

YouTube - Modern charcoal producing stove with...

Originally Posted by Niitack

I think they saw something about wood gas stoves like the next video and didn't quite understand.

YouTube - Biogas Wood Stove Demonstration

Am I missing it?

That stove is technically a 'rocket stove' as I understand it, because it has a side chute for adding fuel. In order to add fuel (wood) then you have to have burned the previous load to ash to make room, so I don't think they are very good charcoal stoves.

My most watched video @ UTube is my coffee-can charcoal stove. I get a lot of comments on it that miss the point for sure.

YouTube - Coffee can wood-gasifier stove

[freeztar]

As Turtle hints at, biochar, charred wood, and charcoal are basically synonyms.

The confusion with these youtubers seems to be that biochar is properly produced in an anoxic environment.

[Roadam]

They are not actually making biochar, they are making biogas. I saw a number of sites and videos of people running typical gasoline engines on it. Good gasifiers in fact get to a ratio 1 liter of gasoline or 5kg of wood.
I may build one sometime as my country has 50% of its land in forrests.

[freeztar]

Originally Posted by Roadam

They are not actually making biochar, they are making biogas.

Biogas is a "waste product" of biochar production.

I saw a number of sites and videos of people running typical gasoline engines on it. Good gasifiers in fact get to a ratio 1 liter of gasoline or 5kg of wood.

"Typical" engines would have to be modified a bit. The engine folk around here can probably tell you better than I.

I may build one sometime as my country has 50% of its land in forrests.

What's the other 50%? It's better to use waste products rather than cut down timber, imho.

[Turtle]

So many thoughts, so little time.

My stove is designed & built to produce charcoal. Period. The 'gasifying' aspect of it is that the unburned volatile organic compounds (VOL's) are drawn back in to the combustion chamber & burned, wheras in other stove designs the VOL's escape into the air.


Other than that, we have covered most of the other systems in existing threads, including links to YouTube videos showing how to make & collect wood-gas for internal combustion engines using plans put out by the US government..

Rocket Stove Charcoal Retort

http://hypography.com/forums/terra-p...as-making.html

Making Charcoal

[Roadam]

Well as far as I have seen it doesnt require much modification, see planet mechanics and their woodgas truck.

YouTube - National Geographic - Car running on...

So its not waste product, its energy which you can use to heat the pyrolysis chamber or use excess to run a generator or something.

Well of the remaining 50%: 10% are mountains, 20% pastures (slowly being covered by forrest as well ), 12% arable land, 8% cities roads etc..

[Turtle]

Originally Posted by Roadam

Well as far as I have seen it doesnt require much modification, see planet mechanics and their woodgas truck.

So its not waste product, its energy which you can use to heat the pyrolysis chamber or use excess to run a generator or something.

Well of the remaining 50%: 10% are mountains, 20% pastures (slowly being covered by forrest as well ), 12% arable land, 8% cities roads etc..

Much more in the other threads I referenced, including a similar truck vid. I see no reason to keep repeating that material here. This is old news; they were doing it 60 years ago. What I think you will find is that without some manner of filtering/treatment, running raw wood-gas in a regular gas engine for long will clog up the works with deposits.

PS still looking for that vid that used government plans. at the very least I agree with the OP here that the YouTube stuff is a mixed bag. Here's something to tide us over: >> Vela Creations - Wood Gas

[barney]

PS still looking for that vid that used government plans.
Go to you tube search user name prairiedf file name is Gasifier Stove
they used FEMA plans for gasifier.
Cheers

[Turtle]

Originally Posted by barney

PS still looking for that vid that used government plans.
Go to you tube search user name prairiedf file name is Gasifier Stove
they used FEMA plans for gasifier.
Cheers

You rock Barney!! Muchas gracias.

The Youtube Channel: >> YouTube - prairiedf's Channel

One video: >>

YouTube - 2nd Generation Downdraft Stratified...