Handbook of Charcoal Making

Solar Energy R&D in the European Community

Series E:

Energy from Biomass

Volume 7
 Solar Energy R&D
in the European Community

Series E Volume 7
Energy from Biomass

Handbookof
Charcoal Making
The Traditional and Industrial Methods

by

WALTER EMRICH

Springer-Science+Business Media, B.V.

library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data

Emrich, Walter.
Handbook of charcoal making.

(Solar Energy R&D in the European Community. Series E, Energy from

biomass; v. 7) (EUR ; 9590)
Inc1udes bibliographie s.
I. Charcoal. I. Commission of the European Communities.
II. Title. III. Series: Solar energy R & D in the European Community.
Series E, Energy from biomass; v . 7. IV. Series: EUR; 9590 .
TP33l.E45 1985 662 '.74 84-27630

ISBN 978-90-481-8411-8 ISBN 978-94-017-0450-2 (eBook)

DOI 10.1007/978-94-017-0450-2

Publication arrangements by
Commission of the European Communities
Directorate-General Information Market and Innovation, Luxembourg

EUR 9590
<0 1985 Springer Science+Business Media Oordrecht
Originally publi shed by ECSC, EEC, EAEC, Brussels and Luxernbourg in 1985.
Softcover reprint ofthe hardcover Ist edition 1985

LEGAL NOTICE
Neither the Commission of the European Communities nor any person acting on behalf of the
Commission is responsible for the use which might be made of the following information.

All Rights Reserved

No part of the material protected by this copyright notice may be reproduced or utilized
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recording or by any information storage and retrieval system,
without written permission from the copyright owner.
 PREFACE

We are happy to introduce the Handbook of Charcoal-Making, a

comprehensive survey written by a competent expert with international
experience. The book was prepared by the Commission of the European
Communities in the frame of its R + D programme on biomass.

In the European Community today the biomass option is only little

developed: a huge resource is waiting for use .

Actually, there is ample scope for biomass utilisation as it bears

promise in some of the vital sectors of modern society. Development of
indigenous and renewable energy sources, creation of new employment,
recycling of wastes and improvement of the environment, restructuring of
European agriculture, development of the Third World, they are all
concerned.

It is important to note that the exploitation of the biomass resource is

largely related to its conversion into a marketable product . However,
as many of the conversion technologies are not yet well established or
need improvement, R + D is more than ever the critical pathway to get
access to the benefits of biomass utilisation .

In the European Communities I R + D programme, thermal conversion of

biomass is developed with priority. Gasification as well as pyrolysis
development projects are being supported by the Commission in European
industry and universities.

Pyrolysis is particularly attractive because the conversion products

charcoal and pyrolytic oil are very convenient in use, technologies are
relatively simple and projected pay-back times favourable.

-v-
Charcoal making is just the simplest and oldest form of pyrolysis.
Charcoal is already a market product and plays an important role in the
energy consumption structures of most developing countries.

As modern literature on charcoal is' scarce, this book will first of all
serve the purpose of a review book of the state-of-the-art.
Furthermore, it is essential as a reference book for future R + D in
view of technical improvements and new processes of charcoal making and
pyrolysis in general.

I take this opportunity to thank Dr. Walter Emrich for having accepted
the Commission's invitation to write this book. I also thank
Mr. L. Crossby and Mr. J .F. Molle for reviewing the manuscript.

I wish the book great success.

Dr. W. 'Palz
R + D Programme Biomass
Commission of the European Communities

- vi-
 CONTENTS

PREFACE v

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS xi

FOREWORD xv

Chapter 1
HISTORY AND FUNDAMENTALS OF THE CHARCOAL PROCESS
1.1 Charcoal-Making from the Beginning until 1
the Present Day 1
1.2 Theory of the Carbonization Process 5
1.3 Heating Systems for Charcoal Plants 8
1.4 Properties of Carbonization Products 11
1.4.1 Charcoal 12
1.4 .2 Pyrolysis Oil 16
1.4.3 Process Gas 17
References 18

Chapter 2
TRADITIONAL METHODS OF THE SMALLHOLDER CHARCOAL-
MAKER 19
2.1 Charcoal Pits and Earthmound Kilns 20
2.1.1 The Charcoal Pit 24
2.1.2 The Earthmound Kiln 27
2.1. 3 The Earthmound Kiln with Chimney 33
2.1.4 The Earthmound Kiln with Tar Recovery 35
2.2 Charcoal-Making with Portable and
Movable Kilns 38

- vii-
2.2.1 The Tongan Oil Drum Kiln 39
2.2.2 The Philippines Kiln 42
2.2.3 The Black Rock Forest Kiln 45
2.2.4 Sectional Metal Kilns 48
2.2.5 The Carborion Kiln 54
2.3 Concrete and Brick Kilns 56
2.3.1 The Missouri Kiln 60
2.3.2 Cinder Block Kilns 66
2.3.3 The Schwartz and Ottelinska Furnaces 74
2.3.4 The Brazilian Beehive Brick Kiln 77
2.3.5 The Argentine Kilns 88
2.4 Kiln Designs for Waste Conversion 99
2.4.1 The Carbo-Gas Retort 101
References 104

Chapter 3
CONCEPTS AND TECHNOLOGY FOR THE INDUSTRIAL
CHARCOAL-MAKER 107
3.1 Equipment for Charcoal Plants with
By-Product Recovery 107
3.1.1 The Forerunners of Modern Charcoal
Equipment 109
3.1. 2 Retort Technology 116
3.1.2.1 The Wagon Retort 117
3.1.2.2 The Reichert Retort Process 120
3.1.2.3 The French SIFIC Process 123
3.1. 3 Charcoal Technology for The Carbonization
of Biomass 129
3.1.3.1 Generalized Flow Diagram 129
3.1.3.2 The Multiple Hearth Furnace 133
3.1.3.3 The Fluid Bed Carbonizer 136
3.1.3.4 The Vertical Flow Converter 139
3.1.3.5 The Enerco Mobile Pyrolyser (Model 24) 143
References 147

-viii-
Chapter 4
TECHNIQUES FOR RECOVERING COMMERCIAL PRODUCTS FROM
PYROL YSIS OIL 148
4.1 Pyrolysis Oil Recovery 149
4.2 Crude Acetic Acid and Acetone Recovery 150
4.3 Recovery of Methanol (Wood Spirit) 152
4.4 Processing of Charcoal Tar 154
4.5 Concluding Remarks 159
References 161
Chapter 5
RAW MATERIALS SUPPLY 162
5.1 Supply from Fuelwood Plantations 165
5.2 Agricultural Resources 166
5.3 Transport and Preparation of Raw Materials 168
5.3 .1 Key Factors in Wood Supply 169
References 176
Chapter 6
END-USE MARKETS FOR CHARCOAL AND CHARCOAL BY-PRODUCTS 178
6.1 Charcoal as Household Fuel 178
6.1.1 Lump Charcoal 178
6.1. 2 Charcoal Briquettes 179
6.2 Charcoal as Fuel for Industry 180
6.3 Charcoal in Metal Extraction 182
6.4 Activated Charcoal 183
6.4.1 Synopsis of Industrial Active Carbon Markets 185
6.5 Speciality Markets for Charcoal 187
6.6 Charcoal for Producer Gas 187
6.7 By-Product Utilization 189
6.8 Synopsis of Major Uses of Charcoal and
By-Products 193
6.9 Charcoal Costs and Fuel Prices 195
6.10 Packing and Shipment for Export/Market
Strategy 200
6.11 World Production 203
References 207

- ix -
Chapter 7
PLANNING A CHARCOAL VENTURE AND SELECTION OF EQUIPMENT 208
7.1 Planning of Projects 211
7.2 Selection of Charcoal Equipment 214
7 .3 Conclusions 220
References 222

Chapter 8
CHARCOAL BRIQUETTES AND ACTIVATED CHARCOAL
MANUFACTURING 223
8.1 The Briquetting Process 223
8.1.1 Simple Briquetting Equipment 227
8.2 The Activated Charcoal Process 228
References 233

Chapter 9
SAFETY PRECAUTIONS AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONSIDERATIONS 234
9.1 Safety in Charcoal Operations 234
9.2 Safety Devices and Equipment 236
9.3 General Safeguarding of Charcoal Plants 237
9.4 Precautions for Charcoal Storage 238
9.5 Environmental Considerations for the
Charcoal-Maker 239

Chapter 10
CHARCOAL LABORATORY WORK 243
10.1 Analysis 244
10.2 Bench-Scale Carbonization Tests 251
References 253

APPENDICES 254
Appendix 1 Case Studies 255
Appendix 2 Energy Distribution Diagram 265
Appendix 3 Addresses of Consultants, Institutes,
and Equipment Suppliers 268
Appendix 4 Conversion Tables 275

- x-
 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

Figures

1, la Temperature diagrams of dry distillation 6

2 Temperature distribution diagram (continuous
process) 7
3 Heating systems 9
4 Classification of charcoal processes 10
5, 5a Carbon content and higher heating value.
Moisture content and net heating value 23
6 A charcoal pit 26
7 A small earthmound kiln 28
8 A large earthmound kiln with centre firing 31
9 An earthmound kiln with chimney 34
10 An earthmound kiln with pyrolysis oil
recovery 36
11 The Tongan oil drum kiln 40
12 The Philippines oil drum kiln 43
13 The Black Rock Forest kiln 46
14 Handling the kiln with a derrick 46
15 A battery of four Black Rock Forest kilns
in operation 47
16 A por table metal kiln 50
17 Air inlet channels at the bottom of a
portable metal kiln with wood grate 50
18 The Carborion kiln 55
19 The Missouri charcoal kiln 58
20 Plan and elevation of the Missouri kiln 59
21 A cinder-block charcoal kiln 67
22 Typical masonry units for block-type
charcoal kilns 70
23 Detail of the thermocouple assembly on the
lengthwise centreline of a cinder-block kiln 72
24 The Schwartz charcoal furnace 75
25 The Ottelinska furnace 75
- xi-
26 Improving the Schwarti system by installing
"calorif~res" 76
27 The Brazilian beehive brick kiln 79
28 The slope-type beehive brick kiln 80
29 Beehive fire brick kiln with external heating 81
30 A charcoal production centre 86
31 Half orange kiln with straight jacket 91
32 Carbo-Gas retort (twin unit) 100
33 Carbo-Gas retort plant with charcoal gas
recovery for commercial use 100
34 The Carbo furnace 111
35 The Bosnic charcoal plant 113
36 A smaller Bosnic plant with interchangeable
retorts 114
37 The wagon retort plant 118
38 The Reichert retort process 122
39 The French SIFIC retort process 124
40 Side view of the CISR Lambiotte plant 127
41 Generalized flow diagram of the rapid
pyrolysis process 131
42 Cross-section of a multiple hearth furnace 134
43 The fluid bed carbonizer. Generalized diagram 137
44 The vertical flow converter 140
45 The ENERCO model 24 pyrolyser 145
46 A charcoal plant with pyrolysis oil refinery 153
47 Recovery of commercial products from
pyrolytic tar 155
48 A wood dryer for continuous operation 174
49 The integrated carbonization concept with
four carbonizers 212
50 Simple charcoal briquetting press 226
51 Activated carbon plant for manufacturing
of pellets or granular active carbon 231
52 Apparatus for bench-scale dry distillation 252
53 The energy distribution diagram 266

- xii-
Photos

1 Small earthmound kiln in Ghana one hour

after lighting. 30
2 Discharging charcoal from same kiln
two days later. 30
3 A Missouri kiln. The shell is dangerously
cracked as a result of faulty operation. 63
4 Side view of kiln with two smoke pipes and
air inlet holes at the bottom 63
5 Charging the beehive brick kiln . 85
6 A Brazilian beehive brick kiln in full
ope ration. 85
7 The Argentine half-orange kiln. The operator
is closing the gate after charging the kiln. 90
8 Small half orange kiln (7 m3) 92
9 Charcoal trainees in Kenya constructing
a half orange kiln with straight jacket. 92
10 Charcoal trainees igniting the kiln with
a shovelful of ,glowing charcoal. 93
11 Charcoal train~e brushes over leaks . 93
12 A Lambiotte reactor ; 128
13 Model of a vertical flow converter
charcoal plant. 141
14 A charcoal briquetting press. 225
15 Pillow-shaped charcoal briquettes . 225
16 A rotary kiln for activation of charcoal
in the Philippines. 232

-xill -
 FOREWORD
Owing to the widespread use of cheap fossil fuels and
natural gas in industry, household charcoal has been some-
what neglected during recent decades. The development of new
and improved charcoal tech niques has nevertheless been
advancing during this period, unknown to outsiders.
Comprehensive charcoal literature has not appeared since
the late nineteen-forties; in particular, there have been no
publications concerned with industrial charcoal-making. Some
of the literature cited in this book exists only in
specialized collections. Occasionally the pUblic has learned
about the achievements of companies active in charcoal
production or equipment manufacturing, particularly in the
carbonization of biomass and the formulation of long-burning
charcoal fuels, but overall there has been an inadequate
flow of information to potential users .
The Commission of the European Communities,
Directorate-General for Science , Research and Development
intends to close the information gap by pUblishing this
handbook . However, a handbook cannot be expected to reach
all the innumerable small-scale charcoal-makers,
distributors and users, especially in developing countries,
who do not normally acquire knowledge of improved techniques
from books. At this level, information should be
disseminated directly by government agencies or where
appropriate, through internationally sponsored development
projects.
The author has been engaged as consultant and design
engineer in the charcoal and active carbon industry for more
than twenty years . He has also worked on assignments as
research and plant manager of charcoal and active carbon
plants . During these years he became aware, through numerous
contacts with Governments, Ministries of Planning and
private entities that two factors frequently prevent or
obstruct the promotion and realization of efficient projects:

inadequate knowledge of the state of the art

- xv -
 lack of the experience needed to develop charcoal
projects.

The author's major concern in this handbook is to draw the

attention of all persons involved in energy project planning
to the fact that new and improved charcoal techniques are
able to convert forestal and agricultural wastes and
residues into energy. In countries which abound wi th these
reserves the modern charcoal-maker can make an important
contribution to the household fuel programme of his country.
For more than a thousand years, charcoal has been made
from whole trees; it is time for everyone to accept recent
advances in a very old industry and to adopt new ways. We
should always bear in mind:

THERE IS NO WASTE IN THE WORLD

WASTE IS AN ENERGY RESERVE

Therefore, let's use it.

The author would like to express his gratitude to the
numerous organizations which have contributed valuable data.
Among these are : the United Nations Industrial Development
Organization (UNIDO), the Food and Agriculture Organization
in Rome, and the Barbeque Industry Association i n the U.S.A.
Last but not least, the author would like to thank the
many charcoal producers and equipment suppliers who have
volunteered updated proprietary informat ion.

WALTER EMRICH

Neu-Isenburg, September 1984

- xvi -
Chapter 1
HISTORY AND FUNDAMENTALS OF THE CHARCOAL PROCESS

1.1 Charcoal-Making from the Beginning until the Present Day

Prehistoric finds, dating back six thousand years, have

shown that arrow-heads were attached to their shafts by
employ ing wood tar, a material then obtainable only by the
charring of wood. Although we may never know when man first
made charcoal, extensive investigation has proved that in
Europe charcoal-making had already become an important
industry for the recovery of iron and other metals from
their ores around 1100 BC.
The Roman historian Plinius describes in his famous
Historia Naturalis (1) the method of embalming and preparing
bodies for burial in Egypt, in which the watery condensate
of the charring process was used as the preserving agent.
The more viscous parts of the condensates like tar and pitch
found applications as house paints, in the then flourishing
shipbuilding industry, and for caulking and sealing wooden
barrels.
We may assume that charcoal was made mainly in open pits
at that time, but with very low yields. Later some
improvements were made by introducing the earthmound kiln,
which is still common in many developing countries today.
Although this technique is not at all satisfactory in so far
as the energy balance of the charcoal process is concerned,
it can be considered as an industrial step, because by
simple alterations one is able to collect some liquid
by-products.
In 1635, the renowned chemist Rudol f Glauber (2)
discovered acetic acid as an essential component in the
condensate of the charcoal process . Immediately his
discovery drew the attention of the chemical industry to the
charcoal process as an available source of raw materials.
- 1-
However, the earthmound kiln method did not permit the
production of the desired quantities of condensates (now
termed "pyrolysis oil"). Almost a hundred years were to pass
before the Swedish engineer Nordenschoeld (3) and the German
technician Reichenbach (4) designed commercial retorts by
which the energy balance of the process could be improved
considerably and the by-product yield was raised
sufficiently. The new "charcoal furnaces" spread throughout
most European countr ies and from there they were introduced
to the U.S. A. and Canada. The Swedish-German technology was
very successful and was only replaced by large-scale
equipment and improved techniques in 1850.
The growing demand for steel by industry in general, and
the enlarging capacities of the chemical industry, brought
about an unprecedented upsurge of charcoal and the liquid
by-products. Small and large-scale charcoal plants
mushroomed not only in Europe but also in North America. Not
only the number of production sites multiplied, but also the
capaci ty of the plants. This again emphasized the need for
better and more efficient technology.
Technical development was focused on continuous
processes and techniques to utilize the total accessible
energy contained in the raw material. Sophisticated
combustion systems were invented to generate heat or
electric power from the non-condensable gases of the process.
Despite these achievements (which resulted in better
charcoal quality), the steel industry and metallurgy
gradually turned to new resources for their blast furnaces :
refined bituminous coal, coke and lignite began to compete
with charcoal. The chemical industry also found that other
sources were more rewarding, namely bituminous coal and
later fossil oil and natural gas.
The already foreshadowed decline of the once-blossoming
charcoal industry became visible after the First World War .
Although a great number of plants had to be shut down, the
more advanced and well managed plants survived the crisis .

-2 -
 Then, with the economic recovery of the industrialized
countries, the demand for charcoal products revived.
Countries lacking in natural resources and therefore heavily
dependent on imports for all kinds of goods, curtailed their
spending of foreign currency and tried to exploit their own
reserves. Naturally, under these conditions, their forests
played an important role . Consequently the charcoal-makers
experienced a new peak within their exciting lifespan.
When the Second World War began, the charcoal industry
had in many countries a somewhat tactical task to sustain
the war machinery. The products provided by carbonization
plants were mani fold and far exceeded the expectations of
industrialists and businessmen a century ago.
Charcoal came to be utilized not only in metallurgy but
also in chemical processes and the fabrication of plastics,
it was the essential raw material for activated carbon with
its numerous outlets in the filter industry,
pharmaceuticals, catalysts, pollution control, etc .
Pyrolysis oil provided a basis for the production of organic
acids, methanol, aldehydes, acetone, creosostes, tars, etc.
In 1945, at the end of the war, the economy of many
European countries had come to a complete standstill. Again
the charcoal industry was hard hit. Survival meant
concentration and enlarged capacities, in other words
automatization.
During the post-war years, a new technology was
commercially proved, the so-called "rapid pyrolysis", which
was first operated in the U.S.A. It had two major advantages
over previous processes : first, the carbon ization cycle
(residence time of the feed) was shortened dramatically,
thus making more profitable use of the invested capital;
secondly, the conversion of small raw material particles was
made possible.
Rapid pyrolysis is one of the most important
achievements of charcoal technology. Whereas, until then,
the only feed for the charcoal plant consisted of pile wood
or wood logs cut to size, the new techniques permitted the
-3 -
utilization of raw material up to a few millimetres in
diameter. This opened the door to a new category of raw
material resources until then untapped and neglected, namely
agricultural and industrial wastes and forestal residues .
One is tempted to say that these reserves, which abound in
developing countries, are almost unlimited . Their use to
provide household fuel, industrial charcoal and chemical raw
materials could make an important contribution to the
conservation of other natural resources, especially the
highly endangered forests.
When early man invented charcoal, its only use was as a
reductant to obtain metals from their ores. Numerous
applications have been added since then, and new markets
have opened their doors to the effective charcoal-maker.
Soon after the Second World War, people in industrialized
countr ies rediscovered the excellent properties of charcoal
for barbequeing. This specialized sector of the charcoal
industry has now become a major economic factor, comprising
also thousands of manufacturers of grills and utensils.
Sufficiently accurate data on the production and
consumption of charcoal and the by-products are difficult to
obtain. Besides charcoal, fuel wood is the main energy
carrier with which people cook their daily food in
developing countries. The world consumption of fuelwood, per
capita, including charcoal was estimated at 0 .37 m3 in
1978 (5). However, in the developed world the per capita
usage reached only 0.13 m3, compared wi th 0.46 m3 in the
developing world.
The United Nations Conference in Nairobi, 1981, (6)
concluded that approximately 2,000 million people are
utilizing firewood and charcoal for cooking and heating. For
several hundred million of them, it is already impossible to
find a sufficient supply of firewood because of the ruinous
exploitation of forests. Here the modern charcoal technology
with high-grade energy recovery systems can find a new task.
By tapping the vast waste reserves of the world, the
charcoal industry can make one of its most important
-4-
contributions to mankind by helping to provide for the
energy needs of the future, especially in all developing
countries .

1.2 Theory of the Carbonization Process

Carbonization or dry distillation takes place when any

organic matter is raised to a high temperature (L, e. above
180 0 C) under strict exclusion of oxygen or under controlled
minimal air intake. Essentially the process of carbonization
follows a general temperature scheme :

between 100 0 and 170 0 C all loosely bound water is

evaporated from the raw material.

between 170 0 and 270 0 C gases develop (off-gas) ,

containing carbon monoxide (CO), carbon dioxide (C0
2),
and condensable vapours, which form pyrolysis oil after
scrubbing and chilling.

between 270 0 and 280 0 C an exothermic reaction starts,

which can be detected by the spontaneous generation of
heat and the rising temperature . At the same time, the
development of CO and CO ceases but the quantity of
2
condensable vapours rises.

Once the carbonization process has entered the

exothermic phase , no more outs ide heating is required. The
temperature in the retort will climb slowly until it comes
to a standstill between 400 0 and 450 0 C.
Naturally, this scheme can be applied only if the
carbonization or dry distillation is conducted batch-wise.
To achieve a higher terminal temperature, the process must
be su~ported with extra heat from outside .

-5-
 0 1 2 3 4 6 7 8 9
25 500

-:g--
CIl

.--
20 400
."
1:"'''- l.l

--....
IS 300
CIl~
/
~ ,,
"gE 10 200
-
..~.... ~~ -
l.l
o __
'/ ,.
CIl
lJ

--....
5 100 ::J

-
~' ."
....
---
III 0 0
CIl CIl
Cl.
:.::: 50 ~
"'" E
III 100 ~ .....
CIl

." "
~
150
o 1 2 3 456 7 8 9
Time (hours)
Figure 1 Diagram of dry distillation (7)
For Softwood

Graphs-solid curve: temperature outside r et or t

doffed curve : temperature at retort centre

Bar diagrams-so lid area : combustible gas

white area : C02
shaded area: condensate

2 3 4 5 6 7

-+-+--+-t--t-+--1 200
....CIl
--.... 5 1H...q..- +-+--r""'1 __-+--+-t--t-+--1 100 ~

-
III ."
II o .=II~HO ~
e,
:.::: 50 H-+--+-+-A E
'-

100 1--1-+-+--+-+-r.-- .....II

150 '--'---"--'--'-..L.......;L.....I.---"-....L.....I.-J......J.--l..-'-...L....J
012345678
Time (hours)

Figure fa Temperature Diagram of dry distillation (7)

For Hardwood

(After M. Klar , Techno/ogie d. Holzverkohlung)

-6-
Raw Feed

---,-- ---
--I"~ Off-gas
,

I,
- - - - 600 0 C

Charcoal
discharge

CiI)vwwwvw\N
T
Charcoal

Figure 2 Temperature distribution

diagram (continuous process). (8 )

(From: W Emrich, Recycling in

Developing Countries)

-7 -
 Figures 1 and la are representative of the dry
distillation of European softwood and hardwood. They also
show the amount of pyrolysis oil which can be recovered
during the entire carbonization process.
During continuous carbonization the raw material moves
vertically, normally from top to bottom of the retort or
converter . The feed passes through various temperature
phases as stated above, one at a time (see Figure 2) .
Whereas the charcoal leaves the reaction container at the
bottom, the vapour-contain ing gases are drawn off at the top.
The mixture of gas and vapours expelled from a
continuous carbonization process remains uni form during the
desired period of time, e. g. for weeks or months. Another
advantage of continuous operation is its f lexibility in
relation to the residence time of the raw material and the
relatively short time it remains within the hot zone. Both
these characteristics have a great influence on the process
yield and the composition of pyrolysis oil or gas .
Many tests have shown that the pyrolysis oil containing
vapours undergo certain cracking processes on the hot walls
of retorts and tubes. These processes are enhanced by
prolonged residence times, thus undesired crusts and
depositions will occur.

1.3 Heating Systems for Charcoal Plants

To start up the carbonization and to maintain higher

temperatures, external heating is required. During the long
history of industrial charcoal-making, many heating systems
have been tried . All were intended to reduce expenses and
fuel costs. Only the three basic types shown in Figure 3
have survived and are in general use.

- 8-
A
Internal heating by
controlled combustion
Raw material of raw materials .

B
Off - gas External heating by
combustion of fire-
Raw material Pyrolysis oil
wood, fuel oil or
Char
natural gas

c
Heating with recirc -
Off - gas u ated gas (retort or
Raw material Pyrolysis oil converter gas). Hot
Char gases pass through
raw material charge.

F = Combustion chamber

Figure 3 Heating systems (9)

- 9-
 Charcoal pits a Concrete '"
Earthmound kiln brick kiln
METAL KILNS RETORTS/CONVERTER

INTERNAL

Portable I. Fixed Vertical flow &: Fluid bed

I
Movable
1 HEATING SYSTEMS
I
rotary disc
I
Mob ile
;; EXTERNAL Installations Reichert retort
I

Bosnic Furnace Metal Retorts

T---1
Brick re torts "
Schwartz furnace METAL RETORTS

1_ - _T
1
HEATING GAS IN CONTACT
WITH RAW MATERIAL

Figure' Classification of charcoal processes

Tpye A: Most common system. Part of the raw material is
burnt under controlled air inlet. The combustion
heat provides the energy for maintenance of the
process. Recommendable only in loca tions Jhere raw
material prices are low (waste material).
Type B: Retort or converter heated from the outside under
strict exclusion of oxygen. Fuel can be provided
from the off-gases.
Type C: Very expensive heating system . Raw material comes
in direct contact with the hot gases. Charcoal and
by-product yields are high. Recommendable for very
large plant capacities only.

All the systems described are technically and

commercially proved. There will be advantages and
disadvantages which must be considered in making decisions .
Not only the costs for the investment will play a role, but
also the concept which the charcoal planner has in mind.
For the classification of charcoal equipment, the scheme
shown in Figure 4 is suggested for practical use. Presently,
more than one hundred concepts and methods to make charcoal
are known, all of which can be categorized and tabulated
within this frame.

1.4 Properties of Carbonization Products

Whether the charcoal or a charcoal derivative can be

regarded as a quality product will depend first on the
results of analytical tests . Chemical and physical
properties are greatly influenced by three factors - raw
material type, process characteristics, and after-treatment.
The latter refers to agglomeration and briquetting
techniques of the solid char, or to distillation and
fractionation methods applied to the pyrolysis oil and
residual process gas .

- 11-
 In any event, it is absolutely necessary during the
planning stage of a new charcoal venture to take a close
look at the applications and end-use markets of the expected
products (see Chapter 6). Specifications may be set by
individual consumers and can be obtained from them.
The terms and properties described below are intended to
acquaint the reader with the charcoal terminology. They
should be read carefully before proceeding to the following
chapters.

1. 4.1 Charcoal

A precise and authoritative definition of charcoal is

becoming increasingly inportant for label regulation and
other imminent legislation. Two typical published
definitions are:

1. Encyclopedia Sri tannica (0): "Charcoal is the residue

obtained when carbonaceous materials, of either animal
or vegetable origin, are partially burned or heated so
that tarry and volatile matter is removed; in most cases
the residues may be roughly described as impure carbon."
(Coal, coke and petroleum coke certainly are not
charcoal; but according to this definition they qualify).

2. Encyclopedia Americana (1): "Charcoal, a black, solid,

non-lustrous residue, or amorphous carbon, from
vegetable or animal sUbstances; or a coal made by
charring wood in a kiln or retort from which air is
excluded." (Dull bituminous coal is not charcoal but
according to this definition it qualifies.)

- 12 -
To resolve this dilemma we propose:

CHARCOAL IS THE RESIDUE OF SOLID NON-AGGLOMERATING

ORGANIC MATTER, OF VEGETABLE OR ANIMA L ORIGIN, THAT
RESULTS FROM CARBONIZATION BY HEAT IN THE ABSENCE OF AIR
AT A TEMPERATURE ABOVE 300 DEGREES CELSIUS.

This definition distinguishes charcoal from coke, which

is formed by carbonization of fluid organic matter such as
plastic coal or petroleum (when heated, coking coal becomes
plastic before it carbonizes) . It also distinguishes
bituminous coals and lignite from charcoal, because they
have not been subject to carbonizing temperatures during
their metamorphoses.
The charcoal-maker differentiates between lump charcoal,
charcoal fines, charcoal dust, charcoal briquettes, pellets,
extrudates, and activated charcoal.

Yield: Expressed as weight of charcoal per unit weight of

dry raw material, in percentage. Note that the yield is
always applied to the dry material weight.

Specific Weight: Refers to the density of the charcoal,

which varies according to the density of the raw material.
The density of charcoal can be influenced within a narrow
range by the course of the process temperature, in
particular by the t e r mi na l temperature.

Hardness: A very important coefficient for industrial

charcoal. Standard scales have been imposed in some
countries; these are normally identical with the hardness
degrees of bituminous coal.

Moisture: After the char coal has left the converter, it

vigorously absorbs water from the air up to 6 % of its dry
weight. In some continuous operations, the hot charcoal is

- 13-
cooled by a controlled water spray. If treated in this way
or stored in the open, the moisture content may be much
higher than 5 to 6 %.

Content of Volatiles : If charcoal is heated to 900 0 under

confined conditions, it will lose weight because
hydrocarbons and nitrogen are driven out. This weight loss
is extremely important to industrial charcoal consumers when
def ining the utilization properties. In general, the weight
loss should not exceed 30 %.

Half-burnt charcoal, or "brands": Product with more than 30%

volatiles.

Red Coal: Same as half-burnt charcoal or "brands".

Fixed carbon content : The dry charcoal weight minus the

content of volatiles and i nc ombus t i bl e s (ashes) is
equivalent to the content of fixed carbon, which also
determines its fuel value (Cf i x) .

Dead-burnt charcoal: This has a content of fixed carbon

which results in difficult ignition of the charcoal.

Ash content : The ash is composed of the natural minerals

contained in almost any organic matter and contaminations.
The quantity is related to the composition of the raw
material mix, e. g. wood branches with a high proportion of
bark will give high ash containing charcoal. Charcoal ashes
are distinguished by their solubility in water and by
chemical analysis.

Sulphur and phosphorus content : The low sum of these

substances normally found in charcoals make them especially
attractive for use in blast iron furnaces and for
metallurgical purposes . The desired value for sulphur is
usually below 0.05 % and for phosphorus under 0.03 %.
- 14 -
Heating or calorific value: This depends on the fixed carbon
content and will be lowered only by high ash content. In
general, heating values range between 6,500 and 7,200
kcal/kg (30,100 KJ/kg), comparable to bituminous coal.

Active surface: The surface of well burnt charcoal is

porous. The porosity makes charcoal easy to ignite, reactive
in chemical processes, and able to absorb substances and
remove them from liquids or gases. The porosity can be
measured, and is expressed in m2/g.

Active or activated charcoal: The porosity or surface area

can be enlarged by special activation processes. Industries
use gas, steam or chemical activation. The largest surface
area which can be achieved in commercial plants measures
approximately 1,500 m2/g, which is close to the area of a
soccer field.

Agglomerated and briguetted charcoal: Some industrial

applications and major barbeque markets demand char pieces
with a particular shape. Known shapes and forms are spheres,
cylinders, hexagonals, diamonds, bricks, oblong and
pillow-shaped conglomerates and pellets. The constituent
parts are: charcoal, binder, additives .

Energy extender, cooking-time extender: These are inorganic

substances which are added to barbeque briquettes to prolong
cooking time. They slow down combustion time and retard the
heat release of the fuel .

Gas generator or producer gas gas

engines for the generation an
alternative fuel for gas-fired

- 15-
1.4.2 Pyrolysis Oil

The oil varies very much with the type of raw material.
It contains more than one hundred different substances,
which once made it a valuable feedstock for the chemical
industry. Its growing importance for developing countries
stems from the fact that it is a feasible substitute for
industrial fuel oil.

Viscosi ty: This can be controlled by the addition of water,

and is measured according to normal standards.

Acidity: Measurement is by analytical titration, without

relating the acidity value to particular acids.

Organic fatty acids: These are regular constituents of

pyrolysis oil. The most important acids are acetic acid,
butyric acid and propionic acid.

Pyrolytic alcohols: Mainly methanol as a regular ingredient

of pyrolysis oil.

Calorific value: This is related to the raw materials.

Conifers yield oils with high heating values.

Flash point: Determines the ignition properties and is an

essential criterion for all boiler fuels.

Flame tempera ture: Measured under stoichiometric condi tions

(in an environment of balanced oxygen).

Corrosivity: Pyrolysis oil is aggressive to mild steel.

Stainless steel, copper, ceramics, plastics and wood are
resistant.

- 16-
Ashes: These are incombus tible particles which have entered
into the pyrolysis oil. Reasons: poor distillation
equipment, contamination during storage.

Solidifying point: The temperature at which the residues of

pyrolysis oil lose their flow characteristics.

Pour point: The temperature at which the residues of

pyrolysis oil start flowing.

1.4.3 Process Gas

This is the gas which leaves the retort or converter; it

is therefore frequently called retort or converter gas.

A distinction is made between two types of off-gas which

have different commercial values:

(a) Off-gas that is not passed through a scrubber/chiller

system. It contains the pyrolysis oil vapours and is usually
referred to as "high Btu converter gas", meaning that it has
a high calorific value.

(b) The residual gas which has passed through a

scrubber/chiller system and has been stripped of the
pyrolysis oil vapours. It is frequently referred to as "low
Btu converter gas", meaning that it is a heating gas of poor
calorific value. It is composed of CO, CO 2 hydrocarbons,
nitrogen and water vapour.

- 17-
References

(1) Plinius, Historia Naturalis, Lib. 11, de pice (23 - 79)

(2) Glauber (1604 - 1670), Miraculum Mundi, 1653
(3) C.F. Nordenschoeld, Abhandlungen der Koeniglichen
Schwedischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, Jahrgang 1766
(4) Karl Freiherr von Reichenbach (1788 - 1869)
(5) FAD Forestry paper No. 41, Rome 1983
(6) U.N. Conference on New and Renewable Sources of Energy
Preparatory Committee, 1981. Report of the Technical
Panel on Fuel Wood and Charcoal on its Second Session.
(7) M. Klar, Technologie der Holzverkohlung, 1910
(8) W. Emrich, Recycling in Developing Countries, 1982
' (2 10 - 214)
(9) CARBON INTERNATIONAL, LTO., Neu-Isenburg, FRG, company
publication, 1982
(10) Encyclopedia Britannica, Vol. 5, 1951
(11) Encyclopedia Americana, International Edition, 1964.

- 18-
Chapter 2
TRADITIONAL METHODS OF THE SMALLHOLDER CHARCOAL-MAKER

Traditional carcoal-making, which has a long history, is

characterized by the following main features:

Zero or low investment cost ;

Use of construction materials which are at hand on the

site or available nearby, e.g. clay, soft-burnt bricks;

Zero or low maintenance costs achieved by avoiding metal

parts in the kiln construction as far as possible;

Manpower is not a major concern;

The normal raw material consists essentially of wood

logs and coconut shells; other types of biomass may be
carbonized also;

By-product recovery is limited owing to the fact that no

sophisticated equipment is employed;

It is typically a family or cooperative business.

Much of the charcoal in the world has been made by families

or small businesses run on the above lines, using simple
technology and low capital investment. Although the
technology is simple, i t is nevertheless precise and
skilful, as will be seen in the following sections. Modern
industrial processes are discussed separately in Chapter 3.
- 19 -
2.1 Charcoal Pits and Earthmound Kilns

To save transportation costs, the small-scale

charcoal-maker produces his char at the place where he
collects the raw material. Because of his frequent movements
from site to site, he cannot employ heavy equipment.
Both the pit method and the earthmound kiln offer
appropriate solutions. Both require skill, patience and
readiness to observe correct working methods at all times
and in all weathers. Therefore, the business of
charcoal-making with all its "secrets" is usually handed
down from father to son and is well guarded by the family.
An important part of charcoal-making experience concerns
the insulation of the charcoal pit or earthmound and the
control of air flow. If not properly controlled, excess air
will cause the charcoal to burn away to ashes and destroy
the result of several days' work in a few hours.
The use of earth to keep out oxygen and to insulate the
carbonizing wood against excessive heat loss surely goes
back to the dawn of history. It is, therfore, worth-while to
study its advantages and disadvantages. Obviously this
method has survived because of its low cost. Wherever trees
grow, earth must be available and mankind naturally turned
to this cheap, readily available non-combustible material as
a sealant to enclose the carbonizing wood .
There are two different ways to use an earth barrier in
the charring process : one is to dig out a pit, put in
firewood and cover the whole with excavated earth to seal
and insulate the chamber. The other is to cover a pile of
wood on the ground with earth, sand and leaves. This cover
forms the necessary gas-tight layer behind which charcoaling
can take place. Both techniques, if properly carried out,
can produce good charcoal within certain limitations. But
these methods are wasteful of resources.
The pit and the earthmound methods have been studied by
many researchers in the last century (1). According to their
results the fixed carbon content (Cf.)
IX
of the
- 20-
charcoal produced in those kilns varies between 65 % and
80 %, the yields rarely exceeding 15 % based on the weight
of the dry fuelwood charge.
Statements that the recovery rate of a charcoal pit or
an earthmound operation is "well over 20 %" must be regarded
as unfounded. Because of the fact that a significant
depletion of wood resources allover the world can be
observed as a consequence of wasteful charcoal conversion
and the rigid arguing of their defenders, it seems quite
appropriate to shed some light on the complexity of the
whole problem.

Charcoal conversion efficiency can be defined in terms of

either weight:

charcoal output (kg)

wood input (kg)
or energy:
charcoal output (MJ)
wood input (MJ) .

While ~ can easily be calculated if the energy

content of wood and its char yield is known, the
weight-based efficiency criterion ~w varies depending on
just how one defines charcoal. Unfortunately, there is no
universally accepted def inition of charcoal. However, most
of the literature on carbonization agrees that - measured on
a dry weight basis - charcoal should exhibit a fixed carbon
content of at least 75 % (the other principal components are
hydrogen: 4.1 %j oxygen: 15.2 %j nitrogen: 0.8 %j and
minerals: 3.4 %).
On the input side, the biomass source wood is composed
of cellulose, lignin, hemicellulose, extractives and
minerals. In terms of chemical composi tion, one can
distinguish between hardwood and softwood: on the average,
hardwood contains about 43 % cellulose, 23 % lignin and
- 21 -
35 % hemicellulose, whereas softwood usually contains 43 %
cellulose, 29 % lignin and 28 % hemicellulose. These
di fferences in composition affect heat content i the higher
the lignin and extractives content, the higher is the gross
calorific value of wood.

In the process of pyrolysis, lignin promotes char

formation and holocellulose (cellulose and hemicellulose)
promotes the 'release of volatiles . The heating value of the
primary end prodct - i. e. the charcoal - is determined by
its carbon content. The general equation describing the
relationship between carbon content (C) and higher heating
value (HHV, dry basis) of combustible fuels can be
approximated by the following equation (2).

HHV = 0.437 x C - 0.306 (MJ/kg)

wich is illustrated in Figure 5.

Another relevant factor here is the species- and

age-dependent moisture content of wood, which directly
a ffects the net heating value, the ignition properties and
the efficiency of fuel utilization. Fresh wood may have a
moisture content of as high as 67 %, which is also the
practical limit of combustibility. On the average, hardwood
contains 30 .2 % moisture, and softwood about 46 %. The
following formula (Tillmann, 1982) can be used to calculate
the net heating value of wood as a function of its moisture
content:
NHV (MJ/kg) = HHV - 0.2 33 x MC

where

NHV = net heating value (MJ/kg)

HHV higher heating value (MJ/kg)
MC = moisture content.

- 22-
 HHV (MJ/kg)

1,0

30

20
Figure S
Carbon Content and
Higher Heating Value
of Fuels
10

C (%)

NHV (MJ/kg)

20

15
Figure Sa
Moisture Content and
Net Heating Value of
Average Tropical Wood
10

L..----f--+--+--+--+---1f----+--+--+--+-...... MC (%)
10 20 30 1,0 50 60 70

- 23-
 Assuming that the higher heating value of average
tropical (dry) wood is 20 MJ/kg (3), the curve presented in
Figure 5a can be derived from the above formula.

Thus, if the Cf i x of dry charcoal is defined as 75 %

(which is equivalent to approx. 30 MJ/kg), and if the
chemical composition of the wood biomass as well as the
characteristics of the conversion technology are known,
7, w or 't e can be regarded as a function of the moisture
content of the wood. The relationship between efficiency and
moisture content can be expressed as a curve which has the
same shape as the curve in Figure 5a; however, for a given
biomass input, the precise position of the efficiency curve
is a function of the carbonization technology employed.

2.1.1 The Charcoal Pit

Virtually, there are numerous ways to build a charcoal

pit and all need very little skill.
The basic principle is to lead the air from one end of
the chamber to the other flowing on the bottom. Therefore,
before charging the charcoal pit with the fuel wood bedlogs
are laid forming some kind of a crib on which the charge
will be placed.
The crib is made from logs, cut to the width of the pit,
and they are laid evenly spaced along the entire length.
On top of this first layer a number of logs will be
placed each equal to the length of the charcoal pit.
Later when the charge has been lighted the incoming air,
mixed with the hot gases, will travel beneath the charge and
heat it up to carbonization temperature, until they leave
the chamber through the flue on the opposite side.
After loading the pit is covered with a layer of leaves
normally 20 cm thick and on top with a layer of soil of the
same thickness.

- 24 -
In a typical pit operation burning takes place progressively
from one end to the other.
The produced charcoal of larger pits is not very
uni form, because the burn is di ff icul t to control. Smaller
pits are more efficient, because they have a better airflow
(4) •
The large charcoal pi t normally takes 25 to 30 m3 of
fuel wood per burn and the wood is cut in length of 2,40 m.
Miniature pits with a capacity of 4 to 5 m3 are frequently
in use. Their conversion efficiency is very poor and the
charcoal produced of inferior quality. In Figure 6 the
cross-section of a larger charcoal pit is shown wi th the
crib structure.
Because it is very difficult to control the airflow in a
pit and the internal temperatures a lot of the fuelwood
charge is burnt to ashes. Another portion remains only half
burnt. Because of false circulation of the gases it was
never dried out and properly heated.
A further problem is connected with falling rain. The
pyroligneous gases tend to condense in the foliage layer and
in the earth used as outer cover. Therefore when rain falls
those condensates are washed back and down to be reabsorbed
by the charcoal (5). They will cause later damage to
jutebags by rotting them and the charcoal when used in
housholds releases unpleasant smoke.
Pit sites should be selected where a deep stratum of
soil can be expected. Where the soil is loose the vents of
the pit must be timbered.
In many cases and for large pits steel sheets are used
for cover before the soil is put on top, thus preventing
contamination of the charcoal by falling soil when the kiln
is uncovered at the end of the carbonization.
According to the FAO Forestry paper No. 41 (4) a team of
five men can produce from a pit size of 6 m x 2.70 m x
1.20 m (depth at the igniting point) and 2.40 m depth at
opposite side 360 tons of charcoal per year .

- 25-
I
N

I
'"

Plan-view of kiln bottom

Fi gure 6. A charcoal pit.

 This would have resulted in USD 70.00 per ton in 1983 .
The indicated cost is for charcoal at the kiln site ready
for transportation. The calculation, however, does not allow
for labour overhead and profits.

2.1.2 The Earthmound Kiln

The typical smallholder charcoal maker builds a kiln of

about 2m in diameter at the base and approximately 1. 5 m
high as shown in Figure 7 . Approximately six to ten air
inlets are installed at the base. The smoke and the gases
developing during the carbonization are drawn-off at the top
through an opening of 20 cm in diameter.
This describes roughly a round earthmound kiln. However,
one can find other shaped kilns like rectangular mounds in
use as well .
For the preparation of the kiln si te sufficient space
has to be cleared, levelled and if necessary compacted also.
In the case of rectangular or square shaped mounds it
becomes necessary to erect posts, several on each side,
which give stability to the wood pile and provide a support
for the operator when he is covering the kiln with leaves,
soil or metal sheets.
Again, as with the charcoal pit, it is most important to
provide a good air and gas flow within the mound after
lighting. This will be achieved by forming a grid of crossed
small logs (maximum diameter 10 cm) which are first laid out
and arranged on the ground. On this platform the fuelwood
will be stacked.
For the stacking of the wood exist no strict rules and
the piles are set up very differently. In general one can
say that in spheric earthmound kilns the charcoal maker
arranges it vertically and in other mounds horizontally.

- 27 -
VI
ell
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ell
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- 28 -
 All gaps between the logs or branches are filled in with
smaller woodlogs, off-cuts, etc. to make the pile as compact
as possible which facilitates the direct heat transfer when
the carbonization has started.
Also special care has to be taken to the surface of the
pile that it shows an even profile and makes a good support
for the cover of leaves and soil.
The lower layer of the cover is made with leaves, straw
or grass. On top a sandy soil or loam are applied
approximately 20 to 25 cm thick.
An important improvement can be achieved by putting in
metal sheets before the outer soil cover is made. This will
reduce defilement of the charcoal by dropping of soil down
duri ng the carbonization, when the mound is slowly sinking,
and when it is uncovered at the end.
These metal sheets can be gathered from scrap or cut out
of spent oil drums. Depending on the usage they will,
however, corrode in a more or less short time and have to be
replaced then. Recent calculations have shown t hat this type
of operation may become quite costly in countries where
scrap prices are high.
The igniting of a kiln is ' done either through the air
inlet holes on the base or through the centre hole at the
top. In every case, to enhance the firing kindling wood, oil
soaked fabrics are used or a shovelful of glowing charcoal
is put into the centre hole on the kiln top.
After the kiln has "caught fire" the operator observes
carefully the colour of the smoke exi ting the mound. Dense
white smoke will be issued for the first day or days
indicating that the water of the fuelwood is being
evaporated.
After this initial period, the length of the time
depends on the size of the kiln, moisture content of the
charge, thickness of the woodlogs, etc., the smoke will turn
blue and becomes clear eventually.

- 29-
PHOTO I Small Earthmound kiln in Ghana one hour
after lighting. (Photo W. Emrich)

PHOTO 2 Discharging charcoal from same kiln

two days later. (Photo W. Emrich)

-30-
"tJ
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- 31-
 The skilled operator feels frequently the walls of the
kiln for cold or hot spots and uses a wooden stick for
probing the conditions of the wood charge and searching for
uncarbonized parts.
Based on his findings he closes or opens the vents at
the kiln base.
Besides these observations he must look for cracks in
the kiln cover which do appear during the entire
carbonisation cycle, due to the continuous shrinking of the
charge and in the same grade as charcoal is formed. Cracks
must be sealed immediately to prevent the influx of air
which would cause burning of the fuelwood to ashes.
When charring is jUdged complete, all vents and the
centre hole at the top will be closed and sealed with earth.
For the sealing of larger kilns clay and stones are used.
The cooling time of the kiln depends also very much on
its capacity or size . It may take a few days or up to
several weeks.
During the cooling phase the kiln remains under
permanent supervision, and must be kept airtight. Otherwise
the charcoal inside catches fire and starts glowing which
prolongs the cooling time considerably.
When the earthmound kiln has cooled out it is uncovered
and the charcoal crop separated from fines and "brands" by
screening or other simple means and made ready for sale .
Photo 1 and 2 show the beginning and the end of an
earthmound charring cycle of a small kiln, as usually
carried out. They also reveal that the operator does not
display great skill. Obviously the obtained charcoal crop is
of poor quality and defiled with soil.
Earthmound kilns can be enlarged up to a diameter of
15 m and over, whi th space capacities of 150 m3. However,
large scale earthmound kilns have to be modified and their
construction needs very much skill.

- 32 -
 They require centre firing canals as shown in Figure 7 .
Some details of such a canal structure can be seen in
Figure 8. also, which refers to a special kiln type
described in the following section.

2.1.3 The Earthmound Kiln with Chimney

These modified kilns represent the most advanced group

of the earthmound family. They have been developed in Europe
during the middle of the last century, namely in Sweden and
in the western parts of Russia.
Very large amounts of charcoal had been produced with
these kilns for the growing iron smelting industry.
The elements used for the kiln construction are
basically the same as described in the previous section; the
grate formed with woodlogs on the bottom, the fuelwood pile
(stacked vertically) and the centre hole for firing.
However, in addition a chimney is attached (normally only
one) which is connected to the pile by an underground flue
(6, 7).
The significant improvements rest with this chimney.
Since the diameter of it can be determined according to the
oxygen demand the kiln can be precisely controlled with the
draft of the chimney, which depends also on the height of
it, resulting in a higher yield of better charcoal.
Whereas, the traditional earthmound kiln takes the air
in through numerous inlets with undefined cross-sections,
which will change during the carbonization cycle also (due
to the shrinking movement of the kiln shell), the chimney
secures an uniform air influx throughout the whole operation
time.
The investment costs of these kilns are naturally higher
and, therefore, normally metal scrap is used for the chimney
construction. Frequently oil drums are welded together and
make a good chimney. However, one has to bear in mind tha t

- 33 -
 Centre pillar
guide

Centre
pi 11 ar I !~~~

Firing
sticks

II

II
-~---

Chimney made of oil drums

Centre fire hole

Flue

Figure 9. An earthmound kiln with chimney.

- 34-
the opening of the smoke stack may have to be reduced and
adapted to the size of the wood pile.
In many cases a stack made from firebricks is employed
thus eliminating corrosion problems. These chimneys are
preferred in charcoal operations with large plant sites and
where the fuelwood is permanently carried to.
Figure 9 shows a medium size earthmound kiln with an
attached chimney assembled from spent oil drums. The centre
pillar as shown in Figure 9 guarantees the firing of the
wood pile from top to bottom at the same time. The
carbonization will progress from the centre to the edges
almost equally and within the entire height of the kiln.
Chimney kilns are usually lighted with a torch. During the
operation the same observations and probings are necessary
as already mentioned in the section dealing with regular
earthmound kilns.
Owing to the higher temperatures which can be achieved
the charcoal produced in these kilns has a low content of
volatile matter and consequently a higher heating value as
compared to normal earthmound charcoal.
One disadvantage which is connected with all kilns
having a loose shell has to be seen in the always present
danger of showing cracks during the carbonization and
cooling phase.
This contributed to the fact that many charcoal
producers turned to kilns with fixed shells, which are
represented by the hangar and round grill types and which
will be described later.

2 .1.4 The Earthmound Kiln with Tar Recovery

It is only a small step from the chimney-kiln to the

charcoal operation with tar recovery. A few but important
modifications within in the chimney section are necessary.

- 35 -
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- 36 -
 In the first circumstance the chimney is designed to
expel all gases generated during the carbonization process
into the ambient atmosphere. In the latter case the chimney
serves two purposes: condensing part of the gases and
guiding the uncondensable portions to the outside.
Since the investment cost would not allow the
installation of chiller and scrubber systems the earthmound
operator has to limit himself to the collection of only part
of the charcoal by-products. In this case it will be mainly
wood tar.
From 100 steres of wood normally 25 tons of condensate
can be recovered (8) . It consists of water, acids and tar .
In practice about 2 tons of tar can be recovered from it (9).
Since all wood tars contain a high proportion of heavy
organic chemicals with higher melting and boiling points the
condensation of them by aircoolers is quite efficient.
For this reason, the way the hot gases travel through
the stack, has to be extended to allow them to dispose of
part of their tangible heat within the chimney area,
resulting in partial condensation.
This can be accomplished by putting in the chimney some
metal sheets which force the gases to flow around them and
do not permit them to escape on a direct way.
Figure 10 displays the simple design for a three
sectional kiln stack made from oil drums.
In many cases a higher chimney will be required to
provide an adequate travel route for the gases.
The condensed tar and oils will be collected at the
bottom of the stack and lead through a pipe into the storage
drum.
The structure of the wood pile with supporting grate
beneath and the shell are built in the same manner as with
regular kilns.
Of course, some special structures have been in use with
more or less significant effects. The best results the
author has achieved were with fixed shell kilns of the
hangar type and with a modified Brazilian Beehive kiln.
- 37-
 The economics which can be achieved by the recovery 0 f
charcoal by-products will depend very much on the use-market
prices for them. In 1983, according to a market survey
performed by the author in African and some Asian markets
the production cost for charcoal in earthmound kilns ranged
between USD 48.00 and 62.00 per ton of lump charcoal. Tar
sales would have reduced the production cost by USD 15.00 to
22.00 per ton.

2.2 Charcoal-Making with Portable and Movable Kilns

These kilns are made by modi fying oil drums or other

containers or are specially designed and built from metal
sheets. The latter consist of few sections. They are rapidly
assembled or dismantled by the charcoal burner, using simple
tools.
Kilns of this kind have been made since the beginning of
the century (the Delhemmeau Kiln, 1907) (7), as an easier
means than the traditional stack, for the production of
charcoal from bulky sawmill waste and the branches and
brushwood left after felling. Interest in them quickened
when i t was found practically and economically feasible to
use charcoal gas-producers for propelling motor vehicles.
But the use of these kilns reached its maximum in some
Western European countries during the 1939 - 45 war when
petrol supplies were short and charcoal became by far the
most commonly used fuel for combustion engines. The vogue of
portable kilns passed with the return of normal fuel
supplies to these countries. The kilns are now made by only
a few of the many manufacturers of ten years ago .
In this type of kiln, carbonization is discontinuous,
being carried out by the combustion of part of the timber to
be carbonized. For the most part, these kilns work on the
downward, rarely direct, draught principle. Observations
(10) made with the help of regularly spaced pyrometers
ins ide ki lns of the stack type show that carbonization works
- 38-
in the same direction as in the traditional pit or
earthmound kiln, e. g. from the top downwards and from the
middle outwards. Carbonization temperature is usually 440°C,
but may be higher and even slightly exceed 600° C during
"flare-ups".
Portable kilns have one great advantage over the
traditional stacks in that they appreciably reduce the time
of the carbonization operation (about 48 hours), chiefly
because the preliminary "dressing" of the stacks with earth
is dispensed with. Moreover, the carbonization process
requires much less surveillance, so that there is some
economy in manpower. Furthermore, the charcoal produced is
free from earth and gravel and this is important where it is
to be used for gas-producers or combustion engines.
The chief criticism directed at these kilns emphasizes
that they do not facilitate the collection of by-products,
and that their charcoal yield is low compared with the
weight of wood carbonized (4). The yield, however, can be
appreciably increased if the various operations are carried
out carefully, especially charging and control of the air
intake.

2.2.1 The Tongan Oil Drum Kiln

The Tongan oil drum kiln is a low-capi tal, small-scale

method of producing charcoal from wood (11).
As the name suggests, this kiln was developed in Tonga
when the need arose for a low-cost method for converting
coconut shells and wood to a salable product . The solution
was a simple-to-contruct and use charcoal kiln made from a
200 litre drum. Other drum kilns have been made in the past,
but because of their design have not been particularly
efficient or easy to use. The Tongan kiln, however, takes
advantage of the drum shape to produce good quality charcoal
simply.

- 39-
-
- 40 -
 The key to the Tongan design is the opening, about 20 cm
wide, which is cut along the vertical side of the drum (see
Figure 11). With the drum lying on its side and the opening
facing the prevailing breeze, a fire is built inside. The
drum is rolled so that the opening reaches a progressively
higher position. This allows more and more firewood to be
added until the drum is completely full. I t is important
that a good fire is kept burning without being smothered by
the addition of new wood. As the fire burns down, more wood
is added - the whole process taking up to an hour. When no
more wood can be added and the fire is burning strongly, the
drum is ready to be sealed. (The charring process has
already begun in the lower part of the drum where the air
cannot reach). The drum is rolled over so that the opening
is facing the ground. Clay or sand is packed around the
bottom so that no smoke can escape. At this time, the entire
drum is sealed and can be left for 6-8 hours to cool. When
i t is completely cool, the drum can be rolled over again
and the charcoal removed (see Figure 11).

The Tongan kiln possesses several advantages:

Low cost: The only costs involved are the drum and the
tools to cut it open (hammer, chisel, bush knife).

Transportable: One person can carry it to the si te of

the firewood.

Simple to use : There is less danger of being burned

than with some larger kilns and retorts because the
major movement is by rolling and the small size makes
the fire manageable. I t does not require highly skilled
labour.

Efficient: Tests have shown that the output of charcoal

per kilogram of firewood equals that of the larger
retorts.
- 41-
 It can deal with small amounts of firewood. One needs
merely to increase the number of drums if greater
quantities are to be processed.

The disadvantages are:

Firewood must be cut to fit the drum.

Drums last at most 6 months.

Charcoal in contact with the ground during the cooling

part of the process may absorb moisture. To prevent
this, the original section of the drum that was removed
to make the opening can be replaced as a door using a
wire hinge.

2.2.2 The Philippines Kiln

This kiln was first designed and used in the

Philippines, in particular for the carbonization of coconut
shells . It employs an oil drum set up vertically (12) .
The Philippines kiln is made from an old oil drum in
which the top and bottom lids are still firmly in place.
Reject oil drums can usually be bought cheaply at oil
company depots, and these are quite suitable. In addition to
the drum, a flat circular sheet of thin metal, about
50-5 4 cm in diameter, with a central hole 10 cm in diameter,
is required. This forms a movable lid for the kiln. For
convenience, a handle can be bolted or tack-welded onto this
lid. A smaller piece of flat metal 15 cm in diameter is used
to form a cap for the central hole in the lid when
charcoaling is completed.
The kiln is constructed as follows. At the top of the
drum there are two holes. The plugs should be removed from
these holes and, using an oxy-acetylene welding torch, the

- 42 -
 Top of drum o
( becotnes bottom)

4 holtls (S em dia.)
for kiln air inlet

Cover for hole in lid

(ISem dia.)

Lid (50 em dia.) with

10 em hot« and handlt'J

Hole (45 em dia.) cut in

top of lid leaving rim
of Scm

Figure 12 The Philippines oil drum kiln

- 43 -
smaller one is cut out so that it is as big as the larger
one (see Figure 12). Two more holes are cut in the top of
the drum, the same size as the larger hole and positioned at
the same distance from the edge of the drum and midway
between the first two. At the opposite end of the drum, a
circle of metal about 48 cm (16 inches) across is cut out.
The drum is now ready for use, the end with the four holes
forming the bottom of the kiln (see Figure 12).
To operate the kiln, it must be positioned securely on
bricks or pieces of metal pipe or rail about 5 cm high, so
that the air holes are not blocked. Alternatively, a round
hole about 50 cm in diameter can be dug in the earth over
which the drum is placed. Air channels must be dug under the
edge of the drum so that air can freely enter the air holes.
After the drum has been filled with coconut shells,
leaving a hole about 15 cm across by 15 cm deep at the top,
paper, coconut fronds, or an oily rag are placed in this
hole and the fire is lit at the top of the kiln. When the
f ire has "caught on" (this will take about 5 minutes), the
lid is placed on top of the kiln. Dense whi te smoke should
issue from the hole in the lid.
If flames are seen, there is too much air entering the
kiln. The small centre hole in the lid must be covered with
a flat piece of metal, so that only white smoke continues to
emerge. The air entering the bottom of the kiln through the
four holes should be controlled by banking up earth or sand
around the bottom of the kiln so that only two small gaps
(5 cm by 1 cm) on opposite sides of the kiln remain.
As the shells are converted to charcoal, they reduce in
volume. The lid should be removed and the kiln refilled with
shells about three times at 3D-minute intervals. After about
2 1/2 hours, the smoke will decrease in quantity and change
from dense white to pale blue-grey. When the kiln has
virtually stopped smoking, the cap should be put over the
top hole, and the cap, the kiln lid and the bottom of the
kiln must be sealed securely with sand or earth so that no

- 44 -
air can enter the kiln. Any air entering the kiln will
reduce the charcoal yield.
Four hours after sealing, the kiln should be cool to the
touch and ready for discharge. Each kiln should yield
12-25 kg of charcoal per firing. A single worker should be
able to operate up to 10 kilns on a daily cycle.

2.2.3 The Black Rock Forest Kiln

This kiln is in one piece, the part being electrically

welded to form a bell of steel sheeting. The dimensions are
shown in Figure 13 . Capacity is about 2 .8 m3
The lower part is pierced with holes, 4 for the
reception of steel smoke outlets, the others acting as air
intakes. The upper part has a hole fitted with a metal cap.
The kiln was designed with a view to its use as part of
a fixed charcoal burning yard, consisting of four kilns
which can be hoisted on to eight cement emplacements . The
latter are distributed in a circle, in the centre of which
is a derrick for moving the kilns (see Figure 14, 15).
Large stocks of wood are piled near the emplacements,
and while carbonization is taking place on emplacement A,
with kiln no. 1, (Figure 15), the crew prepares the stack on
emplacement B. When carbonization is completed on
emplacement A, number one kiln is lifted therefrom and
placed over the stack already prepared on emplacement B.
Firing takes place at once, and while carbonization is in
progress the crew sacks the charcoal made on emplacement A
and prepares the fresh stack on A.
When carbonization is completed on empl acement B, the
kiln is hoisted and placed over the stacked wood on A, and
so on. It can be seen that when this process is repeated for
each of the emplacements A, B, C, 0, E, F, G, H, and for
each of the four kilns, there are no slack periods in the
crew's working time.

- 45-
 3
1 =Steel sheet
2 = Lid for ignition hole

,==
3 = Air inlets at the bottom

5
Chimney
Hoisting rings

Figure 13 The Black Rock Forest kiln .

Figure 14 Handling the kiln with a derrick.

-46 -
 A

D
H B

G~
4 ARM OF
DERRICK
®::
F
0 3
0 0

A - H = Concrete emplacements for kilns

1- 4 = Kilns in operation

Figure 15 A battery of four Black Rock Forest

kilns in operation

- 47-
 Preparation of the wood. Logs are laid radially on the
emplacement, leav ing channels between them to correspond to
the air intake holes in the base of the kiln. The wood grate
is laid on the logs and the wood is arranged in
stack-formation on it. The shape and position of the central
chimney are fixed by a vertical steel cylinder which fits
into a cavity in the emplacement. Immediately around this
pipe, dry brush-wood is heaped and the wood to be carbonized
is heaped to the top of the kiln. The steel cylinder serving
as a guide for the central chimney is removed afterwards.
Lighting. When the wood has been stacked, it is covered
by the kiln which rests directly upon the cement
emplacement. Earth is piled all around the edges of the kiln
to prevent the passage of air.
The kiln can be lit either by means of the central
chimney, introducing embers and dry brushwood through the
central hole, or by thrusting embers through a tube inserted
into one of the base inlets. In the latter case, the central
chimney is filled with brushwood during the stacking
operation.
When the fire is well alight, the upper hole is blocked,
the smoke-outlet pipes are inserted, and carbonization goes
on until flames appear at the lower holes. These are then
stopped up in turn and the stack is allowed to cool.

2.2 .4 Sectional Metal Kilns

Several versions of these kiln types have been on the

markets and in use. Especially during war times the army
employed these kilns to obtain a clean charcoal for their
own supply.
They all consist of at least one cylindrical section
with a conical cover and two or more smoke stacks. an the
kiln base are usually four air channels fitted and the cover
is provided with four equally spaced steam release ports.

- 48 -
 The kilns are made from sheet metal and can be built by
local craftsmen in a workshop which has basic welding,
rolling, drilling and cutting equipment.
Figures 16 and 17 show a sectional kiln and the way the
wood grate on the bottom of the kiln is arranged.
The principles which apply for the charging and
operation of the earthmound kilns described in the previous
sections are almost the same for the sectional metal kilns.
The popularity and the widespread use these kilns once
enjoyed is mainly due to the fact that their sections can be
separated and carried to another plant site.
However, several facts have hampered their promotion
during the past five to ten years gradually:
rising iron and steel prices have made the kiln
unaffordable for many charcoal makers especially in
developing countries
the kiln shell, i f not properly designed and contructed,
can be deformed during operation and the repair requires
machinery which would be rarely available in a remote
charcoal camp
the kiln tends to corrode and the lifespan is short in
comparison with firebrick kilns.

The Tropical Products Institute (TPI), a scientific unit

of the Overseas Development Organisation of the U.K. has
gained considerable experience in operating sectional metal
kilns of various design. The institute has evolved a kiln
with good durability which is considered to be optimal in
economy also.
The institute recommends a two sectional kiln,
consisting of two interlocking cylinders with a conical
cover. The kiln is supported on eight air inlet/outlet
channels, arranged radially around the base (13).
During charring four smoke stacks are fitted onto
alternate air channels. The cover has four equally spaced
steam release ports which may be closed off with plugs.

- 49 -
rfJ 0,10 m gJ 0,45 m

Figure 16 A portable metal kiln

Figure 17 Air inlet channels at the

boHom of a portable metal
kiln with wood grate

- 50-
 The size of the wood to be charged to the kiln must not
exceed 60 cm in length and the maximum diameter is 20 cm.
Wood with a diameter greater than this should be split
before kilning. The TPI kiln takes approximately 7 m3 of
fuelwood.
After placing the lower section of the kiln onto the
supporting air inlet channels the bottom of the kiln is laid
out with stringers forming a grate. Care has to be taken,
that the air channels protruding into the kiln are not
blocked by the wood charge.
The fuel wood is normally placed horizontally in
successive layers, filling in as many gaps as possible. It
is advisable to place the thicker logs in the centre of the
kiln where they will be more exposed to the heat as close to
a wall.
For the lighting of the kiln several points at the base
will be prepared with kindling material and for the ignition
a flame is necessary.
During the carbonization colour of the smoke, wall
temperature and leaks have to be watched. For the cooling of
the kiln all openings are closed and the smoke stacks were
taken down before.
The author has experimented with various kilns of the
TPI type in East Africa and has established the following
working schedule with hardwood (acacia d.):

Two experienced operators

1. day Loading time 2 hours 08:00 - 10:00

lighting and draft
reducing 1 hour 10:00 - 13:00
Charr ing time 19 hours

2. day Unloading 2 hours 08:00 - 10:00

- 51 -
 For the operation the following tools were in use:
one crosscut saw, one axe, two wedges, one sledge hammer,
one cutlass, one rake.

According to the TPI the following materials and their

quantities are necessary for the construction of the kiln:

Part Material Quantity

Sufficient
Base section to cut:
Top and bottom SO mm x SO mm x 6 pieces,
rings 3 mm mild steel each 2 430 mm
(m.s.) angle long

Body 3 mm m.s. sheet 3 pieces,

each 2 430 mm
x900 mm
or:
Body 3 mm m.s. sheet 3 pieces each
2 480 mm x
900 mm

Upper section
Top ring SO mm x SO mm x 3 pieces,
3 mm m.s. angle each
2 398 mm long
Bottom r ing SO mm x SO mm x 3 pieces,
3 mm m.s. strip each
2 398 mm long

Body 2 mm m.s. sheet 3 pieces,

each
2 448 mm x
900 mm

- 52 -
Top cover
Cover sectors 2 mm m.s. sheet 2 pieces,

steam ports 50 mm x 3 mm m.s. 4 pieces,

strip each 630 mm
long

Lifting handles 10 mm diameter 4 pieces,

m. s . rod each 500 mm
(concrete rein- long
forcing bar)

steam port covers (4 per kiln)

Bodies Either 50 mm x 4 pieces,
3 mm m.s. strip each 440 mm
long
OR 140 mm OR 4 rings,
diameter steel each 50 mm
pipe. (Use pipe wide
if available)

Top discs -3 mm m.s. sheet 4 discs, each

190 mm
diameter.

Handles 5 mm diameter 4 pieces,

steel rod each 180 mm
(concrete rein- long
forcing bar)

Base channels (8 per kiln)

Channel 3 mm m.s. sheet 8 pieces,
sections each 500 mm x
500 mm

Spigots Either 3 mm m.s. 8 pieces,each

sheet 375 x 150 mm

- 53 -
 OR OR
120 mm diameter 8 pieces,
steel pipe each 150 mm
long

Smoke stacks (4 per kiln)

Thin-walled steel 4 pieces,
pipe each 2 300 mm
long

This list may be used by the prospective charcoal-maker

as guide to determine his own investment costs according to
the domestic metal prices and to find out about the
maintenance costs of local shops.
For the filling of sacks the use of a sieve chute is
very practical. The chute is positioned in a sloped manner
and should have a width on the upper end of 1.000 mm and on
the lower side 300 mm to ke e p the sacks wide open.
The screen can be made from square wire mesh and the
mesh sizes may vary between 10 and 40 mm to separate the
charcoal f i ne s . The classificatio n of charcoal for exports,
however , will require sieving by standardised screens .

2.2.5 The Carborion Kiln

Although the manufacturer of this type of kiln ceased a

few years after the Second World War, it is worth mentioning
for its originality. As far as is known, it is the only
portable kiln which produces charcoal in a retort with
external heating, and it may be useful to describe its
principles.
The Carbor ien Kiln consists of a tank of thick sheet
metal which takes the wood to be carbonized. The bottom of
the tank is perforated and it is fitted with an air-tight
lid. There are models of one-half and one stere capacity
respectively (see Figure 18).

- 54-
 1

1 = Sections of kiln shell

2 = Retort
3 =Apertures in retort base
, = Brick bed
5 = Door in outer casing

Figure 18 The Carborion kiln

- 55 -
 The tank rests on a small layer of bricks, and the whole
is enclosed in a sheet metal casing of fitted sections which
are easily dismantled. The free space between the brick
layers serves as a furnace fed through two apertures in the
outer casing.
When the apparatus is sited and loaded, the fire is l i t
under the retort. As soon as combust ible gases are given off
by the distillation of the wood, they must necessarily
escape through the apertures in the base of the retort. In
contact with the fire, the gases explode and so ensure
continued burning.
There are small sight-holes in the outer casing, so that
the ca rbonization can be followed: i t is considered to be
finished when gases are no longer given off. The outer
casing is then removed, the retort is laid on the ground,
and earth is packed around its base so that air cannot enter
the retort through the apertures. The outer casing can
therefore be used with another retort.
The whole apparatus weighs 450 kg 012 stere model) or
590 kg (1 stere model).
The carbonizing period var ies from 1-1/2 hours (1/2
stere) to 4 hours 0 stere) according to the size of the
kiln and to the properties of ' wood being carbonized.

2.3 Concrete and Brick Kilns

In this category one finds the most effective kilns,

provided that they are properly constructed and operated.
Some types have proved their economic viability over more
than fifty years. The number of these kilns in operation at
present can hardly be estimated, but it is certainly close
to 250,000.
The kiln design is simple, the investment capital re-
quirements are low, and a surprisingly good quality of char-
coal is produced both for household fuel and industrial uses.

- 56-
 Both concrete and brick types must comply with a number
of important requirements to be succesful. The kiln must be
simple to construct, relatively unaffected by thermal
stresses on heating and cooling, and strong enough to
withstand the mechanical stresses of loading and unloading.
I t must be unaffected by rain and weather over six to ten
years .
The kiln must permit control of the entry of air at all
times, and for the cooling phase there has to be a provision
for effective hermetic sealing. It must be of reasonably
lightweight construction to allow cool ing to take place
fairly easily and yet provide good thermal insulation for
the wood undergoing carbonization, otherwise the origination
of cold spots due to wind impact on the kiln walls will
prevent proper burning of the charcoal and lead to excessive
production of partially carbonized wood (brands) and low
yields. The ability of the brick kiln to conserve the heat
of carbonization is an important factor in its high
conversion efficiency of wood to charcoal .
The design of these kilns has been refined over a long
period of time. ' They can be differentiated by their shape
into hangar kilns (rectangular of square shape) and round
brick kilns.

Hangar kilns: Missouri kiln, Ottelinska furnace,

Cinder-block kilns.

Round brick kilns: Argentine kiln (hal f-orange) ,

Brazilian kiln (beehive), Schwartz furnace.

The Missouri, Cinder-block, Argentine and Brazilian kilns

burn part of the charged wood within the kiln to carbonize
the remainder. The Ottelinska, Reichenbach and Schwartz
furnaces use the hot flue gases from a central fire grate,
passed through the kiln to supply heat for drying and
heating the wood to start carbonization. The Ottelinska,

- 57 -
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f5.

- 58 -
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- 59-
Schwartz and Reichenbach types require considerable amounts
of steel for buckstays on the kiln chamber, and steel grates
and doors for the furnace. Their yields (when the firewood
is counted) are not in practice superior to the others. The
Missouri kiln is well proven, it has been developed in
practice, and is still in use in the United States. It is
usually made of reinforced concrete or concrete breeze
blocks and has steel chimneys and doors. Its yield is
similar to the Argentine and Brazilian furnace. It is fitted
with large steel doors which allow mechanical equipment to
be used for loading and unloading. It has two disadvantages
for developing world use : it requires a lot of steel and
cement for its construction (both are costly, and are
usually imported items), and it is not so easy to cool as
other furnaces. It is thus more sui ted for use in temperate
climates where the materials and skills for steel and
reinforced concrete construction are at hand and low air
temperatures permit easy cooling. It is attractive where
labour, front-end loaders etc ., are readily available .

2.3.1 The Missouri Kiln

The footing for the Missouri charcoal kiln consists of

concrete, steel reinforced, 45 cm wide in front and rear and
40 cm wide at the sides . Two 1,3 cm rods are located 15 cm
from the bottom of the footing and 15 cm from each side. The
footing should be located in undisturbed soil (not in a
filled-in area) . Should the kiln be constructed in a
filled-in area , special consideration must be given to the
footing to avoid foundation failure in the future . The
footing and floor may be made of native washed sand and
gravel, as they are not required to withstand high
temperatures (see Figures 19 - 20) .
A notch is provided in the top of the footing to assist
in locking the wall to the footing. Reinforcing rods
(1,3 cm) are placed vertically 30 cm apart around the
- 60 -
foundation where the wall JOlns the footing. These rods
should extend 25 cm into the footing and have a 12 cm leg at
a 90 degree angle to ensure a strong bond (14).
The floor is a 10 cm concrete slab with 15 x 15 cm
# 10/# 10 steel reinforcing mesh. The floor has a crown down
the centre line of the kiln and at the low or drain end of
the kiln the floor slopes 15 cm to either side so that the
liquors processed from the wood will drain out of the 6 cm
pipes built in the footing. Any fill under the floor should
be of gravel packed over wetted soil to ensure a firm base.
Undesired air entrances are sealed wi th clay, mud or
ashes. Doors at each end of the kiln provide uninterrupted
loading and unloading of the kilns when more than one kiln
is being operated.

Construction details (14)

Six 1,50 m length of used boiler flue pipe, 10 cm in

diameter, are required for the six air inlet holes in side
walls. Four pieces of 4 m long, 10 cm diameter boiler tubes
are desirable to pipe air from the doors to near the centre
of the kiln during burning. Seven caps are required for the
seven fresh air ventilation holes made from truck rims.
Eight chimney caps are required to plug the chimneys during
the cooling phase. Two door stops are necessary for the
holes provided in the footing.
A suggested ladder and catwalk are indicated in the
figure. These provide ready access to the top of the kiln . A
ladder may be used to reach chimney tops for capping and
uncapping.
The volume of this kiln design is 180 m3. However, it
3
is expected that only 165 m of wood would be loaded into
it for burning.
The walls and roof are made of expanded shale aggregate
which has the same coefficient of expansion as the Portland
cement with air entraining agent. This will minimize cracks

- 61-
in the kiln under the temperatures encountered in
charcoaling. Some cracks are to be expected due to the
different coefficient of expansion of the steel and
concrete. The air entraining agents cause minute air bubbles
in the concrete, and among other things, make the concrete a
better insulator which helps prevent loss of heat during the
coaling cycle.
The front and rear walls are 30 cm thick. The side walls
are 25 cm thick. This thickness provides heavy duty
unloading abuses. These abuses are, for example: throwing
the cordwood into the kiln during loading and often hitting
the wall, mechanical equipment ramming the wall, an
automoti ve truck bumping into the walls whilst loading the
kiln.
Bent plates (19 mm thick) topped together with a 30 cm
I-beam on its side form the door facing for kiln protection.
Each side wall contains four 15 cm diameter tiles for
chimney entrances. A 12 cm air inlet hole is located
half-way between each chimney.
15 mm diameter reinforcing steel rods are located 30 cm
apart and centred in the walls and roof. Each intersection
is tied together with wire for additional strength.
The roof contains seven ventilation holes for fresh air
dur ing unloading of the kiln. Three of these are down the
top centre line of the kiln and two are on either side.
Their exact location may be varied within limits. To reduce
expense, these holes may be made from used truck rims cut in
half to make two forms from each rim.
Doors are large enough to provide truck and tractor
entrance for loading and unloading . The doors for the kiln
are made of 9 mm thick steel plate, 1. 50 m wide and 2.50 m
high. There are two doors closing at the centre of each end
of the kiln. Each door is hung on four 40 cm heavy duty
hinges . Fifteen 2 cm bolts are used to secure the door tight
on each end of the kiln. These bolts are spaced about 30 cm
apart on the top .

- 62 -
Photo 3 A Missouri kiln. The shell is dangerously
cracked as a result of faulty operation.
Ghana. (Photo W. Emrich)

Photo 4 Side view of kiln with two smoke pipes

and air inlet holes at the bottom. Ghana.
(Photo W. Emrich)
- 63 -
Operation

A crew of two men is needed for loading and unloading

equipment with a front-end loader and truck . One operator
per shift is sufficient to contro l the burning and one man
per shift can supervise a number of kilns.
The burn ing of the kiln is controlled in a similar way
to the portable metal kiln. The gas circulation system is
similar. Yields are usually better because the better
thermal insulation and greater ratio of volume to surface
area means that the endothermal heat of carbonization is
better utilized and the kiln is not so much subject to the
cooling effects of winds and rain as the un insulated metal
kiln.
Missouri kilns are usually equipped with thermocouples
to read the temperature at several points within the kiln.
This is important with such large kilns as it enables cold
and hot spots to be readily detected and corrective action
taken by the operator by closing or opening air vents along
the base of the kiln. The cooling process can also be
checked so that the kiln is opened only when the t empe r a t ur e
of the charcoal is low enough'. This avoids fires which, in
such large kilns, are not easy to control even with
mechanical handling.
The sudden entry of large amounts of air into a burning
kiln may cause an explosion. Numerous minor explosions have
been reported in Missouri with no personal injuries. The
most serious explosion reported was the partial destruction
of a kiln. The top was blown off. The person closest to the
kiln was 300 m away.
It is commonly reported that kilns "puff", and lids on
air ventilation holes in the top are blown off. Such
occurrences can be avoided by proper sealing with clay or
soil, preventing the sudden entry of air, as mentioned above.
The photos 3 and 4 exhibit a not so rare damage of the
kiln shell caused by failure of the construction material
and faulty operation.
- 64-
 The kiln cycle is usually about 25 to 30 days, depending
on cooling rates. The capacity of two 180 m3 kilns is
about equal in wood consumption to a standard battery of
seven medium-size Brazilian kilns. But because the cycle
time is different, the utilization of labour is not so
efficient as i t could be unless there are more than two
kilns to a battery. Utilization of mechanical equipment is
not optimized unless the number of kilns is sufficient to
keep it working more or less continuously.
The cycle time of a Missouri kiln in a warm climate can
be at least one month, made up as follows:
Loading: 2 days 2 men plus machines.
Burning: 6 days 2 men on 12 hr. or 3 men on 8 hr. shift.
Cooling: 20 days (min) 1 man part-time supervision.
Unloading: 2 days 2 men plus machines.
The total time is 30 days . If machines are not
available, the cycle time can stretch to two months or more.
The Missouri kiln's greatest advantage compared with
brick kilns is the possibility, in fact the necessity, of
mechanical loading and unloading.
Its disadvantages are the high cost, due to the use 0 f
large quanti ties of steel and concrete, and its immobility.
Unlike brick kilns, i t cannot be demolished and rebuilt.
Hence a ten-year wood supply must be available within
economic haul distance of any group of kilns. The amount of
wood for a group of three 180 m3 kilns would be
3
60.000 m approximately . About 2.000 ha of forest capable
of yielding 30 m3 per hectare would have to be set aside
for ten years to supply this amount of wood. Such an area
would give a mean haulage distance of about 1 km which is
reasonable.
It is the belief of FAO/Rome that Missouri kilns are not
suitable for technology transfer to developing countries be-
cause they require large quantities of costly imported items
like cement and steel. Also the long cooling time presents a
drawback which becomes sensitive in areas with a hot climate.

- 65 -
2.3.2 Cinder-Block Kilns

The masonry-type walls of these kilns should be

supported by a continous perimeter -type reinforced concrete
footing. The footing should extend at least 25 em below the
surface of well-drained ground. If only intermittent winter
operation is planned in areas where the ground freezes, the
footing should extend below the frostline. If continous
winter operation is planned or if frost seldom or never
occurs, a minimum footing depth 0 f 25 em may be used (see
Figures 21 - 22).
It is very important that the first course of blocks be
carefully laid in a full bed of mortar. If the base and
second courses are accurately laid, the balance of the
blocks will go into place with all joints perfectly broken.
All blocks are laid with the hollow cores vertical. If
hol low core blocks are used in the top course, all cores
must be filled with mortar to prevent channelling of air
into the kiln through cracks that might develop on the inner
wall surface (15).
Neat cement or the standard 1: 3 mix of cement and sand
may be used to level of f the tops of the front wall blocks
over which the bottom of the angle-iron lintel must rest in
order to seal off the ceiling cover with sand . A piece of
bright sheet metal may also be used between the angle lintel
and the top of the wall to permit the lintel to slide more
easily along the top of the wall. A loose brick may be used
to retain the sand at the end of the lintel .
One or two courses of brick are commonly laid around the
top edge of the kiln to act as a coping. The purpose of the
coping is to help prevent the ceiling sand from being washed
and blown off the ceiling steel. Sections of steel rails or
I-beams can serve both as a coping material and as a support
for the ceiling beams. They also distribute the weight of
the ceiling beams along the s ide walls and restrain the
walls from bowing outwards at the top .

- 66-
 -
o
'11
U
.....
'11
"5
~
U
0
....0
:Q ~
I III
.....
CIJ
'tl
.........CIJ
:J
·S 0
u
l.>
'<:( '-

-
C"\I

- 67-
 Good workmanship is very important when laying the
walls. If an experienced mason is not available, some good
manual of recommended practices should be consul ted before
attempting to lay any block. Such publications will provide
dimensions of the various types of blocks, recommended
mortar mixes, and many helpful suggestions for building a
good wall.
All mortar joints must be carefully compressed and left
neat and compact, either in a concave or V-shape. Such
joints will provide a good valley for sealing compound as
sealing becomes necessary during operation. Other types of
mortar joints are not recommended.
Either one or as many as four chimneys are normally
used. When only one chimney is used, i t is located in the
centre of the rear wall. When three chimneys are used,
another is added at the lengthwise centre of each side wall.
When four are used, one is placed at or near each of the
corners of the kiln.
15 or 25 em diameter sheet-metal chimneys are supported
on loose resting on masonry blocks. Chimney bases are
constructed from loose pier-type masonry blocks placed
directly on the ground, with loose steel plate covers
resting on the blocks. Two 1.0 by 40 by 50 em plates are
used at each chimney. One plate next to the kiln is Left
loose and removable so that a shovelful of sand can be added
for closing-off the chimney during the cooling period.
Partial or full-length insulation of metal-type chimneys
is helpful in colder climates to retard the condensation and
build-up of tars. Chimney tile has been used success fully
inside masonry block chimneys, particularly those partially
or wholly buried in an earth fill. Some commercial chimneys
have been made from concrete masonry block without any
lining. All chimneys should extend at least 30 cm above the
top of the kiln structure.
Front-entry air supply has given satis fatory results in
both one- and three-chimney designs. Front air entry is most
easily obtained by hanging the sliding metal door so that
- 68-
there are about 8 em of clearance at the floor line. It is
then a simple matter to seal the opening a litle at a time
wi th earth or sand as less air is required. Some operators
prefer to use blocks laid on their sides in front of the
door to baffle heavy winds during coaling. When a laid-up
masonry door is used, blocks of the first course are laid on
their sides so that cores are horizontal . Then earth or sand
is used to close off the openings as less air is needed.
Sidewall air ports are made by omitting hal f blocks in
the base course at predetermined locations along the side
walls. Each opening can be lined with chimney tile or brick
if desired, or used without lining if cinder-concrete is
used . Air ports lined with chimney tile can also be used as
chimney openings.
Although a roof structure is not a part of the kiln, it
is desirable for shedding rain or snow and to protect
ceiling parts from early corrosion. When roof trusses are
used to support the steel ceiling, the roof structure
becomes essential. The kiln may be roofed in any convenient
way, with either boards or sheet-metal roofing . Trusses can
be assembled from ordinary woodlot lumber. A simple
shed-type roof with poles of material slabbed on two sides
or squared for rafters and beams would also furnish the
necessary ceiling protection.

Operation:

Three types of wood are generally used: cordwood;

sawmill slab and edging stock; and blocks and short-length
material from sawmills or wood-manufacturing plants.
Cordwood and slabs and edgings are usually 1 .20 m or more in
length, and short-length discarded material may vary from
about 8 to 40 em length.
The manner in which a kiln is charged depends primarily
on the types of wood and the location of openings for
regulated air entry and smoke outlets . The main object is

- 69 -
 ~
v LINTEL

.rs;:-,
STRETCHER

..~ . ". -'.- .

..

CORNER

PIER

Figure 22 Typical masonry units for block - type

charcoal kilns
- 70 -
 to stack the wood so that the combustion gases can
circulate freely through the pile and most effective use is
made of kiln capacity.
Cordwood and slabs are usually hauled to the kiln by
truck or tractor, and the pieces are stacked in the kiln by
hand. The sticks are commonly piled horizontally, parallel
to the sidewalls and on stringers, as shown in Figure 23.
The use of stringers leaves less space for the charge,
but better circulation of air and hot gases is thus gained
with the result that there is less partly charred material.
This material (brands), accumulates usually near the floor
of the kiln, where temperatures are lowest. The stringers
should be placed so that they cause the minimum obstruction
of air intakes and chimney outlets.
Measurement of temperatures is highly important in kiln
operation, since the coaling process is controlled by means
of temperature and time. The temperature at any given time
during the coaling cycle, therefore, gives a direct and
reliable measure of the progress of the run. Figure 23 shows
details of the thermocouple assembly. Except possibly at the
end of the coaling period, smoke colour and volume give
little indication of the actual pattern of progress (16).
The heat for initial drying of the charge is provided
during the ignition period. This heat is supplied by burning
wood fuel placed at midpoint or in front of the charge, or
by an oil or gas-fired torch at similar locations.
Some ignition fuels commonly used are dry kindling wood,
brands, charcoal, and fuel oil. The amount of fuel required
depends chiefly upon the moisture content of the wood to be
coaled.
One of the most efficient methods for igniting a charge
is with a kerosene or gas-fired torch. These torches are
comparatively inexpensive and provide a high-temperature
heat source capable of igniting seperate parts of the charge
in a very short time. The torch flame is directed through
one or more air ports until the charge is burning. Normally,
this takes about 5 to 10 minutes (15).
-71-
 THERMOCOUPLE HEAD ASB ESTOS INSULA TION
STEEL OVERBRAID THERMOCOUPLE WIRE

TWIST STRANDS AND WIRE

SOLDER AND I NSUL A TE
wELD POltvrS
DETAIL OF THERMOCOUPLE ASSEM8L y

D ~ eXTENSION WIRES p-
D
~ O!" IU Mt.It:.H ' ~ ,, ' - THERMOCOUPLE
I r : SBES TOS OR FIBROUS Illf
GLASS PACKING .-SAND

..
I /
i II
' , .w , " ". ' ....
.'
fl·' . , . 3
' .. .. .. - : . ,;,. :~!. ~ ".:'.,~ :..
. ~- ", " , _ ., .~ ~ - .
-~ .
I
'-- .-
~ l . · . ; · .t . ·· , ....:. · ..··· ... ·. _ ~ ot < o ' ; ,-
-c \ ". ' .-
-.... '.
N - :..:
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- ." .~ ="- -.._·. ..... _ ~ _·· 4 . -'
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,- " , .. .. .. _' • ' I •
KINDLING . . . - . ,. " ~ -" . ',-. -~ . ..~ .~;p:., ', ~ "': -;~,:~~:.:. :.···r:
AREA I..... . ... ; ~
. !.:~:'-,~t. ~, ~.~~. A
1t ~ ; • ".: 4-0~" ~ ..
It..: : :;;..~ . ' . '~ - ' ~ ' .- '. '[k~'1C'. - -. . " :.; .;<~.:~
lZ·;·· .. -; _. - ' .'- . . . '
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,. .... .. , , "! . .• .:, •• t. ; . r- ••15
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I· -.;
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~' - ." . , ,,"- _ . ,.~ ..;
--- .'
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.w
,"
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r;i; .t ._.'$ -_ b ,..1
Ira' ~ 11 *ri'''"' .~ ~ III l

Figure 23 Detail of the thermocouple assembly on the lengthwise centreline of a

cinder-block kiln

(Courtesy of Southeastern Forest Experiment Station

Ashville, S. C. )
 Satisfactory carbonization depends primarily on
maintenance of proper burning conditions in the coaling
zone. Sufficient heat must be generated first to dry the
wood and then to maintain the temperature necessary for
efficient carbonization. At the same time, the burning must
be limited so that only sufficient heat is present to
produce good charcoal. Kiln temperature is thus the most
reliable measure of control.
For the production of good-quality charcoal, kiln
temperatures from about 450 0 to 550 0 C are required. This
charcoal will have a fixed carbon content of about 75 to 82
per cent. Prolonged higher temperatures will reduce the
yield of charcoal without necessarily upgrading it for
recreational use. If, on the other hand, coaling
temperatures remain quite low, the charcoal may be too high
in volatiles.
During the coaling cycle, a careful check of kiln
temperatures should be made and the air ports ad justed as
necessary. The temperatures should be checked at least every
2 to 3 hours for satisfactory control. More frequent checks
are advisable when seasoned wood is coaled or during periods
of strong or variable winds.
The air supply is regulated by varying the size of the
air port openings. Undesirable fast combustion caused by
strong winds can be modi f i e d or controlled by the use of
baffles in front of the air openings. The location of
openings for air to be admitted during coaling depends
largely on the kiln design and the coaling pattern desired.
In general, coaling time is related to kiln size. When
the wood and operating conditions are similar, the time
3
required for coaling in a 35 m kiln will be approximately
3
twice that in one of 18 m capacity. Means for modifying
the rather fixed rate of temperature rise to coaling
conditions in kiln charges are limited. Attempts to speed up
the rate -- for example, by allowing more air to enter --
will raise kiln temperatures excessively and impair charcoal
yields and properties (15).
- 73 -
 It is possible, however, to adjust coaling time by
changing the size of the coaling zone and the manner in
which it is directed through the charge. In rectangular
kilns it has been possible to reduce the coaling time
greatly by centre firing. In the application of this method,
the coaling zone widens in opposite directions
simultaneously, as compared to the one-direction movement
obtained with end firing.
Cooling cycle . When coaling has been completed, all air
ports are sealed for the start of the cooling cycle. After
the ports are sealed, the chimneys should remain open until
smoking has practically stopped. This permits the escape of
any smoke that may be formed during cooling and prevents the
development of gas pressure in the kiln. Chimneys can
usually be sealed from I to 2 hours after the air ports have
been closed. They should be sealed immediately a fter they
stop smoking, because fresh air may be drawn in by normal
cooling, or a downdraught in an idle chimney may admit
enough air to support combustion or possibly cause an
explosion.
When temperatures have been reduced to 65° C or less, it
is generally safe practice to open the kiln. Before the kiln
is opened for discharge, however, the charcoal should be
checked for localized hot areas that were not evident during
the overall kiln temperatures measurements. This check
should be made by opening several air ports and one or more
chimneys. If the temperature does not rise within 2 hours,
it is considered sa fe to open the kiln completely. If the
temperature rises, however, the kiln should be resealed and
carefully checked for sources of air leakage.

2.3.3 The Schwartz and Ottelinska Furnaces

Both kilns originated in Europe and were very popular in

Sweden. They work on the same principle by using flue gases,
for heating. They are constructed with bricks (17).
-74 -
 I' .
I

Figure 21, The Schwartz charcoal furnace

Figure 25 The Ottelinska furnace

- 75 -
Figure 26 Improving the Schwartz System by installing
" celitoriteres "
(curved heating pipes)

- 76 -
 The firing of the kiln is usually accomplished by two
burning chambers arranged facing each other (see Figures 24
and 25). The kiln can be fired with firewood or by burning
the incondensable gases from the by-product recovery.
The draught for the hot gases is generated by one or
more chimneys. The natural draught of the chimneys is
supported by bellows.
The off-gas is drawn from the bottom of the kiln through
several pipes and is then passed through coolers.
The Ottelinska kiln represents a significant improvement
of the technology in so far as the off-gases from the
carbonization cycle are drawn from four points located more
towards the centre of the kiln.
Usually four or eight kilns form a battery, which is
linked together by the off-gas ducts with a central cooling
and scrubber system and with a central stack duct.
Further advances have been achieved in the USA by
installing so-called "calorif~res", which are gas pipes
leading the heating gas through the kiln during
carbonization (see Figure 26).
During the cooling phase, the cooled down gases from the
central cooling and chilling systems are drawn through the
same pipe to shorten the cooling time.

2 .3.4 The Brazilian Beehive Brick Kiln

These kilns which are operated widely and successfully

in Brazil, and especially in the state of Minas Gerais, are
internally heated, fixed, batch type. The large iron and
steel companies operate several thousand of them.
They are circular, with a domed roof, and are buil t of
ordinary fire bricks. The circular wall is totally in
contact with the outside air. This type of kiln is known as
the "beehive brick kiln" (see Figure 27).
A variation of the beehive brick kiln is the circular,
4 m diameter kiln that is built into a slope or hill which
- 77-
forms the side and rear walls of the circular kiln. This
type is known as the "slope-type kiln" (see Figure 28). I t
uses far fewer bricks. Many thousand of these kilns are in
operation in Minas Gerais and elsewhere in Brazil. They are
very popular among the small, independent charcoal
producers. Their operation is somewhat easier than that of
the beehive brick kilns because there is only one air port
to control, as compared with 18 for the regular beehive
kilns. Chemical and physical composition as well as the
yields of charcoal are comparable to those obtained in
beehive brick kilns.

The general data for the two kilns are (18):

Regular type Slope type

Kiln diameter volume 5.00 m 4.0 m

3 3
Nominal kiln volume 48.94 m 24.8 m
3 3
Effective kiln volume 45.31 m 21. 6 m
No. of air inlet ports 18 1
No . of smoke stacks 6 3
No. of outlet ports 6 4
No. of emergency
outlet ports 50 4
No. of bricks 8.500 2.000

Their most advanced modification is presented in Figure

29. The improvement has to be seen in the attached external
heating chamber and the reduction of the number of smoke
stacks.
For the hea ting of the kiln usually branches, brushwood
and other residue material is burnt, which is not sui table
for kilning and would be wasted otherwise.

- 78 -
Three-sectional iron ( From UNlDO/IOD,
belt 228, 1978 )

C
C Stack
0
C C cc
C C cc
0
C D D

D
Air inlet ports

Gate

Figure 27. The Brazilian beehive brick kiln.

- 79 -
Figure 28 The slope - type beehive brick kiln.
The dome is not yet completed.

- 80-
 ,.:;,;.t.
"" . ..-
~y-
..-t. .... _ ..
' r.~
,!-
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.;;;.-= t- J. ' -of •.• ,...,~ ; J¥... .-
, ) .... ...\#~ ~ ;wo •
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_ ~ ... 'k.: '~'
~ ':J
. , ...
<oj. ~~ e-
>-
Chimney :' '\1""'
-" ~: r.,Jlf!''''''J.
~"" .,'~•.
....
~~~r~p
-s, ., ~.~ .~-:- ~~ <" .
.:.:~ •._ l'~
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. . -'\... ~, . ."' ". >-" ......
~..,.-- . S'
'>~~V
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.:......~~. "IJ.
Smoke Heating F ire Chamber ]J;"'r. ~' .
J!: " :'7~.f!'o~:i..
Pipe Gas Pipes
~~"ZdJ;l
JO.'!~' ' ~'-l _ . ...., • •' ":- ~
, .~ to -, ... ,. ' . - •
" . , . ....... . II
"a,i •.j."
00

t= I II I I I

Figure 29 Beehive fire brick k iln with external heating

(Courtesy of Carbon In ternational. Ltd.

Neu - Isenburg I
F RG )
 Since the necessary energy for the carbonization is
transferred by gases (leaving the fire chamber) only, the
kiln behaves like a charcoal retort with all its advantages:
high charcoal yield, because no wood of the kiln charge is
burnt away; high fixed carbon content of the produced
charcoal, because the terminal temperature of the
carbonization cycle can be very well controlled.
The externally heated Brazilian brick kiln is perfectly
suited for a charcoal operation receiving the raw material
supply from fuel wood plantations or clearcutting actions in
forests, that is, for all commercial purposes where the
requirements are high charcoal yield and optimal quality.
Because the kiln has only one smoke stack through which
the carbonization gases are guided i t is also feasible to
collect charcoal by-products. With properly adapted recovery
equipment attractive quantities of pyrolysis oil may be
gathered.
The author has established a number of beehive
operations during the past years and i t was found that the
investment costs were quite nominal and could be afforded by
smallholder charcoal-makers also. In most cases the
firebricks for the kiln construction were made by the
operators or charcoal students rather than purchased, so far
adequate clay supply was available at the kiln site.
Under these conditions the average construction
expenditures for the 50 m3-volume kiln ranged between
USD 650.- and 800.- which results into investment costs
between USD 13.- and 16.- per kiln _m 3, approximately 10
to 15 times lower as compared to a metal kiln.
As mentioned already the lifespan of all brick kilns is
very high and exceeds in general their usage periods by far.
Should the need arise to move his operation to another area
the owner has two choices to do so. He may dismantle the
kiln and carry the bricks to the new plant site for
reconstruction or he may select to sell the kiln as building
material to buyers who will put it in service elsewhere.

- 82 -
 Under these view points the investment of a charcoal
operation with fire brick kilns becomes even more attractive
to the potential charcoal maker.
The construction material for a Brazil ian beehive kiln
consists of fire bricks, mortar made from clay, a three- or
four-sectional iron band for the tightening of the dome and
two steel angle li ntels for each door.
The building of a Brazilian beehive charcoal brick kiln
needs some experience. Therefore, it is advisable for the
untaught charcoal-maker and especially for the newcomer in
the trade to acquire the necessary skill by training.
Preferably, the instruction should be arranged at the
envisaged plant site and during the course one or more kilns
can be erected and put in use.
Also the operation of the kiln must be learned to obtain
an optimal recompense from the invested capital.
The charging of the kiln commences with the forming of a
grate on the bottom to allow free gas circulation. The
stringers are arranged in such a way that the air can flow
freely to the kiln centre.
The fuelwood logs are placed vertically, the thinner
pieces against the wall and thicker logs towards the centre.
On top of the vertical pile the fuelwood will be placed
horizontally until it reaches the ceiling of the dome. All
logs must be packed together as close as possible to utilise
the kiln capaci ty to its maximum and to make direct heat
transfer easier (Photo 5).
Some kindling is positioned close to the ignition
opening which is usually the upper part of the charging gate
or the central opening in the dome.
After the ignition white smoke will be issued which
turns to a dark colour later. This is considered to be a
safe sign, that the kiln has "caught fire" and the ignition
opening will be plugged.

- 83 -
 The carbonization process proceeds from the top of the
kiln to the bottom or from the charging gate to the kiln
centre, depending on where it had been lighted.
The operator observes during the entire cycle the smoke
issued from the stacks . Carbonization proceeds as long as
the colour of the smoke is white or clear (Photo 6).
The draft of the air entering the air inlet ports is
regulated by varying the position of brick stones loosely
inclined against the porthole entries.
Occasionally a crack may occur in the kiln shell
indicated by exiting smoke. This presents no major problem
and can be easily corrected by brushing over the leak with a
clay slurry which should be always at hand.
Also during the cooling phase the kiln shell will be
brushed over with the slurry several times. The number of
brushings varies between two and four.
After the kiln has cooled down to 60° - 70° C the kiln
is opened rapidly. The skilled operator will smell from the
issuing gases whether there is fire inside the kiln. In that
case he will extinguish it with a spray of water. Therefore
always approximately 200 litres in a drum must be kept ready
for use.
It i s good during unloading to separate all uncharred
pieces of wood. The discharging of the charcoal is done
manually and special rakes with wide-spaced prongs are in
use.
The discharged charcoal is heaped near the kiln and
allowed to cure through aeration for several days.
Fresh charcoal absorbs oxygen eagerly which is
accompanied by a rise of the temperature and may cause
spontaneous ignition. Therefore, the fresh charcoal is
carefully watched by the kiln operator during the curing
days. In case of ignition he sprays wate r over to suppress
fire.
For the duration of the cycle of a Brazilian charcoal
fire brick kiln no uniform schedule exists, because this

- 84-
 Photo 5
Charg ing the beeh ive
bric k kiln .
(Photo W. Emrich)

Photo 6 A Brazilian beehive brick kiln in full

operation. (Photo W. Emrich)
- 85-
 I 25 m Appr.

Truck loading charcoal ~

I
00
Unl~ing .JOd
<7-
I

Kiln

I. 1- I . I .. I ~ I., I., I A _ I

Fi gure 30. A charcoal production centre. ( From UNlDO/IOD, 228, 1978 )

will be influenced by several factors, including moisture
content and diameter of the fuelwood.
The following data have been derived from different
commercial operations and may serve the planner and the
prospective charcoal maker as a guideline:

Fuelwood loading and

charcoal discharging 8 hours
Carbonization 80 hours
Cooling 70 hours
Total cycle 158 hours

The average yield ratio firewood : charcoal is 2.1 : 1

for medium dry wood. For well seasoned fuel wood 2 .1 : 1.3
according to many tests the author has performed. The
Brazilian charcoal-makers normally apply the ratio 2.1 : 1.
In a slope type kiln in general somewhat lower charcoal
yields will be obtained. The firewood charcoal ratio
2.2 : 1 would be realistic.
With the externally heated Brazilian type kiln a ratio
of 2.1 : 1.6 can be achieved, according to own te sts.

Commercial operations:

For the production of large quantities a number of Brazilian

beehive brick kilns are grouped together in batteries. This
allows to simplify the logistics for the raw material
transportat ion and the charcoal pick-up and last but not
least it is also labour saving.
The battery consists of seven kilns and several
batteries are enclosed in the charcoal production centre.
Practically there are no upper limits for the number of
batteries in a production centre except environmental
considerations.
During half of the time of the carbonization any kiln
without by-product recovery will emit a considerable amount

- 87 -
of smoke which can cause embarrassment to residential areas
in the vicinity or to the employees working in the centre.
Each battery is attended by two men only, one charcoal
operator and a helper.
The centre provides all necessities for efficient
charcoal making, e. g. wa ter supply, maintenance shop,
stockyard for fuel wood, bagging and loading facilities for
the charcoal, etc.
One charcoal battery requires space of the following
dimensions: length 70 m and width 30 m.
An important point for the selection of the site is the
elevation of the field. An ideal set-up is presented in the
Figure 30.
In general the production rates for one kiln battery
range between 5.500 and 6.000 m3 of charcoal per year (19).

2.3.5 The Argentine Kilns

Due to the hemispherical shape the Argentine kiln is

also generally referred to as the "Half Orange Kiln". Like
any other brick kiln they can be built in large, medium and
small sizes. Photo 7 shows a large half orange kiln of
approximately 80 m3 and in Photo 8 a small kiln of only
7 m3 fuel wood capacity.
A variant of the Argentine kiln is shown in Figure 31
and it is called half orange kiln with "straight jacket",
because the kiln cupola rests on the above ground raised
foundation (straight jacket).
This kiln type has gained greatest popularity in the
charcoal world of South America, especially kilns with a
3
volume of approximately 15 m are frequently employed.
All Argentine kilns are built completely with bricks and
in contrast to the Brazilian kiln no iron parts are
necessary for construction.
The larger Argentine kilns are designed with two doors
whereas the medium size and small kilns have one door only.
- 88-
 The size of the bricks should be 0.24 m x 0 .12 m x
0.06 m. But deviations are the rule.
For a large-scale kiln more than 15.000 bricks will be
necessary and the medium sized half orange kiln with
straight jacket requires not more than 2.500 stones. The
mortar is made from clay and water only. To facilitate the
dismantling of the kiln later, approximately 10% of charcoal
dust are added, which makes the separation of the bricks
easier.
Everything which has been said in the previous section
concerning the lifespan and durability of a Brazilian kiln
can be applied to the Argentine kiln as well.
However, the construction of Argentine kilns requires
more skill and the bricks of the cupola must be carefully
arranged and oriented.
This skill and the experience can usually be acquired by
the charcoal-maker within eight weeks which would also
include the instruction time for the operation of the kilns.
Photo 9 shows charcoal students who have almost
completed a half orange kiln with stra ight jacket within one
week. The normal construction time for one kiln by two
skilled charcoal operators is -s Lx days.
The photo also shows the typical technique of arrang ing
the bricks of the cupola by resetting them. To achieve a
high kiln volume the distances between each brick layer and
the centre point of the kiln are extended starting from the
cupola base thus stretch ing the cupola ark into a more oval
shaped form.
The shifting distances depend on the size of the
firebricks and can be precalculated. They differ between
0.50 and 6.50 cm from one brick layer to the other.
The following describes the operational procedures for a
half orange kiln with straight jacket which the author
considers as the best method to obtain good results.
Similar methods of practice may be used to run other
Argentine kilns but in each instance they have to be adapted
and altered accordingly.
- 89 -
PHOTO 7 The Argentine half-orange kiln. The operator is
closing the gate after charging the kiln.
(Photo W. Emrich)

- 90 -
 Smoke outlet ports

Stra ight jacket

Figure 31 Half-orange kiln with straight jacket .

- 91-
 Photo 8
Small half-orange kiln
3)
(7 m . Guatemala.
(Photo W. Emrich)

Photo 9 Charcoal trainees in Kenya constructing a

half-orange kiln with straight jacket.
(Photo W. Emrich)
- 92 -
Photo 10 Charcoal trainees igniting the kiln with a
shovelful of glowing charcoal. Kenya.
(Photo W. Emrich)

Photo 11
Charcoal trainees
brushes over leaks.
Kenya.
(Photo W. Emrich)

- 93 -
Operation of the half-orange kiln

Fuelwood
The fuel wood is cut into pieces approx. 1 .00 m - 1 .30 m
in length (minimum diameter of 5.0 cm, maximum diameter of
50.0 cm) ,
The fuel wood which is transported to the kiln site
should be stored as close as possible to each kiln. A
minimum of five to six weeks air-drying time is recommended.
Thicker logs e.g . with a diameter in excess of
20 cm -- should be spli t once or twice to facilitate the
reduction of moisture content and to shorten the
carbonization time.

Charging the kiln

First of all, stringers are placed on the kiln floor. This

is to prevent direct contact between the fuel wood and the
ground and to provide sufficient space to allow free
circulation of the air from the inlet holes through the
centre of the kiln. The logs are stacked vertically on top
of the stringers and packed as tightly as poss ible.
All logs whose diameter exceeds 25 cm are positioned in
the centre of the kiln so that they will be exposed as long
as possible to the higher carbonization temperature.
The kiln charge is completed by the addition of a layer
of logs which is stacked horizontally on top of the vertical
logs until reaching the ceiling of the cupola.
Special care must be taken to ensure that the air inlet
holes at the kiln base remain open.
Some dry wood or rubbish is placed in the upper part of
the kiln door to serve as kindling .
When the kiln has been fUlly charged, the door is closed
with bricks and mortar and covered with mud from the
outside, except for an opening measuring approx.
20.0 x 20.0 cm in the upper part of the door. This is called
the "ignition eye".
- 94 -
Ignition of the charge (see photo 10)

All inlet holes and smoke ports must be open. One or two
shovels full of glowing charcoal are thrown in through the
ignition eye . Initially, the kiln will give off bluish
smoke, which turns white after a short time . This indicates
that the initial phase of distillation has begun and that
the fuel wood is losing moisture content. At this time the
ignition eye will also be filled in with bricks and mortar
and firmly sealed.
As a rule, the time between ignition and the closing of
the eye -- when the charge has caught fire does not
exceed twenty minutes .

The carbonization phase

The white smoke will continue to be given off through

the upper smoke ports for several hours and then start to
turn bluish. As soon as blue smoke is released from a
particular smoke port, the operator closes this port with a
brick fitted to the opening and seals it with mud mortar.
There is no set rule as to where the smoke colour change
from white to blue will occur first e.g. one cannot
predict which smoke port will be the first to emit bluish
smoke -- and this may also depend very much on the
prevailing wind direction at each individual kiln location .
Furthermore, the change in colour will not occur
simul taneously in all smoke ports; rather, one port after
another will begin to discharge blue smoke. After the upper
smoke ports of the kiln have been closed and properly
sealed, the white smoke will be released through the lower
row of smoke por ts only . In closing the lower ports, the
operator follows the same procedure as in the case of the
upper ports, carefully monitoring the colour of the smoke.

- 95 -
 As soon as the smoke from a particular smoke port has
clearly turned bluish, the operator uses a stick to probe
inside towards the centre of the kiln to ascertain whether
or not there is an obstruction (uncarbonized wood). If there
is no impediment, this smoke port may be closed. If
uncarbonized or partly carbonized wood blocks up the path of
the probe stick to the centre, the hole may be partially
closed using a specially fitted brick. But under no
circumstances should it be sealed completely.
This procedure serves to delay the combustion of the
charcoal in the vicini ty of the smoke port and enhances
carbonization.
If the hole is re-checked within one hour and the second
probe indicates that a significant amount of uncarbonized
wood is still present, it is advisable to slow down the air
influx by partially closing the two nearest air inlet holes
at the base of the kiln using brick "stoppers" .
After all of the lower smoke ports have been closed and
properly sealed, smoke will also begin to exit through some
of the air inlet holes.
This is perfectly normal and all monitoring and
operational producers must be followed until the last air
inlet hole has been closed and sealed, at which point the
cooling phase begins.
If the kiln has been properly charged and operated, the
carbonization phase should be completed some ten to twelve
hours after ignition.

The cooling of the kiln

It is important that the kiln shall be airtight and

exhibit no leaks or cracks through which air could enter . If
air is present, the charcoal charge will start burning and
cooling will be delayed significantly.
Therefore, after the kiln has been closed and sealed, at
least three coats of mud slurry are applied to the exterior
surface (see Photo 11). This will also help to reduce the
- 96-
cooling time. When the kiln has cooled down sUfficiently,
the door may be opened and the fire extinguished with water;
one drum of about 200 litres is sufficient for one kiln.
After the fire has been completely extinguished, discharging
may begin.
The kiln is discharged by two or three men using rakes.
These special tools have 12 - 14 prongs spaced 2.0 cm apart .
Their employment allows the bulk of the fines (less than
20 mm) to fall through and remain in the kiln. They may be
removed later after the interior of the kiln has cooled down
further.
The charcoal is then hauled to the nearby storage area
for curing. The most common method is simply to place the
charcoal on a piece of canvas, which is then carried to the
storage area by 3-4 men.
Charcoal should not be handled or transported in large
quanti ties until sufficient "curing time" has elapsed
following discharging. A curing time of eight to ten days is
usually considered sufficient to quell the self-igniting
tendency of freshly produced charcoal.
During curing, neither the height nor the diameter of
the charcoal heaps should exceed 1.50 m otherwise exposure
to the air will be insufficient.

Maintenance of the kiln

The structure of the Half-Orange kiln can be damaged,

for instance by the impact of logs, and this should be
avoided . Bricks which have fallen out of the walls or have
become loose should be put back in place and rammed tight.
Periodically, the excess clay wh ich has accumulated on
the exterior of the kiln as a residue of the successive
brushings with clay slurry should be removed with a rasp .
This accelerates the charcoal cooling process.
The kiln floor should always be kept level. If
necessary, some wet clayish soil should be put in and
- 97 -
stamped down. The water drainage ditches ar.ound the kilns
must always be kept unobstructed and clear of all rubbish.

The economics

Very little has been made public about the efficiency of

Argentine kilns.
The yearly average obtained by the largest charcoal
producer i n Argentina, Salta Forestal S.A., was 3.75 tons of
fuelwood per ton of charcoal (20) in 1978, resulting in an
average yield of 26.67% (weighted bases). This figure,
however, applies to large Argentine kilns with a bottom
diameter of 6.00 m.
Extensive studies carried out on a commercial scale for
East African countries proved an efficiency for the hal f
orange kiln with straight jacket of 28 .2 % (21). The
carbonization tests were carried out with acacia species as
fuelwood.
Based on the same test series the following operational
data were extracted:

Annual charcoal output 3.500 tons

Number of kilns 28
Investment cost* USO 15,600.- = USD 558.-/kiln
Kiln operating cost USD 14,300.- = USD 4.14/t charcoal

A typical cycle has been established as follows:

- charging of fuel wood 5 hours
ignition of kiln (30 minutes)
carbonization 18 hours
(measured between ignition and
closing of 80% of all kiln apertures)
cooling phase 22 hours
unloading of charcoal 3 hours
48.5 hours

* If bricks are made by the charcoal operation the costs

would be cut in half
- 98 -
2.4 Kiln Designs for Waste Conversion

During the last decades many attempts have been made to

carbonize forestal and agricultural waste with simple and
inexpensive kilns.
Since most of the waste matter is found or being
discharged in small fragments and particles the kiln
technique described in the previous sections is not suitable
for waste conversion without modification.
If a large kiln is charged with fragmentary matter, for
instance with saw dust, the denseness and compactness of the
kiln load will not allow sufficient penetration of gases,
unless the cargo is moved or rotated continuously.
With the details of waste conversion and their proper
solutions will be dealt within the next chapter.
Another view point frequently overlooked is the fact
that the carbonization of forest and ag ricultural waste will
produce mainly charcoal fines which cannot be used for
household fuel, as an example, and the charcoal-maker must
consider an agglomeration or briquetting plant also.
Naturally, this will imply higher investment cost
especially if the targets are export markets with their
elevated charcoal quality standards. Their specifications
can be met only with specialised and expensive machinery and
equipment.
Although the requirements of local markets in developing
countries are more lenient and less expensive outfits can do
a satisfactory job, the operational costs for charcoal
briquettes or formed charcoal are perceptibly higher as
compared to the production of lump charcoal.
Consequently, many charcoal producers try to set off
their extra expenses with the gains from sale or by
utilisation of by-products.
It is not possible to describe within the frame of this
handbook all modified systems which the igenuity of numerous
charcoal-makers has brought forth during the past ten years
alone. Instead, one scheme will be presented in detail,
- 99-
 \ \
' ~ Sm oke chimney

Figure 32 Carbo-Gas retort (twin unit J. For better insulation

the retort may be covered with sand or clay.

main pipe for charcoal gas

~'7 '\'7 '\'7 ~'7 ,,7

1.':0. L> [;> L>. L';.

I I I
,r
I
I--...J
I- - --j
- - -1
--; -,
- - -1 I-- J
>"'--j copra dryer
I
I
I
I
I
:I I
I
wood kiln
gas engine
I I I I steam generato r
0 1- - -1 - --I I--J ---I
1- -
1 -I 0 - -j --1 dryer for charc oal
briquettes
I
I
I
I
I
I
! !I cooler and chiller
I I I I for pyrolysis 0 if
1---1 1- - -1 f---I 1- --1
1-- ,

J
--;
I
1--"I
1--
1
I
extraction

I I I I

Retor t 1 Retor t 2
Figure 33 Carbo- Gas retort plant with charcoal gas
recovery for commercial use (22)

- 100-
which the author has sUbjected to several trials and has
proved commercially successful.

2.4.1 The Carbo - Gas Retort

The retort is one of the most efficient means to produce

high quality charcoal and to collect carbonization
by-products.
The retort presented in Figure 32 can be constructed
from oil drums. Twice three oil drums assembled form one
carbonization unit above one fire chamber. An extra drum can
be added if necessary.
At the rear end of the retort a pipe is installed for
collection of the charcoal gas. In the simplest way the pipe
leads the gas underneath the retort where it is burnt in the
fire chamber.
In other designs the retort gas is guided into a main
pipe from where it can be drawn-off to various users. The
Figure 33 demonstrates a larger Carbo-Retort operation with
possible usages for the charcoal gas.
The retorts can be set up over a trench if the earth is
solid enough. In this case bricks for the support are not
necessary .
In general the kiln units are raised above ground by a
brick construction which also serves to make the fire
chamber.
The retort operation must be installed where the
by-products can be utilised or where sufficient demand for
such by-products can be found in the vicinity.

Raw mater ial supply and preparation

The feed for t he Carbo-Gas retort may be found in

forests, sawmills, furniture plants, plantations, food
processing factories, copra drying stations, etc.
Some of the waste matter is very moist . The water
- 101-
content can be reduced by kiln drying using the charcoal gas
emitted by the process for heating.
Size reduction of the waste matter is usually not
necessary. Branches or cot ton sticks, as an example, can be
hogged or broken in small pieces by simple means.
The prepared raw feed is loaded on curved trays, which
fit the cross-section of each retort as much as possible.
These trays are made from sheet metal and are left in
the retort until the charcoal is ready.

Operation (22)

Early in the morning the retort will be charged with the

prepared feed trays. It is advisable for large operations to
have always an extra set of filled trays sitting next to the
kilns ready for loading.
After the covers are screwed on to the bolts the fire
under the retort (leaves, bark, branches e t c , ) is made. The
flames should touch the retort below.
The carbonization starts when the gas flows through the
pipe, usually after one or two hours. The process has
terminated when the gas flow ceases.
If the gas evolving from the retort is burnt in the fire
chamber the fire must not be stoked repeatedly. The charcoal
gases will burn and maintain the temperature until the end.
The retort remains tightly closed overnight for cooling.
The next morning the cover of the retort will be unbol ted
and the tray with the charcoal is pulled out with a hook
which fits into a hole in the tray.
In larger operations always half of all retorts are in
use and will produce gas. The gas collected by the main
pipe, therefore, has an almost uniform consistence and
represents an exellent fuel for electric generators also.
The produced char has to be stored for curing and then
may be processed.

- 102-
Under the heading of chapter 8 the details for making
charcoal briquettes and extrudates are described.

Economic considerations

As with any charcoal retort the conversion efficiency is

very high. In the case of waste conversion, the quality of
the produced charcoal will depend very much on the
ingredients of the raw material. Rice husks for instance
contain s ignificant amounts of incombustible minerals. They
will accumulate during the carbonization in the char. This
effect may exclude all charcoal made of rice processing
residues from many industrial applications.
In contrast, carbonization products made of wood waste
or nut shells have excellent properties (23).
The investment cost of the plant will also depend very
much on the local situation, that is price of metal scrap,
maintenance cost, etc.
Finally the raw material cost cannot be calculated on a
general basis. They will differ on the fact whether the
waste and residue materials have already a market value or
not. Many are used to fuel a factory, others are available
in excess, and they have to be disposed of which would cause
additional expenses to the owner.
Retort operations can be designed as a small business or
they can be planned and organized for large-scale production
and fitted into a whole integrated industrial concept.
An important role for the plant economics play the gains
achieved by the utilisation of the gaseous or liquid
by-products. Approximately 40% of the organic matter put
into a retort process can be recovered as gas or vapors.
In some circumstances the sales will pay for the
operational costs entirely.
Each factor plays a part in making the venture work and
the business go. But they cannot be discussed in detail
without sufficient information of the local particularities.

- 103-
References

(1) J.I. Spaeth, Praktische Abhandlung uber das

Verkohlen des Holzes in grossen und kleinen
Meilern, Nurnberg, FRG, 1809

(2) D. A. Tillmann, Wood as an Energy Resource,

New York, USA, 1978

(3) K. Openshaw, Costs and Benefits of Proposed Tree

~~-=----:::..:--:::..:--::~:...::...;.=-=....:---.::...~...:.....::;...::..,,:~~'----:::..:.:...:..

Planting Programme for Satisfying Kenya's Wood

Energy Requirements, Stockholm, Sweden, 1982

(4) M. Vahram, Quality of Charcoal made in the Pit

Tumuluts, National Science Research Council,
University of Guyana, Charcoal Unit Laboratory,
Report Nr. 4

(5) FAO Forestry Paper 41, Simple Technologies for

Charcoal Making, Food and Agriculture Organization
of the United Nations, Rome, Italy , 1983

H. Bergstrom, Handbook for Kolare, Stockholm,

Sweden, 1934

(7) H. Bergstrom, Om Traekoling. Toll tjaemst foer

Undervisningen vid skogs och kolarsbar samt
tekniska Undervisningeanstalter och foer praktisk
bruk, 2. Auflage, Stockholm, Sweden, 1918

(8) A. Klanins, Die Holzteerschwellung, Riga, UDSSR,

1934

(9) F. Klein, Uber das Verkohlen des Holzes in

stehenden Meilern, Gotha, G.D.R, 1830.

-1 04 -
(10) Research work carried out by the Forestry Technical
Department of the Colonial Ministry, Paris, France,
1941 - 1943

(ll ) Publication of Appropriate Technology Development

Insti tute, Wokim Sakol Long Drum, (in Pidgin
Language), Lae, Papua New Guinea

(12) W. Emrich, Charcoal Making in the Philippines,

Neu-Isenburg, F.R.G., 1982

( 13) Whitehead W
Transportable
Guide, Tropical

(14) J.P. Jarvis, The Wood Charcoal Industry in the

state of Missouri, University of Missouri,
Columbia, USA, 1960
Anonymous, Charcoal Production in Kilns, Forest
Product Journal 7 (110, 339-403), 1957

( 15) Anonymous, Production of Charcoal in a Masonry

Block Kiln. Structures and Operation, Forest
Service, US Department of Agriculture, Processed
Report No. 2084, 1957
Anonymous, Facts about Concrete Masonry, AlA File
Nr. lO-c, National Concrete Masonry Ass., Chicago,
III., USA, 1947

( 16) P. Ralph, An Inexpensive Method for Measuring

Charcoal Kiln Temperatures. Southeastern Forest
Experiment Station , Ashville, N. C., USA

(17) H.M. Bunburry, The Destructive Distillation of

Wood, London, UK, 1925

- 105 -
(18) H. Meyers, Charcoal Ironmaking, a Technical and
Economical Review of Brazilian Experience,
UNIDO/IOD. 228, 1978

( 19) Fundacao Centro Tecnologico de Minas Gerais

(CETEC), Belo Horizonte, Brazil

(20) M.A. Trossero, Analysis Comparativo de Hornos de

Carbon Vegetal, Congreso ILAFA-Altos Hornos,
Instituto Latinamericano del Fiero y el Acero, 1978

(21) W. Emrich, The Feasiblity of Charcoal Making in

Selected Areas of East Africa, Carbon
International, Ltd., Neu-Isenburg, F.R.G., 1984

(22) W. Emrich, Making Charcoal from Forestal and

Agricultural Waste the Retort Way, Carbon
International, Ltd . , Neu-Isenburg, F.R.G . , 1984

(23) Paper II 63, Coconut Shell Charcoal, Food and

Agricul ture Organisation of the United Nations,
Rome, Italy

- 106-
Chapter 3
CONCEPTS AND TECHNOLOGY FOR THE INDUSTRIAL CHARCOAL-MAKER

Industrial charcoal-making has a comparatively short

history dating back about 150 years. The principles may be
outlined as follows:
Relatively high investment costs;

Intensive use of labor-saving equipment and devices;

Efficient recovery of liquid and/or gaseous by-products

for captive and commercial use;

Wide range of raw material usage, including forestry

residues as well as agricultural and municipal waste;

Such projects necessarily involve prior feasibility

studies, qualified plant design and organisation of
logistics .

According to these criteria the Missouri kiln (see

2.3.1), the Brazilian beehive brick (2.3.4) and the
Argentine kiln types (2.3.5) can also be considered as
industrial charcoal technology when employed in large
numbers.

3.1 Equipment for Charcoal Plants with By-Product

Recovery

By the middle of the nineteenth century, the potential

value of the by-products of charcoal plants had become
obvious. The emergence of the chemical industry brought
about a pressing need for the supply of organic acids,
methanol and acetone, compounds which were present in the
condensates of charcoal plants. The problem of recovery and
refining them could be resolved to some extent.
- 107 -
 The charcoal-makers of this time immediately recognized
the new trend and its potential, and they started to adapt
the existing plants and/or if necessary established new
concepts. The equipment changed radical ly from old-fashioned
kilns to modern retorts with auxiliary installations for the
recovery of by-products (1).
The change in the charcoal industry precipitated a
mushroom growth of patents during the following seventy
years. It was only interrupted by the Second World War when
the charcoal industry was faced with the task of helping to
sustain the war machinery. Some of the new charcoal
technology of these times is still in use today,
demonstrating its fundamental value.
The charcoal planner needs to know the essential
techniques and to understand the elements of industrial
charcoaling. The status of the art of modern charcoal
technology may be summarized as follows:

Operation of large-scale retorts with a capacity of

3
100 m and more for the charcoaling of wood logs.

Continuously opera ted large- and small-scale

retorts/converters for the carbonization of wood logs
and forestal and agricultural waste.

Improved equipment for the recovery and fractionation of

pyrolysis oil .

Mechanised equ ipment for the charging and discharging of

charcoal retorts and converters.

Advanced technology for the briquetting and

agglomeration of charcoal.

Integrated carbonization concepts utilizing the energy

content of raw materials at an optimum level.

- 108-
 The most revolutionary step forward was made by the
introduction of equipment for the charcoaling of biomass in
the broadest sense. Until then, roundwood, thick branches of
trees from natural forests were the only choice. With the
first appearance of continuously run vertical retorts, the
residues and waste discharged by sawmills, plantations and
food processors also became important for the charcoal-maker.
Biomass converters were first developed for very large
plants with a charcoal production capacity exceeding a
thousand tons per month. The equipment was borrowed from
other industries, e.g. fertilizer and cement plants, and
adapted to charcoaling.
Since the installed plant capacity was high, huge
accumulations of raw feed, e. g. sawdust, bark, nutshells,
were a necessity for economic operation. In many cases, the
collecting of waste and residues proved uneconomic and was
therefore abandoned.
After the new furnaces had been employed by large
charcoal plants for a while, the small charcoal-maker also
became interested also, at first in North America.
Commercial plants were erected between 1960 and 1965 and
soon proved their economic feasibility.
For the classification of charcoal technology, this
handbook employs a modern terminology which differentiates
between traditional charcoal-making (kiln technology) and
the industrial processes. In this context, kiln technology
means all equipment producing charcoal as the sole product,
whereas retorts or converters are essential elements of the
industrial plant, capable of recovering and refining
charcoal by-products in commercial grades and quantities.

3.1 .1 The Forerunners of Modern Charcoal Equipment

The Reic henbach and Carbo furnaces

The first of these, once in widespread use in Finland

- 109-
and Sweden, has a brick-built chamber heated by hot gases
circulating in an outer casing. The cylindrical chamber, of
30 to 40 steres capacity, is surrounded up to two-thirds of
its height by a second wall which forms a circular hea ting
chamber. The brickwork often shows cracks and part of the
volatile products burn in the annular heating chamber. Heat
output is poor.
The operation lasts about 6 days including loading,
distillation and cooling. The distillation products are
evacuated at the base by a copper pipe shaped at the end
like a truncated cone (1, 2).
The furnace yields the purest kind of tar and a good
quality crude pine oil. It produces no pyroligneous acid.
The CARBO kiln derived from the above is, however, a
much improved version (see Figure 34). I t combines external
heating with internal tubular heating. It is a vertical
cylinder in sheet metal of 300 to 400 steres capacity. In
the middle of the slightly conical base, there is a
collecting conduit for by-products. The apparatus has a
metal lid with four loading apertures. The charcoal is
unloaded from a door in the base. Working is discontinuous
(l) .
The gases from the external furnace adjoining the
chamber circulate through spiral tubes surrounding the
chamber; there are dampers to regulate the heat. The lower
third of the retort is protected by firebrick so, that it
will not be damaged by the hot gases; the gases react
directly upon the metal casing of the top two-thirds. A
special feature of the CARBO is a large vertical pipe
passing through the middle of the chamber and divided
lengthwise by a partition which does not reach the base of
the pipe. The base of the pipe is devised so that the
non-condensable gases and the air required for their
combustion can enter. This air is supplied by the excess
external heating gases which, issuing from the spiral
conduit, are carried into the left-hand section of the
central pipe. Hence the combus tion of the non-condensable
-110-
Off -gas
.:":
Gas
partition
Central heating
pipe

Figure 34 The Carbo furnace.

- 111-
gases takes place starting from the base of the centre pipe;
after combustion, the gases escape into the air (or into a
regenerator) through the right-hand section. The heat output
of this kiln is excellent owing to the utilization of the
non-condensable gases. Adjustment , however, is so fine that
it is difficult to regulate constantly ; it is considered
that the kiln is suitable above all for the treatment of
resinous woods of very even quality and for the direct
extraction of high-quality tar.

The Bosnic furnace

The steel retort of this furnace has a capacity of

50 m3. The raw material consisting of logs of wood 1 m in
length is loaded through a manhole in the top (see
Figure 35).
The heating can be started with firewood and when
off-gases develop, they are directed from the exhaust fan to
the burning chamber underneath the retort.
The carbonization is conducted under total exclusion of
air according to heating type B (see Chapter 1).
The Bosnic Furnace applies the downdraught scheme for
the off-gases , meaning that the gases are drawn from the top
of the retort through the bottom. The hot gases are cooled
with water and the condensed pyrolysis oil is taken to two
vats. One vat is installed to collect tar which settles down
after a while (2).
A smaller but very effective design of the Bosnic
Furnace is shown in Figure 36. The principle of the
technology applied is strictly the same as in the larger
operation.
The retort capacity is 5 to 7 m3 to facilitate
exchanging, which is conducted by manual hoisting. The raw
material is again roundwood or split logs which must be
packed very tightly in the retort. When the carbonization
cycle is terminated, the hot retort is hoisted off and set

-112 -
.....
I
-

A = Retort
B = Off - gas cooler
C = Gas fan
D = Pyrolysis oil tank
E = Combustion chamber

Figure 35 The Bosnic charcoal plant

Figure 36 A smaller Bosnic plant with interchangeable
retorts.

- 114 -
aside for cooling the charcoal inside. The burning chamber
is now ready to take in the next retort with a fresh charge.
The changing is done quickly to prevent the burning chamber
from cooling-off, thus saving fuel.
These plants demonstrate two features of industrial
carbonization which had been neglected by the traditional
charcoal-maker until then

Increase in the energy efficiency of the charcoal plant

by better utilization of the raw material.

Diversification by recovery of by-products for

commercial use and recycling of residual gases for
heating the plant.

The structure of these charcoal plants is relatively

simple and no exotic construction materials are required.
Retort steel, firebricks, wooden vats are the essential
constituent elements. Only in sensitive areas within the
off-gas cooling system must copper or stainless steel be
employed.

The Badger-Stafford process

This process was formerly used by the Ford Motor Company

for dealing with certain sizes of factory wood waste (birch,
oak, maple, ash). The waste was cut into pieces
20 x 5 x 2 cm and dried in a revolving drum 3 m in diameter
and 30 m long . Drying, effected by means of a counterflow of
furnace gas from the ovens of the steam-generation plant,
lasted 3 hours. Output was continuous. Six drums were
capable of dealing with 400 tons of wood per day (3).
The wood unloaded from the drums at 150 0 C contained
only 0.5 per cent moisture. The wood was introduced
mechanically into a chamber with 3 shoots which distributed
the load into 3 Badger-Sta fford retort works continuously,
- 115 -
for 2 weeks, a fter which the encrusted tar had to be burnt
out; hence, of 3 kilns, 2 were working while one was laid up
for cleaning.
The charcoal which settled down continually in the
retort cooled to 255 0 C at the base of the retort. It was
then de-kilned into a revolving drum cooled by outside water
circulation. The drum was 1.8 m in diameter and 9 m long.
Finally, the charcoal was brought into contact with the air
in a revolving cylinder where it was stabilized by
recovering oxygen. The complete operation of cooling and
curing took only 5 hours.
The average yields in percentage of the weight of
air-dry wood were :
Charcoal: 20 .0 %
Wood spirit: 1.7%
Acetic acid: 4.5 %
Tar: 10.0 %

The powdered charcoal was made into briquettes.

Precautions would have to be taken against the risk of
explosion, especially the thorough removal of dust from all
gases.
Despite its remarkable features the Badger-Stafford
process proved uneconomic and the plant was shut down soon.

3.1 .2 Retort Technology

Although there is no precise demarcation between

charcoal retorts and converters, the latter term is applied
to equipment capable of carbonizing biomass fragments and
small particle-sized waste . Consequently, the term "retort
technology" refers to carbonization of pilewood or wood logs
reduced in size to a minimum length of 30 cm and not
exceeding 18 cm in diameter. For simplicity, the traditional
route will be followed and therefore the retort and biomass
technologies will be discussed under different headings.
- 116 -
3.1.2.1 The Wagon Retort

The wagon retort process was once of great commercial

importance in European countries and in the USA. More than
70 % of all the charcoal produced was made this way. The
process has lost its significance, mainly because of its
high manpower requirement compared with other methods.
However, one or two plants have survived the waves of
rationalization even in Europe with its high labour costs.

Process description

The principle of a wagon retort plant is illustrated in

Figure 37. The most commonly utilized raw materials are
roundwood, split roundwood and sawmill waste with an average
length between 1. 0 and 1. 2 m. Shorter pieces may be charged
also, but in limited quantity.
The prepared wood logs are loaded into small lorries
which have a grate on the top. The shape of the grate is
designed to fit the cylindrical retort tightly, and to make
optimal use of the retort space.
A rail system connects the wood storage area with the
plant site. The loaded lorries are either pushed manually or
jerked mechanically into the retorts. Normally, two lorry
charges will fill the retort.
Large plants have a shunting system for the lorries,
with shunting-engines and sidings extending for several
kilometres.
The cylindrical retorts have a standard length of 8 to
9 m, and their diameter ranges up to 2.50 m. They are made
of steel and are inserted in a brick structure, with ducts
for the heating gases (3).
All the known wagon retort operations employ external
heating systems. The off-gases of the retort are drawn-off
by a fan and after devaporizing (pyrolysis oil recovery) are
directed into a burning chamber underneath the retorts.

- 117-
 I i
2 5 6
I I
1\
00
I
-

1 = Retort 7 = Pyrolysis oil vat

2 = Lorries 8 = Oil pump
3 = Siding 9 = Intermediate tank
4 = Charcoal cooling cylinder 10 = Preheater for distillation column
5 = Water cooler 11-13 = Fractionation of pyrolysis oil
6 = Scrubber for residual gas 14 = Settling vat for tar

Fi gure 37. The wagon retort plant.

 The carbonization time totals one working day . After the
coaling phase has termina ted, the lorries are pulled from
the retort and pushed wi th the glowing charcoal into the
cooling cylinder. To facilitate the lorry transfer and to
prevent vigorous burning of the charcoal when it comes into
contact with the air, these coolers are positioned in front
of each retort cylinder. The cooling of the charcoal to the
point where it is no longer self-igniting can be shortened
by spraying water on the cooler cylinder.
The off-gases are passed through a cooler and scrubber
to strip the pyrolysis oil from them. In our illustration, a
fractionating column is attached to the plant for the
recovery of raw acetic acid from the oil. This addition is
not necessary if the pyrolysis oil is to serve only as a
fuel.

Operational data

Usable retort space: length 7.50 m, diameter 2.50 m

3.
Capacity: Approx. 35 m

Possible throughput: 9 tons/m 3/month, dry basis.

Raw Material : Wood, log size 1.0 to 1.20 m, max.

diameter 8-12 cm. Moisture content max. 25 % (wet
basis); wood species, no requirements.

Average Yield: charcoal 33-38 %, pyrolysis oil 20-25 %

Energy demand: 0.6 to 0.75 million kcallton raw

material, approx. 80 % covered by devaporized off-gas.
18-20 KWh/ton raw feed . If no pyrolysis oil is
recovered, the energy supply from the off-gases alone
will be sufficient to cover the demand of the retorts
and the heat for the briquetting as well.

- 119-
 Retort structure: Riveted metal sheets, gates and
framework of cast iron, sealing of the gates for the
retorts and charcoal cooler by asbestos.

Economic considerations: A battery of six to eight

retorts is considered to be an economic plant size. The
logistics for the wood supply, storage and preparation
of the wood lay a heavy burden on the operational cost.
Maintenance costs of lorries are high. To set-off
expenses, the recovery 0 f pyrolysis oil is desirable.
The operation is simple, requires little personnel
training, and the installed plant equipment is robust,
withstanding misuse.

Disadvantages: Mechanical drying of raw material is not

possible, air drying by stacking is the only way;
consequently, a large storage area is required and
capi tal investment is increased. Cracking of tar causes
crusts on retort walls which slow down heat exchange;
the operation must be interrupted frequently i n order to
clean the retorts.

3.1.2.2 The Reichert Retort Process

The ce ntre piece of this process is the large-scale

retort with a raw material capacity of 100 m3. The
batchwise process requires wood logs or sawmill waste which
must be reduced in length to a third of a metre.
Another significant feature of the process is the
heating system which belongs to type C (Chapter 1.3),
utilizing recirculated off-gas.
The principles of the process are shown in Figure 38.
The wood is charged at the top of the retort through a
manhole, up to capacity. After closing the valve, the main
heating pipe is opened to let hot gases into the interior.
Since the retort is designed for downdraught, the
- 120 -
carbonization starts in the upper layers of the charge where
the hot gases enter. During the cycle, the charcoaling zone
moves slowly down to the bottom.
On its way out, the off-gas passes through the
uncarbonized feed, taking off the moisture.
After leaving the retort, the off-gases are first
stripped from tar and then chilled to obtain the pyrolysis
oil . The residual gas is scrubbed and introduced into the
central burning chamber . Part of the gases are burnt to
raise the temperature of the heating gas leaving the retorts
to the original level of 450 0 C.
After carbonization has stopped, the charcoal is
released at the bottom of the retort. To prevent losses by
self-ignition of the hot char, it is dropped into airtight
containers . The cooling is usually done by passing cold
inert gas through the charcoal.
Large-space retorts with recirculated gas heating have
been in commercial use for more than forty years. In
countries with high labour costs, they will work
economically only if they are provided with labour-saving
mechanical installations for the conveying, loading,
discharging and preparation of the raw material and
charcoal. High investment costs have prevented their
widespread use unt il now.

Operational data

Retort size: height 8.50 m, diameter 5.0 m, vertical.

3•
Capacity: approx. 100 m

Possible throughput: 8 tons/m 3/month, dry wood.

Raw material: Wood logs, max. length 35 cm, max.

diameter 15 cm, moisture not exceeding 20 %.

- 121 -
N
N
I

r:::::D r:::::D
o N 0

A = Large Space retort ( 100 m3) H = Fan for forced-gas circulation

B = Tar stripper I = Dust collector
C = Water cooler K = Circular saw for wood preparation
o = Scrubber for residual gas L = Conveyor for retort charging
E = Combustion chamber and heat exchanger M= Charcoal cooler
F = Off-gas fan N = Conveyor belt for charcoal
G = Fan for combustion air

F; gure 38. The Rei chert retort process. ( After: F.F1Ugge, Die Chemische Technologie D. Holzes )
 Average yield: Charcoal 33-38 % j commercially obtained
from 1 m3 wood (390 kg dry wood): acetic acid (raw)
22-23 kg, methanol (raw) 6-8 kg, tar and oils 53 kg.
Energy demand: 0.7 million kcal/ton of dry wood j
100 KWh/ton of dry wood. These figures do not include
the electricity consumption of the sawmill (wood
preparation) .

Economic considerations: A battery of six retorts is

necessary to sustain an economic operation. Complete
control of the temperature during the carbonization
phase guarantees high-quality lump charcoal. High
investment and operational cost can be set-off by
by-product recovery and the installation of automatic
equipment. Expenses for retort maintenance are
tolerable. The plant requires permanent supervision and
well trained personnel.

3.1.2.3 The French SIFIC Process

The SIFIC can be considered as the most succesful

technology.
Figure 39 illustrates the scheme and modus operandi. The
importance (3, 5) of continuous carboniza tion of woodlogs
and sawmill wood waste can be seen in the increased turn-out
of products in relation to the investment capital costs, and
there is a definite saving in fuel costs for maintaining the
retort temperature.
The predried wood enters the top of the retort through a
lock. the level of raw material within the retort is
permanently kept at full load which can be electronically
controlled. Our ing the charcoaling, the wood moves slowly
down towards the bottom. When passing the hot temperature
zone in the centre of the retort, it decomposes into
charcoal and gas. The gases are drawn upwards by a fan.

- 123 -
I

N
-...
I

A = Raw material elevator E = Gas cooler

B = Retort ( operating continuously F = Pyrolysis oil cooler
C = Combustion chamber G = Pyrolysis oil storage
D = Heating gas fan H = Off-gas scrubber

Figure 39. The French SIFIC retort process.

 The charcoal is discharged at the retort plenum and
carried away to the storage. A separate charcoal cooler is
not provided because the lower retort segment assumes this
role.
In Figure 40, small auto-controlled lorries take the
char to the desired locations to save manpower costs.
The SIFIC process can be run either without by-product
collection, or with the necessary attachments for recovery
(as explained in Chapter 4), the equipment and apparatus
being the same. Their capacities, sizes, etc. must be
adapted individually.
The heating system for the retort is commercially proved
and functions according to the principle described in
Chapter 3.1.2.2 (Reichert Retort Process). The fuel for the
burning chamber is picked up at the scrubber for the
necessary recirculating gas stream which passes through the
retort charge.
Attention has to be given to the influence of wood
moisture content and the energy demand of the heating
system. The data in the following table have been obtained
from commercial plants by carbonization of European hardwood
species. The unit on which the energy consumption, the
recirculating gas quantities and electricity were based is
expressed in cubic metre of solid air-dry wood substance
(fm). This is a common term in the local charcoal indus try
and 1 fm corresponds to 750 kg on average (hardwood only):

Moisture Per fm (750 kg) necessary

(%) kcal kj Recirculating KWh
gas (m 3)

5 6.000 35.080 210 2.5

10 9.500 39.700 270 3.2
15 37.000 154.700 490 4.4
20 70.000 292.600 770 5.7
25 110.000 459.000 1.050 7.2
30 155.000 647.900 1. 400 9.0
- 125-
 The proportionality of energy demand to raw material
moisture is not the only problem. With increasing
evaporation rates, the installed capacity of the plant is
reduced and consequently production slows down.
These drawbacks can be eased or avoided if the incoming
wood is passed through a dryer before entering the retort.
The options for raw material drying and the details are
described in Chapter 5.
Several attempts have been made to simpli fy the SIFIC
process. One of the results was the CISR Lambiotte Retort.
Plants have been commercially run for a number of years, and
the main features are shown in Photo 12 and Figure 40. The
retort is heated by an internal combustion device which
burns part of the recycled pyroligneous vapours (off-gas).
This compensates for the energy needs of wood drying,
charcoal cooling and general heat losses of the retort.
The excess of pyroligneous vapours is taken from the top
of the retort and is led back for use or re-use. To be
easily combustible, the vapours must be produced from wood
with a maximum moisture content of 30 %. The combustion air
can be well controlled, thus ensuring oxygen deficiency and
regulating the retort temperature.
The carbonization temperature is fixed . to obtain a good
quali ty of charcoal. In the lower part of the retort, a
second gas circulation cools the charcoal before it leaves
the converter. This gas stream is refrigerated and washed in
a scrubber.

Operational data (Lambiotte et Cie, S.A.)

Size of retort: height 18 m, diameter 3 m.

Possible throughput: approx. 7.00 tons of dry wood.

Raw material: wood logs, slabs, length 35 cm, diameter

10 cm (max.), moisture not exceeding 30 %.

- 126-
 ....
~

....oCIJ
~

CIJ
....
-'=: ....c
.!!!
Q...

....
....o
CIJ

~
E
111
-.l

-
0:::
V)
l.>
C1l
....
-'=:
....o

"tJ
o
o
~
01
.~
.~
C1l
U
CIJ
0:::

- 127 -
Photo 12 A Lambiotte reactor (Photo Lambiotte)

- 128-
 Expected yields: approx. 2.500 tons lump charcoal;
production of pyrolysis oil is feasible, but extra
equipment is necessary.

Energy requirements: for retort heating; electricity

25 KWh

3.1.3 Charcoal Technology for the Carbonization of Biomass

The technology described in the preceding sections is

appropriate for the carbonization of stere wood or wood logs.
The following is a description of charcoaling equipment
designed for the processing of raw material which is
naturally composed 0 f small particles, e. g. sawdust,
nutshells, or is deliberately crushed, chopped and reduced
to fragments, such as sugarcane bagasse, bark, twiglets,
coconut shells, etc. (4).
Because of the small diameter of these particles, the
heat exchange and transfer of energy from the converter
walls or heating gases through the surface of the small
particles is ideally fast and carbonization time is very
short. Therefore, this type of charcoaling is also referred
to as the "rapid pyrolysis process" .
The first rapid pyrolysis process plant was the
previously mentioned Badger-Stafford process (see 3 .1.1).
Since then many improvements have been achieved and the
systems have been made energy efficient. For more than
thirty years, the charcoal industry has employed multiple
hearth furnaces for this purpose. Because of the high
capi tal outlay for a multiple hearth furnace, experimental
development was initiated with small units built in the
early years of this technology.
The small-scale rapid pyrolysis technology has a
particular importance for the charcoal-maker in developing
countries:

- 129-
 Developing countries, in contrast to the industrialized
countries, abound in forestal and agricultural waste
which constitutes a valuable raw material source for
charcoal and by-product generation.

Developing countries need to recover energy from

indigenous sources to make them independent of expensive
imports of fuel oil.

Almost all rapid pyrolysis plants can be designed for

the generation of three products: solid char, pyrolysis oil,
and converter gas (5).
The biomass char is obtained as coarse or fine powder
and has to be agglomerated or briquet ted in most
applications. The cost of these additional operations is
frequently overestimated. Moreover, the fact that
br iquetting improves the quality of the char and its value
as fuel is not yet sufficiently well known. Briquetting and
agglomeration technology will be discussed in Chapter 8.

3.1.3.1 Generalized Flow Diagram

Rapid pyrolysis plants are built according to a scheme

which has been adopted for more than two decades. They can
be di fferentia ted by the retort/converter type only.
Normally, a briquetting plant is attached (this is not shown
in Figure 41).
The raw material is received, reduced in size by hogging
(i f necessary) and stored. Additional unit operations such
as ferrous metal removal, glass removal, etc., may be
performed before storing the sized material. From storage,
the feed is retrieved and conveyed at a metered rate to the
dryer. Here the mo isture content of the feed is reduced to
less than 10 % (wet basis), and the dried feed is then
conveyed to a surge bin.

- 130 -
 t DRYER FAN
~.- - -~
FINES
COLLECTOR
HOGGED
FEED

DRIED BURNER
FEED

D FUEL
PYROLYSIS GAS
UNIT SCRUBBER
FAN
DRIED-FEED
SURGE BIN H~.....------1~
OFF -
"'l----.L---© ~
GASES FUEL
--.- ) GAS

DIRTY SCRUBBING
AIR BLOWER CHAR OIL
OIL

OIL
STORAGE
FILTER TANK OIL
CAKE FILTER

CHAR
'---_aM S TORAGEI-- - - - - -....{A }--4~
BIN
CHAR

Figure 41 Generalized Flow Diagram of the rapid pyrolysis process.

( Courtesy of Carbon International, Ltd.

Neu -Isenburg, F R G )

- 131-
 Dried feed is retrieved and conveyed from the surge b in
at a metered rate to the pyrolysis unit. Here the feed is
thermally converted to char (charcoal) and oil (pyrolysis
oil) and gas vapours (heating gas). The charcoal is
discharged from the bottom of the converter into a sealed
screw conveyer where it is cooled with water spray.
The oil and gas vapours are drawn from the top of the
converter into the off-gas system. This stream flows through
a scrubber-chiller . Here most of the pyrolysis oil vapours
are condensed. The uncondensed gases then flow through a
demister which coalesces the mists into a separate liquid
oil stream. The remaining fuel gases are drawn through the
draught fan and forced into burners to supply heat to the
dryer and to other on-site units such as boilers , kilns,
briquette dryer, etc.
The newly condensed pyrolysis oil flows to a rotary
vacuum filter (if neessary) where solid particles are
removed. Then the clean oil is stored and is available for
use as liquid fuel. In many charcoal operations the
pyrolysis oil vapours are not condensed; instead, the
off-gases from the top of the converter are burned in an
auxiliary steam boiler. The steam produced in this way can
be piped and sold "over the fence" which is the desired
practice in many plants.
The integration of rapid pyrolysis plants into existing
industries, with regard to the prevailing socio-economic
situation of developing countries, is one of the most
important tasks for the charcoal industry planner. The
possiblities available to him can be numerous and they
should be surveyed carefully during a research programme
(see also Chapter 7).
The criteria for rapid pyrolysis plants may be
summarized as follows:

Conversion of small material fragments only .

- 132-
 Limiting the moisture content of the raw material by
mixing of dry with wet material, or pre-drying.

Movement of the raw material dur ing carbonization by

free flow, forced flow or rotation .

Short residence time of the raw material within the

retort or converter to prevent product losses.

Internal heating (type A, see section 1.3) whenever

possible in order to simplify the operation.

Control of product quanti ty and yield by varying

residence time and carbonization temperature (process
flexibility) .

Low capital investment within the means of small-scale

producers .

Substitution of automatic equipment and devices by

labour i f maximum of job opening is desirable.

3 .1.3.2 The MUltiple Hearth Furnace (6)

This furnace can best be described as a vertical kiln

with a number of circular hearths which are enclosed in a
refractory-lined steel shell (see Figure 42).
In the centre of the cylindrical shell, a vertical
rotating shaft with radial arms moves the feed from the top
hearth by rabbing teeth i n a spiral path across each hearth.
The material is thus constantly agitated and exposed by the
rabbing teeth before it falls through drop holes from level
to level .
The process air can be supplied in cont rolled quantities
by combustion air blowers through burners or ports, or by
induction through air ports. Automatic draught and
- 133 -
Fi gure 42. Cross-section of a multiple hearth furnace.
( Courtesy of ENVIROTECH, BSP DIVISION, Belmont, California)

-134 -
 oxygen-moni toring equipment are utilized to minimize power
draw and fuel demand while ensuring clean combustion.
The shaft arms are cooled by forced air from a fan. The
shaft has double-wall construction. Thus the cool air blows
up the centre tube , through the rabble arms, and back into
the shaft annular space to exit at the top of the furnace.
Heated air is ducted back into the furnace for re-use as
combustion air. Furnace refractory and layers of insulation
in the thick walls conserve heat and maintain low shell
temperatures.
There are several types of mul tiple hearth furnaces on
the market. However , one of the most important points to
bear in mind is that the furnace to be selected should have
flexibility so as to handle a wide variety of materials of
varying physical and chemical characteristics. Another point
of interest to the potential charcoal-maker is the ability
to utilize different fuels, including coal dust as well as
waste oils.
The trend of technical development is to improve the
overall economics of the multiple hearth furnace by adding
equipment to make use of the converter gas. Therefore,
systems have been developed with predrying installations and
steam boilers to recover the energy contained in the
remaining driven-off gases.
Another potential which should be considered by the
charcoal production planner is the possiblity to install
addit ional steam nozzles for charcoal activation. Since
activated carbon has become a highly-sought-after commodity
in industrialized countries, it should be mentioned here
that the largest quantities produced are made by multiple
hearth furnace activation. The investment costs for the
multiple hearth furnace are very high, when compared with
retorts and small-scale converters. Therefore, these have to
be offset by a high charcoal capacity and increased
productivity. As a rule of thumb, the lower limits for
economical operation would be 15.000 to 18.000 tons of
charcoal per year.
- 135-
 For the planner in developing countries, it should also
be pointed out that this technology is designed for reduced
manpower, and therefore does not necessarily create an
attractive number of job openings .

3.1.3.3 The Fluid Bed Carbonizer

In this process the raw material (K) is directed to a

bed of hot glowing charcoal in a closed chamber (D) (see
Figure 43). This is maintained in a turbulent state by
introducing an oxygen-containing gas under pressure into the
bed.
To obtain better results, the gas is heated before
reaching the bed, but it may not be so hea ted. The gas and
particles may be introduced together or separately, and the
gas may enter the bed at one or more points.
The glowing charcoal quickly distils and gasifies the
wood particles. The oxygen-containing gas and the evolved
gases are present in such quanti ty that the charcoal and
particle bed is maintained in a turbulent or "fluidized
state" resulting in a uniformly high temperature throughout.
Charcoal is formed continuously in the process, and the
excess may be removed from the top of the bed in any desired
manner. It may be removed periodically, but it is preferable
to withdraw it continuously, and this is done by means of an
overflow pipe (F), level with the top of the bed.
A certain amount of the charcoal is burned by the oxygen
introduced into the bed, and the heat of this reaction
supplies a portion of the heat necessary for the operation
of the unit.
The evolved gases, containing acids, alcohols and tars
rise through the hot charcoal body, a portion of the tar
mist being cracked by heat to form lower molecular weight
hydrocarbons.

- 136 -
 4

+ r. 1 - CONTROL
2 - FURNACE
3 - FEED BIN
4 - AFTER BURNER
5 - PIPE LINE
! ,, 1-
K A - REACTOR
J - CYCLONE
- ·G - CLOSED HOPPER
A
,~ ..' \
, . .. .. "
. \
i ~l I~
/"
/.,
..... :.\,, .'
w .......... : ~\,
.....
I 3 ..· ·E:·
!
~ •., ~ ,..._._._.--11
. . .. :::; .~ ::..~
...

::0
..
·'0
..

Figure 43. The flu id bed carbon izer. Generalized diagram.

 The crude gas passes through a disengagement zone (H) in
the chamber above the charcoal bed before it is wi thdrawn
from the apparatus.
Since the decomposition of the particles is an
exothermic process, it is necessary only to heat the
particles to reaction temperature and to supply enough heat
to replace heat lost by conduction, radiation and by
endothermic reactions. The operation of the unit is
continuous.
A continuous fluid bed gasi fier for small particles has
been developed for this process, in which fuel gas is
produced as a major product. The fragments to be gasified
may range from particles of 3 cm down to a very fine dust in
size. The decomposition rate of the small particles is very
rapid, and this is important for commercial purposes .
(A) is a closed chamber or reactor which may be of any
desired cross-sectional shape, but is usually round. The
chamber has an upwardly converging section (C) at its upper
end. The chamber may be formed of stainless steel and
covered by suitable insulation material. A refractory lined
insulation reactor will allow a large range of temperatures
for broader industrial applications. The bed of charcoal (D)
is maintained in the lower section of the chamber.
Oxygen-containing gas is continuously directed into this
bed.
If bone-dry , preheated, small particle feed is used,
larger yield and higher heating value fuel gas are obtained
than by conventional continuous gas producer operation. The
heating value of the gas, when the gasifier is operated with
air, is about twice that obtained by conventional gas
producers. The higher gas yield is a result of more rapid
thermal decomposition obtained with small particle feed,
dried and preheated to its decomposition temperature. The
higher heating value of the gas produced is due to lower air
requirements for gasification of dry, preheated wood. The
nitrogen in the air is the main factor in reducing the
heating value of producer fuel gas (7).
-13 8 -
Technical and Process Data (7)

Feed material: Sawdust, fruit pits, nutshells,

sugar-cane bagasse, max. size 0.6 em.

Achievable char yield: 18 % to 25 % of raw material (dry

basis) ca 2 m3 gas per kg raw
material.

3 .1.3.4 The Vertical Flow Converter (8)

The converter consists of an outside steel shell, a

composite refractory lining, an output feed mechanism at the
bottom, a lower plenum, a char screw, a char discharge
air-lock, an insulated top, and an air injection system . The
converter is normally run at a pressure slightly below
atmospheric and is sealed to prevent in-leakage of outside
air (see Figure 44 and Photo 13).
Dried feed material is fed through the air-lock near the
top of the converter; the flow rate through the converter is
controlled by the output system and a nuclear level detector
which controls the rate of feed into the converter.
As the material flows downwards through the converter,
it is heated to a maximum temperature of about 550 0 C and
thermally decomposes into charcoal (char) and gaseous
vapours. The char is discharged into the lower plenum where
it is water-spray cooled and conveyed through the screw and
air-lock to conveying equipment which takes i t to storage.
The hot gaseous vapours flow upwards through the bed,
heating the downward-flowing solids, and exit through a port
at the top of the converter into the off-gas system.

- 139-
Raw material
hopper

Converter gas

Air control

Cooling water
'OO'YVSCVy VVV__
IOi\XX X~9< h4F>FX~
Revolving lock

*
Charcoal discharge

The vertical flow converter.

(Courtesy of AMERICAN CAN CO.

Greenwich, Conn . )

- 140-
~
I
-

-------- -----
PHOTO 13 Model of a vertical flow converter charcoal plant.
Left: vertical flow reactor with gas pipes. Right:
raw material and charcoal storage.
(Photo Bio-Carbon, GmbH)
Raw material receipt

Raw material is received from a drag chain directly from

a mill or by truck. The process feed conveyor incorporates a
magnet for the removal of magnetic materials. The material
passes over a screen which sorts out the oversized pieces
and sends them to a hammermill (hog) for size reduction. The
hogged material, together with the undersized material, is
conveyed to a bucket elevator which loads the storage bin.
From storage, a screw conveyor transports the sized material
to a small metering bin to feed the dryer. The metering bin
has level sensing devices which control the storage bin
unloader in an on-off fashion.
Expensive equipment may be eliminated and manpower
employed instead, wherever appropriate.

Raw material dryer

Material is fed at a metered rate from the metering bin

to the dryer. The dryer can be one of several types:

A single-pass rotary dryer

A three-pass rotary dryer.

A screw conveyer dryer of individual design.

In each of these dryers, hot gases are passed through

the material. The inlet gas temperature varies with dryer
design and ranges from 200 0 C to 800 0 C. The dryer effluent
gas is passed through a cyclonic type separator to remove
the entrained solid particles.
Solar or air predrying of the raw feed is recommended
wherever applicable and will improve the overall economy of
the process.
The off-gas system of the converter can be designed for
collection of pyrolysis oil, including fractionation of the
- 142-
oil to produce raw material, raw acetic acid, creosotes and
tar.

Technical and process data (8)

Converter: Forestal wastes, sawmill wastes, agr icul tural

residues. Hogged to approx . size 5 x 1.5 cm .

Yield: 100 kg char per 350-390 kg of raw feed (dry

basis). 80 kg pyrolysis oil per 350-390 kg of raw
feed (dry basis).

Energy: 150 kcal/kg of dry feed ; 0.05 KWh/kg of dry feed.

For the economic operation of a plant, a minimum

throughput of 0.5 t/h of raw feed is necessary.

3.1.3.5 The Enerco Mobile Pyrolyser (Model 24) (14)

This system optimizes the quantity and quality of

charcoal production . The Enerco method of recirculating the
indirectly heated inert gas keeps products of combust ion and
nitrogen out of the pyrolysis reactor, thereby generating
the highest grade of wood gas and distillates . Moreover this
direct contact of the hot recirculated inert gas with the
wood feed maxim izes the rate of the char reaction.
The producer gas can be used directly in a user's boiler
and/or condensed into a Bunker C type low sulphur oil. Heat
obtained from complete incineration of unused and
uncondensed off-gas sustains the char reaction. The waste
heat both from the incinerated products of combustion and
the condenser is made available under adequate gas pressure
to ensure the proper operation of wood-drying equipment (see
5.3). The pressure varies widely depending on the type of
dryer, mater ial to be dried, and the drying rate .

-143 -
 The equipment is intended to operate outdoors in most
weather conditions. Materials and workmanship are such that
the apparatus can perform without interference from snow,
rain, frost or freezing rain. Any components that cannot
meet these requirements must be protected.
The maximum diagonal dimension of wood particles should
not exceed 1.8 cm. The process is designed to handle a wide
range of feeds, from unsized sawdust to hogged or chipped
wood. There is no requirement to size -sort the feed material
prior to pyrolysis. At a given pyrolysis temperature , the
char time is a function of the dimension of the largest
piece to be charred (always taking the smallest dimension of
a given particle) .
The wood feed is automatically loaded into the top of
the reactor by a 23 cm auger which elevates the feed from
floor level. Charcoal is unloaded on a presettable
time/volume schedule by a 23 cm auger which elevates the
charcoal to a height of 1.2 m (see Figure 45).
Both augers are tightly flanged to the reactor, thus
preventing air or gas leaks at these points. A flange is
provided at the exit end of the off-load auger for
convenient sealing to the user's char-handling facility.

Moisture content limitations on the feed

Pyrolysis of wood feeds up to 23 % moisture by weight

has been carried out successfully. The drier the feed, the
quicker will it produce charcoal and the higher will be the
energy value of the off-gas stream . To lower the moisture
content of the feed, a heat exchanger is included with the
pyrolyser to provide warm, temperature-controlled air to the
infeed surge bin.
For each 3 tons of bone-dry wood infeed, the "24"
produces 1 ton of char, 1 ton of gas, and approximately 1/2
ton of oi l. The amounts will vary with type of feed
(species, bark concentration, etc.) and pyrolysis
temperature.
-144 -
 Courtesy of ENERCO, INC.,
Langhorne, P.A.)

Excessgas fan Air fan

OJ>
-...
I

Fi gure 45. The ENERCO Model 24 Pyrolyser ( right side ).

 3:
Ma terial ,I nput Output Consumed i n Process
Tons % Btu(l06) % Tons % Btu(l06) Tons % Btu(10 6) %
:l
I:
Q.

(l)
:l

Wood waste 3.0 80 48 100

Water 0.75 20 0.75 23 ......

OJ
~:l

Charcoal 1.0 31 26 I~
....
."
-,
Char oil 0.5 15 10 I~
tr
o
c
Producer gas 1.0 31 8 0 .5 100 4 100 11-1
0
....,
0
0
(l)

3 .75 100% 48 100 % 3 . 25 100% 44 0.5 100% 4 100% I~

rt-
f-' .
0
_:l
========= ===== ==== ======================================================== ======
Ele c tr i c power consumed to operate the system: The system
uses a ma ximum of 30 KW/h .
References

(1) M. Klar, Der Stand der Technologie und die Wirt-

schaftlichkeit der Holzdestillationsprodukte,
Wochenblatt fur die Papierfabrikation, Nr. 5/6,
1936.

(2) H.M. Bunburry, The Destructive Distillation of

Wood, London, 1925.

(3) F. Fluegge, Chemische Technologie des Holzes,

(36-71), Munich FRG, 1954.

(4) W. Emrich, "The Carbonization of Biomass", paper

presented at the Nuclear Research Center, Jue1ich,
FRG, 1981.

(5) W. Emrich, "Recovery of Char and Pyrolysis Oil from

Forestal Waste and Agricultural Residues by
Carbonization", paper presented at the
International Recycling Congress, Berlin, FRG, 1982 .

(6) Informa tion prov ided by Envira tech , Eimco BSP

Division, Belmont, California, USA 1982

(7) Information provided by Protran Co., Raleigh, North

Carolina, USA 1982.

(8) Information provided by American Can Co. ,

Greenwich, Conn., USA 1983.

(9) Information provided by Enerco, Inc., Langhorne

Pennsylvania, USA 1982.

- 147-
Chapter 4
TECHNIQUES FOR RECOVERING COMMERCIAL PRODUCTS FROM PYROLYSIS
OIL

The off-gas leaving the retort or converter is at a

temperature of 280 0 to 300 0 C. It contains the pyrolysis oil
vapours and the uncondensable residual gas which is often
referred to as heating gas.
In many cases, this high energy containing off-gas is
burned for the sole purpose of firing a steam boiler
furnace. It has a tendency to clog gas pipes if not properly
handled and if the pipes are not well insulated. Therefore,
extensive pipelines must be avoided. These problems may be
minimized by stripping and scrubbing it from the pyrolysis
oil.
It has been mentioned already that pyrolysis oil was
once an important raw material for the chemical and other
industr ies. Today, although few charcoal plants make use of
recovery technologies, the interest in this raw material
source is i nc r e as i ng (1).
Factories specializing in carbonization/distillation
processes usually confine themselves to delivering crude
products (pyroligneous acid and tars) to specialized
distilleries. The rectification and separation of methanol,
acetone and acetic acid in the pure sta te that is required
is a delicate process and has no direct connection with
carbonization itself.
The products of the normal medium-sized charcoal plant
are: wood spirit (methanol), acetic, propionic, and butyric
acid, tar and creosotes .
The outlook for chemicals derived from pyrolysis oil
cannot be forecast at this time. However, it seems worth
while to acquaint the charcoal planner, particularly in
developing countries, with the basics of this special field.
There is a common belief in the charcoal industry that those
developing countries which are building up their own
-148 -
chemical production capacities will be more likely to fall
back upon these domestic resources.
Until now, the great number of raw materials available
to the charcoal industry in the tropics has been little, or
not at all explored from the viewpoint of recovery of
pyrolytic products. It remains to be seen wether the
governments and their agencies concerned with energy supply
will give more attention to this area of charcoal-making in
the future.

4.1 Pyrolysis Oil Recovery

The first step in pyrolysis oil devaporisation is

cooling of the retort gas. The surface area of the cooling
system depends in the first place on the quantity of raw
feed input in the retort or converter. Theoretically, 1.90
to 2.00 m2 heat exchange area is necessary for 100 kg dry
feed, if water is the cooling agent. The resulting gas will
be at a temperature of 20-30° C and contain CO, hydrogen,
CO 2 and also traces of pyrolysis oil vapours.
In practice, far greater heat exchange areas must be
installed. The designer must have sufficient experience of
charcoal technology, because there is no way to calculate
the actual size of the pyrolysis oil cooler and test runs
are usually not possible.
It is advisable to protect the cooling system against
stray raw material particles by inserting a cyclone or
demister between it and the retort or converter . This is a
necessity for continuous carbonization, and rapid pyrolysis
plants in particular. Without it, clogging and congestion of
coolers takes place which cause interruptions of the
operation (2).
All parts of the equipment in this section of the
operation and the following stages, which come in contact
with the products must be made from corrosion-resistant
metals, usually stainless steel or copper.

- 149-
4.2 Crude Acetic Acid and Acetone Recovery

The wood spirit is first eliminated in a steam-heated

rectifier. The pyroligneous acid rises half-way up the
rectifier column. The wood spirit distills off at the upper
part whilst the pyroligneous residue runs off in the lower
part. These two crude products are discussed in another
section.

Lime acetate process

The pyroligneous acid, after the separation of crude

wood spirit as above, is distilled in copper vessels and the
water and acetic acid vapours are collected in a limewash
while the tar in solution is left in the retort (retort tar).
The lime acetate so precipitated is dry-evaporated in
drums at a temperature not exceeding 180 0 C. This crude
acetate, known as grey acetate, contains 80 % by weight of
calcium acetate.
The solubility of calcium acetate varies little with
temperature; hence, it is necessary to carry out dry
evaporation, but such evaporation ceases when the mass
congeals into a crystalline magma containing only layers. To
convert the magma into grey acetate at 80 per cent,
evaporation must be carried out on shallow layers. It is
impossible to obtain an anhydrous acetate, for at the
temperature needed to evaporate the last 20 per cent of
moisture the acetate itself would begin to decompose.
By decomposing grey acetate with sulphuric acid, an
acetic acid at 85 per cent, contaminated by sulphur
derivatives, should be obtained. The treatment of grey
acetate with sulphuric acid should be carried out in heated
mixing apparatus . Calcium sulphate and sulphuric acid are
formed on distillation of crude acetic acid, later purified
by rectification.
Acetone can be obtained from grey acetate by heating
thin layers of the latter in mixing apparatus at 400 0 C to
- 150-
500 0 C. The crude acetone is purified by rectification.
These processes are not more used in modern plants.

Direct recovery of acetic acid by distillation

The process starts from a weak acetic acid solution

obtained by the distillation of pyroligneous acid leaving a
residue of retort tar.
The process employed by several companies uses toluene
to draw off the moisture during the second dist illation . The
process is based upon a principle development to determine
the moisture content of wood.
A more sophisticated but well designed two-stage process
is used by a French company. First, the solution is diluted
with xylene; on distillation, the latter combines with water
to form a binary mixture with very low boiling point. The
first-stage concentration of acetic acid is then distilled
again with benzene, forming a fresh mixture with a still
lower boiling point.
A process of far-reaching practical importance is that
used both by the Societe des Produits Chimiques de Clamecy
and Lambiotte Brothers plant (3, 4). This method is also
based upon the elimination of moisture by distillation of an
azeotrope formed with butyl acetate, or with a fraction of
wood spirit passed into a tar extractor in which a
counter-cur rent of butyl acetate circulates. The latter
serves to maintain a constant water vapour content in the
acetic acid vapour. This vapour is then passed through a
dehydration tank containing butyl acetate. At 90 0 C, an
azeotrope distils off at the upper part of the tank; the
azeotrope contains 71.3 per cent butyl acetate and 28 .7 per
cent moisture by weight. The heating of the tank is
controlled so that condensation takes place at the bottom of
the tank. Two layers are deposited: the upper one,
cons isting mainly of butyl acetate, returns to the tar
extractor; the heavier layer, consisting of a solution of 30
per cent acetic acid in water , is conveyed to a further tank
- 151 -
for concentration. The azeotrope distilled at the top of the
dehydration tank is condensed and separates out into a light
layer containing 98.9 per cent butyl acetate and a watery
layer containing only 0.8 per cent of the latter. The light
layer is returned through the dehydration tank (see Figure
46) •
The plant belonging to the Deutsche Gold und Silber
Scheidenanstalt uses the acetic ether method for the
extraction of acetic acid. Pyroligneous acid freed from wood
spirit is introduced into the top of a 10-metre tower filled
with the ether. At the same time, a counter-current of
acetic ether is introduced from the bottom. The tower is
fitted with rashig rings to ensure good contact. Working is
continuous (5).
At the bottom of the tower, there is a run-off of water
containing some dissolved ether which is collected by
rectifying. A mixture of ether and acetic acid with a little
tar is given off from the top. The ether is collected by
rectification and recycled into the extraction tower. The
separation of crude acetic acid and tar is effected by
vacuum distillation . The resultant acetic acid is at 95 per
cent; it is rectified.
It is not known whether this very attractive process can
offer the same guarantees of reliability as those using the
various French techniques.
Acetone can be obtained by passing the pyroligneous acid
(after separating out wood spirit) or the pyrolgneous
distillate over catalysers at 500 0 c.

4.3 Recovery of Methanol (Wood Spirit)

Treatment of wood spirit

The wood spirit separated as above from the crude

pyrolysis oil contains about (6, 7):

- 152-
 ABC 0
I. ·11· .11. .11. .1

, 1lllrt

Wood ...'---.•. .-....

W
'"
I

_ _ Charcoal
A = Carbonization i='--~3f~
B = Pyrolysis oil recovery c e-:-:-l F- -b d
C = Crude methanol plant
~TI;::
o = Acetic acid concentration
a = Crude methanol e = Methylating spirit
b = Crude acetic acid f = Tar
c = Methanol g = Waste water disposal
d = Acetic acid
Figure 46. A charcoal plant with pyrolysis oil refinery .
 65 - 70 % methanol
10 - 15 % acetone
10 - 15 % methyl acetate
1 3 % acetaldehyde
0.5 - 1 % allylic alcohol, etc.

After neutralizing with milk of lime, the crude spirit

is rectified in a continuous-working multi-tank apparatus.
The wood spirit vapour passes into the bottom of a first
tank heated directly by steam; here, the acetaldehyde is
separated out. The wood spirit vapour then passes into a
water-heated separation tank, where acetone and some methyl
acetate are separated. In a third tank, the remaining wood
spirit, now crude methanol, is rectified. In a fourth, a
rectification tank, pure methanol is obtained. Rectification
alone would not suffice, so a solution of soda is introduced
into the fourth tank.

4.4. Processing of Charcoal Tar

Our ing the entire process, tar is obtained at di fferent

locations of the plant and then collected and kept separate
in tanks.
A great quantity of the tar can be secured by settling
from the pyrolysis oil before processing has started, or
after the evaporation of the methanol (insoluble or settled
tar). The tar settling itsel f normally requires a few days.
The water-soluble tar, however, will remain in the pyrolysis
oil and is discharged from the bottom or lower part of
distillation columns.
Water-insoluble settled tar in pyroligneous acid from
hardwoods has .t he following average composition (8):

Acetic acid 2.0 %

Methanol 0.7 %
Moisture 17.7 %
- 154-
 B

Creosotes Froth flota-

tion oil
I

'" Heating Oil Wood

'"I preservative

Guaiacol

Heating Oil

A = Tar oil , light

B = Tar oil, heavy
C = Tar residues from still

Figure 47 Recovery of commercial products from pyrolytic tar.

 light oils 5.0 %
Heavy oils 10.0 %
Pitch 64.6 %

Tar in solution (retort tar) shows much the same

composition in softwood or hardwoods:

Acetic acid 8.0 %

Moisture 32.0 %
Pitch 60.0 %

Softwood tar insoluble in pyrolgneous acid is less dense

than the latter. Its average is:

Pyrolytic acids 12.0 %

Terpenes and hydrocarbons 30.0 %
Tar proper 58.0 %

The most valuable commercial products which can be

gained by processing are shown in Figure 47.

Processing of insoluble hardwood tar (settled tar)

The tar is dist illed until separated from its content of

water, wood spirit and light oils.
Copper retorts, steam-heated by a coil are used, and are
connected with a copper condenser. A Florentin vessel is
used for separating the light oils carried off (8).
The tar is first heated to 140 0 to 150 0 C, when most of
the moisture, the acetic acid, the wood spirit and the light
oils are given off. After condensation, the Florentin
receiver separates the water from the oils floating on the
surface.
The water is reunited with the pyrolytic acid; the oils,
which have an unpleasant smell, are of no use except for
heating.
The tar is heated further with the direct introduction
- 156-
of steam until no more acetic acid is carried off. The
retort residue is then a tar free of moisture and acid but
still containing heavy oils. This process neither rectifies
the heavy oils nor separates the creosote; it simply enables
the acetic acid in the tar to be collected.
To separate the creosote, the tar should be distilled in
an open fire retort sim ilar to those used in distilling coal
tar, but the top should be made of copper to resist the
acidi ty of the volatile substances. The base of the retort
is of cast iron.
The preliminary heating should be done with care, for
the tar tends to froth. The pyroligneous acid and the wood
spirit distil first, issuing from the condenser as a
yellowish, watery liquid with light oils floating on top.
The first stage of distilling is completed around 110 0 C,
and the temperature should be raised to 250 0 to 260 0 C
before distillation is resumed. The oils which are
respectively lighter and heavier than water are collected in
different vessels. These crude oils are not yet saleable for
they contain appreciable amounts of tar.
The operation is completed at 260 0 C and pitch remains.
Oils from tars have lost their value with the rise of
petroleum products; heavy oils are still somewhat
appreciated for their creosotes which are used for wood
preservation. These heavy oils are washed with a solution of
common soda, the acetic acid of which combines with the
pyrolytic acid. The resulting purified heavy oil contains 50
per cent phenols, and creosote, and is often known as "oil
of creosote" .
The creosote can be extracted from it by washing with a
weak soda solution which transforms all phenols and the
creosote to salts. The separated alkaline solution is
steam-injected to remove the traces of oil remain ing at the
bottom.
The saline solution is treated wi th a dilute mineral
acid, and the crude creosote rises to the surface. This
creosote is not pure, but the guaiacoal can be separa ted
- 157 -
from it by successive treatment with soda, steam and acid
and lastly by distillation.
Creosote used for wood preservation is really oil of
creosote.

Processing of insoluble softwood tar

The composition of this tar depends to some degree upon

the charcoal-making process used; it is worth while to
return to this point.
When normal softwood (20 per cent moisture) is
distilled, the moisture begins to volatilize, carrying off
turpentine. As the temperature rises in the retort, the
resin grows soft and gathers on the face of the wood. At
180 0 C, the resin distills, and the products given off are,
on the first cracking, the "pine-oils" followed by resin
oils at increasing boiling points.
When large amounts of wood are distilled, an evenly
distributed temperature is impossible. The turpentine
carried off by the water vapour from the less heated areas
of the retort is accompanied by products resulting from
resin breakdown emana ting from the hot ter areas. Hence the
turpentine so obtained is mixed with pine oil. Sometimes
there is a mixture of tars from still hotter portions of the
retort. This crude turpentine is called "Crude pine oil" or
"German spirit" (9).
The smaller the distilling apparatus, the more constant
is the composition of the distilled products, owing to
evenness of temperatures. As a rule, the distillation of
softwoods on an industrial scale produces turpentine which
condenses only in the coolers and tar which condenses
between the retort and the condensers properly. This tar
contains some pine oil.
The crude turpentine is given off with steam.
Turpentine, crude commercial pine oil, and a commercial tar
are separated. The crude commercial tar is refined to
extract oil of turpentine by heating i t to 1300 to 150 0 C
- 158-
and injecting steam which carries off all products except
the tar. The resulting distillate is washed with soda
solution which fixes any fatty acids and the phenols, as
well as resini fy ing aldehydes and condensing acetone. The
alkaline solution is separated and treated with dilute
sulphuric acid, so eliminating the furanes, the aldehydes
and the unsaturated compounds.
The washed oil is recti fied either with an uncovered
furnace or in a steam bath, the quality of the product being
improved by vacuum distillation at 110 0 to 120 0 C. The
resulting distillate is a commercial oil of turpentine.

Treatment of soluble tar (extraction tar)

On being distilled, retort tar gives only two kinds of

products: a pyroligneous acid comparatively rich in acetic
acid, and a very brittle pitch. Oil fractioning is
non-existent. This tar has no value in itself, but its
acetic acid content is collected either by open-fire
distillation or (better) by steam treatment.
The tar is loaded into a copper retort, with both open
and closed heating coils. The closed coils raise the
temperature to distillation level, and then the open coils
enable collection by steam . The operation continues until
the acetic acid is practically exhausted. The pitch is
removed before cooling . At ordinary temperatures it becomes
brittle and can be used as fuel.

4.5 Concluding Remarks

It is obvious that the overall energy balance of a charcoal

plant depends on the efficiency of by-product recovery.
However, the overall economic balance depends on the
effectiveness of the commercialization of the recovered
by-products in current markets.

- 159-
 By employing current technology and advanced equipment,
a modern charcoal plant can be operated as an energy
self-sufficient entity (10).
Industry has reported energy utilization factors, as
compared with the total energy input, of up to 85 %.
It is commonly believed in the industry that the energy
losses of charcoal plants cannot be reduced below 17 %,
perhaps even 20 %. These "natural" losses resul t from the
escape of tangible heat through the insulation of equipment,
through cooling water, and heat losses from the
freshly-discharged charcoal which is well above ambient
temperature.
Evidently, the investment of a potential charcoal-maker
is limited by cost-benefit considerations, in particular by
the market value of his products. Consequently, many
charcoal-makers have no choice but to accept a global energy
balance well below the optimum of 85 % as a result of lack
of demand.
Looking to the future, it should be noted that several
institutes and private companies have resumed their research
programmes on the optimal utilization of charcoal
by-products. This research line had been neglected during
the period of cheap petroleum and natural gas.
This branch of specialized chemistry dealing with the
modification of pyrolysis products still encounters
di fficul ties inherent in the nature of pyrolytic compounds,
for example the strong tendency to sel f-polymerization of
some 0 f these products. However, research in this di fficul t
area is progressing; in particular, there is significant
progress in the catalytic heat pressure treatment of
pyrolysis oil.
While awaiting the results which are expected from the
research efforts, it must be accepted that, for the time
being, pyrolytic oils and charcoal gas will be restricted to
the replacement of fuels for steam boilers, brick factories,
cement and fertilizer plants, gas engines, etc.

- 160 -
References

(1) Chemicals from Wood are Economical Now, Chemical

Engineering News, Dec. 6, 1976
(2) M. Klar, Heutiger Stand der Technik und Wirtschaft
der Holzdestillationsindustrie, Wochenblatt fur
Papierfabrikation, Nr . 5/6, 1936
(3) French Patent No. 696803, Soc. des Produits
Chimiques de Clamecy, 1929
(4) French Patent No. 760593, Etablissements Lambiotte
Freres, 1933
(5) German Patent No. 592119, Degussa, Frankfurt, 1930
(6) G. Petroff, Pyrolyse des Bois Tropicaux, Influence
de la Composition Chimique des Bois sur les
Produits de Distillation, Revue Bois et Forets des
Tropiques, no. 177, 1978
(7) J. Doat, La Carbonisation des Bois Tropicaux, Revue
Bois et Forets des Tropiques, no. 159, 1975
(8) W. Sandermann, Die chemische Verwertung von
Stubben, Markblaetter des Reichsinstitutes fuer
Forst- und Holzwirtschaft, 1948
(9) D. Zinkel, Chemicals from Trees, Forest Products
Laboratory, Madison, USA, 1975
(10) W. Emrich, Sierra Leone. Production of Charcoal
Briquettes and Pyrolysis Oil from Agricultural
Wastes, UNIDO, Technical Report, 1981.

- 161-
Chapter 5
RAW MATERIALS SUPPLY

Until two decades ago, roundwood or pile wood was the

primary raw material for charcoal. Because of the
competition by other industries, particle board and fibre
board manufacturing wood prices became unaffordable for the
charcoal industry in European countries and the U.S.A. Thus
the charcoal-maker turned to other sources like slabs and
off-cuts of lumberyards and timber sawmilling, bark and
sawdust.
Yet today, most charcoal is still made from wood
extracted out of natural forests and generally about five
tons of wood produce one ton of charcoal. For every person
in a community who uses charcoal for hea ting and cooking,
about 0.5 ha of high forest has to be set aside to provide
that wood supply in perpetuity, if one follows through
official statistics (1).
Therefore, charcoal making can only be an on-going
industry where improved and advanced technology is employed
and the raw material resource is managed to provide a
continuing supply.
Looking at the encouraging progress which has been made
in Argentine and Brazil one can easily recognize that only a
tenth of the area above would be adequate if the wood comes
from well managed fuel wood plantations and is more
efficiently used. Certainly, the use of wood derived from
sawmill waste and land-clearing residues for charcoal-making
does in no way alter the long-term forest land or plantation
requirments for fuelwood.
The two major ways to achieve the objectives of resource
management of the raw material supply for charcoal-making
are to make the forest more productive by improving growth
and reducing waste in harvesting, and to improve the
conversion ratio of the raw fuel wood to finished charcoal
and its by-products (2).
- 162 -
 A natural forest is a resource which, in the economist's
jargon, grew without labour inputs from man. The aim of
forest management is to harvest a maximum timber crop from
such a forest without destroying its productivity as an
on-going ecosystem and, at the same time, minimize the
inputs needed to achieve this . The result of this process is
expressed in the mean annual allowable offtake or cut of the
forest, usually measured in cubic metres per hectare.
Theoretical ly, one could remove a volume equal to this each
year and the forest would maintain itself. In practice, the
intervention of man produces long-term changes in the
forest, especially in the tropics, changing the species
composition and the diameter classes of the mature, natural
forest after harvesting and regeneration. Wherever possible,
a forest should be managed to produce the product mix of
highest value - sawlogs and veneer logs are first priority.
Fuelwood has the lowest value; it is wood which cannot
normally be sold for any other purpose. Its price is usually
below pUlpwood for the paper industry.
The usual compromise achieved - even in countries where
forest management is strong and well-oriented - is that a
certain area of forest is allocated for fuelwood supply with
the annual allowable cut set at a level believed sustainable
from the knowledge available at the time. The fuelwood
harvesting enterprise then endeavours to stay within the
prescribed cut and to maximize the harvest by making
effecti ve use of branch wood , dead timber and small diameter
wood of poor quality, etc, which is not normally included in
the assessed standing volume for yield calculations. To
avoid damaging the forest system, however, there needs to be
constant monitoring and measurement by the forest management
authori ties to ensure that target regeneration and growth
rates are being achieved and to decide whether the allowable
cut may be increased or must be reduced.
As already mentioned, other sources which are ideally
suited for charcoal-making are the residues of forestry and
the primary and secondary wood industry (3).
- 163-
 Numerous feedstocks have been tried out successfully by
carbonization during the last three decades. Among those
which have found widespread commercial use are:

leftovers from clear-cuttings: brushes, branches,

leaves, roots

waste of lumber mills and the furniture industry:

sawdust, off-cuts, slabs and wood shavings

residues of the pulp and paper industry, bark

As regards the yields of charcoal, pyrolysis oil and heating

gas, no signi ficant di fferences exist between pile wood and
these residues.
In general, it does not make much di fference whether
hard- or softwoods are utilized i f the charcoal is used as a
cooking fuel only (4). Softwoods will produce a lighter
charcoal which also tends to higher attrition and abrasion
rates. This makes it undesirable for some industrial
applications as reductant for blast furnaces and activated
carbon. The resins contained in coni fers have slight
deleterious side-effects, such as an unpleasant flavour
imparted to barbequed food.
Many methods and concepts have been tested to balance
out the lower density of softwood charcoal by alteration of
the carbonization process, but with very little or no
effect. The most promising way to make an adequate
industrial charcoal from softwoods i s by agglomeration with
special binders which have the capability to reinforce the
formed char.
The dissimilarities between pyrolytic oils made from
hardwood or softwood are more significant. In general,
softwood pyrolysis oil is higher in calori fic value,
presumably due to the resin content in the wood.

-164 -
Furthermore, extremely good yields of tar and naval stores
(turpentine, pine oil) can be extracted from these oils,
which makes them a valuable fuel (5).

5.1 Supply from Fuelwood Plantations

Producing wood for charcoal from plantations demands

that the cost of producing the fuel wood on the stump be
carefully calculated to ensure that such a long-term
investment is , in fact, worth while. On the other hand, the
cost or s tumpage of wood from natural forests is arbitrary
and is set, in effect, by ordinary market forces, somewhere
between zero cost where a small-scale charcoal producer
gathers wood without payment from vacant forested land, and
the cost of producing equivalent fuelwood from plantations.
State forest services sometimes attempt to set fuelwood
stumpage by calculating the management cost of the natural
forest from which the wood is taken. Sometimes private
natural forest owners set a stumpage rate as a percentage of
the value of the charcoal produce. Around 10 per cent is a
typical charge . Government stumpages are usually less than
this when expressed on the same basis (6) .
Given the problems of fuelwood and charcoal supply in
many developing countries where natural forests have been
cleared, or otherwise devastated, forest science has
developed systems for cultivating man-made plantations of
quick growing forest trees. The eucalyptuses native to
Australia have been widely adopted and modified by selection
for this purpose throughout the world. FAO's book
"Eucalyptus for Planting" provides a wealth of information
in this field and is essential for anyone seriously
interested in this area.
There are many species of eucalyptus used in
plant3tions, allowing adaptation to particular local
conditions, and fortunately all make excellent fuel wood and
charcoal. Where plantations are established and managed
- 165 -
correctly on suitable sites, growth can be rapid. Mean
annual increments (MAr) of 15 20 m3 per ha over 12 -
20 years rotations are not uncommon .
The establishment and management of fuelwood plantations
is a specialized branch of forestry. Further discussion
would exceed the scope of this handbook.

5 .2 Agricultural Resources

With the development of small-scale equipment for

biomass conversion, the vast area of agricultural waste has
become a potential source of charcoal. In this sense, wastes
mean the leftovers from plantation harvesting or the
discharge from processors of agricultural crops (7) .
Experimental development and pilot-plant tests with
these materials started before the Second World War.
Commercial exploitation of the research results began only
in 1950 in the U.S.A. The list of the agricultural residues
which have been successfully tr ied in the meantime comprises
more than forty different raw materials. They can be grouped
as follows:

husks and shells of nuts

plantation residues from coffee, cotton, papaya and

orchards

discharges from farm cropping and food processing

sugarcane bagasse

straw, reed, bamboo, grass, weeds, underbrush, cactus

assorted municipal waste

industrial waste from the carpet industry, pulp and

paper, slaughterhouses .
- 166-
The quality of charcoal made from different agricultural
residues can vary greatly, e.g ., nutshells are a classic raw
material for activated charcoal. The char displays a high
degree of hardness with low attrition rates.
The natural mineral content of some raw materials
severely limits their applications, because all the minerals
will be found eventually in the char and increase its ash
content. Consequently, the calorific value of charcoal made
from such materials is poor, and industrial consumers
requiring low ash content would reject it. Therefore, high
ash containing charcoal is usually briquet ted and sold as
cooking fuel .
The yields of charcoal made from agricultural residues
also vary greatly and cannot be compared to those made from
wood or wood waste . Yields range between 15 % and 45 %,
based on the dry feed. The same variations can be observed
in the output of pyrolysis oils. Also the composition and
burning characteristics of these pyrolysis oils are very
different.
Research in this field has not yet explored all the
opportunities for industrial uses. Investigations are going
on to test the oil as a source of alternative car fuel. For
the time being, its major commercial value remains as a
substitute for fuel oil in industrial boiler furnaces.
One of the advantages of agricultural residues for the
charcoal plant is that large quanti ties can be secured in
almost bone-dry condition. A supply of this kind makes
predrying equipment obsolete and reduces operational costs
considerably.
It remains to be seen what efforts developing countries
will make in this field with a view to reducing their energy
bills and securing cheap cooking fuel for the people. Most
of these countries abound with untapped agricultural waste
resources.

- 167 -
 Before the introduction of small conversion units, the
economy of the charcoal plant depended on the concentration
of, and the cost of collecting huge raw material reserves.
The picture has changed completely: already, relatively
small waste accumulations will sustain a charcoal plant
economically.

5.3 Transport and Preparation of Raw Materials

Getting the fuel wood from the tree in the forest to the
plant site can be very costly. A guideline of the charcoal
industry is to keep the transportation distance of the
fuel wood a minimum, and instead, carry the less bulky
charcoal the longer distance. How close one can come to the
ideal situation depends very much on the charcoal technology
employed.
There is always a trade-off between the fuel wood
transport distance and the cost/yield ratio of the
carbonization process. At one end of the scale, there are
the pit and the portable metal kiln technologies which need
a minimum harvest transport distance. At the other end of
the scale are the technologically complex,
capital-intensive, large scale retorts and the mUltiple
hearth furnace systems which are f Lxed installations: these
imply relatively long transport distances for fuelwood.
Brick kilns having a life of several years imply an
intermediate distance for fuelwood transport. The fuelwood
transport distance associated with brick kilns and high
technology retorts and furnaces depends on the fuel wood
yield of the forest and the expected life of the equ ipment
for carbonization. Retorts which may last thirty years or
more require a large block of forest so that they can be
supplied with wood at the minimum hau l distance during their
useful life. Brick kilns having a life of about five years
require sufficient forest to maintain fuel wood supply for
this period before increased transport costs force the kilns
to be moved to a new area.
- 168-
 In other words, the higher the yield/input ratio and the
more sophisticated the equipment to be operated, the less
important does the transport distance become.
In practice, the small charcoal-maker who works with his
charcoal pit or simple kiln method will depend totally on
one type of raw material and must move as close as possible
to his resources. The charcoal-maker operating a biomass
conversion plant may choose his input among many feedstocks,
including t r ee s from the forests, and distances to his raw
material resources become of less concern to him.
The preponderant majority of biomass plants are located
at the source of the waste discharge. They generate
signi ficant quantities of energy for supply to an existing
sugar factory, etc. Therefore, they are sometimes attached
to such facilities which can offer more convenient operating
conditions and better maintenance .
Several waste materials are naturally in a state
suitable for immediate consumption, e.g., rice husks, coffee
husks, nutshells, cotton bin waste, etc. Others will require
predrying and compaction: sugarcane bagasse, vetiver grass,
reed, etc. For the conversion of sawdust, only a predryer
will be necessary, whereas bark usually makes additional
shredding unavoidable.
These few e xamples are given as a guide t o the
prospective charcoal-maker.

5.3.1 Key Factors in Wood Supply

Harvesting and transport may be analysed by breaking the

process down into "unit operations" and treating these units
as cost centres to determine their influence on total costs.
The "unit operations" in harvest ing are:

Roading the forest compartment and def ining the coupes

or harvesting units of the compartment.

- 169-
 Felling and bucking to required lengths; splitting may
be required.

Primary transport to secondary collection point.

Drying of fuelwood in the forest.

Secondary transport to the carbonization unit.

Drying and storage of wood at the charcoal-making centre.

The above processes may be further sUbdivided, or some

operations may be combined and others omitted in particular
cases.
In the above unit opera tions, the only two which are
signi ficantly influenced by the distance between the
charcoal production centre and the logg~ng site are the
primary and secondary transport of fuelwood. In the case of
fully portable systems, i.e. pits, earthmounds and metal
kilns, secondary transport is eliminated and primary
transport remains more or less constant. For brick kilns it
is different. Primary transport can be held constant, if
desired, by laying out the forest area with a closely spaced
access road network which reduces primary transport to a
minimum.
In the case of an industrial charcoal plant, the
transport costs have to be borne fully and are dependent on
the mileage of the trucks, which increases every day .
However, in practice , many charcoal plants have been located
close to or within an existing lumber yard, sawmill or
furniture 'manufacturing pla nt.
Transport costs usually include the payment of labour to
load and unload the truck, rail wagon or barge. Many
attempts have been made to simplify this work and to save
labour costs. One of the most successful ways is to stack
the pile wood on wire ropes. When l i fted by a crane, the
pile wood forms a bundle which can be carried over to the
- 170-
transport vehicle . Each bundle contains four to five steres,
thus considerably shortening the stowing and discharging
time of the cargo. In all known plants using this procedure,
the work is being done by the driver and his mate, whereas
previously a platoon of workers had been needed for the job.
Despi te labour-saving schemes, transport costs for
charcoal wood have climbed to new heights, making up 75 % of
all costs incurred before processing the raw material. In
some cases these costs have caused carbonization plants to
go out of business if they could not turn to other, more
economical raw material sources.

Let us now look at some other factors in wood supply.

Wood attacked by fungi and mildew gives a lower yield in

distillation products and charcoal . The latter, moreover, is
of inferior quality, being fragile, of lower density and
more readily inflammable in the atmosphere .
All the mineral substances in the wood (the chief
elements being calcium, magnesium, potassium, sodium, iron,
manganese, phosphoric acid) will be present in the charcoal.
The proportions and composi t ion of ash will be of great
importance, espec ially for metallurgical charcoal.
While the basic composition is fairly constant, this is
far from the case with the chief chemical constituents. Wood
yields the following substances:

1. Resins, oleo-resins, gums, fatty wax, and essential

oils, which are soluble in benzene, alcohol, ether, and
boiling water, are known as "extractable substances".
The nature of the resins and the changes they undergo
during distillation have a considerable influence on the
tars;

2. Pentosanes, including xylanes, arabane, and the uronic

groups;

- 171-
3. True cellulose equivalent to glucose obtained by total
saccharification;

4. Mannanes and galactanes, always present in resinous, and

often in negligible quantities in deciduous woods;

5. Lignine.

The percentage of extractable substances varies with the

species from a few tenths to 25 per cent; the pentosanes
vary from 9 to 28 per cent, cellulose from 30 to 50 per
cent, mannanes and galactanes from 0 to 12 per cent, and
lignine from 22 to 45 per cent (5).
The composition of the wood influences the yield of
acetic acid and methanol, the former being chiefly furnished
by cellulose and the latter and the pentosanes by lignine.
Bark contains a great deal of ash, hence barking
improves the quality of the charcoal; in any case, partial
barking is necessary when wood is to be seasoned naturally.
It is very important that the raw material should be
stored so that it seasons as quickly as possible. Freshly
felled wood has a 40 to 50 per cent moisture content, and
natural seasoning brings this down to 15 to 20 per cent. The
lower the moisture content, the more effective carbonization
will be. Anhydrous wood, however, gives less acetic acid.
After the fuelwood has arrived at the plant site, the
burden of further preparation is taken over by the personnel
there. Their duty consists of three major tasks:

Reducing the length of the felled wood to fit the

loading equipment for the dryer and retorts.

Reducing the moisture content of the wood.

Storing the excess wood.

-172 -
 Therefore, the fuelwood goes first to the sawmill.
Charcoal plants usually employ two bandsaws and circular
saws, and a conveyor for carrying the sized logs to the
retort, either directly or via a mechanical dryer.
The sawmill of a charcoal plant usually works one shift
per day. Some of the larger charcoal plants have installed
continuously operating automatic saws, thus eliminating
labour almost completely.
The importance of the moisture content of the raw
material and the relationship between moisture content and
the duration of the carbonization cycle has already been
mentioned . In many plants it may be preferable to sacrifice
a portion of the plant capacity in order to obtain a quicker
return on the money expended for wood preparation. However,
one practical point should not be overlooked, and that is
that dried wood is much lighter than wet wood, an important
consideration for all charcoal plants where the work is done
manually. An average six steres of wood, freshly felled
would weigh approximately four tons, but after drying there
would be one ton less to handle. If this figure is
multiplied by 10 or 15 per day (the number of steres per
charge) the men loading wet wood will lift 10 to 15 tons
more water than men handling dry wood.
Very large industrial carbonization plants do not take
any chances. The mechanical dryer forms part of their
standard equipment. The principle of the wood dryer is shown
in Figure 48 (8).
The logs are carried continuously to the top of the
cylindrically shaped dryer by an elevator. The combustion
chamber is fired with the off-gases of the retort or
pyrolysis oil. The hot gases are drawn and propelled through
the wood charge (up-draught system), recirculated, and the
excess is expelled from the dryer by an off-gas fan . During
the drying procedure, the wood charge moves slowly down to
the bottom of the cylinder where it is continuously
discharged.

- 173-
 ' 4 - - - - - Wood 40%
moisture

J---==---"'~Wood 20%
moisture

a = Drying cylinder
b = Entrance for green wood
c = Discharge locks for dry wood
d = Combustion chamber for retort gas
e = Heating gas fan
f = Off-gas fan

Fi gure 48. A wood dryer for continuous operation.

( Courtesy of DEGUSSA, Frankfurt/Main )

- 174 -
 Large charcoal plants keep a reserve of wood stored
nearby for periods when the wood supply stops. This can be
due to climatic conditions, such as the. rainy season,
hurricanes, or heavy snow fall, or other causes such as
transport strikes .
A retort requires a certain amount of time to cool down
to normal temperature, and also needs time to heat up to its
operational temperature. The hull of a retort or converter
is protected by refractory lining, and this lining can be
severely damaged by rapid temperature change. It follows
that any breakdown in the supply of wood, with consequent
cooling of the retort, causes an undesirable production
standstill.
Incoming wood loads which exceed the immediate demand
are normally transferred to the storage area. The storage
area should be situated close to the charcoal plant so that
the wood can be moved on hand-propelled trucks or carts.
The best wood storage results have been achieved with
stockpilings up to a height of 8 m. The length of the piles
will be limited by the dimensions of the storage area. Of
course, the area should be open so as to expose the wood
piles to the sunlight and wind as much as possible. If two
or more wood piles have to be set up, the aisles should be
kept wide open to allow the wind to pass freely. A distance
of 7 m between the piles is customary.
In temperate countries, wood can be stored over 12
months in this way without danger of attack by fungi and
insects. In the tropics the maximum storage time will be
much shorter.
All the above applies to the carbonization practice of
roundwood, firewood, branches, slabs and off-cuts of
sawmills - in other words, the raw materials still in common
use for most charcoal plants. Forestal residues, waste from
wood processors and agricultural waste will require a
different treatment, which i s normally s impler and less
costly.

- 175 -
 In practice, the high cost of transporting and preparing
fuelwood has made other sources more attractive for the
charcoal-maker.
The cost limitations connected with the supply and the
on-site preparation of fuelwood cannot be defined for all
cases. A significant attitude of both large and small
charcoal-makers seems to be ga~n~ng ground. This is
reflected in the fact that all new charcoal enterprises are
structured with a high degree of flexibility which enables
them to adapt their equipment to new raw materials and
resources whenever the economic situation demands a change
of feedstocks.

References

(1) U.N. Conference on New and Renewable Sources of

Energy, Prepara tory Committee, "Report of the Technical
Panel on Fuelwood and Charcoal on its Second Session".
A/Conf. 100/PCI 34, 1981.

(2) L. Birritz, Industrial Management and Management

Development in the Developing Countries, UNIDO report
10.476, 1981.

(3) W. Emrich, Turkey, Development of the Chemical Wood

Processing Industry, UNIDO Techn. Report, Vienna, 1972.

(4) B. Mermesec, Forest Energy in Papua New Guinea, Papua

New Guinea Forest Dept., Port Moresby, 1981.

(5) W. Sandermann, Naturcharze, Terpentinal TaHal,

Berlin, 1960

- 176 -
(6) D. Earl, Charcoal: An Andre Mayer Fellowship Report,
FAD, Rome, Italy, 1974.

(7) K. I. Thome-Kosmiensky, Recycling in Developing

Countries, Berlin, 1982.

(8) Holzverkohlung, Chemische Technologie, Bd.3, Munich,

F.R.G. 1971.

- 177 -
Chapter 6
END-USE MARKETS FOR CHARCOAL AND CHARCOAL BY-PRODUCTS

The charcoal-maker distinguishes between household

markets and industrial applications; these two outlets
requ ire different tactics, have their own specifications,
packing styles and marketing habits. It is, therefore, quite
common for charcoal producers to be active in only one
market. To facilitate comprehension, this chapter has been
subdivided accordingly.

6.1 Charcoal as Household Fuel

In many countries, charcoal cookery is the only way to

prepare food. Unfortunately, the price of charcoal has risen
so high that in most countries only the wealthy can afford
to purchase a daily supply.
In industrialized countries, charcoal cookery has moved
into the public square, the pat io and to the gardens,
beaches and camping si tes. In some countries, barbequing has
become synonymous with the space age and contemporary
lifestyle.

6.1.1 Lump Charcoal

Lump charcoal is still preferred by consumers since it

is easy to ignite. In the market place, it is sold by volume
as well as by weight.
Whereas in developing countries, the normal buyer is
lit t Le concerned with the quality, size and packing sty Ie,
the consumer in industrialized countries pays much attention
to these aspects and distinguishes between various brand
names.
- 178-
 Although price is by far the most important reason for
selecting one or the other brand, buyers have become aware
that significant differences exist in cooking times and
calorific values of various lump charcoals (1).
The trend of lump charcoal consumption cannot be
estimated with sufficient accuracy since statistics are
rarely provided. However, i t is the common belief of all
persons involved in the charcoal trade and production that
the demand is growing steadily.
This upward trend can be expected to accelerate in the
future, owing to the fact that substitutes derived from fuel
oil and other fuels have increased in price dramatically and
have become unaffordable for millions of people.

6.1.2 Charcoal Briquettes

With the rising concern about energy consumption, buyers

in industrialized countries are becoming aware that lump
charcoal burns away fast. They are, therefore, turning their
attention to the charcoal briquette which was first
introduced in 1955 in the U.S.A. (1).
Since charcoal briquettes are composed of various
components - binder, filler, or energy extender - they can
be made long burning, hence displaying extended cooking
times, e. g ., twice as long as the same net weight of lump
charcoal.
Unfortunately, this fuel-saving effect has remained
unobserved in many developing countries until now but has
caused an unsurpassed surge of the briquette market in all
industrialized countries .
Other features of the charcoal briquette are its
cleanliness and easy handling. Briquettes are distributed in
various forms: oblong, egg-shaped, hexagonal and
pillow-shaped. The latter is by far the most usable form
with a maximum edge length of 50 x 60 mm and a thickness of
25 mm.

- 179-
Export specifications (2)

Lump charcoal Briquettes

Without With
energy extender energy extender

Ashes 3 - 4 % Max. 8 % Max. 25 %

Moisture Less than 5 % 5 % 5 %
Carbon 80 - 82 % 70 - 75 % 60 - 65 %
Volatiles 10 - 15 % 10 - 15 % 10 - 15 %
Binder Max. 8 % Max. 8 %
Calori fie
Value 6,800-7,200kcal/kg 6,000 kcal/kg 5,200 kcal/kg

6.2 Charcoal as Fuel for Industry

Before charcoal became a major consumer product for

household cooking in developed countries, it was solely an
industrial commodity, especially in the years when
metallurgy started to emerge.
With the diversification of the chemical industry and
with the increasing legislation on control of the
environment, the applications of charcoal for the industrial
market have multiplied.
Whereas in the household fuel market charcoal does not
face competition, in almost all other applications charcoal
could be replaced by natural coal, petroleum coke or
lignite. The advantages of charcoal depend on six
signi ficant properties which account for its continued use
in industry:

low sulphur content

high carbon to ash ratio

relatively few and unreactive inorganic impurities

- 180-
 specific pore structure with large surface area

good reduction ability

almost smokeless.

Up to 1960, charcoal was widely used for the production

of carbon disulphide and sodium cyanide by the chemical
industry. Although these markets have declined, they were
sufficiently offset by the enlarging demand for reducing
(metallurgy) and absorbent agents (filter industry).

The applications of charcoal in the various industries may

be summarized as follows:

Chemical industry: Manufacturing of carbon disulphide,

sodium cyanide, carbides.

Iron and steel industry, metallurgy: Blast iron

furnaces, ferro-silica, metal hardening, non-ferrous
metal industry.

Cement industry

Activated carbon and filter industry: Water

purification, dechlorination, gas purification, solvent
recovery, waste-water treatment, cigarette filters.

Gas generator: Producer gas for cars, electric power

generation.

Miscellaneous other applications

The chemical industry and the activated carbon

manufacturer prefer lump charcoal. This is partly due to
their process requirements. Fine charcoal particles are more

- lSI -
reacti ve but losses by emission make fines an undesirable
raw material. Therefore, charcoal fines and powder are
restricted to processes where compaction or agglomeration is
necessary before they are brought in to the operation.

Specifications (2)

Each application has its own rigid charcoal

speci fication which must be examined to determine both the
actual process requirements and the future prescriptions due
to possible alterations in the process technology. The
latter has frequently had effects on the charcoal industry
in the past and has led to changes in production techniques
or to the shut-down of plants i f not strictly observed.
Charcoal quotations usually contain the general data for
fixed carbon (%), ashes (%), volatiles oo , density, bulk
density, moisture (%) and the sieve analysis.
It is not possible to indicate all the speci fications
and variations. These can be found by a careful study of the
market, which is always necessary before engaging in the
industrial charcoal business.

6.3 Charcoal in Metal Extraction

When iron was first made by man, charcoal was used

universally as a reductant. Metallurgical coke was
introduced as an alternative during the eighteenth century.
Small iron blast furnaces and other reducing furnaces were
at the beginning of this flourishing world-wide industry.
The charcoal-based iron industry still exists in a
number of countries and continues its expansion and
modernization. The centre, however, has moved away from
industrialized countries. Today, Brazil's charcoal-based
pig-iron industry is considered to be the greatest in the
world.
Charcoal has strong reducing properties. When heated
with ores containing metal, oxides, and sulphides, the
- 182-
carbon combines readily with oxygen and sulphur, thus
facilitating metal extraction. Charcoal can therefore be
used for the reduction of copper-containing ores also.
Most of the charcoal used in blast furnaces is made from
hardwood spec ies (eucalyptus). Although charcoal is
generally acknowledged to be as good as, if not better than
coke, there are practical difficulties in obtaining adequate
supplies of charcoal to feed the large iron and steel
capacitites which are needed to achieve a competitive steel
price.
It is only in countries with extensive forests that the
use of charcoal for iron-smelting is likely to be profitable.

6.4 Activated Charcoal

The use of charcoal for producing activated carbon is not

very old when compared with its utilization in metallurgy or
chemistry. Markets first started to develop around the
beginning of this century in Europe.
The term activated carbon refers to various forms of
carbons which have undergone a more or less i nt r i ca t e
treatment to increase their absorptive properties.
Activated carbons are available in powdered and granular
(or extruded) forms and are used in liquid and gas phase
absorption processes. By taking account of the basic
characteristics of the activated carbons on offer, it is
found that more than seventy types are currently dominating
the market.
Although the increased surface area and the absorption
capacity of all activated carbons are interrelated, the size
of the surface area is only one of the factors needed to
measure the absorptive capacity of a given carbon for a
specific purpose. The distribution of the pore volume as a
function of the different pore sizes is also important.
Steric effects control the access of absorbate particles to

- 183 -
the internal surfaces and therefore an absorbate molecule
may be excluded in one case but may be "fit" for other
grades of active carbon.
In othe r words, activated carbons with large total surface
areas but with micropores may be effective in removing small
odour-causing impurities from gases but ineffective in
absorbing large colour-forming compounds from solutions.
This may explain the great number of types, grades and
shapes of activated carbon on the market (3).

Production capacity for acti vated carbon (1979)

North America 160,000 t

Western Europe 105,000 t
Eastern Europe 20,000 t
USSR 70,000 t
Japan x) 35,000 t

Whereas charcoal was once the only raw material for

activated carbon, it has been partly replaced by other
ca rbonaceous materials: coal, lignite, petroleum, coke, peat
moss. Price considerations and the limited availability of
charcoal were the main reasons for turning to other sources.
Experience has shown that there are no basic differences
in the quality of activated carbons made from other raw
materials. Only in the field of gas/vapour applications has
charcoal-based activated carbon remained of superior quality.
Activated carbon production is in any case a
low-yielding process in relation to the input of raw
materials, whether charcoal is the base or not. As a general
rule, the factor 1.3 can be applied to obtain a realistic
figure for the necessary input of raw char.

x) Several producers have subsidiaries in the Philippines

and do not manufacture activated carbon in Japan.
- 184 -
6.4.1 Synopsis of Industrial Active Carbon Markets

Liquid phase applications

Drinking water purification, municipal wastewater and

industrial wastewater treatment plants, swimming pools,
tropical centres, fish tanks .
Purification of fats, oils, beverages, water
purification in breweries, cleaning of bottles and winery
tanks, tank cleaning in insecticide and pesticide spraying
operations, cleaning of electroplating baths, dry cleaning.
Decolorizing of cane and beet-sugar solutions, vitamin
solutions and pharmaceuticals, high fructose corn syrup.

Gas/Vapour phase applications

Purification of exhaust emissions and immissions.

Recirculated air purification. Solvent recovery in printing
machinery and in processes where high volatile matter is
continuously being released. Prevention of offensive odours.
Gas masks for military and civil purposes.

Other applications

Cigarette filters, catalysts for chemical processes, support

for platinum and palladium catalysts, additives for food,
depolarizator in air-oxygen electric cells. Additives for
rubber tires, automotive evaporation control systems.

The activated carbon market has been stimulated by the

legislation on water and air-pollution control in
industr ialized countries. Since 1977, newly introduced
legislation has led to a sizeable growth of the market as a
whole and is expected to increase the growth rate in the
future.

- 185-
Sped fications

The usability of wood charcoal depends on its low ash

content and its availability in uniform and unvarying
quality. Exceptionally good activated carbons can be
produced with charcoal made from coconut shells (4),
hardwood species, sawdust and wood waste, except bark.
In every case, the activated carbon producer sets his
individual standard and this is determined by his production
process. The requirements however will not vary much whether
the finished activated products are made for liquid,
gas/vapour phase or other applications.
Although the charcoal offered to the acti va ted carbon
producer may meet all the stated criteria, the purchaser is
not likely to take it without testing of the behaviour of
the material in a pilot plant. Such tests comprise
sophisticated procedures to determine the absorption
capacity of the finished product on models. The industry has
developed characteristics such as the molasses figure, the
methylene-blue value and isotherms of benzene, etc. However,
the charcoal supplier needs not to involve himself in these
tests; in fact, he usually lacks the facilities and
competent staff.

Average reguirements for charcoal usable for activated

carbon production (2)

Fixed carbon 82 % min.

Ashes 4 % max.
Volatiles 10 %
Moisture 4 %
pH 4 - 10

pH refers to an acidity test of a water extract from the

charcoal.

- 186-
6.5 Speciality Markets for Charcoal

Horticulture

Charcoal is used in di fferent grades as a top dressing

for the improvement of lawns and bowling greens. These top
dressings act as mulch and also provide valuable trace
elements as well as soil sweetener.

Pigments for printing and paints

Vegetable blacks are dense and show great strength.

Poultry and animal feed

Feeds are sometimes supplemented with charcoal fines to

prevent certain diseases.

The above speciality markets are limited. They can,

however, provide a good support to the charcoal-maker in
developing countries also, if properly used.

6.6 Charcoal for Producer Gas

Because of the world energy crisis, another application

is attracting much interest, namely the generation of gas
from charcoal. Producer gas is best utilized as a fuel for
cars, trucks, and farm vehicles in particular, but is also
suitable for gas engines used for the generation of
electricity.
Producer gas made from charcoal is not new, it was in
common use during the last war in some European countries
where it filled the gap in petrol supplies. At that time,
wood was also in widespread use as a fuel for gas-propelled
car engines (5).

- 187-
 When compared with wood, charcoal displays several
advantages which make it a superior fuel:

high attrition resistance against pressure

high energy density of 7, 000 kcal/kg as compared with

4,200 kcal/kg for dry wood

low moisture content of 4-5 % as compared with 20 % for

air-dry wood

no predrying necessary because of the low water content

the gasifier and storage container can be kept small, as

compared with wood generators.

At present, it is not possible to forecast the market

for producer gas charcoal. Figures for the demand have been
published sporadically and rarely. To the knowledge of the
author, the interest in developing countr ies is
considerable. Progressive developments have taken place
already in South America and in East African countries. All
projects are aiming to make farm vehicles independent of
expensive petrol supplies. Other goals are to generate
electricity for sawmills or villages in rural areas.
It is recommended that the charcoal project planner
should devote part of his attention to the use of charcoal
as producer gas.

In practice, the number of equivalent cubic metres of

producer gas which can be obtained is:

I kg wet wood = ca. 1. 25 - 1.5 m3 producer gas

I kg dry wood = ca. 1.9 - 2.2 m3 producer gas
1 kg charcoal = ca. 4.25 - 4.75 m3 producer gas.

- 188-
6.7 By-Product Utilization

Pyrolysis Oil as a Fuel

It has been commercial ly demonstrated that pyrolysis oil

is usable as a liquid fuel and also has a potential as a raw
material for the production of acetic acid, methanol, tar
oils, creosotes, tar, etc. (6) .
The oil has been used commercially as a fuel in cement
kilns, steam boilers, brick and lime kilns, etc. Its
potential as a fuel resides in the fact that the heating
value can be significant (between 3,000 and 4,000 kcal/kg);
other advantages are that the viscosity can be controlled by
adding water (up to 25 %) and it is transportable in drums
and tank cars . The unlimited miscibility with fuel oil No. 6
permits its use in blends.
The appl ica ti ons of pyrolysis oi 1 are mani fold and can
be found anywhere, especially in industry. It is commonly
believed in the charcoal industry that the utilization of
pyrolsis oils will grow in the future as the facts and
opportunities become public knowledge. The economics of
existing plants with recovery of pyrolytic oil have
demonstrated the superiority of these processes and proved
them to be an excellent investment for the owner.

Experience gained in commercial operations has brought out

some important findings:

The oil should contain a minimum of 15 % water and a

maximum of 30 %. This serves to reduce viscosity and
promotes better atomization. Also, it appears to enhance
combustion.

The oil should be heated to 75 0 C to enhance

flammabili ty.

- 189-
 Precautions must be taken in the heating system so that
the oil cannot be advertently heated above 110 0 C.

Pyrolysis oils are corrosive to mild steel, but the

corrosion rate is a fraction of a mil per year for copper
and 304 stainless steel. Therefore, before using i t in an
existing regular burner, all parts exposed to the oil must
be replaced by corrosion-resistant devices.

other characteristics are:

The oil is heavier than water and forms a stable

emulsion with water .

The viscosity of the oil at a moisture concentration of

10 per cent or above is lower than the viscosity of No.
6 fuel oil .

The flash point is high.

Pyrolysis oil as a feedstock for industry

Economic activities in silvichemicals showed divergent

trends until 1970. References were made solely to the use of
charcoal activated carbon, naval stores, rosin, tall-oil
fatty acid products pyrolysis oil was neglected .
Pyrolytic silvichemicals experienced a peak period
before and during the First World War. They provided the
major part of the raw material for the rising chemical
industry. After that, synthetic products made from mineral
coal, crude oil and natural gas became the front runners and
were produced at low cost in very large quanti ties. Only
during the last ten years have the chemical and food
industries started to turn their attention back to pyrolytic
silvichemicals.

- 190-
 Although the fractionation and extraction of pyrolysis
oil are not highly sophisticated operations, they do require
skilled labour. The normal approach of the charcoal industry
to this technology is first to produce crude pyrolys is oil.
The investment for this expansion is not high and it can be
done gradually as the markets demand it.
The number and yields of silvichemicals obtainable vary
widely according to the composition of the raw materials.
But several of them can be extracted from almost any
pyrolysis oil and they are, therefore, described briefly
under here.

Acetic acid: is recovered as raw acid, a yellow to

dark-brown liquid . Several commercial grades can be made
from it - technical acetic acid, wood vinegar for the
food industry, glacial acetic acid which solidifies at
16.6° C. Specifications for grading vary from country to
country.

Methanol: can be separated by rectification from the raw

acetic acid j it is dark-yel low in colour and contains
small quantities of acetic, butyric and propionic acids.
Commercial grades are pure methanol (an alternate fuel
for cars and commercial vehicles), wood spirit for
denaturation, chemical solvent, and basic products for
various chemical processes (7).

Pyrolytic tar: can be obtained by settling down from

concentrated pyrolysis oil and is derived at di fferent
stages of the refining processes for raw acetic acid and
raw methanol . The commercial grades of pyrolytic tars
are distinguished by the flash points (60 - 133° C),
viscosity and calorific values (5,800 - 7,600 kcallkg).
They are also differentiated by their solubility in
water.

- 191 -
 Pyrolytic pitch: a residue of tar distillation, has a
dark-brown or black colour. Charcoal plants normally
supply four di fferent grades which are marked by their
softening points.

Tar oils: are recovered at various stages of tar

distillation and during raw acetic acid refining; they
range in colour from transparent to dark-brown and have
a characteristic smell. More t ha n 10 commercial grades
are known and made according to specifications,
classified by specific weight, viscosity, calorific
value and boiling point diagram. They are widely used
for the preservation of wood and in the flotation
process for the separation and beneficiation of ores.

Creosote: the pyrolysis creosote is a mixture of

guaiacol, creosol, phenols, and phenol ethers; a clear,
light-yellow liquid, it must not turn dark if exposed to
direct sunlight. This is a high-priced product, and
specifications are governed by national pharmacopoeia.

Uses for retort or converter gas

Applications for the residual gases of a charcoal plant

have a history dating back to the middle of the nineteenth
century. At that time, several cities in Austria made use of
them for public lighting.
In common usage, we only consider the off-gas which
leaves the plant exhaust pipe after the vapours, which make
up the composition of the pyrolysis oil, have been extracted
from it. In other words, the retort or converter gas
consists of the uncondensable parts.
Measurements and observations made in commercial
operations over the years suggest that the average
composition of the residual gas (using wood as raw material)
is: (6)

- 192 -
 CO 2 59.0 Vol. %
CO 33.0 Vol. %
Methane 3.5 Vol. %
Hydrogen 3.0 Vol. %
Vapours, etc. 1.5 Vol. %

However, these figures will deviate signi ficantly from

the gas produced in continuous charcoal operations. In a
batchwise operated retort, the initial gas consists of air
and water, followed by a gas with high CO 2 and CO contents
and during the last third of the carbonization cycle, the
gas is loaded with hydrocarbons and vapours and has a low
flash point. In contrast, the off-gas expelled from
continuous operations is uni form and its content of
combustible substances depends strictly on the gas
temperature and raw material congruity.
From what is said above, it can be deduced that there
cannot be a single calori fic value of retort or converter
gas. In fact, values range between 850 kcal and 1,600 kcal
per m3 (at 15° C).
In the first place, the gas is used in the carbonization
plant to heat the raw material dryer or as fuel for the
charcoal briquette dryer. Another very popular use is to
burn it in an auxiliary steam boiler. The generated steam is
sold to another industry.

6 .8 Synopsis of Major Uses of Charcoal and By-Products (1)

Product Raw material Application

Charcoal, Hardwood, softwood Activated carbon, ferro-

lump silicon, grill coal,
metal working, sodium
cyanide, carbon disul-
phide, Swedish steel,
silicon

- 193-
Product Raw material Application

Charcoal Charcoal, lump Activated carbon, addi-

granular tive to animal food,
fillings compound for
bottled gas, hardener

Charcoal, Charcoal, lump Activated carbon, lining

dust of moulds in metal foun-
dries, production of
briquettes, cementation
granulate, pyrotechnics

Pyrolytic oils Hardwood, softwood Fuel for steam boiler

agricultural wastes furnaces, solid fuel,
fired engines, me-
tallurgy, fire-brick
factories, etc. , raw
material for chemical
industry

Wood gas Hardwood, softwood Heating gas for all types

agricultural wastes of operations using
solid or liquid fuels,
gas engines

Wood vinegar Hardwood, softwood Preservation and fla-

vouring of meat and
smoked fish, perfume and
aroma industry

Wood tar Hardwood Rope industry, veterin-

ary medicine, pitch,
creosote

Crude methanol Wood alcohol Methyl acetate

- 194-
Product Raw material Application

Solvent Wood alcohol Cellulose esters and

agglutinants, synthe-
tics, lacquers

Methyl formate Crude wood vinegar Cellulose esters and

and crude methanol agglutinants, synthe-
tics, lacquers

Methyl acetate Crude wood vingegar Cellulose esters and

and crude methanol agglutinants, synthe-
tics, lacquers

Acetic acid Crude acetic acid Chemical, pharmaceuti-

cal, food, convenience
food, rayon, textile and
film industries, vinegar

Propionic acid Crude acetic acid Pharmaceuticals, flavour

and fragrances

Butyric acid Crude acetic acid Pharmaceutical and per-

fume industries

6.9 Charcoal Costs and Fuel Prices

The prospective charcoal-maker often wishes to invoke

approval of his project by a comparison of his expected
charcoal costs with the prices of other fuels on the market.
Charcoal projects are normally based on one or more of
the following concepts:

Production of charcoal as the sole fuel.

- 195-
 Production of charcoal associated with by-product
recovery.

Production of charcoal as a household fuel for use in

developing countries.

Production of charcoal to make a profit in the existing

domestic market.

Production of charcoal to make a profit or to earn

foreign currency in export markets.

It is obvious that each of these concepts, by itself or

in combination, will require alternatives in the selection
of feedstocks and technology. Because universal charcoal
costs do not exist, it is necessary to carry out a thorough
feasibility study of individual projects to protect the
investor from unpleasant surprises.
Comparison with other fuels .,. firewood, kiln charcoal,
kerosene, natural gas, bituminous coal, etc. - is not an
easy task and can only be accomplished by considering the
energy values of the compared fuels.
To obtain reliable values of fuels for household use, a
test under confined conditions will best answer the
question. Especially the efficiency of cooking fuels will be
affected by the devices in which they burnt - shape, size,
draught, etc.
In order to make definitive statements concerning the
position of charcoal within the class of combustible fuels,
a comparative evaluation must be made. It is here that
reclassifying biomass with fossil energy for major uses
becomes important and that the analysis of fuels becomes
cr i tical.
The following table presents four fuel families from
dried sewage sludge to bituminous coal:

- 196 -
Fuel Material Ashes Moisture Higher heating
% % value
KJ/kg kcal/kg

Premium fuels
bituminous coal 4.1 2 31,300 7,500
bituminous coke 1 26,700 6,400
charcoal, lump 3 5 30,000 7,200
charcoal, briquettes 9 4 27,000 6,400

Wood fuels
hardwood, green 1.5 37 10,500 2,500
hardwood, dry 0.5 15 15,500 3,700
pine bark 2.9 3 20,000 4,800
sawdust, fresh 1.8 45 9,600 2,300
sawdust, dry 0.8 14 14,600 3,500

Waste-based fuels
coconut shells 2.5 12 14,650 3,500
bovine manure 17.8 6 15,900 3,800
bagasse, wet 1.3 45 8,350 2,000
bagasse, dry 1.9 11 15,900 3,800
coffee husks 1 65 6,550 1,550
rice hulls 15.5 6 15,000 3,600
rice straw 19.2 6 14,800 3,550
paper-mill sludge 10.2 10 12,100 2,900
sewage sludge 17.4 12 4,700 1,120

Fuels with high hydrogen content

butane/propane 45,600 10,900
kerosene 44,300 10,600
diesel oil 40,100 9,600

- 197-
 On the basis of this fuel table, certain statements can
be made concerning the relationship of charcoal to the total
family of combustible fuels. The primary fuels are those in
which both carbon and hydrogen contribute significantly to
the energy value. The wood fuels can be considered as
transitional fuels between the categories of "premium" and
"waste-based fuels".
For the development of a charcoal cost projection, it is
important to establish whether charcoal displays a closer
proximity to the premium or transition fuel category.
To fix the position of charcoal within the premium fuel
group, it is necessary to look at the potential pollution
analysis. Traditionally, sulphur and ash are considered the
principal impurities in combustion fuels. The sulphur, on
combustion, forms S02 which is a pollutant. It can also
combine with rain to form dilute sulphurous acid, or can be
transformed into other potentially dangerous compounds.
When these pollution criteria are applied, the value of
charcoal can be appreciated, and it should thus be
classi fied under the top grade fuels shown in the table, if
regarded solely as an industrial fuel.
The present price levels for 1 million kcal bear out
this statement:
Charcoal: U.S.A. U.S.$ 31.40
Europe U.S.$ 45.60
Heating oil: Europe U.S.$ 34.70
The attractive price levels which all charcoal products
are enjoying in industrialized countries do not permit their
application in processes where the nature of the product can
support the cost of expensive fuels - e. g., the extraction
of rare metals from their ores, or for hardening quality
steels in metallurgy .
The picture changes when one turns to charcoal-making in
developing countries. If we assume production costs of $ 55
- $ 100 per ton, the purchase price of 1 million kcal of
charcoal energy will be between $ 7.80 and $ 14.30. It is
obvious that charcoal for domestic use is competitive with
-198 -
almost any other fuel of the primary and premium groups,
although fuel prices may vary greatly from country to
country. However , it must be pointed out that when comparing
charcoal prices with fuels of the premium group, the fixed
carbon content of charcoal must be taken into consideration,
and this normally fluctuates between 68 % and 85 %. The
necessary correction is given by the following formula:

Charcoal : us . $ 55/ton fixed C = 70 %

Charcoal for
metallurgy : US. $ •. • ••. fixed C = 85 % (spec.)

$ 55 x 85 = U.S. $ 66 .79 per ton

70

Based on fuel costs, the use of industrial charcoal can

be recommended for iron, nonferrous metals and steelmaking:

extraction of iron from ores in blast furnaces and

pig-iron electric furnaces

extraction of manganese and ferro-silica from ores

pig-iron for steelmaking and for foundry iron

sintering processes

steel hardening.

Charcoal has other potential uses in developing

countries engaged in the build-up of their own chemical
industries. Here it is important to note that the chemical
reactivity of charcoal has been commercially proved . In such
applications, the use of charcoal will be judged not by its
fuel value alone, but also by phys ical and chemical
properties, such as porosity, density, congruity of the ash
content, hydrophilic and hydrophobic characteristics.
- 199-
6.10 Packing and Shipment for Export/Market Strategy

The packing style is of great importance to attract the

buyer and to protect the merchandise.
In recent years, 3 kg or 10 kg paper bags have become
popular in industrialized countries, whereas the jute bag is
common in developing countries. Paper bags have a
rectangular shape and a flat bottom which allows the bag to
be set in an upright position. Bags are made from two-layer
or three-layer paper. The outside is normally three-colour
printed and carries brand names, advertisements, or special
warning labels wherever this is required by law.
For shipment; two or more bags are packed together in
one bale. The baler bag consists of strong craft paper which
is usually left unprinted and in natural colour. For
identi fication purposes, the baler carries the denomination
of the contents on a slip affixed to the outside.
Baler packing is used whenever the charcoal is "dead
stacked" for transportation. The most frequently requested
means of transportation is "on pallets". Since two or more
pallets are placed on top of each other, care has to be
taken to prevent the charcoal bags from damage as a result
of unavoidable shifting of the pallets during
transportation; this is one of the "mos t frequent causes for
damage claims. The best known method at present is a box
carton which is placed over the pallet load, thus protecting
the content.
Overseas shipments are made by containerization only.
The 40-foot Dry Cargo type, an enclosed container with one
large opening at the front side, is the preferred size.
Approximately 70 per cent of all charcoal for the
industrial market is transportet in bulk quantities by
truck, trailer or rail. These shipments need good weather
protection (2).

- 200-
 For the transportation of charcoal powder, special silo
or tank trucks are available. Charcoal fines and dust are
also frequently shipped as open deck loads. Extreme care
must be taken to keep the entire load wet, primarily to
prevent self-ignition but also to avoid dust nuisance.
Expenses for damage, demurrage charges caused by
inappropriate or delayed deliveries are customarily
reimbursed by the charcoal supplier and fall under his
responsibili ty.
Freshly produced charcoal is not ready for immediate
bulk shipment because of its tendency to absorb oxygen which
frequently causes fires. A reasonable curing time is
therefore necessary. Forwarders do not usually accept
shipments without certification of sufficient curing time.
Charcoal briquettes, lump charcoal, charcoal fines and
powder are not classi fied as sel f-igni ting goods, but are
listed in this category. That means they may be shipped
without special transportation permits, but must not be
carried in contact with flammable goods such as wood
products, etc.

Marketing and business strategy

When one considers the variety and particular exigencies

of the markets, it becomes evident that the newcomer must
surmount many difficulties to find his place. Even the
charcoal business can be commonly considered as a "buyer's
market".
There are many differentiations between the various
applications and the constant requirement for reliable
supply and uniform quality.
Another task is to follow-up the fast-changing trends of
technical change in processes; this requires frequent
al terations of products which can have a strong impact on
costs.
The legislative amendments for trade, transportation and
product liabilities are another concern.
- 201 -
 Customer contact and structuring of the annual market
prices are very sensitive matters and these should be deal t
with on a strictly personal basis, in an atmosphere of
mutual confidence.
Finally, the new entrant needs to become familiar with
the attitude and behaviour of his clients.
All these facts have led in time to the pursuance of
proved market patterns to find optimal ways for product
promotion. Therefore, the charcoal supplier who cannot fall
back upon his own expertise or sales force will normally
engage the services of a representative or an agency who can
provide the business and technical know-how. These services
include:

Market survey.

Material tests .

Advertising.

Client contacts.

Price structuring.

Preparation of sales contracts,

Applications for customs, import licences, etc.

Obtaining sales certificates stating that the products

meet health and safety standards and legislative
requirements.

Handling customer complaints

Obtaining bank approvals for customer credit-lines .

- 202 -
 Since the agent or representative acts as a local
broker, he receives a commission to reimburse him for his
expendi tures and for remuneration. Fees are based s tr ictly
on sales resul ts and are set out in an annua l contract.
However, the eventual success of a charcoal business will
depend on the flexibility of the supplier and how quickly he
can serve the needs of the customers.
Last but not least, success will be related to t he
technical capability of his production facilities. In other
words, the design of the charcoal plant may be the limiting
factor.

6.11 World Production

In many countries, carbonization products represent a

major factor of domestic trade. Since the raw material
exists in these countries, the products may be shipped
wi thout laborious injunctions, and this makes them a stable
merchandise.
The world charcoal production cannot be calculated with
precision, nor are the quanti ties of produced and consumed
charcoal by-products known, as only a few countries provide
statistical data .
In developing countr ies, consumer research in the
charcoal market is rarely undertaken. The most elaborate
inquiry into the level of charcoal production in developing
countries was carried out by FAO in 1980, with the object of
providing the best possible estimates to the UN Conference
on New and Renewable Sources of Energy in Nairobi (1981).
Data were gathered through questionnaires and by searching
available reports.
Although much effort went into the survey, it was found
that for many countries there was a wide range of estimates
and very few countries had reliab le data available.
Subsequently, it was decided to treat the available
estimates as random observations.

- 203 -
 Having been involved for more than two decades in
pyrolytic research and production, the author has done a
great deal of market research and gathered results and
studies. However, these surveys are more of a punctual
nature than global and they relate only to the situation in
particular countries.
Despi te these drawbacks, it is possible to build up a
more satisfactory picture of today' s charcoal production by
considering also the available import figures, evidence of
charcoal shipments, the experience of equipment suppliers,
etc.

Estimated Annual Charcoal Production

(Basis: 1981)

Area .000 tly Remarks

Africa
East African countries 150 - 170
Madagascar, Mauritius,
South Africa 85 Includes charcoal
briquettes.
West African countries 580 - 600

Americas
Argentina, Brazil 4,900 Includes charcoal
briquettes.
Canada, USA 1,400 85 % charcoal
briquettes
Central America 25 - 30

Asia
People's Republic of China 200 - 450
Philippines, India, 100 - 140 Mainly coconut
Sri lanka shell charcoal,
including charcoal
briquettes.
- 204-
 Estimated Annual Charcoal Production
(Basis: 1981)

Area .000 tly Remarks

Australia, New Zealand 70 - 90

Europe
EEC countries 130 Includes charcoal
briquettes.
Czechoslovakia, Hungary 130 Includes charcoal
briquettes.
Romania, Yugoslavia, 30 Includes imports
Scandinavia from S. America
Poland, USSR 250 - 300 Not including
Asian territories.

South Pacific Basin 10 - 12

Although the figures in the table are partly derived

from estimates, they illustrate the charcoal situation in
general and show South America as the largest
charcoal-producing continent.
FAO attempted a forecast in the above-mentioned study by
comparing the latest production figures with those of 1970.
The results show clearly that demand and production of
charcoal has increased in all the countries searched. In
fact, in no case has a decrease of charcoal production been
found between 1976 and 1980.
Although there is no way to quantify the upward trend of
charcoal output, it is ob~ious that the surge for pyrolytic
commodities has been accelerating since 1972, when the
world-wide energy crisis became visible.

- 205 -
 In addition, the desire of people in industrialized
countries for increased and improved charcoal cookery, the
need for producer gas propelled engines and the recognition
of the value of pyrolsis oil as a substitute for fuel oil
has already given a further impetus to charcoal production.
Presently only a few developing countries are servicing
with their exports the markets of industrialised countries.
But there is a growing awareness at the governments and
private enterprises of the potentials for cropping hard
currency by foreign charcoal trade.
On the other side the charcoal industry, charcoal
traders and shipping companies of the industrialised
countries have become very observant to the existent
opportunities with accessible partners there.
This trend becomes visible in the growing flood of
inquiries which reach the desks of all people concerned with
the business.
Charcoal exports have been curbed in most cases by
failing to meet the quality standards, by lack of available
packing materials and unreliable supply in terms of meeting
fixed shipping dates.
It is well understood that the charcoal consuming will
increase in all developing countries with the improvement of
living conditions because charcoal is a convenience fuel for
the households and the advantages must not be repeated here.
However, the important questions spira Ling around the
implications for the domestic markets in developing
countries will remain unanswered as long as these countries
are lacking of the respective statistical material and a
national charcoal programme.

- 206 -
References

(1) H. Messman, "What is Charcoal?", paper presented at 12th

Biennial Conf. of the Institute for Briquetting and
Agglomeration (IBA), USA, 1971.

(2) W. Emrich, The Charcoal Markets in Industrialized

Countries and the Impacts of Charcoal Exports in
Developing Countries, FAO Report, Rome, 1981.

(3) J. Hassler, Purification with Activated Carbon, Chern.

Publ. Co , , New York, U.S. A. 1974.

(4) J. Woodroof, Coconuts: Production, Processing, Products,

AVI Publ. Co., Inc., Westport, Conn., U.S.A. 1970.

(5) L. Jaeger, Grundlagen der Holzgasanlagen fuer ortsfesten

und fahrbaren Betrieb, Muenchen, F. R. G., 1935

(6) M. Klar, Technologie der Holzverkohlung, Berlin, 1910.

(7) E. Plassmann, On the Trail of New Fuels, VW Research

Center, Wolfsburg, F.R.G, 1974.

- 207-
Chapter 7
PLANNING A CHARCOAL VENTURE AND SELECTION OF EQUIPMENT

In today I s fast-changing world with its great need for

renewable energy sources, it is essential that the
prospective charcoal-maker be aware of the limits and
opportunities of the technology and the choice of equipment
available to him. An important criterion will always be the
achievable energy yield from the raw materials under
consideration. Yield comparisons are difficult to establish;
a great deal of experience is necessary, and tests must be
performed on firm parameters. These are, among others, dry
material weight, fixed carbon content and calori fic value of
the char, and a defined energy value of the liquid and
gaseous by-products, if any.
It is also well known in the charcoal industry that very
often the yield figures presented are not sufficiently
reliable and hence can be very misleading.
European experience has proved that, as a general rule,
the energy recovered from a raw material does not exceed the
following values:

Simple charcoal kilns: charcoal pits,

earthmound kiln 18-22 %
Brick and metal kilns 24-28 %
Retorts without by-product recovery 30-35 %
Biomass converter with recovery of
by-products 65-80 %

These data were obtained from hardwood species not

common in tropical countries. Also they cannot be applied to
the varieties of agr icul tural residues . They should serve
the planner more or less as rough guidelines.
- 208-
 However, it is obvious that modern technology offers the
significant economic advantage of superior raw material
utilization as compared with traditional charring methods.
The benefits of industrial charcoal making include increased
profi ts from the fuller use of forest products as well as
the saving of silvicultural cost and natural resources.
Advantages and rewards will not depend on the size of the
charcoal production, whether it be a small-scale plant in a
remote sawmill or a large operation within an industrial
compound. They will rather be related to the way the
planning, the design and the organization have been executed.

National planning

In developing countries , particularly where charcoal is

to become a basic industrial raw material on a large scale,
the planning should ensure that long-term wishes are likely
to be satisfied.
It is certainly not necessary for the small
entrepreneur, including the itinerant charcoal-maker, to
worry about long-term planning, but it is essential that the
Planning, Forest or Agricultural Department which supplies
the raw materials ensures that the proposed plant will work
for the benefit of the country. The work of plann ing a
charcoal industry should be carried out at two levels:

1. A national plan for the charcoal industry which must fit

in with the development aims of the country.

2. Planning for particular projects which must conform to

the objectives of the planning principles laid down
above . Planning at the national level will take into
account the annual increment of raw materials which can
safely be converted into charcoal, pyrolysis oil and
industrial heating gas. It also focuses on the probable
production cost, transport and marketing organizations
required. This full appraisal shou ld therefore be done
- 209 -
 by an economist, working either directly out of the
National Planning Department or as a liaison,
coordinating the interests of various departments.

Commercially proved techniques are available to

carbonize even small quanti ties of feedstocks economically .
This fact will certainly become of much importance for the
planner and entrepreneur in developing countries with
agricultural wastes in abundance.
Another trend, already established in industrialized
countries, is forecast to spread widely: this is the use of
thinners (energy extender) by charcoal briquetters.
Ini tially, thinners were intended to stretch the precious
raw material reserves, in other words to gain more benefits
from less carbon. But markets have adapted to the "long
cooking" fuels and customers know how to use them in favour
of the family budget. We are confident that this trend will
catch on in developing countries also, as soon as
governments become aware that their natural resources can be
extended to serve a broader population or to raise exports .
The greatest impact may be expected from the development
of "Integrated Charcoal-Making Concepts". In a broad sense,
this term applies to projects attached to an existing
industrial system or to one still on the planner's desk .
Whereas until the end of the Second World War, a
charcoal operation was based solely on the availability of
wood, future charcoal plants will be set up primarily to
serve a predetermined purpose . In other words, the future
plant will be designed to make the best use of the raw
material reserve by supplying a variety of products. The
keyword for future plants will be their interlocking
capability with other industries and energy consumers, and
fitting into a state or country-wide household supply
programme.

- 210 -
7.1 Planning of Projects

A modern charcoal industry can be designed for

integration in existing or future projects, e.g., a charcoal
iron industry. It is necessary to carry out a project
appraisal in order to ascertain that it is economically and
socially sound. A commonly adopted sequence of stages in a
project appraisal is the following:

Study of project objectives and alternatives.

Appraisal of suggested technology and its proof.

Social cost/benefit analysis.

Commerical and financial analysis (including sensitivity

and risk analysis).

Other economic considerations.

Conclusions and recommendations

The above-mentioned Integrated Charcoal Concept depends

on the local situation and therefore Figure 49 can only
convey ideas.
A charcoal plant may deliver its char to an activated
carbon producer, an iron or steel mill, or make briquettes
for the domestic and export markets, etc. At the same time,
it can supply pyrolysis oil as a fuel for a brick factory,
particle board plant, distilleries or/and industrial steam
boilers. The options are numerous and cannot be described in
detail in this handbook.
If the decision is made that the development of a
charcoal industry or its expansion is likely to bring
socio-economic benefits to the country, a government
department, most likely the planning department, should

- 211-
Agriculture
Wastes

Fi gure 49. The integrated carbonization concept

with four carbonizers.

- 212-
appoint a coordinator with interests in forestry,
agriculture and chemistry to head the new charcoal section.
This section would be given the task of ensuring that
maximum effort is put into the implementation of the
decision to institute or expand the charcoal industry. The
coordinator, whose suggested title would be charcoal
development officer, would have the following duties:

Investigation of all possible raw material sources.

Survey of the local and export markets.

Designing a research programme.

Selection and hiring of consulting services.

The charcoal development officer would also be concerned

with the training of local staff. A training programme will
comprise:

Basic explanation of the principle of carbonization.

The correlation between raw material type, preparing and

drying of feedstocks and its effect upon the yield of
char, pyrolysis oil and gaseous energy.

Practical demonstrations on a pilot plant (usually not

available in developing countries) or the construction
of such pilot projects may be the major objective of the
course.

Safety precautions and first aid.

Costs, bookkeeping, and marketing.

Each course should be terminated by an examination at

- 213-
which the standard of marks for awards should be set fairly
high.
The decision to set up a properly organized charcoal
industry should be made before the organization of a
charcoal research and development team. Information gained
from research and development will lead to modi fication of
some of the suggested projects and therefore close
consultation and liaison with the Planning Department is
essential.
At present chemical charcoal research is concentrating
on the identi fication of compounds in the pyrolytic oils
from all materials. Research had been dormant during the
long period of cheap petroleum. Today interest is focusing
on the ingredients of pyrolytic oil as rare raw materials
for the chemical, pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries to
substitute for compounds which have their orlgln in the
synthesis of petroleum derivates. Some objectives, however,
are farther reaching. Extracts of pyrolysis oils can serve
as an alternative fuel for cars, trucks, agricultural
equipment and electric generators, i f properly prepared and
gasified .
Cogeneration of energy has again become an essential
part of the charcoal industry. Numerous combinations are
possible and can be deve loped. The credits gained from the
sale of by-products can set-off a major part of operational
costs and it appears that these contributions will become
more attractive in the future.
The case studies given in Appendix 1 (CISR-Lambiotte
plant and Vertical Flow Converter (Tech-Air) plant) bring
out the main characteristics of a modern plant and give an
insight into the planning process.

7.2 Selection of Charcoal Equipment

The heart of the charcoal plant is the kiln, retort or

converter. In a strict sense, there are no perceivable
variations between retorts and converters.
- 214 -
 In any event, the yield of charcoal, the uni formi ty of
its quality, the quantity of liquid and gaseous by-products,
the throughput and output of the plant will be determined by
the conversion equipment selected. If a decision has been
made about the type of operation, the other parts of the
factory must be adjusted to it.
On the other hand, the raw material type - long or short
wood logs, fine or coarse material, agricultural or
non-agricul tural, will influence the choice of kiln,
retort/converter and the kind of operation - batchwise or
continuous .
It was discovered very early that the energy demand of a
charcoaling process is closely related to the retort
capaci ty, if the operation takes place batchwise. However,
the yields of charcoal and by-products are very little
affected by alterations of the retort capacity. The same
phenomenon can be observed with circular, well insulated
earthmound kilns, although reliable measurements are
extremely difficult. The table given in the introduction to
this chapter summarizes data which were collected from
European plants operating with hardwood species.
The energy demand of the charcoa ling process is related
not only to retort capacity and moisture content of the raw
feed, but also depends on the efficiency of the heat
exchange between the ambient heating gas and the surface of
the raw material parts or particles. In a ba tchwise operated
retort or converter, the individual parts of the raw
material remain almost immobile, or are at best in very slow
motion during the entire carbonization cycle of many hours
or days . Under these conditions, access to the surface of
the raw material parts will be made more difficult. Some of
the parts will also remain close t oge t he r and will not be
sufficiently exposed to the heating gases. This effect is
frequently observed in poorly operated charcoal kilns and
results in the discharge of a high proportion of unburned or
half-burned wood logs.

- 215 -
 Heat exchange efficiency is also the reason why most of
the retorts and almost all kilns require, for their proper
charging, specific dimensions for the diameter and length of
the wood logs. Otherwise, penetration of the heating gas
will not be adequate to meet the necessary velocity rate of
heat exchange because of the high density of the charge.
Considerable improvement of the heat exchange can be
achieved if the feed is kept in steady movement, e.g., in a
continuously operated converter plant. This energy-saving
effect is demonstrated in the following table for the
continuously operated SIFIC retort in comparison with the
batchwise operation of a Reichert retort. In both cases, log
sizes and moisture content of the feed were identical (1).

SIFIC retort REICHERT retort

Yield of: kg/t dry wood kg/t dry wood
Charcoal 330 - 350 330 - 350
Methanol 23 19 - 23
Acetic acid 77 66 - 70
Heating demand 17 kcal/kg dry wood 340 kcal/kg dry wood
Electri. demand 5.6 KWh/t dry wood 21 KWh/t dry wood

Insulation of the kiln, retort or converter becomes an

important issue in all countries with seasonal temperatures
below 15° C or in locations where high wind-chill factors
are prevalent. Losses of tangible heat are usually
negligible in hot climates, even at night.
There is a major difference between systems which heat
the wood by external means, using wood, oil, gas, etc., and
systems which allow combustion on a limited scale to occur
inside the carbonizer by burning part of the wood charge and
using this heat to dry and carbonize the remainder. The
latter method should be the most efficient since the heat is
genera ted where it is needed, using low-cos t wood fuel. In
practice, it is difficult to control the combustion and some
extra wood is burned which lowers the yield.

- 216-
 The uni formi ty of the quality of the produced charcoal
and by-products is an important consideration for the
consumer. As one regards the fixed carbon content of the
charcoal, this is direct ly related to the temperature
course, the terminal temperature of batchwise operations and
the residence time of the raw material. Therefore, the well
designed charcoal retort or converter can be judged by its
temperature control installation, the flexibility and
sensitivity to alterations.
Kilns as a means of traditional carbonization are
internally heated and manually controlled. The three
possibilities found are earth, which is lowest in cost,
bricks or masonry of intermediate cost, and steel which is
the most expensive. Steel kilns are further subdivided into
portable and fixed types.
Portable steel kilns possess two advantages: they can be
moved easily, which may be useful, and they cool quickly,
allowing a shorter cycle time. However, portabili ty is not
always beneficial, since it becomes di fficul t to organize
and supervise production efficiently; moreover, fixed brick
kilns can be cooled quite rapidly by i n j e c ti ng water into
the kiln (with care!). Although cycle times are still around
si x to eight days, compared with two for steel kilns, the
greater volume and much lower cost of brick kilns make them
preferable except where portability is essential.
Earth kilns and pits, even when operated efficiently,
are slow burning and slow cooling and contaminate the
charcoal with earth. However, where capital is limited or
non-existent, they have real advantages.
It has been mentioned before that the type of raw
material and the size of individual parts or particles may
demand a certain kiln, retort or converter. As a rule of
thumb, raw material sizes not exceeding 100 mm in length and
with a maximum diameter of 25 mm cannot be satisfactorily
converted in a batchwise operation. Such raw materials may
have been discharged by sawmills in the form of chips or

- 217-
sawdust, or by plantations and agricultural crop processors
in the form of nutshells, husks, hulls, leaves, twiglets,
pulpa from coffee or bagasse from the sugar industry. They
may also have been produced arti ficially by wood chippers,
farm shredders, etc. In any event, they tend to cause high
densi ty charges (in some cases they have to be compacted
first) when fed into the converter, consequently reducing
the heat exchange efficiency significantly.
The equipment supplier is therefore obliged to design
and manufacture special machinery for the charcoal producer.

Basic equipment list

Raw material receipt and preparation: chain saw, circular

saw, roller band saw, chipper, shredder, hammer mill, drag
chain, screen. The feasibility i n each special situation
must be proved by a test.

Raw material dryer: band dryer, screw dryer, single and

multi-pass rotary dryer, dryer of a special type
(Lambiotte), grain dryer, pneumatic dryer, conveyor belt,
elevator, electro-magnet for the removal of iron debris,
silo. Drying tests are strongly recommended where sun or air
drying i s not sufficient. When the moisture content of the
raw feed is less than 20 %, drying is not usually necessary.

Off-gas system, pyrolysis oil recovery: scrubber, water

cooler, demister, draught fan, valves , temperature control,
oil pump, piping, tubing, storage tank. Major parts of the
off-gas system must be made from copper, stainless steel,
ceramics or wood. The size of the scrubber and the surface
area of the water cooler must be determined individually.

Flare stack: chimney, automatic burner, burner chamber,

pick-up for heating gas supply, draught fan . If burning of
excess gas is required by environmental legislation, a
special design is necessary.
- 218 -
 Not all the items in the above list will be necessary in
particular plants. Since an industrial charcoal plant can
use machinery from other indus tr ies with minor alterations,
it has become common practice to employ second hand
equipment as much as possible; this could reduce the initial
investment costs considerably.
Trad i tionally, the inherited wisdom of rural societies
has played an important part in charcoal-making. To use the
established method which is known to work successfully in a
locality is the logical option for those who cannot afford
to take risks because of their precarious economic
situation. Where social factors are dominant, it is usually
very difficult to introduce a new technology of
charcoal-making unless the social factors are changed.
Frequently one sees attempts to modify the technology of
charcoal-making by providing aid: inputs such as chain saws,
new kilns and so on. When these i nput s are no longer
available, economic necessity forces the producers to revert
to the traditional, successful method with all its obvious
technical faults . Therefore, carbonizing methods cannot be
evaluated just on the basis of technical factors: social
factors are of equal importance.
But good technology is important in the long run in
improving social conditions. Therefore, if social factors
permit, methods which give higher yields of better quality
charcoal at lower cost should be used.
Technical equipment appropriate to industrial charcoal
production on a small scale has come into use only since
1965. Since then, these new developments ha ve followed an
ever-increasing upward trend, not previously known in the
charcoal industry.
It may come as a surprise to the outsider that the
investment costs are frequently a minor concern of the
entrepreneur because the adaptability of modern equipment
allows the investor to reduce his risks considerably and to
add new capital equipment whenever his funding is sufficient
and the market demands it.
- 219-
7.3 Conclusions

Charcoal is a growth fuel belonging to the class of

energy sources that is growing rapidly; namely, the
supplementary fuels for household and industry. It was once
mankind's first and only fuel for the extraction of iron and
other metals from their ores and paved the way to i ndus t r i al
development allover the world.
Charcoal and its derivatives sparked the start and rise
of the chemical industry a hundred years ago. Thereafter,
the use of charcoal declined to a low level in
industrialized countries, where more concentrated forms of
energy were available. But it never ceased to be important
as an industrial and household fuel in developing countries .
Charcoal and its by-products will increase their
contribution because of the synergistic effect of i mpr oved
charcoal technology and advanced silvicultural practices.
It must be admitted that the capital outlays for
improved charcoal equipment, large or small, appear at first
sight to be a barrier to their use in developing countries.
However, a closer analysis and comparison shows that in
terms of capital cost per ton of charcoal produced, over the
li fe of the plant concerned, the di fferences are not as
marked as is frequently thought.
Where the capital outlay for the investment is high, it
is usually compensated by considerable savings in labour
wages, lower costs for the utilities, and higher
profitability through upgrading the quality of the product.
Much of the abundant resources of forestal waste and
agricul tural residues is at present untapped, burnt away or
wasted owing to the lack of technical expertise and economic
encouragement by governments. Because these energy resources
are renewable and their carbonization can help to optimize
the overall utilization of forests and farm crops, the new
charcoal technology has a special significance for all
developing countries which hold these large reserves and
need additional funds to practice economically.
- 220-
What should governments do?

Either within the Planning Department or in the Forestry

Department, a section should be set up concerned with
the promotion of a well-organized industrial charcoal
production.

Gu idelines or legislative measures should be issued to

define and clarify the place of the charcoal industry
within the existing energy concept .

Since modern charcoal technology draws on biomass

resources provided by forests, industry and agriculture,
administrative roadblocks between competing agencies
must be removed to give all concerned a clear view of
the national concept .

Eventually, the government holds the key to the success

or fiasco of resource preservation programmes.
Therefore, the administration must clearly state
priorities for the use of national reserves from which
the fuel for households and industry will be made in the
future.

Further recommendations are:

A pilot demonstration project should be implemented to

investigate the validity of planned ventures and to
study operating characteristics.

Training programmes should be conducted.

Data should be collected on resources, markets and

industrial applications for products of the charcoal
ind ustry .

- 221-
 Information should be disseminated to interested groups,
universities, and private investors.

A study should be made of the possibilities of local

equipment suppliers and their potential to provide the
necessary equipment from indigenous maintenance shops.

Industrial charcoal-making and silviculture go well

together and can be instrumental in preventing resource
depletion. But much work remains to be done. The first
priority is to spread information on the capability of
modern charcoal-making to utilize waste materials.

References

(l) F. Fluegge, Chemische Technologie des Holzes, (56, 57),

Munich FRG, 1954

- 222-
Chapter 8
CHARCOAL BRIQUETTES AND ACTIVATED CHARCOAL MANUFACTURING

There is always a need to make charcoal more convenient

in use, and special industrial applications require charcoal
in agglomerated shapes. For this purpose, several techniques
are available to the charcoal producer: extrusion,
pelletizing and briquetting.
The latter is by far the most common method. Briquetting
units can be attached to the carbonization plant using
excess heating gas for the briquetting dryer. They can be
designed economically, starting from a capacity of a few
hundred tons per year. The largest known briquetting
operations turn out between 70,000 and 80,000 tons annually,
employing automatic equipment for pressing, drying and
bagging.
The term "briquettes" is normally applied to the
material obtained by thoroughly m~x~ng powdered charcoal
with a binder. This is a thick liquid consisting of starch,
molasses, tar, etc.
Further additives are inorganic fillers which delay the
heat release of the burning briquette, and ignition
enhancers (sodium nitrate) to make them "easy-lighting".
In any event, charcoal briquettes cannot be lit by
simply putting a match to them. The usual kindling materials
are paper or the special charcoal lighters (solid and
liquid) sold in stores.

8.1 The Briquetting Process (1)

The equipment described here is sui table for a

medium-sized plant with a briquetting capacity of 1,000 to
5,000 tons/yo
-223 -
Preparation: The raw material is received in a hopper and an
accurate feeder accumulates the charcoal and feeds it to the
pul verizer. The total plant output is centred in the feeder
and pulverizer.

CrushinQ: Usually a hammer mill is installed to size the

material to the desired screen analysis . The screen analysis
will depend very much on the type of briquette to be
produced.

Mixing: A mixer which provides the extra retention time to

guarantee complete blending with the binder, filler,
additives, etc. is necessary. Thorough mixing can also
reduce the quantity of binder cons iderably.

Forming: The most commonly used presses are the roller types
that may be adjusted to differnt pressures and speeds. Photo
14 shows a roller press discharging pillow briquettes and
Photo 15 a close-up of the briquettes.

Selection of binder: The most common binder is corn starch.

As well as all types of starch, sugar cane molasses can also
be applied. Tests will show which type of binder is best
suited and will also determine the composition . Much
attention should be paid to this question, because the cost
of the binder will contribute signi ficantly to the total
production cost of the briquettes. The briquettes should be
subjected to a burning test. Odour and visible smoke caused
by some binders are undes irable. Also the briquettes must be
resistant to any fermentation agression, at least for
18 months (2).

Selection of filler: This additive consists of an

incombustible mineral. In most cases, limestone is used, but
other materials such as ground oyster shells are also
frequently found in briquettes. The addition of a filler

- 224-
PHOTO 14 A charcoal briquetting press. Two
rows of moulds can be seen and the
wire belt.
(Photo W. Emrich)

PHOTO 15 Pillow-shaped charcoal briquettes.

(Photo W. Emrich)
- 225-
 Upper
pressure plate

~ Part of mould

AJ--£r.--+ Piston ~
ff=~~#~n-l-. Piston plate

-#----+-+ Hydraulic cylinder

1\\-\--+ Table stand

Fi gure 50. Simple Charcoal Briquetting Press

--~----( Courtesy of Carbon International, Ltd.,
Neu-Isenburg, F.R.G. )
- 226 -
serves two purposes: prolongation of the cooking time by
slow heat release (bakeoven effect) j and reduction of the
calorific value of the briquette (fuel-saving effect).

A well balanced briquette composition will display superior

burning characteristics, particularly cooking time, when
compared with lump charcoal.

Sand and high silica-containing fillers are not suitable as

energy extenders because of the ir abrasive properties j they
will wear out the moulds of the briquette press in a short
period of time.

Additives: The briquetting industry has found numerous

additives during the last 10 years which will enhance the
ignition characteristics, prevent fermentation, or
accelerate chemical processes when charcoal is involved.
Other additives serve decorative purposes only, i.e. to give
a certain flame colour.

8.1.1 Simple Briquetting Equipment

Frequently the need for low cost equipment arises

especially in small charcoal operations and where the
produce is to be dumped into markets not demanding high
grade charcoal briquettes. In all these situations the
charcoal-maker likes to turn to equipment which can be
assembled easily by local workshops.
If the capital outlays for labour do not bear great
weight on the economics of the venture one may prefer more
manually operated apparatus and paraphernalias also.
In general the assemblage of the machinery should leave
to the charcoal-maker the possibility to add more when his
production needs expansion and his bUdget can afford it.
This , of course, implies the idea to employ smaller machines
and an outfit for which the constituent elements are at hand
when they are wanted.
- 227 -
Briguetting press

Usable are all kinds of presses which will permit

satisfactory solidifying of the mixture, which normally can
be achieved by a raised pressure. Anyway, tests will give
the right answer.
There are numerous types of presses of which
charcoal-makers operate modifications : piston presses, table
presses, tablet presses, soap and stamp presses.
Figure 50 displays a design which is commonly in use and
can be fit together by any workshops equipped with basic
tools. The illustration is self-explanatory. Up to a limited
reach the shape of the charcoal agglomerates may be altered
also.

Drying equipment

For the drying of the "green" briquettes two methods

have been commonly adopted: stationary drying chambers or
cupboards and mobile drying trays or racks with wire cloth.
The latter way of desiccating is more popular in medium
sized charcoal operat ions. The trays with the clustered
charcoal are placed on stands which can be wheeled into the
drying kiln, which usually is a masonry structure.
It is normal practice to heat the kiln with hot gases
obtained from the burning of charcoal gas in an adjacent
fire chamber.

8.2 The Activated Charcoal Process

Although unactivated charcoal already has some "active

properties", it would not meet present-day requirements. To
improve and enlarge the active surface of charcoal, two
processes are mainly used: gas (steam) activation, and
chemical activation (3).

- 228 -
Gas (steam) activation

Here one starts from pre-carbonized material which has

not usually been manufactured or mined for the purpose of
activation, e.g., wood charcoal, coconut charcoal, peat
charcoal, brown-coal coke, or even coal or the like.
The raw material, in the form of lumps or finely ground,
is subjected to the action of gases such as water vapour,
carbon dioxide, air, or mixtures of them, at 700 - 1000 0 c.
Oxygen present in the free state, or combined in the gases,
burns up carbon and produces the desired pores. Also the
powdered carbon is often extruded in presses before
activation, with the aid of coking binders. For example, in
the production of pellets, powdered wood charcoal is
intimately mixed with hot coal-tar pitch and with activation
accelerators and the mixture is extruded through dies. The
axtruded product is carbonized at only moderate
temperatures. The baked grains, reduced in size by handling
operations, are however still inactive. They are finally
activated by water vapour in a rotary furnace or in a
fluidized bed at 700 - 900 0 C. The water vapour removes
carbon from the interior of the grains in accordance with
the equation:
=

and thus produces the desired porous structure .

Kilns, rotary furnaces, Herreshoff furnaces, and
fluidized bed furnaces are all used. The possible variations
in procedure, taken in conjunction with the choice of raw
material, provide an almost unlimited number of types of
activated carbon having different absorption properties. The
art of the processor lies in conducting the activation
process in such a way that combustion of the carbon does not
take place from the outside of the grains. Products with
consistent properties can be produced only when the
production conditions are accurately known and strictly
adhered to . This applies to all activation processes.
- 229 -
 Figure 51 shows an activation plant for the production
of activated carbon pellets (see also Photo 12).

If the aim is to produce a granulated or powdered

product, the machinery or equipment required will be simpler.

Chemical activation

Chemical activation generally starts with uncarbonized

vegetable products, such as sawdust, peat, etc. These are
impregnated with zinc chloride solution or phosphoric acid,
to name the most commonly used materials. If the carbon
product is to be in the form of a powder, it is calcined
directly, at 400 0 to 700 0 C, after previous drying. For
granular carbons, one can start from granular raw materials.
However, better activated products with harder grains result
if the "green" mix is made from finely divided material and
the mixture is extruded to give moulded forms. These moulded
forms must be thoroughly dried before calcination . On
heating (calcination), the added chemicals draw water out of
the raw materials and result in a porous carbon structure.
The carbon is dried after washing out the activating
chemicals. Thus, the chemical addi ti ves are recovered and
returned to the cycle.
As in gas activation, a large number of different types
of activated carbon can be produced by varying the
characteristics of the green mixture, by special additives,
and by the way in which calcination is carried out.

There are many patented processes for the production of

activated carbon, but none are followed rigidly by current
carbon producers . In fact, most processes are unpatented
internally developed techniques. The competitive nature of
the activated carbon industry has required carbon
manufacturers to keep details of their processing techniques
quite secret.

- 230-
 RAW CHAR
KNEADING AND BLENDIN~

~I GRINDING ~AR
m_ t-·_~·-- @n
/
-=rD-
EXTRUSION ~-
AGEING STORAGE )
,
N .-. - GAS
W

GAS
STEAM

\
Figure 51.
Activated carbon plant for
manufacturing pellets or granular active carbon.
C~SSI~ E3
PACKING
Photo 16 A rotary kiln for
activation of charcoal in
the Philippines
(Photo \oJ. Emrich)

- 232 -
 Although details are not available, it is certain that
most producers follow rather standard steam activation
methods with very close control. Major processing variations
arise from adapting to different source materials and from
pre-activation and post-activation carbon treatment designed
to yield particular properties for carbon suitable for
specific applications (4).

To service the activated carbon market adequately,

speci f ic requirements must be met. To enable the charcoal
producer to meet these requirements, each production process
must be investigated to determine the best method of making
the desired products .

REFERENCES

(1) Y. Yoshida, Status of Hot Briguetting and Form Coke

Technology in Japan , 1971.

(2) IBA Proceedings, The Institute for Briquetting and

Agglomeration, 14th Biennial Conf., Reno, Nevada, 1981.

(3) M. Smisek, Active Carbon manufacture, Properties and

Applications, Elsevier, Amsterdam, Netherlands 1970 .

( 4) H. V• Ki e nl e , ihre industrielle
~A:.:..:k:.:t~i:..:.v.:..;k:.::o.:..;h~l:.::e_--=u.:..:n.::d_-=-:..:..=..=--..-.:::..:..:.:::.:::.;:...:..:~:::..::..:~
Anwendung, Stuttgart, FRG 1980.

- 233-
Chapter 9
SAFETY PRECAUTIONS AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONSIDERATIONS

9.1 Safety in Charcoal Operations

Whether charcoal is made in the tradi tional way or by

industrial methods, two hazards are always present:
explosions of gases and dust, and fires in the stored
charcoal.
Accidents can be greatly reduced by making use of safety
fea tures and adopting sa fe work habi t s . In all plants where
high-temperature operating conditions are commonplace and
extensive, carelessness or slovenliness can be ruinous.
Production hazards increase, and undesirable or dangerous
burning conditions can arise if the operator neglects to pay
close attention to such vi tal operational factors as the
course of the converter temperature, pressure indicators,
structural conditions of the production equipment and
storage bins. There are ample records of plant damage and
destruction caused by such neglect and oversight.

Explosions

The causes of such accidents are not clearly understood.

They are thought to be caused most often by a mixture of
retort or converter gases with air.
In batchwise operated retort operations, the greatest
quantity of gas is present in the retort at the end of the
coaling time, hence the admittance of more air than is
needed to run the process can form highly explosive gas
mixtures. In a continuously run converter, the admittance of
more air than is needed may cause over-temperature in the
first place and form explosive mixtures in the Off-gas
system. However, according to Swedish sources, frequent
"puffings" have been observed during the early stage of
- 234-
coaling, when comparatively large volumes of water and other
vapours are being condensed on relatively cool raw material.
The non-condensable gases, including 0 f those capable 0 f
explosion, are thus free to form critical mixtures with air.

Fires

Explosions are a major cause of fires. Whilst the

explosion itself may cause only minor damage to the system,
fire can result from admission of large quantities of air to
the retort, converter or off-gas system through cracks.
Other causes of fire are the operator's unfamiliarity
with proper operating procedures and outright carelessness.
In high-temperature operations, there is always the danger
of wall separation. Should accidental openings occur and
remain unnoticed , the seepage of excessive amounts of air
through them could easily change the temperature pattern.
This may result gradually in very high temperature
outbrea~s, or they might take place very rapidly, creating a

serious fire condition. The operator's familiarity with his

equipment and the steps necessary for counter-action are the
best insurance for safe practice and satisfactory
production. Well established, periodic inspection of the
industrial charcoal-making plant will often indicate the
corrective measures necessary for proper control and reduce
the possibility of damaging fires.
Also of major importance are the reduced yields and loss
of operating time caused by improper sealing or structural
leakages of air in the charcoal cooling bins during the
cooling period. Such conditions may occur even when a
well-standardized pattern of operation has been established.
The importance of inspecting and maintaining cooling bins
during the cooling cycles, controlling operational
conditions, and using safe practices cannot be
over-emphasized.

- 235 -
Skin irritations

The tars and smoke produced by carbonization, although

not directly poisonous, may have long-term damaging effects
on the respiratory system.
Wood tars and pyrolytic acid can irritate the skin and
care should be taken to avoid prolonged skin contact by
providing protective clothing and adopting working
procedures which minimize exposure.

Hazards to the public

Fire, whether controlled inside the retorts or converter

or uncontrolled, constitutes a potential hazard for the
public. Unauthorized persons, including the public, should
not be admitted to the plant unless guided. Safety helmets
are a necessity for the workmen and the visitor. The
transport of wood or any raw material, charcoal handling and
other essential work involves hazards . Therefore, safety
measures and safe work habits are of prime importance.

9.2 Safety Devices and Equipment

Pressure-relief doors

Explosions are always a potential danger when handling a

dusty material, or one which contains gaseous vapours. Feed
and storage bins are therefore designed with explosion
relief tops which lift to vent the gases when the internal
pressure rises abnormally, e .g., above 350 - 400 mm water.
In addition, dead-we ight relief doors are usually
incorporated in the tops of the bins. These doors should
lift at a lower internal pressure .

- 236-
Automatic temperature shutdown

In the event that temperatures inside the retorts,

converter, or the off-gas system exceed predetermined
limits, the air supply, the heating fans of the retorts or
the fan of the converter gas system are shut down. At the
same time, the air supply of continuously operated
converters is cut off and the converter gated off. Residual
gases are vented through the emergency flare.

Electric power failure devices

If a total power failure occurs, the air supply and the

draught fan stop and all shut-off gates remain in pre failure
condition. When the process becomes dormant, the system is
gated off.

Temperature indication and control

The equipment that indicates the operation temperatures

and controls the safety devices must be selected very
carefully. Regular inspection and proper maintenance are a
necessity.

9.3 General Safeguarding of Charcoal Plants

Water supply

A water supply is highly important to any charcoal

plant. A hose with a nozzle should be kept ready for
immediate use at assigned points in the plant. Back -pack
water pumps or large-capacity fire extinguishers provide
some measure of fire protection.

- 237 -
Detection of poisonous gases

Poisonous gases (carbon monoxide) are present in retorts

that have just been cooled down, or in the off-gas system
just after shut-off. There are portable detectors on the
market which indicate the concentration of the gas confined
in the production apparatus.
However, the best prevention is to ensure thorough
ventilation before workmen or maintenance staff enter the
bins or retorts and also during the entire time they are
occupied.

Safety manual

All safety instructions and any changes in them must be

made known to the workmen without delay. The time-proven
practice in all well-organized plants is that every workman
has to attend an additional instruction lesson each quarter,
gi ven by the plant engineer. But common sense remains the
most important factor in preventing and if necessary coping
with hazardous situations in the plant.

First-aid accessories

Adequate first-aid supplies, including dust and gas

(carbon monoxide) masks, should be kept available at the
central point.

9.4 Precautions for Charcoal Storage

Customarily, the charcoal demand is seasonal which makes

it necessary to stockpile a considerable inventory.
A great deal of care must be taken in storing freshly
produced charcoal. I t has a tendency to absorb oxygen from
the ambient air. Rapid absorption, however, generates

- 238-
considerable heat which builds up to a point where the
stockpiled char starts to burn.
Tightly packed masses of charcoal fines and charcoal
with a high content of volatiles are more subject to
spontaneous combustion than the larger lump charcoal.
Sel f -igni tion may occur i f charcoal has been water-sprayed
for better cooling.
It is, therefore, advisable to place freshly discharged
charcoal in the open, separated from previously cooled and
conditioned charcoal, for at least 24 hours. During this
time, the char should be exposed to air circulation and
protected from rain and wind, preferably in an open shed
rather than under a tarpulin. If there is no evidence of
heat or active fire after the 24-hour period, the charcoal
may be considered safe for warehousing.

9.5 Environmental Considerations for the Charcoal-Maker

During the last two decades, environmental control and

the related legislation have become important concerns of
charcoal-makers. Numerous cases are known where plants under
operation for more than hal f a century have had to be shut
down or radically changed as a result of legislative
pressure. The potential charcoal-maker should take these
aspects into considerations before spending money and
setting up a plant.
Fortunately, the feed input of an industrial charcoal
plant is very largely removed in a solid stream as charcoal,
and the ejected off-gases are signi ficantly reduced by the
removal of the condensate, which results also in a much
cleaner off-gas stream as compared with traditional
charcoal-making.
The combustible gas generated by the system will burn
cleanly in a stack if not otherwise utilized.
Another favourable feature of industrial charcoal-making
is the fact that these systems discharge minimal liquid

- 239-
effluents. Wastewater does not usually occur except in
plants where the by-products are fractionated from the
original pyrolytic oil by distillation.
The environmental aspects of industrial charcoal-making
will depend very much on the type of raw material and also
the throughput capacity. Therefore, component effluents can
be discussed only in a general way.

Raw material preparation

Hogging machinery usually causes noise levels which may

exceed local decibel allowances. Normally, the noise is
confined by enclosing the machines, and in residential areas
the machinery is not operated during regular night shift.
Dryer exhausts are dust-loaded and the degree is related
to the size of the feed (fines). Cyclonic equipment is
installed to depress the grade of dust exhaust and serves at
the same time to prevent undesirable losses of raw material
by retrieving it.

Retorts and converter

Any fugitive vapours or dust from these units occur only

when they are opened. In continuous operations, a retort or
converter will only be opened during the shut-down period
and therefore, no preventative measures are needed.

Char handling

Conveyer belts are normally enclosed. The char bin's

outbreathing is passed through a bag collector to retain the
char dust. Captured dust will be periodically vibrated from
bags and allowed to settle inside the bins.

- 240 -
Scrubbing system for pyrolytic oil

Any fugitive vapours can be collected in draughted vent

hoods. They are burned in an ex~sting combustion device
(flare stack).

Emergency venting

The systems are designed so that in the event of an

unusual pressure rise within the system or a fire, the
vapours are vented to the atmosphere. This is done for
personnel and equipment safety. On the basis of long
experience, it can be stated that such occurences are
uncommon, and when they do occur they last only a few
seconds. Since the systems are usually outside
installations, the vapours disperse quickly.

Wastewater

Industrial charcoal-making plants discharge very little

water to sewage. Water is used primarily for cooling and is
recirculated in closed-loop systems. The primary water
effluent is from the distillation systems for the
fractionation of pyrolytic oil. In this case, the water will
contain some organic liquid and it should be sent to a
chemical after-treatment stage.
The tars and pyroligneous liquors can seriously
contaminate streams and affect drinking water supplies for
humane and animals. Fish may also be adversely affected.
Liquid effluents and wastewater from medium and large-scale
charcoal operations should be trapped in large settling
ponds and allowed to evaporate so that this water does not
pass into the local drainage system and contaminate streams.
Kilns and pits, as distinct from retorts and other
systems, do not normally produce liquid effluent because the
by-products are mostly dispersed into the air as vapours.

- 241-
Precautions against air-borne contamination of the
environment are of greater importance in this case .
Therefore, kiln batteries may not be set up in the
neighbourhood of residential areas since their smoke
emission would cause a nuisance. Smoke emission will also be
the limiting factor for the number of kilns assembled in a
battery.

- 242-
Chapter 10
CHARCOAL LABORATORY WORK

Whereas the traditional charcoal-maker rarely engages in

analytical work, the industrial charcoal producer cannot do
without it. Raw material composition, quality control,
investigation of customer complaints, environmental and
safety regulation, etc. are the problems to be dealt with.
Fortunately, the analytical procedures to be performed do
not require extremely sophisticated and expensive equipment.
The procedures for analysis are the same as those employed
for bituminous coal and these are set out in national
standards (e.g., for Germany the relevant standards are
contained in DIN 51749). The cost of equipping a charcoal
laboratory with a basic i nve nt or y is around U.S . $ 8,000.
This figure does not include the provision of space and
furniture.
The laboratory staff must have a certain degree of skill
and training. In most plants, one or two technic ians and two
assistants are on duty during normal operational times,
which means also during night shifts. The following is a
compilation of the most common test and analytical
procedures. Although most of them were developed many years
ago, and have been commonly adopted by the charcoal
industry, some suppliers still use their own methods.
There fore, in comparing analytical results, one has to know
the procedure by which they were obtained.
Whether raw material or carbonization products have to
be analysed or tested, the sampling is important and must be
done carefully. In the case of charcoal, the collected
samples of a batch or of a truckload ready for shipment are
best mixed in a drum which is filled to only half its
capacity. After rotating the drum for several minutes, a
sample is taken off and ground to a mesh size of under 1 mm.
- 243-
The laboratory takes 200 g of the sample. Half of it is set
aside for storage in a closed and sealed tin can. This
sample serves as proof for further i nve s t i ga t i ons and
discussions, if they become necessary (1).

10.1 Analysis

- in raw materials:

Accurately weigh 10 g of the crushed or ground sample

and dry it in an electric drying chamber at a constant
temperature of 105 0 C. Weigh it after 3 hours and continue
the weighing and drying at 24-hour intervals until the loss
is not more than 0.25 % in day's drying time. The loss of
weight is calculated as a percentage of the initial wet
weight.
In the case of wood logs, blocks must be cut with an
approximate size of 5 x 5 x 6 cm. The procedure for drying
and determination of moisture percentage are the same as for
crushed and ground material.

- in charcoal and charcoal briquettes:

Crush the sample in a porcelain mortar with a pestle and

weigh accurately 3 g. Drying and weighing procedures are the
same as above.

Ashes

- in raw material:

Crush or grind the sample and weigh accurately 3 g in a

platinum or porcelain crucible with a lid . Heat up to 700 -
800 0 C in an electric muffle oven. Check by weighing and
heating at intervals until the weight loss is under 0.25 %
of the initial weight.

- 244-
 The di fference between dry initial weight and weight of
the sample after combustion of all organic matter is
expressed as a percentage of ini tial weight, and is ash
content.

- in charcoal and charcoal briquettes:

Prepare the sample as above. According to estimated ash

content, accurately weigh 3 to 5 g in a platinum or
porcelain crucible with a lid. Then follow the procedure
described above.
If the charcoal does not burn completely, apply several
drops of hydrogen peroxide (3 % solution) and heat the
crucible, supported by a wire triangle on a tripod, with the
flame of a bunsen burner.

Volatiles and Fixed Carbon

This method is applied to all charcoal products: lump

charcoal, charcoal fines, granules, pellets and charcoal
briquettes. By heating the charcoal under the exclusion of
air (oxygen), the confined gases are expelled. These gases
are commonly termed "volatiles" .

- preparation of charcoal sample:

The necessary crushing should be done manually in a

porcelain mortar with a pestle. Forced grinding is not
recommended because of the heat which could be generated and
which would drive off part of the volatiles. Dry the sample
at 105 0 C (not higher!)

- determination of volatiles and fixed carbon:

Accurately weigh 1 9 of the dry powdered sample in a

platinum (preferably) or porcelain crucible with a lid.

- 245-
Dimensions of the crucible are: lower diameter 22 mm, upper
diameter 35 mm, height without lid 40 mm. The lid has a
pinhole in the centre with a diameter of 1.5 mm (not
wider!). The rim of the lid must comfortably overlap the
brim of the crucible to prevent the intake of air during
heating.
Stand the crucible, with a wire triangle, firmly on a
tripod and heat the bottom gently with a shining flame. The
distance between bunsen burner and crucible should not be
less than 6 em. After 2 - 3 minutes, open the gas adjusting
screw and the air control of the bunsen burner to full
capacity and continue until the small flame above the
pinhole in the lid goes out. This indicates that all
volatile matter has been driven off (1).
Put the hot crucible into a desiccator with calcium
cloride in the bottom as a desiccant and leave until the
sample has cooled off. Weigh it as usual.
The di fference between the initial weight and the final
weight is the content of volatiles.
The value for fixed carbon is calculated by the
following formula:
Cf"l.X = 100 % - (volatiles + ashes)

Sulphur

This is usually evaluated in all charcoal products . The

most common method is calorimetric combustion of the
charcoal with the addition of dilute sodium hydroxide . The
formation of sulphates permits precipitation with barium
chloride as barium sulphate.
Accurately weigh 1 g of the dry powdered sample and
insert it into the calorimeter according to the instructions
given by the supplier of the equipment. Combustion takes
place under an excess of oxygen, and the pressure is kept at
20 atm. After ignition, the calorimeter must be shaken for
about half an hour (1).

- 246 -
 Then release the pressure and discharge the combustion
residures into a beaker by several rinsings with water (the
contents of the calorimeter must be completely transferred).
Heat the beaker to boiling point and add 10 cm 3 of
barium chloride solution (approx. 250 g BaC1 21l000 cm 3
distilled water). Immediately a white precipitation of
barium sulphate will appear.
After cooling off, the contents of the beaker are poured
through a glass filter which collects the barium sulphate
precipitate. After several rinsings with distilled water,
the filter is dried and weighed to determine the content of
bar ium sulphates. This is the di fference between the weight
of the empty filter and the weight of the carefully dried
filter with the precipitate in a drying oven (105° C).
Use the following formula to calculate the sulphur in
the sample (accurate 1.0 g):

% sulphur = weight of dry barium sUlphate x 32 x 100

233.5

Screening analysis

Charcoal fines and charcoal powder are classified by the

percentage distribution of grain sizes. For the analysis, a
set of standardized screens are used consisting of several
screens with different mesh sizes. Most common is the
following set: (2)

No. Mesh size Wire thickness

4 3.3 mm 1.0 mm
3 2.5 1.0
2 1.5 1.0
1 1.0 0.65

- 247-
Assemble the screening set in order, with screen no. 4 on
top and no. 1 in the lowest position. Accurately weigh 100 g
of dried sample and put it in screen no. 1.
Shake the whole csreening set for 2 minutes, making two
to-and-fro movements per second. Then weigh the residues of
the fines remaining on each screen. Note down in your report
the different weights as percentages of total initial weight
in the following order:

grain size IV = 3.3 mm (screen no. 4)

" " III = 2.5 - 3.3 mm (screen no. 3)
" " II 1.5 - 2.5 mm (screen no. 2)
" " I = 1.0 - 1.5 mm (screen no. 1)
" " 0 screen transit

For the classification of lump charcoal, larger mesh sizes

are necessary to evaluate the grain size distribution which
normally ranges between 10 and 120 mm.

The friability test

Friability tests are a means of measuring the tendency

of the charcoal to break into smaller pieces when sUbjected
to repeated handling, and so indicate the relative extent to
which size coals will decrease in size during transport, or
descent inside a blast furnace.
The figures in % indicate the reduction in size which
the charcoal has suffered during the test. Therefore, the
lower the % figure, the stronger is the charcoal.

- evaluation of friability by the tumbler test

This is considered the most important of the friability

tests . It is derived from Recommendation R-556 on the MICUM
indices of coke of the International Organization for
Standardization (ISO).

- 248-
 10 kg
of charcoal are placed in a steel test drum
1,000 mm long, 1,000 mm diameter, fitted with four steel
angles fixed lengthwise inside the drum. The drum is rotated
at 24 rpm for one hour (total of 1,440 revolutions).
Charcoal is first tested at the works reception. The
coal is hand-sieved and only material larger than 31.75 mm
is tumbler tested to avoid the possibility of fine sizes
protecting the coarser pieces by their cushion effect
against shocks and abrasion.
Before the tumbler test, the new average size of the
charcoal must be calculated on the results of the screening
analysis.

Bulk density of charcoal fines

This indicates the weight of the charcoal fines per unit

volume and is an important datum for shipments.
Pour the charcoal sample, as it is received from the
plant or storage in three discrete portions into a
calibrated cylinder, one at a time. After filling in each
portion of the sample, stamp the cylinder vigorously on a
wooden board to the point where further stamping does not
reduce the volume of the cylinder content. When the
calibra,tion mark of 100 cm 3 is reached, stop and weigh the
charcoal fines.
The obtained weight multiplied by 10 gives the bulk
density per litre.
The procedure may be facilitated by employing a shaking
machine.

Viscosity of pyrolysis oil

For the measurement of viscosity, several standard

apparatuses are on the market. They all operate according to
the general principle of comparison of the sample with a
liquid of known viscosity .

- 249 -
 Most common in the charcoal industry is the
determination according to the Engler scale. The instruction
comes with the apparatus.

Flash point of pyrolysis oil

This is the lowest temperature at wich a fuel in an open

vessel gives off enough combustible vapour to produce a
momentary flash or fire when a small flame is passed near
its surface. Special apparatus can be purchased.

Calorific value

This is the number of heat units obtained by the

complete combustion of charcoal, charcoal fines, charcoal
briquettes, pyrolysis oil or off-gas. For the determination,
an oxygen calorimetric bomb is necessary, which can be
purchased. Follow the instruction manual.

Sampling of gas

For gas sampling, some general rules must be applied to

avoid inaccuracies and mistakes. The off-gas sample should
be tested immediately, otherwise alterations of its
composi tion may take place. If testing is not carried out
immediately, the gas sample may be stored only in a glass
flask or rubber container. All containers must be sealed
tightly after sampling.
Besides its calorific value, the composition of the gas
is also important for the plant operation. The composition
can be determined by suction of the gas through speci fie
absorption agents which retain one gas component but let
others pass. These apparatuses can also be purchased.

- 250 -
General remarks

The above enumeration of analytical procedures is far

from complete. There are many other operations which will be
required only once a year or even less frequently.
Some items of the laboratory work described in this
handbook may also be rarely required in practice,
particularly in a small plant which produces two commercial
products, as happens frequently.
A limiting factor may be that a skilled technician is
not available, or proper laboratory equipment is not at
hand. However, it has always been the practice of
small-scale charcoal producers to engage the help of an
existing laboratory which could be either a facility of the
university or private. Normally, the charcoal beginner
quickly learns what he must do himself and which part of the
laboratory work should be contracted out .
In all cases known to the author, the personnel question
has been resolved by on-the-spot training of an adaptable
person.
A charcoal-maker engaging in an export business usually
has to rely on his partners abroad, who should be well
equipped and have capable staff to deal with the problems
that arise and to give useful advice to their suppliers.

10.2 Bench-Scale Carbonization Tests

For the charcoal industry developer as well as for the

plant manager, it is indispensable to be familiar with the
ways to conduct carbonization tests . In practice, there are
many reasons for: investigating new raw material, checking
the yield efficiency of an existing charcoal plant, or just
for demonstration purposes.
The essential parts of the apparatus are shown in Figure
52 which is self-explanatory.

- 251-
 ---------Thermometer

..I----Container made
from wire cloth

H.---·'I------Bunsen burner

- 1 + - - - Water coo1er

Burning charcoal
gas

j
~
~----- Charcoal condensate

Fi gure 52. Apparatus for bench-scale dry distillation .

- 252-
 The small retort has a capacity of 1,000 cm 3 and can
be made from copper, aluminum or stainless steel. The
thermometer must be calibrated above 550 0 c.
The retort should be filled to about three-quarters full
with the prepared raw material sample and the lid closed
airtigth. Heating with the open flame of the bunsen burner
should start slowly and proceed according to the description
in Section 10.l.
After the terminal temperature has been reached, the
obtained products - charcoal and pyrolysis oil - can be
weighed to determine the yields.
It is also possible to obtain data for off-gas with the
apparatus.
It should be borne in mind that this laboratory retort
indicates data for intermittent carbonization processes
only, and they cannot be applied to continuous projects in a
straight line. But the results will give valuable
information and insight for planning and decision-making.

References

(l) G. Bugge, Neue Untersuchungsmethoden fuer die Produkte

der HIAG-Werke, 1947, (private paper) .

(2) SASS 1399 - 1983, SA Bureau of Standards, Pretoria, S.A .

- 253-
A P PEN 0 ICE S

- 254-
Appendix 1 CAS E 5 T U DIE 5

Charcoal plant with continuous C.I.S.R. Lambiotte Retort

Annual production of lump charcoal 2,200 t

Usable calorific excess energy 36 x 10 9 KJ

Raw material: 10,000 t of dry wood (30 % moisture)

Charcoal plant with continuous Vertical Flow Converter

(Tech-Air)

Annual production of charcoal briquettes 4,500 t

Pyrolysis oil 2,800 t

Calorif ic excess energy used for

drying of feedstock

Raw material: 12,000 t of sawmill and

agricultural wastes (air
dry)

Note: The capacities of both plants are adaptable over a

wide range and can be modified.
- 255-
 CISR LAMBIOTTE RETORT X )

I. PLANT CAPACITY

The suggested plant comprises one or more continuous

C.I.S .R. LAMBIOTTE RETORTS, 2200 t charcoal per year per
unit.

This medium capacity has been chosen to avoid a high

transport cost for the wood but at the same time, to benefit
from a high technological level, i. e. , high output,
productivity and quality.

Annual wood consumption per unit: 6600 t of dry matter --

10,000 t of 34 % moisture wood.

Annual charcoal production: 2200 t (350 working days).

Energy balance of the process:

a) Input 2.77 x 10 10 kcal = 100 %
(4,200 kcal)kg)

b) Output
2,200 t lump char- 1.49 x 10 10 kcal = 53 ,8 %
coal (6,800 kcal/kg)

c) Process losses
3,400 t of moisture
to be evaporated 0.34 x 10 10 kcal = 12.3 %
(l , 000 kcal/kg)

3 % heat loss
through insulation 0.08 x 10 10 kcal = 3.0 %

Remaining energy 0.86 x 10 10 kcal = 30.9 %.

x) Information provided by the manufacturer

- 256 -
The remaining process energy (excess energy) is equivalent
to the calorific value of 800 to 900 t of fuel oil per year.

II . COST CALCULATIONS

A. BASIS
Free wastes of a sawmill (slabs) 10,000 t per year at
30 % moisture.

Manpowever: 7 people . Average cost $ 7,000/yr per man.

x)
Charcoal selling price: $ 0,25/kg. 2200 t per year
production.

Capital: a) entirely loaned (10 % year)

b) entirely subscribed

Total investment: $ 732,000.

Amortization: 15 years, $ 48,800/year.

Delivery and erection delay: 6 months.

B. Calculations
Annual cost: Manpower $ 49,000
Others (water, electri-
city, bags, maintenance,
etc. ) $ 47,000
Loan interest: $ 73,200

subtotal $ 169,200
Amortization $ 48,800

Total $ 218,000

x) Average market price for lump charcoal in European

markets, 1981.
- 257-
Details of the $ 47,000 "others" cost:
Gazoil, grease $ 5,000
Electricity 12,000
Bags (25 kg) 18,000
Spare parts 6,000
Maintenance 6,000

If the capital is not loaned but is entirely subscribed, the

situation becomes:

1st year: sales $ 275,000

charges 144,800
(manpower, others,
amortization)

Profit $ 130,200
(taxes excluded)

2nd year: sales $ 550,000

charges 144,800

Profit $ 405,200

3rd year: sales $ 550,000

charges 144,800

Profit $ 405,200

At the end of the second year, the return on the capital is

50 % per year before taxation.

- 258-
 VERTICAL FLOW CONVERTER (TECH-AIR)X)

I. PLANT CAPACITY

The proposed plant is composed of one vertical flow

converter (medium size) with a complete pyrolysis oil
recovery unit . A briquetting machine, briquetting dryer and
bagging equipment are attached to the charcoal production.

The capacity of the plant can be adapted to small operations

utilizing the wastes of sawmills, nut processors, copra
dryers, sugar factories, and plantations, etc.

Raw material consumption

Types of raw materials: Sawmill waste, residues from

forests, brushes, leaves, nutshells, cotton sticks,
sugarcane bagasse, bark, coffee husk (pulpa), municipal
waste, etc.

Max. length of particles 50 mm, diameter 7 mm.

Annual consumption 10,000 t (dry material) = 11,000 t

(airdry material).

Annual product ion

The plant can be run with or without pyrolysis oil recovery.

If no pyrolysis oil is produced, the charcoal yield will be
significantly higher:
charcoal briquettes 4,500 tly or 6, 000 tly
pyrolysis oil 2,800 tly or none
heating gas none see energy balance

x) Information provided by the manufacturer

- 259 -
Energy balance of the process

10,000 t dry biomass 4,20 x 10 10 kcal = 100.0 %

(4,200 kcallkg)

output

4,500 t charcoal briquettes 2.70 x 10 10 kcal = 64.3 %

(6,000 kcallkg)

2,800 t pyrolysis oil 1.12 x 10 10 kcal = 26.7 %

(4,000 kcal/kg)

Process losses

1,000 t of moisture to
be evaporated 0.10 x 10 10 kcal = 2.5 %
(1,000 kcal/kg)

3 % heat loss through

insulation 0.13 x 10 10 kcal = 3.0 %

Briguetting dryer

450 t of moisture to
be evaporated 0.04 x 10 10 kcal = 0.9 %

Unused energy 0.11 x 10 10 kcal = 2.6 %

- 260-
II. INVESTMENT COST

Wood Preparation $ 40,000.-

Carbonizer unit with pyrolysis oil recovery
and flare-up chimney (fob plant) 380,000.-
Briquetting plant 400,000.-
Transportation equipment 50,000.-

$ 870,000.-

Freight, Insurance $ 70,000.-

Erecting, start-up 60,000.-
General cost, con-
tingencies 15,000.-

$ 145,000.- $1,015,000.-

Plant site,
preparation $ 77,000.-
Start-up 13,000.-
Working capital 250,000.-

$ 340,000.-

TOTAL INVESTMENT $1,355,000.-

- 261 -
Plant Site, Buildings, General Services

Cost

Plant site: 8,000 m2 $ 10,000.-

(incl. preparation, fencing)
Buildings: 800 m2 40,000.-
(Office, laboratory, ware-
house, maintenance)
Hook-up for water, electricity, 12,000.-
sewer
Foundations 10,000 .-
Water pump, pipes, etc. 5,000.-

Total $ 77,000.-

III. COST CALCULATIONS

A. Basis

Waste material free.

Manpower: 22 including salaried staff, average cost

$ 7,000 per year per person.

Ex-factory price for charcoal briquettes: $ 0.28/kg.

Ex-factory price for pyrolysis oil (usually 50 % of fuel

oil No.6): $ 0.12/kg.

Total investment: $ 1,355,000.-

Depreciation time 15 years: $ 90,OOO/yr.

Capital entirely loaned (10 % per year).

Start up delay : 6 months.

-262-
B. Calcual tions

Annual costs: Manpowever $ 154,000.-

Utilities, spare parts,
maintenance, lubricants 45,000.-
Binder, filler, additives 80,000.-
Bags 36,000.-
Loan interest 110,000.-

Subtotal $ 425,000.-
Depreciation 90,000.-

Total costs $ 515,000.-

IV. ECONOMICS OF THE PROJECT

Annual sales: Charcoal briquettes

4,500,000 kg x $ 0.28 $ 1,260,000.-
Pyrolysis oil
2,800,000 kg x $ 0.12 366,000.-

Total sales $ 1,626,000.-

1st year of operation (six months)

Sales $ 813,000.-
This is sufficient to cover the operational
costs and interest, resulting in an excess
cash flow of: $ 388,000.-

- 263-
2nd year of operation (full capacity)

Sales $ 1,626,000.-
Operational costs 425,000.-

Excess cash flow $ 1,201,000.-

1st year excess
cash flow 388,000.-

Accumulated cash flow $ 1,589,000.-

This al lows the owner to repay loaned capital

and still have an excess cash flow of $ 224,000.

3rd year of operation (full capacity)

Sales $ 1,626,000 .-
Operational costs
(without interest) 315,000.-

Excess cash flow $ 1,311 , 000. -

2nd year excess
cash flow 224,000.-

Accumulated cash flow $ 1,535,000.-

It is estimated that at the end of the
third year the return on the invested
capital will be higher than 80 %.

- 264-
Appendix 2 ENE R G Y DIS T RIB UTI 0 N
DIAGRAM

This diagram is helpful in selecting the most appropriate

carbonization technology.

Since the energy contained in the feed material can be

distributed to the end products - char, pyrolysis oil, gas -
pilot plant tests and/or tests with bench scale equipment
should be conducted.

The energy distribution will depend on various factors, and

in particular, the kind of feed. Therefore only the results
of efficiently conducted tests will supply reliable
forecasts.

By using the diagram on the following page, the charcoal

researcher will be able to formulate his decisions in a
comparatively short period of time. The basic data needed as
input for the diagram should be derived from pilot tests
based on a sufficiently large and representative sample of
the particular product. These data are:

Weight yield of the char (% of dry feed).

Weight yield of the condensable pyrolytic products (% of

dry feed).

Calorific values (kg/calor kg/KJ) of both the above.

Calorific value of the dry feed (same units) .

- 265-
 en 2775 en
jg 5000 ;lC
en 0
en en
en
rT1
:z rT1
rT1 :z
;lC rT1
;lC
en en
-< -<
.-. 2220 HAR 4000
:z .-.
:z
."
V
.: ."
;lC
0
0
sg
n c:
-l '\ n
en -l
en
I
1665 3000 I
~
\. , /
n ea
Cl / -l
..... c:
<;
......
,,
~ ,/1 r-
(Q ea
1\ 0
I 0 OIL "Tl
N "Tl II \
a- ,. V-RECOVERE~ 0
a- 0 1110 2000
I ;lC !,..- ....... ~
-< hAS TO DRYER "Tl
rT1
"Tl
1,.--1 ~FUEL
rT1 ( 50% MOISTURE IN FEED ) rT1
rT1 0
0 I-.L - - - - <,
,,'
555 1000
-.-.
4T F~VAILABLE FOR USE

o o
o 10 20 30 40 50 60
CHAR YIELD - PERCENTAGE OF DRY FEED
( Courtesy of Carbon
Figure 53. Energy distribution diagram International, Ltd., Neu - Isenburg , F.R.G. )
The energy distribution of any carbonization process
solid, liquid, gas - is governed by the specifics of the
pure raw material, or raw material mix. It is not possible
to forecast these parameters by speculation; however, when
one of the numerous possible parameters has been
established, and owing to the fact that there is a natural
law of the distribution of energy in the plant, the
remaining parameters needed for efficient design of a plant
may be derived from the diagram.

It is evident that the small charcoal-maker has no need to

enter into such costly test procedures.

- 267-
Apendix 3
ADDRESSES OF CONSULTANTS, INSTITUTES, AND EQUIPMENT SUPPLIERS

Note These lists were compiled to the best ot the author's

knowledge, and all names and addresses are given as they
were known at the time of writing. The absence of a listing
should not be construed as an unfavourable rating because in
some cases the publisher was not able to obtain information.
Entries are listed in alphabetical order.

CONSULTING FIRMS AND INSTITUTES PROVIDING SERVICES

TO THE CHARCOAL INDUSTRY

1. ALDRED PROCESS PLANT LIMITED

Oakwood Chemical Works, Sandy Lane
Worksop, Notts S80 3EY
United Kingdom
Primary representative:
Phone: 0909 476861
Telex: 54625

2. CARBON INTERNATIONAL, LTD.

Buchenring 7
D-6078 Neu-Isenburg 4
Federal Republic of Germany
Primary representative: Dr. Walter Emrich
Phone: 069 - 693201
Telex: 4 189671 carb d

- 268-
3. CENTRE NATIONAL D'ETUDES ET D'EXPERIMENTATION
(CEMAGREE)
ONEEMA
Parc de Tourvoie
92180 Antony
France
Primary representative:
Phone: 666.21.09
Telex: 204585

4. CENTRE TECHNIQUE FORESTIER TROPICAL

45 bis, Avenue de la Belle-Gabrielle
94130 Nogent-sur-Marne
France
Primary representative: Jaqueline Doat
Phone : 873 32 95

5. FOX CONSTRUCTORS & ENGINEERS

P.O . Box 1528
Dothan, Alabama 36302
USA
Primary representative: H. E. Sprenger
Phone: 205-794-0701

6. FUNDACAO TROPICAL PESQUISAS E TECNOLOGIA

Rua Latino Goelho n.o. 1 .301
13.000 Campinas - SP
Brazil
Primary representative: Dora Lange
Phone: 41-7822

7. A. C. Harris
Consultant
5 Duncraig Raod
AppLec roas
Western Australia
Primary representative: A. C. Harris
- 269 -
8. LAMBIOTTE ET Cie. S.A.
Avenue Brugmann, 290
B.1180 Bruxelles
Belgium
Primary representative: Andre Lecocq
Phone: (02) 343.01.46
Telex: 61588 elleco b

9. TROPICAL PRODUCTS INSTITUTE

Culham. Abingdon,
Oxfordshire, OX 14 3DA
United Kingdom
Phone: 086-730-7551

MACHINERY AND EQUIPMENT SUPPLIERS

1. AEROGLIDE CORPORATION
P. O. Box Aeroglide
Raleigh, N. Carolina 27611
USA
Phone: 919-851-2000

Area of activity:
Wood dryers, charcoal briquetting.

2. ALDRED PROCESS PLANT LIMITED

Oakwood Chemical Works, Sandy Lane
Workshop, Notts S80 34Y
United Kingdom
Phone: 0909 476861
Telex: 54625

Area of activity:
Portable metal kilns, vertical and
horizontal carbonizing units.

- 270-
3. BEPEX, GmbH
Oaimlerstrasse 9
0-7105 Leingarten
Federal Republic of Germany
Phone: 07131-40082
Telex: 7 28 738

Area of activity:
Charcoal briquetting

4. BIO-CARBON, GmbH
Soecking 26
0-8254 Isen/OBB
Federal Republic of Germany
Phone: 08083-624
Telex: 526 043

Area of activity:
Traditional and industrial carbonization plants,
activated carbon plants, training programmes,
briquetting.

5. CARBONERA DOCK 80 0
Enrique Marengo 830
San Andres, Provo Bueno Aires
Argentina

Area of activity:
Charcoal briquetting

6. CeCoCo CHUO BOEKE GOSHI KAISHA

P.O. Box 8
Ibaraki City, Csaka Prefecture
567 Japan
Calbe address: Cecoco Ibaraki, Japan

- 271-
 Area of activity:
Cecoco small-scale kilns, briquetting

7. C. DEILMANN AG-GROUP
P.O.Box 75
0-4444 Bad Bentheim
F.R.G.
Phone: 05922-72-0
Telex: 098 833

Area of activity:
Pyrolysis, gasification and activation of biomass

8. ENERCO INCORPORATED
Old Oxford Valley Road #1
P. O. Box 139 A
Langhorne, Pennsylvania 19047
USA
Phone: 215-493-6565

Area of activity:
ENERCO Pyrolytic converter system for biomass conversion

9. ENVIROTECH BSP
One Davis Drive
Belmont, California 94002
USA
Phone: 415-592-4060
Telex: 34-5586

Area of activity:
Multiple hearth furnaces, large-scale charcoal production

- 272 -
10. ERCO ENERGY RESOURCES COMPANY A.G.
Zollikofer Strasse 228
CH-8008 Zurich
Siwtzerland
Phone: 01-551010
Telex: 57-229

Area of activity: ERCO fluid bed carbonizer

11. lAMBIOTTE ET Cie S.A.

Avenue Brugmann, 290
B-1180 Bruxelles
Belgium
Phone: (02) 343.01.46
Telex: 61588
Area of activity:
Continuous C.I.S.R. lamiotte retort

12. lURGI KOHlE & MINERAlOElTECHNIK

Bockenheimer landstrasse 42
D-6000 Frankfurt/M. 1
Federal Republic of Germany
Phone: 069-71191
Telex: 4 12360

Area of activity
CK-Process (Reichert retort)

13. NICHOLS ENGINEERING & RESEARCH CORP.

Homestead and Willow Roads
Belle Mead, New Jersey 08502
USA

Area of activity : Multiple hearth furnaces, large-scale

charcoal production

- 273-
14. PROCTOR + SCHWARTZ, INC .
7th Street and Tabor Road
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 1920
USA
Phone: 215-329-6400

Area of activity :
Charcoal briquette dryers

15. PROTRAN INC.

P.O . Box 10764
Raleigh, North Carolina 27605
USA
Phone: 919-781-4148

Area of activity:
Fluid bed carbonizer

16 . LA STE CARBOLISI
Via E. Fermi
Martara, PV
Italy

Area of activity:
Charcoal plants

17. LA STE LAMBIOTTE - POUR

Tour Manhattan
6, place de l'Iris
92400 Courbevoie
France

Area of activity:
Wood dryers, charcoal plants

- 274-
Appendix 4 CON V E R SID N TAB L E S

UNITS OF LENGTH
1 mile = 1760 yards = 5280 feet
1 kilometer = 1000 meters = 0.6214 mile
1 mile = 1.607 kilometers
1 foot = 0.3048 meter = 30.5 centimeters
1 meter = 3.2808 feet = 39 .37 inches
1 inch = 2.54 centimeters
1 centimeter = 0.3937 inch

UNITS OF AREA
1 square mile = 640 acres = 2.5899 square
kilometers
1 square kilometer = 1,000,000 square = 0.3861 square
meters mile
1 acre = 43,560 square feet
1 square foot = 144 square inches = 0.0929 square
meter
1 square inch = 6.452 square
centimeters
1 square meter = 10.764 square feet
1 square centimeter= 0.155 square inch

UNITS OF VOLUME
1.0 cubic foot = 1728 cubic inches = 7.48 US gallon
1.0 British imperial
gallon = 1.2 US gallon
1.0 cubic meter = 35.314 cubic feet = 264.2 US gallon
1.0 li ter = 1000 cubic centi- = 0.2542 US gallon
meters
1 US Barrel = 42 US gallon = 34.97 Br. imp.
gallon
= 0.158 cubic meter
- 275-
UNITS OF WEIGHT
1.0 metric ton = 1000 kilograms(kg) 2204.6 pounds
(lb)
1.0 kilogram (kg) 1000 grams (g) = 2.2046 pounds
(lb)
1.0 short ton = 2000 pounds (lb)

UNITS OF PRESSURE
1.0 pound per square inc 1 (psi) = 144 pound per square
foot
1.0 pound per square incl (psi) = 27.7 inches of water *
1.0 pound per square inch (psi) = 2.31 feet of water *
1.0 pound per square inch (psi) = 2.042 inches of
mercury *
1.0 atmosphere = 14.7 pounds per square
inch (psi)
1.0 atmosphere = 33.95 feet of water *
1.0 foot of water = 0.433 psi = 62.355 pounds per square
foot
1.0 kilogram per square centi- = 14 223 pounds per square
meter inch
1.0 pound per square inch = 0.0703 kilogram per
square centimeter

UNITS OF POWER AND ENERGY

1.0 horsepower (English) = 746 watt = 0.746
kilowatt (kw)
1.0 horsepower (English) = 550 foot pounds per
second
1.0 horsepower (English) = 33,000 foot pounds per
minute
1.0 kilowatt (kw) = 1000 watt = 1.34 horsepower (hp)
Englisch
1.0 horsepower (hp) (English) = 1.0139 metric horsepower
(cheval-vapeur)

*) At 62 degrees Fahrenheit (16.6 degrees Celsius)

- 276-
 1.0 metric horsepower = 75 meter X kilograml
second
1.0 metric horsepower = 0.736 kilowatt = 736
watt
1 kilowatt hour 3.412 British thermal
units (Btu)
= 1.34 horsepower hours
= 3,600 kilojoules
= 3.6 megajoules
1 British thermal unit (Btu) = 1055,2 Joules (J)
= 0,252 kilo calories
(kcal)
FUEL CONVERSIONS
(a) 1 quad = 1 x 10 15 Btu (quadrillion Btu)
1 quad = 40 x 10 6 tons bituminous coal;
6
= 50 x 10 tons sub-bituminous coal; and
6
= 62.5 x 10 tons lignite
1 quad = 172.4 x 10 6 barrels of oil
1 quad = 1 x 10 12 ft 3 natural gas
1 quad = 62.5 x 10 6 tons wood (0.0. basis)
1 quad = 96.2 x 10 6 tons wood (green basis)
1 quad = 105 x 10 6 tons municipal waste
1 quad = 293 x 10 9 KWh delivered
(b) 1 ton bituninous coal = 25 x 10 6 Btu
(c) 1 barrel of oil = 5.8 x 10 6 Btu
(d) 1 ft 3 natural gas = 1000 Btu
(e) 1 ton wood (0.0. basis) = 16 x 10 6 Btu*)
1 ton wood (green basis) = 10.5 x 10 6 Btu*)
(f) 1 ton municipal waste = 9.5 x 10 6 Btu*)
(g) 1 KWh (delivered) = 3412 Btu

*) Average value, subject to wide variation

- 277-
WOOD CONVERSION
(a) 1 cubic ft = 30 .0 Ib**)
(b) 1 cord = 3,62 m3 = 1,25 ton
(c) 1 bd ft = 2.5 Ib++)
(d) 1 stere = 1 cubic meter (cube with edges of 1 m length)
= 510 kg for pilewood (Europ. hardwood)+)

**) 1 ft 3 softwood = 27 Ib and 1 ft3 hardwood = 32 Lb on

average.
+) A cord USA is defined as wood stacked in a 4 x 4 x 8 ft
pile. There is much variation in this unit of measure.
Because of wood density, free space wi thin a cube made
of stackwood, weight is subject to wide variations
++) Approximate value.

- 278-