Ending and Beginning

The more I read about biochar, the better I like the idea. Making it remains problematic.

I was thinking that a solar kiln made specifically for making biochar would be ideal. However, I later realized that would have a major problem: the release of methane from the wood into the atmosphere during pyrolysis, methane being a powerful greenhouse gas. I don’t know how to collect it — maybe that’s possible for a home handyman.

So I’m back to the idea of heating a relatively (but not completely) airtight container in an open fire. That way, the methane gets burned up and with a decent design adds to the heat of the fire and so the speed of pyrolysis.

The problem I had in my previous attempts was that I was burning softwood that was not dry. I need to use dry hardwood to make a good, hot fire, and also make sure it has a good draft. My goal is a hot, smokeless fire.

My trash can technique is not that bad, assuming a change to dry oak as a fuel. One additional change I could make would be a chimney attached to the top to enhance the draft.

This entry was posted on 13 December 2009 at 10:19 am and is filed under Biochar, Climate Change, Gardening. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.