[Terrapreta] heat energy: stoves vs. thermo biopiles

[Sean K. Barry]

Hi Gerrit,

I suspect its 80% of the released heat, not 80% of the combustible energy in the biomass feed.  Capturing 80% of the combustible energy is about as good as any complete combustion (burning) process could ever do.  That would leave just ash.  It even 25 or 30% of the original carbon is left in the biomass, then this constitutes at least 60% of the energy content of the feed also.  I'm sure the total energy harvest efficiency from making compost is much much lower than 80%.

Compost does make better fertilizer, to be sure, than charcoal does, even low temperature charcoal.  It has been suggested more than once on this site that charcoal could be combined with compost to make a soil amendment which is initially more fertile than fresh charcoal.

Regards,

SKB
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Gerald Van Koeverden<mailto:vnkvrdn at yahoo.ca> 
  To: jeff0124 at velocity.net<mailto:jeff0124 at velocity.net> 
  Cc: terrapreta<mailto:terrapreta at bioenergylists.org> 
  Sent: Friday, November 23, 2007 12:19 PM
  Subject: [Terrapreta] heat energy: stoves vs. thermo biopiles


  Jeff,

  I like the idea of hyour thermo biopile.

  Composting to produce energy definitely has the advantage of  
  producing a much better fertilizer- the compost - than ash from  
  burning.  But it seems that less total energy is available by  
  composting, though if the biomass had to be dried before burning, the  
  resultant net energies might be conquerable?

  A company in Canada (Global earth Services/Products) sells a compost- 
  maker with a built-in heat exchanger.  They claim to capture 80% of  
  the energy.  I interpret this "80%" to be 80% of what would be the  
  combustible energy.

  http://www.globalearthproducts.com/heat_extraction.htm<http://www.globalearthproducts.com/heat_extraction.htm>

  Gerrit


  On 23-Nov-07, at 12:34 AM, Jeff Davis wrote:

  > Dear All,
  >
  > Right now all my time is going into the Thermo Biopile:
  > http://www.puffergas.com/pile/pile.html<http://www.puffergas.com/pile/pile.html>
  >


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