Re: GAS-L: Internal Combustion with Producer Gas

[Andrew Heggie <andrew.heggie@dtn.ntl.com>]

On Fri, 05 May 2000 13:08:04 -0500, Peter Singfield wrote:

>
>While this may be good pricing for the modern industrialized nations it is
>like reaching to touch the moon for the rest of this planet!
Which is why I responded to the posting by Joacim about charcoal
gasifiers. The commonly held view is that charcoal production is
polluting and inefficient. This is not necessarily the case.

Both Tom Reed and Doug Williams have acknowledged a charcoal gasifier
is simple to construct, with low volatiles char there is little tar
problem. The offgas CO is of low calorific value and will probably
derate the engine.
<snip>
>If the producer is operating 3 months -- his fuel cost savings would not
>even pay the interest!!
>
>Now -- that is where gasification becomes a total failure and a waste of
>everyone's time!
>
>It is a technology of no value to 1st world countries with their cheap
>power rates -- and far to expensive for 3rd world countries with expensive
>rates.
Which is the dilemma of most renewable technologies. It is the high
return on huge capital spending that has benefited the current system
to exploit fossil reserves. Without which industrialisation would not
have occurred in the Northern Hemisphere. I suggest biomass is more
distributed and less responsive to capital investment. How humankind
addresses this is an off topic subject, interesting though the debate
on natural capital is!
AJH
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