click to continue New England Biochar Peter Hirst Orleans, MA Ideal Compost Mike Lombard Peterborough, NH Rainbow’s End Biochar Cornelius du Plessis Pawling, NY Buying Biochar

Feedstocks Wastes Agriculture Crop residues Process residues Animal manures Forestry Timber Improvement Logging residues Milling Landscaping Yard wastes Woody debris Constuction Debris? Municipal Solid Waste? Croplands for Fuel? Compost or Char? wet or dry? Char needs compost Compost needs char sources of raw material Tree Plantations? Woody or Weedy? woody expectations particle size reduction micropore sizes How to Make Biochar click to continue

How to Make Biochar Slow Pyrolysis Low temperature < 500C Traditional: dirty, pollution, inefficient, low char yield Modern: clean, contained, controlled, efficient, high yield Flash Pyrolysis Modern: high pressure, high temperature, high char yield Fast Pyrolysis Modern: high temperature, maximum bio-oil, low char yield Gasification Modern:, maximum bio-gas production, minimum bio-oil production, low char yield, but highly recalcitrant Hydrothermal Carbonization under development, wet feedstock, high pressure highest “char” yield, but quite different composition probably not as recalcitrant as pyrolytic biocarbons click to continue Professional Engineer required for design & operation Processes

Masonry Charcoal Kiln Pine Plains, New York 1800’s Thacher Community Forest, Hancock, New Hampshire Eastern Pennsylvania 1800’s Wired magazine Top Ten Water Photos June 2008 Amazon Basin, South America 2008 How NOT to Make Biochar How to Make Biochar NOT Photographer’s caption: Photographer’s caption: ”This man works making charcoal of illegal wood. He drinks the same water he is destroying……” click to continue Equipment Portable Metal Charcoal Kiln United Nations Food & Agriculture Organization

How to Make Biochar Technology of Controlled Combustion carbonization gasification hi temperature lo temperature cold carbon smoke click to continue

after ignition, no extra energy required if feedstock & oxygen are available process heat thermal destruction of biomass Pyrolysis excess energy is released and is self-sustaining (gasification) How to Make Biochar click to continue

after ignition, no extra energy required if feedstock & oxygen are available preserve micropores increase char yield thermal destruction of biomass as temperature increases weight decreasesweight decreases water Formic Acid Acetic Acid Combustibles Flammable Tars Volatiles Condensates charcoalremains Danny Day, EPRIDA Resins Pyrolysis excess energy is released and is self-sustaining (gasification) Syngas How to Make Biochar low temperature click to continue CO H2 CH4 IGNITIONIGNITION

Feedstock itself is burned Some is converted to ash instead of char Produces a lot of smoke Direct Burn Method steam tars & resins liquids vapors gases gravel or concrete SOIL AIR VENTS 30 gallon drum = water = H 2 O CO + CH 4 + H 2 = formic acid = acetic acid 1-2 hours smolder = volatile organic matter (VOM) polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) click to continue How to Make Biochar