Thierry, I cast a hi temperature refractive cement base about 2 inches thick with a 3/4 inch hole in it. It doesn’t point straight up but at a 45 degree angle. Recent thinking has me believing I am forming a slag nozzle above the refractive which is acting like a perpetual nozzle. I have 20 hours on it and have never emptied ash or slag. I will clean it out this fall and evaluate everything. My goal with this tractor is to only burn it when I need to to evaluate yearly usage no fun just work… Hope that helps.
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David.
Why angle of 45 with the nozzle?
Deposits of ash and slag to the nozzle they do not alter the speed of the air entering the carbon?
Note you an increase in pressure drop over time?
The 45 degree angle was just a guess at the time of construction. Underneath would be too hard to light and might drop char on the ground, through the side units had too many people experiencing nozzle burn out, so it seemed like a good compromise; its worked out well. I notice no change in quality from the beginning to now. At light up I use a long thin stone chisel to tap the hole. It is usually slagged up. When some charcoal bits fall out I light it up. David
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Patrick,
Nope. No taper anywhere.
My heights are 3X the diameter.
Stephen
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hi Stephen, wrong thread?
I thought so too, but he’s actually replying to a question from a year-and-a-half ago… 
OK found it, makes sense now…
I’m a slow reader. (character, character)
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HI DAVID B,i know this may be the dumbest question yet on charco gasification, and rightfully so,as i havent studdy’ed them much at all.how do they run so cool without a large cooling rail system, looks like you are hitting a plastic bucket filter right after the cyclone on your tractor,THANKS
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Kevin, for charcoal gasifiers you are running an exothermic reaction ( burning charcoal) and a endothermic reaction ( co2 plus heat to create carbon monoxide) at the same time. As the co2 passes through the unreacted charcoal it trades its heat to convert to co. You get to use that to your advantage and shrink the weight of the gasifier unit. Of course you have to make the charcoal.
David Baillie
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Hi David,
Do you have an idea of the depression that produced your gasifier the engine intake?
H2O "= gasifier and the cyclone and filter?
I hope you understand me!
Thierry
Baisse de pression en pouces d’eau? Aucune idee. Je dirais 1/4 a 1/3 moin de force au moteur. Pour un tracteur ideal puisque tu veut un gouverneur ouvert et moin de vitesse lorsque tu laboure.
David
Wow David.
You are bilingual! You’re the first that I know gasman who speaks French.
I live in Gaspésie in Quebec. We are almost neighbors. If I go through with you, I’d go see your tractor.
Currently, I am studying gasification. I have nothing built to date. I’m interested in particularly charcoal gasifiers. I would like to convert a 1960 tractor that I now restore.
If you travel in my corner come visit us sometimes.
Thierry
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Born and raised in the outaouais region thirty. Gone twenty years now living about 3 hours west of Ottawa near Bancroft Ontario. Any time you are close feel free to visit. If we ever get near gaspesie we will do the same.
David
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Thierry… Autocorrect get confused with french
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Thierry what is the tractor year and model?
David.
My caterpillar tractor is a oliver OC4 model.
I do not know exactly what year it is, probably 1960.
I recovered in the courtyard of old iron of a farm. He was in ruins.
I have not yet finished to restore it! I work for lost time in three years.
Thierry
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David, I have always been meaning to ask you if you have a puff back lid on your reactor tanks? And then the next question - have you ever experienced a puff back? I believe Gary Gilmore once mentioned (I may be wrong) that he never gets puff backs with his charcoal gasifiers. If this is true, I wonder why this is?
Don
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Hi Don, the gasket on the lid is car door gasket and is only compressed a little so there is a bit of give there. Then the sump pump hose is only friction fitted to the air filter and can blow off. I have had a blowback when I shut off the air intake during a flaring run without turning off the blower. I caused a vacuum in the main tank then turned off the blower, it let air in and poof. It was a disappointment I was expecting a huge kaboom… I got a poof, fffffft it blew the hose off though. In regular operation even refilling no never a blow back. I always assumed it was some combination of low energy density, slow flame speed and lack of oxygen in the fuel to start with that keeps it under control. Also by being up draft that keeps oxygen down low…
Best regards, David Baillie
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Hi Don, I usually get a Pooof when I do a hot reload of my Ford Ranger charcoal gasifier. The space is filled with carbon monoxide and when I open the lid to refill, just have to wait a second or two to see if the gas will ignite. Not a big deal if you are expecting it. The other blow backs on my smaller gasifiers did not lift the lid, only blew hot coals out the air inlet, Early on I had an explosion when the charcoal gas burned from the flare and back into a filter which had an air leak. It did go Kabooom.
Gary
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