Kristijan,
Do you think this would work in a downdraft charcoal gasifier?
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Mark I think you’d really benefit from a downdraft revision to your gasifier. Would turn the humid char into a benefit.
Just close up the old gas exit and put in a 1" coupler maybe 10" above the bottom. Use the old nozzle hole for the new gas exit.
With the 1" coupler you can copy Matt’s nozzle
Edit: I went ahead and moved my suggestion to prevent clutter
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The simplicity of the Simple Fire is a MAJOR positive. Given the relative knowledge/skill/materials available in our area.
That being said … I will goof with anything until it bites me in the butt at least twice.
Can you link me to a picture of the “hearth” your thinking about?
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Sure, I’ll go find it and edit it into this comment. Have you seen Matt’s video on his ammo box gasifier?
Matt found a better way to make his nozzles without needing to cut threads on the nozzle pipe.
He uses the 1" couple and puts in a 1" to 3/4" reducer bushing. He then takes a 3/4" pipe and cuts slits in the end so it fits a 1/2" pipe easily. When you thread the 3/4" pipe into the coupler it bites down on the 1/2" pipe to hold it down. This way you can swap them out quickly and take the whole nozzle assembly out without needing to dive into the barrel. Removes from outside.
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Thank you. I’ve skimmed Matt’s last few videos. But did not really take them in. (No offense intended Matt).
I’ve got one synapse left and it fires part time. So I tend to tunnel vision focus on stuff.
P.S. edit for clarity.
Damn you are FAST.
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Here’s how he makes the new nozzles but with pictures. I’m terrible at describing things and need images.
If the 1/2" pipe is too thick, I would just hit it with the belt sander to reduce it.
I have this issue with all the 1/2" pipes I can buy they’re just a little too thick to fit in a 3/4" pipe
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Best part is since you can use plumbing couplers that means you can just braze that bad boy into the barrel. If it doesn’t work out just plug it with a 1" plumbing plug.
This kinda works like a downdraft but I think it also behaves like a cross draft without the risk of having too short of a charcoal filtering area.
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Synapse sputtering note space.
Ammo Box No Weld Gasifier Build Tutorial Segment 1 @ 06:20
Ammo Box No Weld Gasifier Build Tutorial Segment 2 @ 14:00
So this is a diagonal down/cross draft. In the case of the ammo can from 6" down to approx 3" from the bottom of the can.
That is a helluva nozzle.
The 1/2" plumbing inside the nozzle is for water drip system.
With air and steam wrapping the longish end of that 1/2" vaporization tube, and the focus of the heat right there … what’s the lifespan of that 1/2" tube?
Is this setup kinda a water filled, ( I forget the french name for it … tuyre? …) nozzle?
Burn zone would follow the air flow down and across the grate, so that grille has to be pretty stern stuff.
No inside hopper filtering, so I’d need to beef up the external filters.
Gas output heat is gonna be much higher. Need to switch the exterior plumbing to higher rated stuff?
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I would use flex exhaust or something, yeah.
Also don’t use the nozzle he showed in the video it melted away apparently. Use a nozzle like I quoted from his thread.
But the exit temps is also why I said maybe 10" above the gas exit. Will cool the gas down a little bit more. If you only plan to use charcoal you wouldn’t need to worry too much about tar creep.
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Like pictured in " [20220316_1501171] [20220316_1501251]"?
![[20220316_1501171]](https://dow.nyc3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com/original/3X/9/1/91dbe7470e9f5a3a04d621890adc1992be1e559a.jpeg){kind=link}
![[20220316_1501251]](https://dow.nyc3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com/original/3X/c/6/c6a5a882e0be42d4d893e351dad4564286c4b6fe.jpeg){kind=link}
I understand converting a 1" nipple into a compression fitting to seat a 1/2" nozzle
So the new nozzle is just a double thickness, (sched 40), iron pipe tip?
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Sorta, the part that protrudes in is just the 1/2" sch40. I think because it’s downdraft he hasn’t seen one melt away yet. They take to water drip really well. Something about how it transitions from 3/4 to 1/2 really breaks up the droplets and atomizes well.
I think he made it two part so it is easily changed, since he drills holes in the side of the 3/4" pipe to line up with the water drip tube.
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Tare’d weight is 520 grams.
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Yes, thats what hard core charcoal junkie porn looks like…
Thats nearly a threefold increase in density. Oooh the possibilitys…
Are they easyer or harder to peletise thain wood in your machime?
Steve, thats exactly what l wuld use them. Since they wre all the same size, small and dense, a tiny downdraft hearth will make tons of gas and their density will extend hopper range 3 times! Just think about it, a 30 gal hopper will hold enaugh fuel for about 300 miles…
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I don’t have any frame of reference. I’ve pellet-ized 2 times now. Both charcoal.
I can say that I have the roller tension really high. The pressures involved are big.
When I clean the flat die after the run …I can’t just knock it clean with a nail and hammer. I have to drill the left over out.
We burned a handful this afternoon. Cut a paint thinner can into an oven so we had clean, virgin metal to observe.
It burns HOT and LONG, then crumbles into a super fine dust. Almost like talcum.
My next press I am gonna halve the binder and roller pressure. See how that goes.
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Ok Sensei take me to school.
If pellet-izing causes a
Then this estimate is no longer accurate?
Wouldn’t it be 5% / density increase ? Using the figures we have …
5% / 3 times the density ?
Which would make the apparent percentage of binder something like 1.6666… % by volume?
Physics guru’s … help a redneck out please.
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Mark, your sence of humor is realy something 
I surely never was called that before and probably for a good reason
We talk mass percent here, not volume percent. There still is 50g of starch per kilo of charcoal, no matter the volume. Well, if we want accuracy, 4.76% since we got 1050g of the mix as you started with 1000g charcoal and added the starch.
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Thank you,
Let me pull another “stupid question” stamp out of my ration book. It’s gettin thin.
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Well since my eagerness CAN overcome my common sense, I’d better stay grounded with empirical measurements.
Tested my diesel irrigation system again. Removed the fuel tank and replaced it with a metered bottle so I can kinda sorta measure fuel usage.
Vikyno RV70 engine using a RS 80 water pump to push a 4" pipe full about 30 meters.
First day I ran on diesel only to get a baseline under load. 20 minutes for 150 ml avg over seven measurements. 7.5ml per minute
Second day I put the gasifier inline. The morning portion of the test was confusing and disappointing. Fuel usage was only about 5-10% better than pure diesel.
About noon I slowed the engine rpm’s a touch and removed all of the air filter fittings attached to the air mix valve.
Notice the field full of Calabasa.
WHOA! major improvement. I adjusted the gas flow to full open on a 1" valve. I slowly shut off air until the engine began to just hint at knocking. Then backed off a half a turn. Ran like a champ.
The air flow was about 50% open on a similar valve.
54 minutes for 150ml avg. over 3 measurements. 2.7ml per minute. In short … 3 times longer run time for same amount of fuel.
Today, (the 7th), I tore down the RV and inspected the valves, piston, and cylinder. Just a touch of dry white ash.
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Hi Mark, you are getting better and better in the world of gasification and gas use, self-testing cannot replace any forum, school, or thick book, … bravo. 
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Update. (Notespace)
Opened the drum. For a 6 hour run it consumed 14cm of an 88cm drum full. Half usage, (leaving insulation and filtration), would be 44cc.
Divided by 14 = just above 3. So that implies an 18 hour drum runtime.
I know my math skills are wonky but I can’t resist.
Nozzle is burnt back to 6", (out of 8"). This coincides with the drip output.
Go figure. Guess I gotta work out how I am gonna machine down and thread my heavy pipe stock using an angle grinder and Shopsmith.
Found the muck. It was in the 90 degree bend of the air filter intake manifold, (pictured right below the white pvc char-gas in fitting). About an half a cm thick coating.
Not sure what it is made up from. Or if it even came from the two charcoal runs I have done on this engine. I’ve used straight charcoal for both of those runs.
I did an examination under magnification. See some fibrous material. See some clay like material.
DOW’s got me nervous. Won’t use the pellets until I can figure out a suitable binder.
Those pellets are selling faster than I can make them anyway. Folks in the bario using them for cooking.
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