Charcoal Part 1.
Charcoal is a product of burning different types of wood in the absence of oxygen. As a result of this process, the structure of the wood changes — it retains the maximum carbon content, while other chemical components burn out. Finished charcoal contains 84% non-volatile carbon — depending on the production technology and type of wood. Modern charcoal kilns for the production of charcoal are highly environmentally friendly and efficient. The resulting charcoal has a wide range of applications.
Compared to firewood, charcoal has a number of undeniable advantages. It is not only an environmentally friendly type of fuel, which does not produce harmful substances and carcinogens when burned, but it has high heat output, does not produce flames or smoke, provides even heat for a long time, is economical, compact, lightweight, easy to use and transport. There are several different turns in the development of charcoal production. The oldest technologies for the production of charcoal are batch kilns, they are associated with lower costs and are widely used in the world, mainly in developing countries.
The first part of the review examines the performance properties and types of charcoal, its calorific value in comparison with other types of fuel, areas of application, production process technology, transportation and storage, production costs in coal production, quality standards and certification. The review touches upon the current issue of obtaining electricity from charcoal and scientific research in this area. In terms of availability, properties of finished charcoal and reasonable environmental principles, wood remains the preferred and most widely used raw material, and there seems to be no reason why this should change in the future.
