A Wood Gassifier ... My next project !

[Tink]

Bob,
Even in our sparcely populated area here in the Whit Mountians there are a few welder shops and a great steel shop that I've been able to obtain (real cheap) scrap metal and short pieces of pipe of all sizes. There should be places like that where you live. Got any photos of that gasifier?
Tink

[Bob]

Howdy Tink !
... if there's cheep scrap metal in this area it has to be at "Shorts Scrap metal"  but I havn't been there in MONTHS !  LOL
...
here is a few pics for ya !
top one is the freshly painted Cyclone filter !
Middle one is the metal drum with the fire tube incerted into it... (ash door and smoke take off point are not in yet.) the small tube is the air intake for the fire ring inside.
bottom pic is the Business end of the fire tube... stainless steel bowl with holes drilled in it for a grate is to the right... Middle wrapped in a steel ring is a trailer tire RIM with holes drilled in it as a fire ring... this is welded to a propane tank as the fire tube. 14"diam.
...
got more pics but their just variations of these.
...
Bob...

[Bob]

Here is the fire tube out of the 55 gal drum (above) its laying on its side ...
its getting so heavy now that I have to slide it in the berrol while its laying on its side... too heavy to pick up ! LOL
....
Bob....

[Bob]

So ...right now I am making up the pieces that make a wood gas truck possable...
sense the cyclone filter is done (dunno if it works very good or not LOL) thats one less part to make... the burner ( fire tube in the 55 gal drum) is almost done, but I still need a ash door
and the ignition port... the smoke/gas take off port I started putting in this morning so all it needs now is welding to finish it.
I think I will go buy some flat stock to make the ash door FRAME out of and then use the ash door to light the fire instead of having an extra hole in the side.... and I'll probably light the fire with a propane torch instead of trying to use paper HAHAHAHA there are easier ways!
...
the interesting thing to me is that the fire in the drum will be FLAME LESS for the most part... (except for starting the fire) once there are coals in the burning pot the rush of air from the engine or fan will fan the coals and continue the burn even without the flames...
sense the flames are not present hydrogen and Carbon Monoxide gasses will be present in the smoke in large quantities... in theory enough to run the truck with no problem. and sense I am using an engine to draw the air through the producer  it is self regulating in the amount of wood it will use up... although that will be a substantial amount of WOOD to burn every hour
it is nice to know that I can't give it too much wood LOL !
the wood hopper is a 55 gal drum with a 14" hole cut in the bottom so the wood can fall into the fire tube on the burner... a lid will be fitted for the top of the wood hopper...at the moment the lid is a bit too big to snap into place and its giving me fits !... a mere 1/2" more in the barrel inner diameter would allow the lid to fit great...so I have been trying to stretch the rim metal with a large hammer and anvil ...I'm over 1/2 way there to a good fit now but my arms are sore ! LOL !  and it hasn't done my hearing much good ether ! HAHAHAH.

....
Bob...

[Tink]

Bob,
Earplugs work great! Is there a source for all this 'gasifier' stuff or are you making it up as you go? You've peaked my interest. Very impressive.
Tink

[Bob]

well after watching the video from "the planet mechanics" about 4 times I desided I could make one and then started looking on the web.... I started with a Google search on "woodgas" and got a bunch of hits... a bunch of people trying to sell producers ans stuff but the 2 main plans I found are the FEMA Woodgas generator and the Imbert generator plans...the plans consist of a one page diagram as far as I am concerned... although there is much information on the net about what it takes to make one and how they actually work...
here is 2 of the diagrams that I went by to start making mine the 2 pics I got out of the .PDF files I down loaded ...(unfortunately I can't find them now or I'ed post them for ya!)

but the main idea is build a fire in a can pipe the smoke to the engine and run the engine...! how simple can ya get ?  sure it takes allot of filtering to make it safe for the engine but even with that its not all that hard...
by containing the fire in a can you limit its oxygen so all the gasses can't burn, its those gasses you want... its simple and effective ! 

...
Bob...

[Bob]

I have water problems again... my water pump at the spring quit today... Sigh!  its a never ending struggle to keep this place in operation ! <GRIN>
...So... I only got a little ways on the wood gas generator today... I got the ash door frame made up. and the ash door is a bit too short for the frame !?!?!  Um so I have to add a piece to the ash door to make it long enough to fit the frame ! DUH ! ....
I still need to make the hinge and latch and glue on asbestos rope to seal it air tight then its time to mount it and cut the hole in the Barrel for the opening.
...
in the mean time I am going to replace the pump at the spring with the pump I had in Shingletown... the question is do I have all the parts needed or not LOL !
... whats a few dozen trips into town eh ?  LOL !   Ack !
...
Bob...

[Bob]

Hay Tink !  I found it fer ya !
http://www.woodgas.net/
go there and click on "down load files" on the left hand side....
a page will pop up and it shows the FEMA gas producer .PDF file.... click on that and then after it loads (1.8megs) click on the save file or you will loose it when you exit  the .PDF reader.(Acrobat reader in this case)
same goes for all the other files there on that page... bunches of information on that site !
... this fella doesn't care for the FEMA design says it don't get hot enough and leaves tar in the smoke... he prefurs the Imbert design which is detailed in the FOA report well, somewhat
... after I looked around a bit on the web I came to the conclusion that most of the woodgas guys didn't like the FEMA design either...pitty because its the easiest to make! but I saw where a fella took a car rim and made a reduction zone for his producer so that's what I did...
I am hoping that with the reduction zone and a combination of the Downdraft design of the FEMA design and the added air/oxygen of the reduction zone/fire ring the fire will be much hotter than in the FEMA design... but only time will tell !

anyway get the FEMA report and the FOA report...
 the World bank report is long... and probably not that useful but there is good info in it!
(I got it myself but I refer to the other 2 files !)
...
hope that helps !
Bob.....

[Bob]

I swapped water pumps and got water up to the water tower once again ! (glad to see that!)
so that problem is almost solved... I should get over there and winterize it and get it covered completely...
...
I was reading last night on the FOA report about water filters for the Woodgas generators and
they have been used with success for quite some time... although their methods leave a great deal to be desired!....(a shower head in a barrel...INDEED!) LOL
I plan on simply pulling the gas through the water via the engine vacume and let it bubble through the water... with a bunch of holes in a pipe spreading out the volume of gas as much as possable.... I think aquarium air stones would plug up in short order... so I'll just drill a zillion holes using a 1/8" drill bit in a 3" pipe and use that as the aireiator....
I need a good metal 5 gal. paint bucket ... I have one that had roofing goop in it that I know is in good shape but cleaning it is going to be a royal pain! LOL...
...I believe its important to keep the surface of the water level fairly close to the inlet pipe level because of the vacuum it will take to pull the gas through the water... if I was to put it 3feet down in the bottom of a 55 gal drum the vacuum it will take to pull the gas through the system will amount to 3ft of water in a 3" diam tube... and that is a great deal of vacuum...so I am planning on only a few inches of water over the airieator... even at that the heater blower fan may not suck air through that much water....
... I plan on having the heater blower fan ( yes, I found a good one here! WOOT) as close to the engine as possible... or at the very least on the last filter in the system before the long tube to the engine intake.... that long tube to the intake will go UNDER the truck along side the frame...then Up along side the engine to the 2 butterfly valves that act as a carburetor.
... I will remove the carburetor. and after it proves itself I will remove the gas-tank.... its a great spot for a tool box to set! LOL !
right now the engine is set at 12 degrees advanced ( if I remember correctly) I will change that to 2 degrees advanced and try it on wood gas from there, some adjustment to the timing may be necessary..
sense that truck can haul easy 1.5 tons to 2 tons max. hauling extra fuel/wood in the back won't be a problem at all... but I will need to guard the goodies in the back from being damaged by flying blocks of wood... after all that's how I load the truck.. toss it in there !
LOL !... its a TRUCK...whats a dent or two among friends!
...
I got the Gas take off pipe welded to the 55 gal drum today and the ash door frame temparially bolted on... added a piece of plate to the ash door to make it long enough, and that about summs up the work I did on it....
...
want a laugh ? Kim came down and wanted me to cut a 5lb log of frozen hamburger into 5 pieces....  well the big knife didn't work so I took the Recopicateing saw , put a new wood blade on it and cut it into 4 pieces.... even at that it didn't cut very good ! ...I had hamburger all over everywhere ! LOL !


Bob....

[Tink]

Thanks for the gasifier info.

I used to use a chain saw to cut up pigs and antalope out here in the early '70's when the winters were a lot more servier than they are now. We'd butcher out the animal and hang it in the shed overnite and the next morning it was frozen solid. I'd then use the chain saw to cut it up into big pieces then break it down into roasts and steaks etc. after they thawed out. This method wouldn't work to well on a little piece of hamburger I don't think. 
Tink

[Bob]

LOL the first time I saw a Chainsaw used to cut frozen meat was my dear friends place ! at Bob Hitzman's place back in the late 1970's his wife brought him out a big hunk of meat and said cut it about here and walked off... well he did... he used the chainsaw on the dineing room table and cut it in half for her...  and he even did it without hurting the table ! but the wall and ceiling were pokadotted with red spots ! .... and they did not come off ! ...we know this because we were helping him paint the dining room... LOL !
 for years afterward we hurrassed him about that , and it alwayse got a laugh !
that man saved my Ass more than once, cept me from freezing in Montana !and in general was a Man I'ed give my life for in a hart beat...he'ed give you the shirt off his back, and frequently did!... too bad he is in another state now...!HEHEHEHE
.....
 Well I took the wife to breakfast Out this morning... and it was great! and we just happened t stop by the hardware store on the way home.... and I got some High temp silicone sealant of a sort  to seal the Ash door frame to the 55 gal Drum. its on and drying now . now I make up the hinges for the door and then the latch and it will be ready to test fire. ( i hope to burn off the paint on the barrel so I can paint it again with high heat paint!) however I would be a fool to light a fire out there now.... as dry as it is I'ed have a forest fire in a blink of an eye! so that will wait a few months!
...
although they did not have any asbestos rope or furnace cement yet, the guy said it should be coming in in the next week or so .... and I need that to seal up the door !
the Burner is looking more respectable now, with the ash door mounted on the barrel its starting to look more like its supposed to look ! LOL !
....
I might get this thing running by Christmass!  or turkey day ! LOL
....
Bob.........

[Bob]

HAHAHA
 I spent most of the day figuring out the Hinge and latch on the ash door.... (you wouldn't think it would be so hard would ya ? LOL)
  But the truth of the matter is I want the door to be air tight...or as close to air tight as I can possibly get it... so the same latch arrangement I used on my wood stove wouldn't be the best......
but something like it should do the job. and the hinge that's a whole 'nother story !
... what I came up with for the latch was the standard lift to unlock and open , close and push down on the handle to lock... but with a twist... instead of having a ROUND rod which will allow air to pass through the pipe/hole  I decided that using a threaded bolt as the round pivot and a NUT to pass it through as the pivot... this will allow the motion needed and only allow a tiny amount of air to pass by the threads...( and if it is Lubed it will continue to actuate just fine)
...a angled RAMP latch base welded on the door frame will allow the latching rod to pull the door tightly closed... and if need be the handle can be rotated all the way around to tighten up
the door latch in the future,as this will change the distance between the latch rod and its closeness to the door itself.( nifty!)
... the Hinge well after I contemplated Nuts, bolts and standoffs in a zillion different configurations, I decided on a single door hinge welded to the door and bolted to the door-frame
...so all I have to do there is add a piece to the frame to make it all the same level.
.....  the reason I chose this simple method was because it allows access to the gasket surface
even back at the henge and the pivot point is at the very BACK edge of the door and not an inch or so inward, which makes the pivot point have to be at a different point in order to get the door away from the frame..... some times the simplest methods are the best !
.... Hopefully I'll weld it up in the morning and take a few photos...
...although I expect RAIN all week, I dunno how much time I will get to work on it as its out in the yard! and not under cover.
Hopefully , I will get the rest of our belongings out from under the tarp and in to the house tomorrow.... LOL something I have been putting off...  I hate Moving!
...
Anyway, the ash door is almost complete... another step in the right direction!
...
Bob......

[Bob]

Well,  I got the ash door done... latch welded and hinge mounted...  although it needs a small piece of angle on the door to keep it lined up when the latch lever is cranked down hard... and had to bend the latch lever a bit to keep it from hitting the ground when latched in its indent, other than that its done till I get the rope gasket installed and paint on it...
.... Oh...besides the "Grate Shaker" which should be a Snap to make and install... I just plan on making another Door latch arrangement and mount it on the side of the barrel, same threaded bolt idea to keep it as air tight as possible. (no doubt these threaded things will rust up and be hard to rotate
if not lubed good periodically ).
...I didn't get any pictures, and its raining out there at the moment so it can wait till another time.
...on a scale of 1~10 the burner is at 9.5 at being done now.... I will line the bottom with fire brick if I can find enough of them... and after its all painted it should be good to go!
...the cyclone filter is big and ugly but should get all the big particles out of the smoke... and it is done , all but the silicone sealant on the can.
so One last filter needs to be made, the "fine filter" and sense I am making a "water filter" it should double as a cooler as well...
then its putting it in the bed of the truck....and the fun part starts trying to get it to run!
 
...
Bob....

[Bob]

here's a drawing of the Woodgas generator... or as I have in mind.
...this is what I have so far... all but the "Grate Shaker" lever on the side... and the wood hopper top is a bit iffy at the moment...
Bob.....

[Bob]

Here is a Exploded view (well some what) of the Woodgas generator.
...
Bob.