Charcoal from wood

Until the 1920s the major source of methanol was as a byproduct m the production of charcoal from wood—hence the name wood alcohol Now most of the more than 10 billion lb of methanol used annually m the United States is synthetic prepared by reduc tion of carbon monoxide with hydrogen... 

Holz-kalk, m. pyrolignite of lime (crude calcium acetate), -kaiton, m. wood-pulp board, -kassle, /. cassia lignea, coarse cassia bark, -kasten, m. wooden box, case or vat. -kirsche. /. wild cherry. -kistchen, n. wooden box. -kitt, m. wood cement, joiner s putty, -klotz, m. wooden block, wood block, -kocher, m. (Paper) digester (for wood), -kokle,/. charcoal (from wood). 

Once the volatile prodiicts have been pyrolyzed, one is left with a material that is mostly carbon, and these are called coke (from coal) and charcoal (from wood). Coke was of course used in blast furnaces to make iron (the volatiles would make the process less reproducible in reducing Fc203) by our ancestors, while charcoal was used in soap (mainly the alkalis in the ash) and as an adsorbent. 

Pyrolysis is a major method of processing in the chemical industry. Petroleum is subjected to pyrolysis processes, known as cracking and catalytic cracking, to produce alkanes or alkenes that can be further used to produce fuels, such as gasoline. Pyrolysis has long been used to make charcoal from wood and other similar products such as shells. Pyrolysis occurs in our foods when we cook them—so when you take a bite of that golden brown apple... 

A common characteristic of graphite and carbon materials, whatever their origin or processing, is that they are all derived from organic precursors molded graphite from petroleum coke and coal-teir, pyrolytic graphite from methane and other gaseous hydrocarbons, vitreous carbon and fibers from polymers, carbon black from natural gas, charcoal from wood, coal from plants, etc. 

One of the oldest polymer precursors is cellulose which has been used for generations in the production of charcoal from wood and, early in the twentieth century, for lamp filaments from cotton or bamboo by Thomas Edison. 

Sometimes termed activated or decolorising charcoal, to distinguish it from wood charcoal, which absorbs gases. 

On the whole it is better to employ the activated decolourising charcoal prepared from wood. Excellent decolourising carbons are marketed under the trade names Norit (from birch wood), Darco and Nuchar. ... 

Charcoal is generally satisfactorily activated by heating gently to red heat in a crucible or quartz beaker in a muffle furnace, finally allowing to cool under an inert atmosphere in a desiccator. Good commercial activated charcoal is made from wood, e.g. Norit (from Birch wood), Darco and Nuchar. If the cost is important then the cheaper animal charcoal (bone charcoal) can be used. However, this charcoal contains calcium phosphate and other calcium salts and cannot be used with acidic materials. In this case the charcoal is boiled with dilute hydrochloric acid (1 1 by volume) for 2-3h, diluted with distilled water and filtered through a fine grade paper on a Buchner flask, washed with distilled water until the filtrate is almost neutral, and dried first in air then in a vacuum, and activated as above. To improve the porosity, charcoal columns are usually prepared in admixture with diatomaceous earth. 

Modern charcoal retorts are charged with wood, biowaste (bark, sawdust, etc.), peat, and sometimes low-rank coals. Yield and properties (hardness, density, surface area, etc.) can vary widely so the desired end use must be considered. Charcoal from coniferous trees is soft and porous, while that from hardwoods is dense and strong. For barbecuing, charcoal is usually compressed into briquettes, with binders and additives chosen to improve handling and ease of ignition. 

Earlier civilizations smelted iron from ore by heating it with charcoal from a wood fire ... 

Slow pyrolysis, also called carbonization, is characterized by a high charcoal yield and is not considered for hydrogen production processes. The slow pyrolysis of wood (24 h typical residence time) was a common industrial technology to produce charcoal, acetic acid, methanol, and ethanol from wood until the early 1900s. 

In early 1900s, biomass gasification processes were also widely used to manufacture synthetic gases for production of fuels, chemicals, and hydrogen. During World War II, over 1 million air-blown gasifiers were built to produce synthetic gas from wood and charcoal to power vehicles and to generate steam and electricity.3... 

Charcoal production, from wood, 26 360 Chardonnet, Hilaire de, 11 248 Chardonnet process, history of,... 

Carbon is able to bind sulfur to its surface. The reaction of sugar charcoal or wood charcoal with elementary sulfur at temperatures of 400-1000° was studied in detail by Wibaut (118-122). In this reaction some carbon disulfide was formed as well as hydrogen sulfide, if hydrogen was present in the samples. The solid reaction products contained considerable amounts of sulfur, up to 20% by weight. The maximum sulfur uptake was observed at 600°. The sulfur was not completely volatized even by heating in a vacuum to 1000° (122). The sulfur came off in elementary form and as carbon disulfide. Neither could the sulfur be removed from the samples by extraction. It was disposed of by powerful chemical attack, e.g., by oxidation or by reduction with hydrogen at 700°. The formation of hydrogen sulfide started at 460°. 

Before 1920s, methanol was obtained from wood as a co-product of charcoal production, hence the name wood alcohol. Methanol is currently manufactured worldwide from syngas, which is derived from natural gas, refinery off-gas, coal or petroleum, as ... 

The manufacture of charcoal, especially briquettes, has been increasing in demand. It is the residue after combustion of the volatiles from a hardwood distillation. It consists of elemental carbon and incompletely decomposed organic material and many adsorbed chemicals. Carbonization is usually performed at about 400-500 °C. The charcoal has a volatile content of 15-25% and can be made in about 37-46% yield by weight from wood. 

Charcoal is made from wood ashes, sulfur is mined, and potassium nitrate (called Chilean saltpeter) was mined from dry cliffs on the coast of Chile, where fish-eating seabirds had their nests and restroom facilities. Over many centuries, this source accumulated in layers mary feet thick, and this was adequate for all nitrate needs until the end of the nineteenth century when deposits began to deplete faster than birds could replenish them and transportation and purification (odor is just part of the problem) kept costs high-... 

The surface area and extent of conversion to carbon may vary widely from wood to wood and batch to batch, and each preparation must be checked for proper performance [13]. Historically, willow and alder have been the woods preferred for the preparation of charcoal by black powder manufacturers. 

B s wt of glass crucible residue after extraction with acetone, in grams W = wt of sample in grams on a dry basis Fou/dered Wood Charcoal. From the wt of the glass crucible and residue after extraction with acetone and the wt of die glass crucible calculate the percentage of powdered wood charcoal on a dry basis as follows ... 

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