Car with 'wood fuel' produces power
A DECADES-old technology may offer a solution to current problems related to rising oil prices and global warming, and a Cebuano has found a way to re-introduce it to contemporary machinery.
Roland Go, who has a degree in physics and a master’s degree in computer science, has modified his multi-cab and enabled it to run not only on gasoline but on wood gas as well.
The wood gas system can also generate three kilowatthours of electricity that can illuminate 150 households, each with a 20-watt bulb.
“It is also ideal for areas where there is no electricity,” Go said.
Go designed a wood gas reactor system that includes a wood fuel container, which carries up to 20 kilos of wood chips, and a chamber (reactor fuel hopper) where fire is fed to start combustion. Filters are also installed in the system to minimize emission and trap any soot or dust.
The wood fuel container, which looks like a metal tank about the size of a 14-kilogram liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) tank, can also be fed with chopped coconut husks.
The engine of the multi-cab is powered by the gas (steam) that is produced by the combustion of the wood. All the combustion occurs inside a reactor, so there is no risk of setting fire to the vehicle.
Petrol shortage
Go said the same technology was used during World War II, when there was a petroleum shortage. “This is going to solve the present problem of rising oil prices and cut down our importation of fuel,” he told Sun.Star Cebu.
He said the 12-valve multi-cab with 39-horsepower, can consume about two to three kilos of wood, or a bundle of firewood that is sold by sari-sari stores in Cebu City for P7.
“If you drive an average of 50 kilometers per hour (kph), you have traveled 50 kilometers for P7,” he said.
At present, a liter of gasoline costs about P46, which can run for 10 kilometers to 25 kilometers, depending on how fuel efficient a car is.
“This would also give livelihood to ordinary folks who can supply the wood,” he said.
While the first 15 to 30 minutes to start the fire in the reactor can be a smoke-filled experience, the system emits odorless smoke once it has reached full combustion and while the vehicle is running.
Go, who used to teach computer science to post-graduate students at the University of Cebu, said the technology will encourage people to plant trees to meet the demand for wood gas generators.
Renewable
“This is the beauty of renewable energy; the energy can be renewed or created again,” he said. “Also, aside from firewood, a wood gas generator can also be fueled with all forms of biomass and agricultural waste.”
The generator can also make use of rice hulls and corn cobs, “which are usually just burned on the roadside,” he said.
He said the burning of wood creates carbon dioxide, but this can be recaptured with the planting of more trees. “So the net carbon dioxide contribution into the atmosphere is zero,” he added.
On the other hand, he said, digging millions of tons of oil from underground or the seabed, and the process of refining oil to produce fuel, generate more carbon dioxide.
Go admitted, though, that the power of a wood gas-fueled multi-cab is 25 percent less than that which runs solely on gasoline.
“But why should we rush. If we have an appointment, we should leave the house early so we can be there on time,” he said.
Steep slopes can be difficult for the multi-cab to run on wood gas, however. But since Go’s vehicle has dual fuel system, he can switch to gasoline when driving up a hill.
He said he spent P20,000 to develop the system. But he said the amount can be offset by the savings one makes in terms of reduced gasoline and electricity consumption.
Go, who gets support for his backing from the office of Vice Gov. Gregorio Sanchez Jr. where he works as consultant for the special projects division of the trans-axial highway project, said he has also developed a wood gas-powered motorboat and a corn mill.
Go said he will not seek patent for any of the three innovations he has developed. “I want to share it to people. I also want to do is to put up a global warming institute where we can hold seminars on how to stop global warming,” he added. (LAP)
Cebuano Way Of Solving High Cost of Fuel
Originally Posted by yacky2006
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