Fuel and related compositions – Consolidated solids – Vegetation or refuse
Patent
1993-11-03
2000-11-28
Medley, Margaret
Fuel and related compositions
Consolidated solids
Vegetation or refuse
44530, 44596, 44629, 44634, 144 31, 1441621, 1441931, 144361, 144364, 144366, C10L 544, B30B 928, B27H 102
Patent
active
061529737
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention pertains to a compressed fuel pellet made of wood, to a method of making compressed wood fuel pellets, and to a machine for making compressed wood fuel pellets.
THE PRIOR ART
Known prior art includes the following:
U.S. Pat. No. 959,870 teaches a fuel briquet of relatively large size, as an example, a log, made of wood shavings and bound together with an agent, pitch, or resin.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,542,526 diametrically compresses a wood piece and impregnates the compressed wood to make buttons, machine parts and the like, before the availability of plastics.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,586,308 diametrically compresses wood shuttle blocks for fabric looms.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,132,674 compresses and steams an elongate wooden rod to make a high-strength shovel handle. Compression in the area of 51/2% is attained, and electrical switching is utilized to control compression.
In all known examples of prior art the wooden fuel pellets are being made from sawdust, shavings, chips and other particulated wood.
Current wood fuel pellets fall apart more or less easily upon handling, whether in transport from source to consumer or in stokers etc. Typically, it has been found that pellets available on the market after such handling may contain no more than 3/4 or even 2/3 of pieces that may still be called pellets, while the remainder consists of small particles and dust.
Current wood fuel pellets are all of different size and have shapes that allow them to form bridges in hoppers and the like.
These two disadvantages make stokers and the like more expensive, having to rely on augers or similar means to feed the pellets into the firebox, while the new pellets can be gravity fed.
Pellet manufacturing plants in and for the prior art are usually large and expensive installations serving large areas, which means that transport costs, both for the raw material and for the finished product become a significant fraction of the price charged to the consumer.
Making pellets such as are currently available reportedly used about 15% of the energy of the wood in the process.
Dies used in producing pellets as currently made wear out quickly, due to a combination of very high pressure and friction and the fact that the particulate to be compressed often contains a certain amount of grains of sand. They are also expensive to replace.
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the invention to provide a new method and new machine for making a new and improved compressed wood fuel pellet.
It is a further object of this invention to provide a new and improved method of making compressed wood fuel pellets without particulising the wood.
It is a further object of this invention to provide a new and improved machine for making compressed wood fuel pellets from solid wood.
It is yet another object of the invention to provide a new improved compressed wood fuel pellet made from solid wood.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
A method of making compressed wood fuel pellets has the steps of severing a wafer off of a log, confining a portion of the wafer perpendicular to the grain, and compressing the confined portion along the grain of the wood.
A machine for making compressed wood fuel pellets has a circumferential splitting edge, a cage surface rearward of the edge, and a hammer surface behind the cage to compress a split wafer portion along the grain of the wood.
An improved compressed wood fuel pellet made out of a severed wafer section has contiguous wood fiber and compression of at least 40% along the grain to a specific gravity of at least 1.2.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a schematic of a method and apparatus for making the wood wafer to be used as the raw material for wood fuel pellets;
FIG. 2 is a side elevational view of a typical wood wafer;
FIG. 3 is a side elevational view of a first preferred embodiment of a wood fuel pellet;
FIG. 4 is a side elevational view of a second preferred embodiment of a wood fuel pellet;
FIG. 5 is an end elevational view of the wood pellet of either FIG. 3 or FIG. 4;
REFERENCES:
patent: 660863 (1900-10-01), Low
patent: 959870 (1910-05-01), McCan
patent: 1542576 (1925-06-01), Pfleumer
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patent: 3084620 (1963-04-01), Gibbons
patent: 3304970 (1967-02-01), Altosaar
patent: 3527580 (1970-09-01), Bonlie
patent: 4060396 (1977-11-01), Burton
patent: 4818249 (1989-04-01), Barrett, Jr.
patent: 4834777 (1989-05-01), Endebrock
patent: 5190088 (1993-03-01), Thomassen et al.
Innovation Investment Consultants AB
Medley Margaret
LandOfFree
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