effectiveness of paper charcoal as fuel source

The Effectiveness of a Paper Charcoal as an
Alternative Fuel Source

Objectives: This study aims to compare the effectiveness of a paper charcoal and a wood charcoal in producing fire.
It specifically aims to determine:
1. Which can last longer between the paper charcoal and wood charcoal as fuel source.
2. Which is more effective to use as a fuel source.

Hypothesis: There is no significant difference between the paper charcoal and the wood charcoal as an alternative fuel source.

Scope and Limitation: This study is limited to the effectiveness of the paper charcoal as an alternative fuel source. It focuses more on the advantages of paper charcoal when used in cooking. It also compares the advantages of the paper charcoal to the wood charcoal as a fuel source.

Significance of the Study: People living in big cities have scarcity in coal. By this study, it will help the people on how to find coal. This study can contribute to the easiest method in making coal as an alternative fuel source. People now and then start recycling old news papers and scratch papers. With this, we can lessen problems that the people are facing, like garbage that are scattered in the surroundings. It can make work easier and can save money. It can also lessen the numbers of woods that are cut down to make wood charcoal. Review of Related Literature:
Man's use of charcoal extends back as far as human history itself. It was first used more than 30,000 years ago to make some of the earliest cave paintings. Much later, charcoal played an important role in what might be considered mankind's first technology, the smelting and working of metals. In more recent times, charcoal has remained a technologically important material, primarily as a result of its adsorptive properties. The use of activated charcoal in gas masks during World War I saved many thousands of lives, and today charcoal is used on an enormous scale for the purification of air and water. From a scientific perspective, charcoal is also of great interest since we are beginning to achieve a detailed picture of its atomic structure for the first time. In this study the researchers wants to share more information about charcoals. J.W. PATRICK, (ed.): "Porosity in Carbons: Characterization and Applications"; 1994, London, Arnold.

Charcoal is a slow burning material which is somewhat difficult to ignite. In order to ignite a chunk of charcoal it must be subjected to high temperature for a considerable period of time. It has been the practice to ignite charcoal in one of four principal methods. In the first, a base fire of paper and wood is laid and charcoal is placed upon it. The burning of the wood and paper causes the ignition of the charcoal. This is obviously a bother, for the fire is not only difficult to lay but, because of the difficulty of getting a draft under it, it is difficult to keep it going unless considerable care is exercised in the initial laying of it. In a second method, it has been common practice initially to spray the charcoal with an inflammable fluid and to ignite that fluid. The burning of the fluid subjects the charcoal to flames which ignite the charcoal elements. This is a reasonably satisfactory method of igniting charcoal from an operational standpoint, but it can be extremely dangerous unless carefully performed. The dictionary defines charcoal as "The black porous residue obtained by the destructive distillation of animal or vegetable matter in a limited supply of air". In fact charcoal, or more correctly char, can be produced from a range of synthetic materials, such as polymers, as well as from natural sources. The basic atomic structure of the charcoal is independent of the precursor, although the larger scale morphology may differ. It is important not to confuse charcoal with other forms of impure non-crystalline carbon such as coke and soot. Although coke, like charcoal, is produced by solid-phase pyrolysis (usually of bituminous coal), it is distinguished from charcoal in that a fluid phase is formed during carbonization. The structure and properties of cokes and chars are quite different, as discussed further below. On the other hand, Paper charcoals are made by soaking waste paper overnight and forming it into fist size balls which are left to dry in the sun. Paper charcoal serves as a good alternative fuel for cooking. Encouraging the use of paper charcoal as cooking alternative is a good practice. Waste papers that would otherwise end up in landfills are given new use as cooking medium. This will also help reduce dependence on forest wood for cooking. Since this is made out of used paper materials, this is inexpensive and can be done by every household anytime. It does not produce soot like ordinary charcoals.
A few pieces of these paper charcoals can be used for cooking and is very ideal to use during rainy season. The school’s scout members enjoyed using the charcoal during camping and during picnics. Paper is the major contributor of solid waste by either weight or volume. Yet it is highly recyclable and can be manufactured into some other materials. Also, it will not destroy our forests and ravage mother earth, but instead, this will help minimize solid waste, reduce forest denudation due to kaingin and charcoal making. Aside from its environmental benefits, it will also help families with their budget since paper charcoal can easily be made and the materials to be used are widely available. Homemade paper charcoal briquettes can be used in backyard grills.
Commercial charcoal for grilling food is expensive and can be harmful to the environment. However, industrious do-it-yourselves can make their own "charcoal" from newspaper. This reduces the amount of newspaper refuse as well as the amount of commercial charcoal consumed. In addition, no lighter fluid is needed with the homemade charcoal paper. Therefore, petroleum-based products are also conserved. Making your own charcoal takes only water and a washtub. The time spent forming the charcoal paper briquettes is negligible, although they need to dry for a couple of days in the sun. Homemade paper charcoal briquettes can be used in backyard grills.
Commercial charcoal for grilling food is expensive and can be harmful to the environment. However, industrious do-it-yourselves can make their own "charcoal" from newspaper. This reduces the amount of newspaper refuse as well as the amount of commercial charcoal consumed. In addition, no lighter fluid is needed with the homemade charcoal paper. Therefore, petroleum-based products are also conserved. Making your own charcoal takes only water and a washtub. The time spent forming the charcoal paper briquettes is negligible, although they need to dry for a couple of days in the sun. Charcoal is an amazing substance. It adsorbs more poisons than any other substance known to mankind. It can adsorb lead acetate, strychnine, and inorganic substances (chlorine, lead, and mercury).It can adsorb thousands of times its own weight in gases, heavy metals, poisons, and other chemicals; thus it renders them ineffective and harmless. It can adsorb intestinal gas and deodorizes foul-smelling gases of various kinds. Charcoal can do these various things because of its ability to attract other substances to its surface and hold them there. This is called "adsorption" (not absorption). Charcoal can adsorb thousands of times its own weight in harmful substances. One teaspoonful of it has a surface area of more than 10,000 square feet. The advantages on using wood charcoal are that, it is efficient to use, it’s long lasting, and less effort in making it and can save money if used. Wood charcoal is long lasting compared to paper charcoal because wood lasts long than paper when burned. But the disadvantage for this is that, the wood charcoal came from natural resources, so It is only limited to how much trees are being used nowadays. Compared to the paper charcoal, the advantages for using paper charcoal is that, it is also efficient to use, produces stronger fire, less effort on producing fire, can help for the environment, helps recycling old papers, newspapers, etc., and can also save money when used. But the disadvantage for this is that, it takes long time on producing this product. Charcoal may seem a mundane material, but as we have seen its unique properties have been valued by man throughout history. Its use as a fuel was crucial in the development of metallurgy, and its qualities as an artistic medium have been appreciated from the earliest times. Today activated charcoal is of enormous importance in the purification of water and air. The science of charcoal has been studied for over 200 years by such outstanding figures as Wilhelm Scheele and Rosalind Franklin yet it still remains only partially understood. We have made important advances recently, but there is still much to learn. P.J.F. HARRIS and S.C. TSANG: "High-resolution electron microscopy studies of non-graphitizing carbons", Phil. Mag. A, 1997, 76, 667-.