Commercial charcoal manufacture in Brazil

Conference · Fri Dec 31 04:00:00 EST 1993

OSTI ID:140252

Rezende, M E; Lessa, A; Pasa, V; Sampaio, R; Macedo, P ^[1]

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1. Tecnologia e Meio Ambiente, Belo Horizonte (Brazil)

Brazil is the only country where charcoal has a major industrial us. Almost 40% of the pig iron and all the ferroalloys produced in the country are based on it and were established near Minas Gerais iron ore deposits using non-sustainable farm charcoal. Since the 1980s charcoal production from large eucalyptus forests is gradually increasing, accounting for 40% of the 8 million tonnes produced in 1991. Farm charcoal is produced when native forests are slashed to give way to farm land. Adequate techniques, labor rights or environmental concerns are not common in this scenario. In large eucalyptus forests charcoal production has a different business approach. Several kinds of masonry ovens are used in both scenarios. Continuous carbonization kilns are not feasible yet because of their high capital cost. The search for a new cheapest design or for the upgrading of the carbonization byproducts is a must. Promising results are shown. Plastics and fine chemicals were already obtained from wood tar. The first Brazilian pilot plant for wood tar fractionation will be started by 9/93. Ironworks have different profiles. Some plants are up-to-date integrated mini-steelworks. Others are small producers of pig ingots. They have in common the need to face coke ironmaking route. Brazilian exports of charcoal based iron and steel products have attained the goal until now. Future charcoal competitiveness will not be so easy. Although expertises believe that coke prices can not stand low for long time it poses additional difficulty to the Brazilian charcoal ironmaker. Three scenarios projected for the future of charcoal ironmaking show that as long as charcoal production costs are properly managed, charcoal will be competitive with coke. The authors defend a common research program that looks for technologies suited to the Brazilian reality.

• Research Organization: National Renewable Energy Lab., Golden, CO (United States)
• OSTI ID: 140252
• Report Number(s): NREL/CP--200-5768-Vol.2; CONF-9308106--Vol.2; ON: DE94000435
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

09 BIOMASS FUELS
32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATION
BRAZIL
BY-PRODUCTS
CARBONIZATION
CHARCOAL
COKE
COMMERCIALIZATION
EUCALYPTUSES
EXPORTS
FORESTS
FRACTIONATION
IRON
KILNS
METAL INDUSTRY
OVENS
PLASTICS
PRICES
PRODUCTION
RENEWABLE RESOURCES
RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
SOCIO-ECONOMIC FACTORS
TAR
WASTE MANAGEMENT
WASTE PRODUCT UTILIZATION
WOOD
WOOD FUELS