Re: Butanol

Hey Jeff,

I've been contemplating the pelletizer & burner issues for a a while, and what I keep smacking my head with is that there is just no "one size fits all" approach. In fact I've even been having a tough time with a "one size fits most" solution.

I looked at my fuel needs and let's say that it is a somewhere between a  whopping 2000 lb/month in winter and 500 lb/mo in summer (dom. HW), and 1/4 those quantities.

I don't think my 1 acre produces even 1000 lb (maybe a ton if I include fresh grass clippings) of harvestable biomass per year.  And most of it comes in the fall when the leaves drop.

So that sort of eliminates a lot of suburban dwellers. If I had a 5 acre plotI'd most likely have equipment intended to disperse, mulch, or tote the stuff to 'disposal' rather than storage.  So I'd need a silo... 

So that sort of eliminates a lot of non-farm properties.  Once you get to large properties that possess harvesting & gathering capabilities, the quantities of biomass greatly exceed the private ability to consume it.  That brings up back to a production & distribution model.

Long explanation to a simple thought.  I'll redress the high-ash burner in another posting.