posted 2 years ago
I would consider a system I have had in mind for several decades, just no time to work out the bugs, yet. It starts with a wood gasifier then pushes the wood gas into a combustion chamber that creates steam in a closed loop system. The steam then moves into an external combustion engine (steam engine) that spins a generator to provide all the power needed. Once the steam leaves the engine, it is directed to a valve that moves the hot water either through a storage tank for local use as hot water or heat or to a underground water storage tank to hold until needed. Hot water can also be directed to an ammonia cooling system that cools air in buildings and can be used to cool refrigerators or freezers to hold food. I was intending to create a freezer that was round. The shelves would be pie shaped and would lift upward from a fixed base to access. I expected the shelves could be rotated around a central shaft to allow ready access from one side/location. The central section would be a freezer and around that would be a refrigerator that cooled by the frozen core. Short spurts of warm water from storage would prevent icing. A fan would run internal air through a dehumidifier that would produce potable, distilled water and help to keep humidity in the cooler low. The fan would run on a timer based on defrost activity. Lifting shelves from the freezer and refrigerator would reduce heat flow into the main unit and would lower moisture introduction.
If needed, extra cooling could be directed into a greenhouse nearby to warm the ground and any power not created by local solar or wind could be utilized from the gasifier generator system. If one had chickens, some heat could be on tap during cold weather to run through floors or raised beds holding chicks and to keep drinking water from freezing for the big birds or livestock. Stone/cob raised bed structures would provide a smoother temperature transition and could also be used in the greenhouse for tender seedlings or cold-sensitive plants. LED lighting at 6500 degrees Kelvin would supplement winter light deficits. Those lights could run off the generator or solar or other partial energy source.
The gasifier would produce charcoal that could be pulverized and mixed with animal nitrogen to create biochar. The feedstock for the gasifier was aimed at using waste brush and wood chipped and stored in a crib similar to the old corn cribs farmers used when I was young. Augers would move chips from crib storage to gasifier based on weight in the unit. Old silage filling units could be converted to provide the auger system although some might use a chain drive similar to what older manure spreaders used to move manure from bed to spreaders mechanisms.
I really wanted to find a rotary steam engine as that would seem to provide the most efficient generator as they have fewer moving parts. An old piston system would work, but not as elegantly.
It was envisioned that this would provide a cycle of use for waste wood around a farm (at least when brush is abundant and requires regular cutting). This works best in limited environments, but I expect other waste carbon sources might be utilized such as rice hulls, waste vegetable material, etc. In my neck of the woods, brush is a constant chore, so that was a drive for this concept back in the day. Take a chore and make it an asset. If one had sufficient livestock, manure could be digested in a methane generator that would enhance the heater driving the steam engine. It could also be sent trough a diesel engine to turn a generator as an added and excellent backup system. The waste from methane generation is subject to enhanced uptake by crops with far less off gassing and better nutrition without need for as much artificial fertilizer.
It would take careful calculations to keep the system balanced, although, if one was developing steam or electric farm equipment, it could be quite large. Just some musing from a dreamer. I hope some enjoy this flight of fancy.
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