Charcoal is a desirable fuel because it produces a hot, long-lasting, virtually smokeless fire.

Combined with other materials and formed into uniform chunks called briquettes, it is popularly used for outdoor cooking in the United States. According to the barbecue Industry Association, Americans bought 883,748 tons of charcoal briquettes in 1997. Basic charcoal is produced by burning a carbon-rich material such as wood in a low-oxygen atmosphere. This process drives off the moisture and volatile gases that were present in the original fuel. The resulting charred material not only burns longer and more steadily than whole wood, but it is much lighter (one-fifth to one-third of its original weight).

History
Charcoal has been manufactured since pre-historic times. Around 5,300 years ago, a hapless traveler perished in the Tyrolean Alps. Recently, when his body was recovered from a glacier, scientists found that he had been carrying a small box containing bits of charred wood wrapped in maple leaves. The man had no fire-starting tools such as flint with him, so it appears that he may have carried smoldering charcoal instead. As much as 6,000 years ago, charcoal was the preferred fuel for smelting copper. After the invention of the blast furnace around 1400 A.D. , charcoal was used extensively throughout Europe for iron smelting. By the eighteenth century, forest depletion led to a preference for coke (a coal-based form of charcoal) as an alternative fuel. Plentiful forests in the eastern United States made charcoal a popular fuel, particularly for blacksmithing. It was also used in the western United States through the late 1800s for extracting silver from ore, for railroad fueling, and for residential and commercial heating. Charcoal's transition from a heating and industrial fuel to a recreational cooking material took place around 1920 when Henry Ford invented the charcoal briquette. Not only did Ford succeed in making profitable use of the sawdust and scrap wood generated in his automobile factory, but his sideline business also encouraged recreational use of cars for picnic outings. Barbecue grills and Ford Charcoal were sold at the company's automobile dealerships, some of which devoted half of their space to the cooking supplies business. Historically, charcoal was produced by piling wood in a cone-shaped mound and covering it with dirt, turf, or ashes, leaving air intake holes around the bottom of the pile and a chimney port at the top. The wood was set afire and allowed to burn slowly; then the air holes were covered so the pile would cool slowly. In more modern times, the single-use charcoal pit was replaced by a stone, brick, or concrete kiln that would hold 25-75 cords of wood (1 cord = 4 ft x 4 ft x 8 ft). A large batch might burn for three to four weeks and take seven to 10 days to cool. This method of charcoal production generates a significant amount of smoke. In fact, changes in the color of the smoke signal transitions to different stages of the process. Initially, its whitish hue indicates the presence of steam, as water vapors are driven out of the wood. As other wood components such as

Basic charcoal is produced by burning a carbon-rich material such as wood in a lowoxygen atmosphere. This process drives off the moisture and volatile gases that were present in the original fuel. The resulting charred material not only burns longer and more steadily than whole wood, but it is much lighter (one-fifth to one-third of its original weight). resins and sugars burn, the smoke becomes yellowish. Finally the smoke changes to a wispy blue, indicating that charring is complete; this is the appropriate time to smother the fire and let the kiln's contents cool. An alternative method of producing charcoal was developed in the early 1900s by Orin Stafford, who then helped Henry Ford establish his briquette business. Called the retort method, this involves passing wood through a series of hearths or ovens. It is a continuous process wherein wood constantly enters one end of a furnace and charred material leaves the other; in contrast, the traditional kiln process burns wood in discrete batches. Virtually no visible smoke is emitted from a retort, because the constant level of output can effectively be treated with emission control devices such as afterburners.

Raw Materials
Charcoal briquettes are made of two primary ingredients (comprising about 90% of the final product) and several minor ones. One of the primary ingredients, known as char, is basically the traditional charcoal, as described above. It is responsible for the briquette's ability to light easily and to produce the desired wood-smoke flavor. The most desirable raw material for this component is hardwoods such as beech, birch, hard maple, hickory, and oak. Some manufacturers also use softwoods like pine, or other organic materials like fruit pits and nut shells. The other primary ingredient, used to produce a high-temperature, long-lasting fire, is coal. Various types of coal may be used, ranging from sub-bituminous lignite to anthracite.

Minor ingredients include a binding agent (typically starch made from corn, milo, or wheat), an accelerant (such as nitrate), and an ash-whitening agent (such as lime) to let the backyard barbecuer know when the briquettes are ready to cook over.

The Manufacturing Process

The first step in the manufacturing process is to char the wood. Some manufacturers use the kiln (batch) method, while others use the retort (continuous) method.

A schematic diagram illustrating the manufacturing processes necessary to create charcoal briquettes.

Charring the wood

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1 (Batch process) It takes a day or two to load a typical-size concrete kiln with about 50 cords of wood. When the fire is started, air intake ports and exhaust vents are fully open to draw in enough oxygen to produce a hot fire. During the week-long burning period, ports and vents are adjusted to maintain a temperature between about 840-950 F (450510 C). At the end of the desired burning period, air intake ports are closed; exhaust vents are sealed an hour or two later, after smoking has stopped, to avoid pressure buildup within the kiln. Following a two-week cooling period, the kiln is emptied, and the carbonized wood(char) is pulverized.

2 (Continuous process) Wood is sized (broken into pieces of the proper dimension) in a hammer mill. A particle size of about 0.1 in (3 mm) is common, although the exact size depends on the type of wood being used (e.g., bark, dry sawdust, wet wood). The wood then passes through a large drum dryer that reduces its moisture content by about half (to approximately 25%). Next, it is fed into the top of the multiple-hearth furnace (retort). Externally, the retort looks like a steel silo, 40-50 ft (12.2-15.2 m) tall and 20-30 ft (6.19.14 m) in diameter. Inside, it contains a stack of hearths(three to six, depending on the desired production capacity). The top chamber is the lowest-temperature hearth, on the order of 525 F (275 C), while the bottom chamber burns at about 1,200 F (650 C). External heat, from oil-or gas-fired burners, is needed only at the beginning and ending stages of the furnace; at the intermediate levels, the evolving wood gases burn and supply enough heat to maintain desired temperature levels. Within each chamber, the wood is stirred by rabble arms extending out from a center shaft that runs vertically through the entire retort. This slow stirring process (1-2 rpm) ensures uniform combustion and moves the material through the retort. On alternate levels, the rabble arms push the burning wood either toward a hole around the central shaft or toward openings around the outer edge of the floor so the material can fall to the next lower level. As the smoldering char exits the final chamber, it is quenched with a cold-water spray. It may then be used immediately, or it may be stored in a silo until it is needed. A typical retort can produce approximately 5,500 lb (2.5 metric tons) of char per hour.

Carbonizing the coal

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3 Lower grades of coal may also be carbonized for use in charcoal. Crushed coal is first dried and then heated to about 1,100 F (590 C) to drive off the volatile components. After being air-cooled, it is stored until needed.

Briquetting
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4 Charcoal, and minor ingredients such as the starch binder are fed in the proper proportions into a paddle mixer, where they are thoroughly blended. At this point, the material has about a 35% moisture content, giving it a consistency somewhat like damp topsoil. 5 The blended material is dropped into a press consisting of two opposing rollers containing briquette-sized indentations. Because of the moisture content, the binding agent, the temperature(about 105 F or 40 C), and the pressure from the rollers, the briquettes hold their shape as they drop out the bottom of the press. 6 The briquettes drop onto a conveyor, which carries them through a single-pass dryer that heats them to about 275 F (135 C) for three to four hours, reducing their moisture content to around 5%. Briquettes can be produced at a rate of 2,200-20,000 lb (1-9 metric tons) per hour. The briquettes are either bagged immediately or stored in silos to await the next scheduled packaging run.

Bagging
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7 If "instant-light" briquettes are being produced, a hydrocarbon solvent is atomized and sprayed on the briquettes prior to bagging. 8 Charcoal briquettes are packaged in a variety of bag sizes, ranging from 4-24 lb. Some small, convenience packages are made so that the consumer can simply light fire to the entire bag without first removing the briquettes.

Byproducts/Waste
During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, recovery of acetic acid and methanol as byproducts of the wood-charring process became so important that the charcoal itself essentially became the byproduct. After the development of more-efficient and less-costly techniques for synthesizing acetic acid and methanol, charcoal production declined significantly until it was revitalized by the development of briquettes for recreational cooking. The batch process for charring wood produces significant amounts of particulateladen smoke. Fitting the exhaust vents with afterburners can reduce the emissions by as much as 85%, but because of the relatively high cost of the treatment, it is not commonly used. Not only does the more constant level of operation of retorts make it easier to control their emissions with afterburners, but it allows for productive use of combustible off-gases. For example, these gases can be used to fuel wood dryers and briquette dryers, or to produce steam and electricity. Charcoal briquette production is environmentally friendly in another way: the largest briquette manufacturer in the United States uses only waste products for its wood supply. Woodshavings, sawdust, and bark from pallet manufacturers, flooring manufacturers, and lumber mills are converted from piles of waste into useful briquettes.

Read more: How charcoal briquette is made - material, making, history, used, components, product, industry, History, Raw Materials, The Manufacturing Process of charcoal briquette, Byproducts/Waste, The Future http://www.madehow.com/Volume-4/CharcoalBriquette.html#ixzz0uwJ86qvy

Charcoal briquettes made of newspapers developed

MANILA, Philippines - Heres a new product created out of scrap paper: charcoal briquette. Briquette is a mixture of charcoal made from various materials molded in various sizes and shapes with the use of a binder or starch. The new briquette has been named Don King Uling by its creator, Florentino Montemayor Jr., a retired official of a multinational corporation and now barangay councilor of Batong Malake, Los Baos, Laguna.

Don King Uling is a take-off from a noted donut because the briquette is shaped like the popular baked product. It is made of old newspapers, kraft papers, cartolina and other types of used paper except the glossy ones. The materials are soaked in water overnight, shredded and compacted with the use of a pressing machine also devised b Montemayor. The product is used as a substitute for wood as charcoal fuel, he said. The project is particularly focused on informal settlers and poor barangay residents who use charcoal stoves. Since early last year when Don King Uling was conceived, more than a hundred families have been using the briquettes as more pressing machines were fabricated and sold at affordable cost to barangay settlers following the Los Baos Baamos Festival, which commemorated the historic towns 394th anniversary last Sept. 17. Batong Malake officials have been helping sell the pressing machines to further spread its use. They said, as quoted by Kathleen Lungub, a student at the UP Los Baos College of Development Communication: With the growing number of briquette users, we do not only help the people save money; we also help in the conservation of forests in the long term. At least once a week, the Batong Malake committee on livelihood headed by Montemayor, together with councilor Allan Leron and Janos Lapiz, do house-to-house visits in communities to demonstrate and promote the use of portable, easy-to-operate pressing machine and scrap paper briquette. One of the technologys users, Merlie Casipo, 53, said: Mas magandang gamiting and papel na panggatong dahil mas maningas. Nakatipid ka na dahil mabilis mag-apoy, nakabawas ka pa ng basura. A paper briquette is sold at P10 per kilo (eight pieces). One needs only four briquettes to cook a cup of rice. Don King Uling is cheaper than a kilo of wood charcoal (P20). The project has been supported by the Los Baos-based Department of Science and TechnologyForest Products Research and Development Institute (DOST-FPRDI). FPRDI engineer Belen Bisana said: The advantage of using the paper briquette in cooking is primarily the utilization of waste papers. Using the product is also an economical and practical thing. Briquettes can last for longer period compared to wood fuel. Rudy A. Fernandez

An alternative fuel source: Make charcoal briquettes from banana peels

Notes to broadcaster

These days there is increased pressure on forests as people cut trees for firewood and other purposes. In the last 30 years, for example, Uganda has lost half of her forest cover. Local people are being encouraged to adopt energy saving technologies that put less pressure on natural resources. One example is the use of banana peelings, commonly referred to as banachakol (banana charcoal), to make charcoal briquettes. The following program features an interview with a woman from a group of community workers known as Bakyala Tweyune ("Women in self-help"), who describes the advantages of banachakol, and the production process for the briquettes.

Start of program
SIGNATURE TUNE SOUND EFFECTS (PICK AXE CHOPPING FIREWOOD). Host: If you grow bananas in any part of the world, you will be interested in our program today, because we are going to talk about how banana peelings can be used to make charcoal briquettes. This is a technology that will save many trees. This technology started in Lungujja near Kampala , where a woman named Namusoke Immaculate, the founder of Bakyala Tweyune womens group, has innovated a new method of alternative fuel by turning banana peelings into charcoal briquettes. Our guest today is Rita Ashaba, a community worker from Bakyala Tweyune. Rita, thank you for coming to share with us this new technology. Guest: You're welcome. Good evening listeners. Host: How did you adopt the technology of banana peeling briquettes? Guest: I have known the technology of banana peeling briquettes for five years, which has made me a constant user and promoter of the product. I grow bananas and besides using the peelings as animal feed for my goats and for manure, I now use them to make charcoal briquettes. Host: So banana peelings have many different uses. Can you describe for our listeners how to make charcoal briquettes from the banana peels? What materials are needed?

Guest: You will need one-half basin full of fresh banana peelings, a quarter basin of charcoal dust, and a quarter basin of fine sand. Host: Okay, banana peelings, charcoal dust and sand. Once I have these things together, what do I do? Guest: First you have to chop the fresh banana peelings into small pieces. Once the banana peelings are chopped, then mix the three ingredients together - the banana peelings, the charcoal dust and the sand. Host: Are these in equal amounts? Guest: No, the banana peelings should be more, approximately half of the mixture. Charcoal dust and sand should each be a quarter of the quantity of the peelings. Host: Okay, so we are mixing these three things together. Guest: That's right. The sap in the banana peelings will tie up the sand and charcoal dust. Then you make the briquettes of a suitable size. They are put under the sun and are dried. Then they are are ready for use just like that. Host: That sounds simple and interesting. I bet it does not take long to dry does it? Guest: The drying takes a short time, of course depending on the weather. Host: Listeners before we hear about the advantages of using banachakol, let's have a music break. MUSIC BREAK Host: We're back with our guest who has been talking about how to make banana peel charcoal briquettes. Rita what is the advantage of using the banana peel charcoal briquettes compared to using other forms of fuel? Guest: If you live in a banana growing area, it will be easy for you to get the banana peelings. That's one of the benefits. The other things you need are simply sand and charcoal dust. All these things are found close to home, so women do not have to move long distances away from home in search for fuel. Host: And I understand that the procedure of making the briquettes is also easy. Guest: Yes. In most cases I ask my children to help and because of the ease, to them it is like playing. One more thing. You do NOT need a special fireplace to burn this charcoal. The charcoal burns for a long time. So that means one does not use a lot of it when cooking. Besides much less smoke is produced so the cooking place is cleaner and safer.

Host: From your experience in working with rural women how has the technology of using banachakol changed the lives of some users? Guest: Because of banachakol women now have more time with their children at home, which means more care, one of which is that their meals are on time. For the many women groups I interact with, they have started self-help projects like zero grazing, mushroom farming and tailoring. Host: Have you involved men in this new technology? Guest: In the beginning some women feared to join the groups because their husbands did not approve of the venture. But after realizing the benefits of the technology, men have come in to help the women especially in marketing banachakol. Certainly everything that is about women concerns men. Host: How is the demand for banachakol so far? Guest: Demand is rising and we hope to purchase equipment to crush the peelings so that it is even easier. We also hope to build a larger drying area and of course we want to start employing people to sort banana peelings from garbage in areas where they are thrown. Host: Rita, thank you for joining us today. Dear listeners that brings us to the end of our program about conserving our environment. I am grateful to Rita our guest who has told us a lot about the banachakol, a new source of fuel for cooking. Until next time cheers and have a good evening.

Banana peels an alternative way of making charcoal

July 3rd, 2009 by Paul Mallimbo 4 Comments

CHARCOAL is becoming more and more a scarce product in East Africa and is not only contributing to severe environmental problem like deforestation and soil erosion, but also pauses serious health hazards like diseases linked with respiratory systems.

The use of trees on making charcoals has been a major factor that contributes to the climate change in developing countries especially East Africa. Thousands of tones of trees have been cut and the trend is still going on, despite the efforts made by different governments in the region to stop people from this long rooted behavior of cutting trees for charcoal making. Banana is a plant that can save the region from becoming dry if people will be taught other benefits of banana apart from the one they know, which is food. If the government leaders, especially politicians will advocate for the banana plantation, trees will be saved from being the only source of charcoal. Banana peels can be used as another source of making charcoal without causing hazards in the environment. Hajji Mohammed Kawere is a Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of UGASTOVE Uganda Ltd, a company that deals in the production and giving out of various kinds of biomass technologies which include energy saving stoves for households, institutional saving stoves, baking ovens, incinerators, fire-less box cookers and charcoal briquettes. Kawere revealed that it takes lots of trees to come up with 10kg of charcoal compared to banana peels which do not cost anything when used to make charcoal. Sekajugo John, an expert on briquettes making mentioned most of the three required resources that can help in coming up with dry and ready charcoal for cooking from banana peels. He said you need to have dried banana peels, a mixer or starch that can be acquired from cassava flour which acts as a binder and finally you need to have filler/molds where can be used to make shapes of briquettes. The banana peels are collected and then sun dried and half burned you don t allow them to burn complete and then you pour water in semi burned banana peels to get carbonate which are sheaved then those black powdered material that will come out during sheaved process, are mixed with clay soil or mica soils and finally mixed with cassava flour. Sekajugo said at this stage the briquettes is almost ready only awaiting molds to get proper shapes. He said other people are using their hands to mold the briquettes and have round shape. According to one of the community members of Nabisalu zone, Fausta Namubiru, since the introduction of this technology in her family, she has been saving 700 Ugandan shillings everyday because the briquettes they use, spend two to three days so they don t need to buy charcoal. My husband always give me 1000 for my daily domestic use, but now a days when he gives me such money I use 300 and keep the rest for my private needs, I have stopped asking my husband for money to buy small items, adding this is because she sales three briquettes at 1000 shillings, she said.

Speaking with this reporter an Briquettes Making Project Manager Twasee Ismail, said, apart from banana peels being used to make briquettes, sugar can tops, molasses, potatoes peels, charcoal aggregates can also be used to make briquettes. He added that, these briquettes are also being used by poultry farmers as warmers in their poultry farms, they no longer need electricity because seven briquettes take two to three days warming up the place. Twasee said, briquettes can also be source of income, because you can sale those briquettes and get money. Adding that some of community members who have seriously engaged themselves in making the charcoal, are facing challenges of market because the technology is still new, but when the technology is spread, and people get to know the benefits of briquettes, the market will be there. Ends.

The Great Pili Tree - Miriam Coronel Ferrer

WAYS OF SPECIES | By Miriam Coronel Ferrer Posted at 12/24/2009 8:50 PM | Updated as of 12/24/2009 8:50 PM

Less known but just as versatile and hardy as the legendary coconut is the pili tree. Both plants grow profusely in the Bicol region, where typhoons and volcanic eruptions frequently visit. Resistant to strong winds and hot weather conditions, the pili tree will cope better with the adverse impact of climate change than most plants. An indigenous species (scientific name, Canarium Ovatum) that grows up to 100 years old and up to 35 meters in height, the pili tree starts bearing fruit at around age six. Upright with leaves and branches roundly spread, they are beautiful as shade trees lining up avenues or marking borders. Like the coconut, harvesting of pili nuts is year-round. According to government argriculturists, a tree bears one to two thousands nuts per year, or around 33 kilos of kernel. Needing no chemical input, the pili nut is thus produced organically. All parts of the pili tree are useful to humans. The hard shells of the nut are used for fuel, handicrafts and charcoal briquettes. Recently, we used it as additional filling material for soil eroded by typhoon Ondoy in our farm in Rizal. The pulp is eaten boiled, pickled, sweetened or sauted; the surplus, fed to the pigs. Oil extracted from the pulps and kernels can be used as cooking oil, fuel oil for lamps, and for making insect repellants, moisturizers and perfumes. Pili oil is said to possess the high qualities of olive oil. Tasty pasalubong

Everybody who has been to Albay and Sorsogon provinces, the countrys pili heartland, has tasted the caramelized pili nuts, turrones de pili, and pili tarts. Other places in the Bicol region have their own delicacies, or at least their own names for the same products. In Tagalog-speaking Vinzons, Camarines Norte, one will find the alinamnam, caramelized candy made from condensed milk and whole pili kernels, wrapped in colorful cellophane sheets. Our friends also like the pandecillos bought from this Ferrer hometown as pasalubong. These are rectangular pastries filled with sweetened, chopped pili. Another favorite is the pili roll called pianono: a delicious spread of chopped pili cooked in condensed milk and spread on a thin layer of chiffon-like cake and rolled. Bottled santan is jam made from coconut milk and molasses, liberally sprinkled with whole pili kernels, and patiently stirred a long time over low fire. According to my 85-year mother-in-law, a special kind of binao (or coconut bowl)-shaped molasses called balikutsay is used to produce the jams soft, granule-free thickness. Other uses Resin from the bark called Manila elemi is being exported to China and Europe for industrial uses such as transparent paper used as window panes, and as additives to plastic, plaster, printer ink and various paint products. Locally, the wood is used to caulk boats. In Camarines Sur, now glamourously called CamSur after earning a place in the faddy tourist map, spas offer facial and body treatments using lotions made from the nut, which is rich in moisture and vitamin E.. Also rich in phosphorous, calcium, protein, and potassium, the pili nut is a good alternative to the expensive pine nut in pesto sauce, and can be thrown into all kinds of breads, pastries and sauted food. Interestingly, despite the highly commercial value of the pili nut, machines for depulping and shelling have yet to be commercially available. This must be because the country, including Bicol where 82 percent of pili production takes place, is rich in labor. One prototype shelling machine developed by a Bicolano scientist and produced only upon order sells for around P15,000. For small entrepreneurs, using several small, thick chopping knives, and mobilizing all the free hands in the household is more cost-effective. Our household help finds it easier to crack nuts with a piece of rock, a hammer or the geologists piko (rock pick). Tree of life Given the unmet demand for pili supplies, the pili tree is highly recommended for agroforestry projects, especially in typhoon-frequented areas. Since the nuts can be stored for long periods, it

is also ideal for rural communities with poor roads and transportation facilities. Not surprisingly, the Samar Island Biodiversity Project that began in 2005 includes the planting of pili seedlings in about 100 hectares of nonproductive land. On this, my 50th year, I have embarked on a mission of propagating pili seedlings using nuts harvested from our farm. As I watched each seed sprout, I pondered the mystery of how the pod manages to knock off a perfect almond-shaped hole from its hard shell to emerge as a delicate drooping bud. Then I follow with excitement its progress into a straight stem with two leaves outstretched like hands opened wide in joy. In between deadlines, meetings and field research in different parts of the country and Asia the last 12 months, I have sprouted about a thousand seedlings of this great tree. I have been giving these out to friends or friends of friends who have space on which to grow even one single tree. For colleagues in Mindanao like Fr. Bert Alejo and Irene Inday Santiago in Davao, and university professors Malou Nanaman, Radzma Suhaili, Samson Molao and Domingo Non from Iligan, Sulu, North Cotabato and General Santos, respectively, it was more practical to give out the newly harvested fruit, which they can easily soak to remove the pulp, and then plant. Planted within two days after depulping, the seeds are viable almost 100 percent. The pili seedling bank I began this year is a small way of giving back life for the blessing of life that I have received. In this holiday season, I am pleased to share the seedlings to all those who want to spread the good news in the pili tree. The offer is good while supplies last. Charcoal dust is a residue from charcoal. It is that soot black powdery substance normally found at the bottom of charcoal sacks, charcoal selling stores or in the charcoal making areas. It results from the chip offs from the charcoal slates. Our great grand parents used to brush their teeth with charcoal dust. This was with the help of a coffee branch, a method still used by many in rural areas that cannot afford to buy toothpaste. However, dentists discourage this practice because of health reasons. They also used charcoal dust to heat their rooms as well as cook food using traditional stoves. This practice continues though on a minute scale, with many homes opting to throw it away. Below are beneficial alternatives for charcoal dust. You can make banana charcoal. Here you need half () bucket of freshly sliced banana peelings, a quarter (1/4) basin of charcoal dust and another quarter (1/4) bucket/basin of fine sand. Thereafter, mix the sliced banana peelings with the charcoal dust, and sand. The banana sap will help to bind them. When still fresh, separate the mixture into smaller desired pieces and then bake them in the sunshine. They are then ready for use. Excess banana charcoal must be stored in a dry place.

You can also make mud charcoal, called briquettes. This is done through combining charcoal dust with mud then compressed into small rectangular blocks. For each amount of charcoal dust, mix with one quarter of mud. Briquettes save on power costs. In Nairobi women use this charcoal for home use and also earn income from sale to others. One 20-litre tin of dust when molded into briquettes is enough for use by an average African family for at least one week. Charcoal dust is used by a factory in Kenya named Chardust to make briquettes that are used in hotels and poultry farms. Their briquettes are also used for grilling, cooking and warming purposes. The dust is brought to the factory which is on the outskirts of Nairobi. Here, 70 employees grind the dust with coffee, rice husks and sawdust into a mix to form the briquettes that burn longer. They are also said to be cleaner than charcoal, are smoke, smell and spark free. This helps conserve the trees. Charcoal dust has some antiseptic, salt and odor absorbing properties. When sprinkled on freshly cut plants divisions, it can lessen the chance of infection. Whereas some farmers also mix it with soil as a fertilizer especially for vegetable and banana growing, others prefer to mix it with chicken litter and use as a fertilizer on their farms. Charcoal dust is known for its basic carbon component which natural farmers find a good media or substrate for proliferation of beneficial micro organisms in the soil. Charcoal dust from soft wood can be put on wounds for healing. To use it, sprinkle a thick layer to the wound then tie a linen cloth bandage around. Remove after 1 to 3 days and replace with new dust to for further drying. Its anti corruptive property enables absorption and avoids rotting. It also helps to remove the unpleasant smell of wound. The only disadvantage in use of charcoal dust to heal wounds is that it dirtens the person using it. Also, one has to be careful that the charcoal dust used is not contaminated by harmful bacteria. This therefore calls for its immediate collection after its made and safe keeping. Also, when applied to the soil, charcoal dust repels ants. Some farmers use charcoal dust to keep the ants, and especially termites away from their mud and stick structures. This is by putting a layer of charcoal dust around the structure.

What is an abstract?
A definition
An abstract is a succinct summary of a longer piece of work, usually academic in nature, which is published in isolation from the main text and should therefore stand on its own and be understandable without reference to the longer piece. It should report the latter's essential facts, and should not exaggerate or contain material that is not there. Its purpose is to act as a reference tool (for example in a library abstracting service), enabling the reader to decide whether or not to read the full text. Two common reasons for writing an abstract are

1. to summarize a longer piece of work published as a journal article, thesis, book or web page, an existing article for the purposes of a journal, 2. or to submit an application to write a paper for a conference.

In both cases, you will be given specific guidelines as to how to write the abstract including a maximum word count from either the relevant publisher or the organizer of the conference; those for Emerald are set out below. Conference papers are usually selected on the basis of abstracts: see tips below.

How to go about the writing process

1. Start by writing a statement of the paper's purpose, which should be as succinct as possible. If you include background keep this to a minimum and only include such information as to provide a context. 2. Summarize the paper, reporting its main facts. Remember the following points:
o o o

o o

Follow the chronology of the paper and use its headings as guidelines. Do not include unnecessary detail, as in the first example in "How not to write an abstract". You are writing for an audience "in the know" you can use the technical language of your discipline or profession, providing you communicate your meaning clearly, and bear in mind that you are writing to an international audience. Make sure that what you write "flows" properly, that there are "connecting words" (e.g. consequently, moreover, for example, the benefits of this study, as a result, etc.) and/or the points you make are not disjointed but follow on from one another. Use the active rather than the passive voice, e.g. "The study tested" rather than "It was tested in this study". The style of writing should be dense, and sentences will probably be longer than usual.

3. You should by now have a draft, which will probably be too long. Here are some points to remember in cutting:
o o

cut out any unnecessary words that do not add to the meaning, but make sure that the abstract is not so "cut" as to be unreadable; use full sentences, direct and indirect articles, connecting works, etc. An abstract should use continuous prose, not notes.

4. Read through your draft, making sure that it covers the main points listed above, and that there are no grammatical, spelling or typographical errors, also that it "flows" properly. 5. If possible, get a colleague to read through your abstract as a form of "peer review".

6. Submit!

If you have difficulty with the general purpose statement or with summarizsing your article, it may be because the article's general concept is not that clear, or perhaps your research design or approach needs revisiting.

Instructions for writing a structured abstract for Emerald

Emerald has introduced a new format for article abstracts intended to help researchers by consistently providing the most useful information. Each abstract is made up of a number of set elements. An example is provided at the foot of this page.
1. Write the abstract

To produce a structured abstract for the journal and Emerald database, please complete the following fields about your paper. There are four fields which are obligatory (Purpose, Design/methodology/approach, Findings and Originality/value); the other three (Research limitations/implications, Practical implications, and Social implications) may be omitted if they are not applicable to your paper. Abstracts should contain no more than 250 words. Write concisely and clearly. The abstract should reflect only what appears in the original paper. Purpose What are the reason(s) for writing the paper or the aims of the research? Design/methodology/approach How are the objectives achieved? Include the main method(s) used for the research. What is the approach to the topic and what is the theoretical or subject scope of the paper? Findings What was found in the course of the work? This will refer to analysis, discussion, or results. Research limitations/implications (if applicable) If research is reported on in the paper this section must be completed and should include suggestions for future research and any identified limitations in the research process. Practical implications (if applicable) What outcomes and implications for practice, applications and consequences are identified? How will the research impact upon the business or enterprise? What changes to practice should be made as a result of this research? What is the commercial or economic impact? Not all papers will have practical implications. Social implications (if applicable) What will be the impact on society of this research? How will it influence public attitudes? How will it influence (corporate) social responsibility or environmental issues? How could it inform

public or industry policy? How might it affect quality of life? Not all papers will have social implications. Originality/value What is new in the paper? State the value of the paper and to whom.
2. Using keywords

Using keywords is a vital part of abstract writing, because of the practice of retrieving information electronically: keywords act as the search term. Use keywords that are specific, and that reflect what is essential about the paper. Put yourself in the position of someone researching in your field: what would you look for? Consider also whether you can use any of the current "buzz words".
3. Choose a category for the paper

Pick the category which most closely describes your paper. We understand that some papers can fit into more than one category but it is necessary to assign your paper to one of the categories these are listed and will be searchable within the database:
y

y y y

Research paper. This category covers papers which report on any type of research undertaken by the author(s). The research may involve the construction or testing of a model or framework, action research, testing of data, market research or surveys, empirical, scientific or clinical research. Viewpoint. Any paper, where content is dependent on the author's opinion and interpretation, should be included in this category; this also includes journalistic pieces. Technical paper. Describes and evaluates technical products, processes or services. Conceptual paper. These papers will not be based on research but will develop hypotheses. The papers are likely to be discursive and will cover philosophical discussions and comparative studies of others' work and thinking. Case study. Case studies describe actual interventions or experiences within organizations. They may well be subjective and will not generally report on research. A description of a legal case or a hypothetical case study used as a teaching exercise would also fit into this category. Literature review. It is expected that all types of paper cite any relevant literature so this category should only be used if the main purpose of the paper is to annotate and/or critique the literature in a particular subject area. It may be a selective bibliography providing advice on information sources or it may be comprehensive in that the paper's aim is to cover the main contributors to the development of a topic and explore their different views. General review. This category covers those papers which provide an overview or historical examination of some concept, technique or phenomenon. The papers are likely to be more descriptive or instructional ("how to" papers) than discursive.

Tips for writing abstracts for conference papers

The difficulty here is that you will probably be writing the abstract as a preamble to the actual paper, rather than subsequent to it. Here are some points to remember:

1. Clarify in your own mind what is the purpose of the paper: what it is that you are going to do. 2. Look carefully at the themes of the conference: note those that apply and frame your paper accordingly. 3. Very often, the submission procedure will dictate the format and the number of words of the abstract. For example:
o o o o o o o

Title Name of presenter, contact details Category of presentation (e.g. workshop, research paper, short paper, poster etc.) Conference themes addressed. Key words that will help people deciding whether or not to participate to understand its focus. Objectives/intended outcomes and activities for participants The abstract.

4. Stick closely to the length given. You will often have no choice in this matter, because if you submit electronically you will find yourself cut off in mid sentence as you reach the required limit. 5. When writing the abstract, ask yourself the following questions:
o o

o o

What is the purpose of my paper? This should, as with any abstract, be a general definition statement about the objectives of your paper. What approach am I using? I.e. am I reviewing the literature, describing a case study, supporting a research hypothesis, and if the latter, what is my research design and research methodology? What are my findings? What is the import of my findings?

6. Choose your keywords carefully, making sure that they match the themes of the conference