[LUM#19] Let's get to work!

[LUM Magazine] - Published on June 1, 2023 in Science-Society

Improving charcoal manufacturing processes, the primary fuel used in developing countries, is one of the areas of research at the BioWooEB laboratory.

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This is the energy source for cities in southern countries: charcoal. "Not to be confused with fossil coal extracted from mines," explains Kévin Candelier. Charcoal is produced by a process of heating wood in the absence of oxygen, known as carbonization or slow pyrolysis," explains the researcher from theBioWooEB laboratoryat the
¹. Why charcoal rather than wood? "Charcoal has a higher energy content per unit of mass than firewood, burns more slowly, and emits less smoke during combustion, " replies Kevin Candelier. Lightweight, easy to transport and store, it is the fuel of choice for urban households in the Global South. In the Democratic Republic of Congo, 90% of the population living in the capital Kinshasa depend mainly on charcoal for cooking, accordingto the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.

According to its latest report on the state of the world's forests, charcoal consumption continues to rise due to population growth and urbanization in developing and emerging countries , and because it is more affordable than other energy sources, says François Pinta, also a researcher at BioWooEB. Consequence: global charcoal consumption has increased by around 20% over the last 10 years, putting further pressure on an already strained forest resource.

"In developing countries, most charcoal is produced using simple traditional techniques known as charcoal kilns: wood is stacked in compact piles, covered with vegetation and earth to create a closed enclosure, and then heated to turn it into charcoal," explains Kévin Candelier. This traditional method achieves conversion yields of only 13 to 27%, which means that between 3.5 and 8 kilograms of wood are needed to produce 1 kilogram of charcoal, depending on the processes used.

Improving these processes has been one of the areas of research explored by the BioWooEB laboratory for 40 years. "One of the challenges is to improve material conversion yields, in particular by carefully selecting wood species, but also by improving existing practices or developing new charcoal production processes that are more environmentally friendly and less arduous for charcoal burners," explain the two researchers. This is a major challenge in meeting the growing demand for charcoal while preserving wood resources.