The Utilization of Wood as Fuel for Motive Power

Abstract

IN the Bulletin of the 'Société d'encouragement pour 1'Industrie Nationale' of January is printed an abstract of a paper by R. Vaultrin on the utilization of wood as fuel for motive power. Towards the end of the Great War, the French Ministry of Inventions made experiments on carrying heavy loads between Paris and Rouen by motor-lorries provided with suitable gas generators using wood for fuel, but the results obtained were not good. In 1928, after a further rally with 'camions à gazogène', the problem was completely solved ; but at that time the price of the wood fuel was too high to make it profitable. A notable rally was made in 1930 between Paris and Rome, crossing the Alps and the Apennines, and another was made through the Landes where resinous fuel was used and found suitable. Recent results for tourist vehicles gave 50 miles per hour consuming about 70 Ib. of firewood, costing six francs for a sixty miles run. Heavy motor-lorries can run at 30 miles per hour, the cost for sixty miles being fifteen francs. In France, there is an annual overproduction of thirteen million cubic yards of firewood. This would be sufficient for 60,000 motor-vehicles using gas generators. At the moment, the difficulty is to obtain, on the road, supplies of suitable wood with constant humidity. This double problem has been solved between Frankfort and Cologne. In France there are already large stores on a 'national' road, and all the main routes on the east are being supplied with stores. The control of the humidity of the wood distributed is being studied.