Wood chip burning vehicle?

[pgfpro]

I was wondering if anyone on here has built a wood chip burning vehicle?

[Bicycle Bob]

The general field is called biomass gasification. It was quite popular in Europe during the WW II gas crisis - you could buy a new Mercedes set up to run on standard wood blocks which were government-inspected for moisture content, until a simple user test was discovered. At the time, the cleanest running rigs required that the engine be torn down for tar removal every 5,000 miles.
The most important factor is uniformity of fuel. Forget about burning available scrap. Blocks of wood 1" X 1" X 2" at 15% moisture content were standard for motor vehicles, and the jiggling helped maintain the proper packing in the gasifier. With tar going through a bed of charcoal at over 600C, good chemistry happens. These days, we also have cyclone tar traps. The biggest problem is that the gasifier only has an operating range that goes from about 15% to 60% of the normal power, so a lot of smoke has to be wasted when stopped. Also, the minimum size is too big for a car-size hybrid.

[pgfpro]

Thanks for all the good info. I have a 99' S10 chevy P/U that i was thinking about converting.

[Old Mechanic]

When Pop landed a P47 at Le Bourget just outside Paris in the summer of 1944, he saw acres of parked and booby trapped Kubelwagens (a type of VW) that used coal gas generators.

regards
Mech

[bkruger]

One of the better woodgas projects I've seen - Convert your Honda Accord to run on trash

Theres also many pickups on youtube converted to run on wood scrap. Not a bad way to power a vehicle IMO. Good luck with your project and keep us updated. I'd be interested in how it works for ya

[Frank Lee]

I wouldn't want to tear down my engine every 5000.

[bkruger]

Originally Posted by Frank Lee

I wouldn't want to tear down my engine every 5000.

The 5000mile figure you read was referencing to gasifiers used in WW2. Today, newer gasifier designs and cyclone filtration have nearly eliminated tar. It's not a problem anymore.

Unless you were being sarcastic.....

[Old Tele man]

Originally Posted by Old Mechanic

When Pop landed a P47 at Le Bourget just outside Paris in the summer of 1944, he saw acres of parked and booby trapped Kubelwagens (a type of VW) that used coal gas generators.

...similarly, here in USA, lots of pre-war Fords (my Mom's '39 2 door) were converted to run on white-gas mixed with kerosene by starting the engine on a "spritz" of gasoline, then switching over to the "mix" which was plumbed so the fuel line wrapped loosely around the exhaust manifold. Poor milage and power, but it beat walking!

[bestclimb]

boiler, and a couple steam pistons? Would not be as picky as to the fuel source.

[Christ]

That converted Accord is just creepy.