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| Completed sides |
Saturday, May 31, 2014
Friday, May 30, 2014
Current Biochar Research in Peru
Villa Carmen: Asociación para la Conservación de la Cuenca Amazónica
At Universidad Nacional Agraria La Molina, the pulp and paper lab is studying the potential for biochar made from waste streams in the wood industry:
Cientifica del Sur
Students working with biochar as a soil amendment for agriculture and also to absorb and immobilize Mercury in contaminated soils.
Topara Organic
A diversified farm in Chincha, Peru that is looking for a way to add value to the 50 tons of pecan nut shells it generates every year.
Iquitos Cookstoves
A group of Australian researchers carried out a project in collaboration with the Ministry of the Environment (MINAM) and the Institute for Research on the Peruvian Amazon (IIAP) to distribute biochar producing cookstoves in the tropical city Iquitos. The stoves are designed to run on any waste biomass and are shown to reduce the amount of particulate matter generated during combustion.
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| Field parcels at Villa Carmen biological research center |
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| Bamboo biochar in 55 gallon drum design |
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| Bamboo biochar samples |
At Universidad Nacional Agraria La Molina, the pulp and paper lab is studying the potential for biochar made from waste streams in the wood industry:
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| The kiln with added vapor condenser and gas capture |
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| Activated Carbon Machine |
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| Condensed Tar from Pyrolysis Reaction |
Cientifica del Sur
Students working with biochar as a soil amendment for agriculture and also to absorb and immobilize Mercury in contaminated soils.
Topara Organic
A diversified farm in Chincha, Peru that is looking for a way to add value to the 50 tons of pecan nut shells it generates every year.
Iquitos Cookstoves
A group of Australian researchers carried out a project in collaboration with the Ministry of the Environment (MINAM) and the Institute for Research on the Peruvian Amazon (IIAP) to distribute biochar producing cookstoves in the tropical city Iquitos. The stoves are designed to run on any waste biomass and are shown to reduce the amount of particulate matter generated during combustion.
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| A stove in action |
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| Demonstration at the IIAP facility. |
Guadua Bamboo: "Paca"
A map of the extensions of bamboo in SW Amazon with light green and dark pink indicating living stands and recent mass mortality from gregarious flowering, respectively.
Just a few of the 28 species of Guadua that have been documented in Peru:
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| Truck headed for Cusco where Guadua stems are used as rafters |
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| Mushrooms sprouting on decomposing Guadua stems |
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| Small wasp feeding on Guadua sap |
The Kosñipata Valley: Preincan History, Andean Colonists and Globally Significant Biodiversity
Smallholder Agriculture and the Manu NP Buffer Zone
Kosñipata Valley context
Preinca Matsigenka and Harakmbut, Inca colonization and coca farms, European rubber barons in the 19th century, sugar haciendas, 1955 completion of road to Pilcopata, Velasco's agrarian land reform (1969), timber boom, present day pineapple, rice, plantain and yuca production, some wild bamboo harvested for Cusco construction, ecotourism to Manu and elsewhere, future completion of road improvements and connection to national electric grid.
Road leading down to Pilcopata, Atalaya, Salvación, Shintuya, and Boca Manú. The road was first surveyed in 193? by a Swedish engineer. Completed in 1950's with a resultant surge in colonists.
Landslide on said road. The road is currently being improved to prevent such occurrences and allow for more and heavier traffic which will bring new opportunities for easier access to agricultural markets, greater ability to extract timber, and increased flow of tourists to Manu and ecolodges. The road improvement market is coupled with the extension of power lines to connect the towns to the national grid. Currently the valley is supplied by a municipal hydroelectric plant that provides
Colonos
Santa Rosa de Huacaria
Peru: The Economy from an Airplane Window
FAO Production Numbers (metric tons)
| Sugar cane | 9,854,961 |
| Potatoes | 3,814,373 |
| Rice, paddy | 2,831,374 |
| Plantains | 2,007,284 |
| Maize | 1,541,195 |
| Cassava | 1,240,121 |
| Onions, dry | 724,042 |
| Mangoes, mangosteens, guavas | 457,774 |
| Maize, green | 408,181 |
| Oranges | 394,573 |
| Asparagus | 335,209 |
| Pineapples | 310,566 |
| Oil, palm fruit | 291,802 |
| Grapes | 280,468 |
| Coffee, green | 264,605 |
OSINERGMIN (Peruvian energy regulator)
Of the actual electricity generation, 61% is from hydro, 34% from natural gas and 5% coal and oil.
42 hydro stations with 3.1 gigawatts of nameplate generating capacity
23 thermal stations with 3.3 GW of nameplate capacity
UNDATA Export numbers
In 2012 Peru Exported:
$13.4 B of metal bearing ores
$10.2 B of precious metals, principally gold from hard rock veins in the Andes and alluvial deposits in the Amazon.
$5.4 B of crude oil from fields in Loreto and natural gas from Camisea
$3.2 B of prepared and processed foods
$2.8 B of copper
$2.8 B of vegetable products
$2.1 B of textiles, fibers and apparel
$0.7 B of fish and crustaceans, mainly anchovies that feed in the cold rich waters of the Humboldt current
$0.5 B of zinc
$0.16 B of wood and wood products
Ag Exports
Trade Partners:
Imports
Total: $42.27
United States $8.0 B
China $7.8
Brazil $2.6
Ecuador $2.0
Argentina $1.9
Exports
Total: $45.95
China $7.84
United States $6.5
Switzerland $5.0
Canada $3.4
Japan $2.6
World Bank
MINAG
Deforestation numbers for all of Peru (hectares)
1975 5,642,447
1985 6,948,237
2000 7,172,554
Agricultural surface area numbers (hectares)
1975 12,200,925
1985 7,895,237
2000 11,285, 334
Madre de Dios: Infrastructure Development, Agricultural Frontier, Extractive Activities, and Ecosystems
Madre de Dios
Overview
According to the Peruvian National Statistical Agency (INEI)
85,301 square kilometers
130,876 Inhabitants
According to Central Bank of Peru the economy in Madre de Dios totals 245 million USD or $1,884 per capita
The economy is represented by the following sectors:
71M (28%) mining
44M (17%) "other services"
29M (11%) commerce
28M (11%) government services
23M (9%) Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting
15M (6%) Restaurants and hotels
Of the agricultural production
26% of the value is from brachyaria grass for cattle
18% is plantain production
16% is corn
Gold-mining: Formal, Informal, and Illegal
Price of gold rose from ___ per ounce in ____ to a peak of ___ in ____driving 50,000 hectares deforested over the last decade.
Mercury is spilled during production of mercury gold amalgams and enters the aquatic ecosystem where it is converted by sediment dwelling bacteria into toxic methylated mercury. Once it enters the food chain and undergoes the process of biomagnification it poses a special threat to human health through degradation to the nervous system. In order to free the gold from the amalgam it is burned to vaporize the mercury. This process is conducted in the mining zones or in Puerto Maldonado and is another source and vector for mercury to enter the human nervous system. The rapid and unregulated wealth generated by legal and illegal mining, suspected participation of mafia-like elements and narco-traffickers, and inability of the state to establish order has led to a lawless zone in which human trafficking, prostitution and bonded labor are commonplace.
According to the Ministry of Mining and Energy formal mining produced 16 tons of gold in 2013.
Swidden Agriculture: Slash and Burn
Interoceanic highway and the completion of the _____ Bridge
The agriculturalist: 6,641 farms that are titled 660,000 hectares of land of which 44,000 are devoted to annual crops such as yuca, corn, pineapple, rice and beans.
According to the 2012 Agricultural Census
hectares of abandoned and fallow land
% use herbicides
% use chemical fertilizers
% own or rent tractors
MINAG
Agricultural land
1975 - 194,405
1995 - 80,876
2000 - 274,197
Deforested land
1975 - 45,501
1995 - 80,876
2000 - 203,879
INEI
Of the 23 million USD of agricultural production
26% is from brachiaria grass for cattle
18% is plantain production
16% is corn
Selective logging: positive and negative impacts.
It's not all bad news: Brazil nut concessions & Ecotourism
Manu-Tambopata Biological Corridor
Land use mosaic embedded in forest matrix. Part of larger Vilcabamba-Ambore Mega-Corridor
Overview
According to the Peruvian National Statistical Agency (INEI)
85,301 square kilometers
130,876 Inhabitants
According to Central Bank of Peru the economy in Madre de Dios totals 245 million USD or $1,884 per capita
The economy is represented by the following sectors:
71M (28%) mining
44M (17%) "other services"
29M (11%) commerce
28M (11%) government services
23M (9%) Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting
15M (6%) Restaurants and hotels
Of the agricultural production
26% of the value is from brachyaria grass for cattle
18% is plantain production
16% is corn
Gold-mining: Formal, Informal, and Illegal
Price of gold rose from ___ per ounce in ____ to a peak of ___ in ____driving 50,000 hectares deforested over the last decade.
Mercury is spilled during production of mercury gold amalgams and enters the aquatic ecosystem where it is converted by sediment dwelling bacteria into toxic methylated mercury. Once it enters the food chain and undergoes the process of biomagnification it poses a special threat to human health through degradation to the nervous system. In order to free the gold from the amalgam it is burned to vaporize the mercury. This process is conducted in the mining zones or in Puerto Maldonado and is another source and vector for mercury to enter the human nervous system. The rapid and unregulated wealth generated by legal and illegal mining, suspected participation of mafia-like elements and narco-traffickers, and inability of the state to establish order has led to a lawless zone in which human trafficking, prostitution and bonded labor are commonplace.
According to the Ministry of Mining and Energy formal mining produced 16 tons of gold in 2013.
Swidden Agriculture: Slash and Burn
Interoceanic highway and the completion of the _____ Bridge
The agriculturalist: 6,641 farms that are titled 660,000 hectares of land of which 44,000 are devoted to annual crops such as yuca, corn, pineapple, rice and beans.
According to the 2012 Agricultural Census
hectares of abandoned and fallow land
% use herbicides
% use chemical fertilizers
% own or rent tractors
MINAG
Agricultural land
1975 - 194,405
1995 - 80,876
2000 - 274,197
Deforested land
1975 - 45,501
1995 - 80,876
2000 - 203,879
INEI
Of the 23 million USD of agricultural production
26% is from brachiaria grass for cattle
18% is plantain production
16% is corn
Selective logging: positive and negative impacts.
It's not all bad news: Brazil nut concessions & Ecotourism
Manu-Tambopata Biological Corridor
Land use mosaic embedded in forest matrix. Part of larger Vilcabamba-Ambore Mega-Corridor
Husks, Hulls, and "Waste": Other Opportunities for Biochar in Peru
Other Feedstocks of Interest in Peru
Mixed Biomass from Slash and Burn
Brazil nut shells
Sawdust at Timber Mills
Bagasse at Sugar Mills
Rice Hulling Mills
Brewery Spent Grain
Chicken Houses
Dairy Houses
Palm Oil Empty Fruit Bunch
Jatropha Press Cake
Mixed Biomass from Slash and Burn
Brazil nut shells
Sawdust at Timber Mills
Bagasse at Sugar Mills
Rice Hulling Mills
Brewery Spent Grain
Chicken Houses
Dairy Houses
Palm Oil Empty Fruit Bunch
Jatropha Press Cake
Thursday, May 29, 2014
Pyrsolysis Unit Construction and Site Preparation: Update 1
Production is officially underway on what is unofficially (though most likely) the largest biochar kiln in Peru! Though we are in the running with operations like this one in Pucallpa:
Square Steel tube frame construction: a comparison of notes to ensure that everyone is on the same page as far as dimensions and placement. Measure twice, cut once!
First cuts to the steel bar.
Chuco takes a quick break to calm the vicious guard dog.
Materials acquisition for material feed crate, exhaust and exterior sarcophagus
-Ceramic Insulation ordered and delivered
-Stainless steel ordered
-High Pressure fan ordered
-Suppliers for Jockey wheels and water-pump issued proforma invoices.
-Steel for Exhaust and flare quoted
-Steel for outer skin quoted
-Suppliers for Jockey wheels and water-pump issued proforma invoices.
-Steel for Exhaust and flare quoted
-Steel for outer skin quoted
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| Game-planning for visits to potential suppliers |
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| AirTec - High pressure fan supplier |
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| Aislamiento Peru - storeroom with ceramic insulation |
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| Polimetales - Specialty stainless steel supplier |
Arrival of Australian Engineer and Final Assembly
-Engineer to arrive after midnight on the 10th of June. Assembly to begin on the 12th.
Transport and Logistics
- Have quotes from a few companies, biggest challenge: getting the shipment through the curved tunnel on the carretera a Manú...
Site prep and Raw Material Procurement at Villa Carmen
Bamboo harvest last October
Bamboo harvest last October
Recently harvested bamboo, enough to cycle the machine 10 times.
Demarcating the footprint of facility on recently cleared lands with rock quarry in the background:
Peruvian Pyrolysis Unit
Australian Designed Domestically Fabricated Biochar Machine
Basic design and capabilities
Stationary steel cart with mobile sarcophagus made of stainless steel, ceramic insulation and mild steel.
Pipework and ducting to capture and combust gas and vapor byproducts.
Centrifugal fan for high pressure air for fire box, water pump and nozzles to regulate pyrolysis reaction.
Multi-feedstock capability with chamber volume of 4.5 cubic meters at ~200-400 kg of biochar per meter.
8-12 hours to complete cycle and quench finished biochar.
Construction Calendar Biochar Kiln:
May 27th- June 5th: Frame metal cutting and assembly
June 4th - June 10th: Exhaust and Flare assembly
June 11th - June 15th: Assembly of Final Unit
Project Site: Estación Biológica Villa Carmen
Site Overview
Kosñipata Valley context
Preinca Matsigenka and Karakmbut, Inca colonization and coca farms, European rubber barons in the 19th century, sugar haciendas, 1955 completion of road to Pilcopata, Velasco's agrarian land reform (1969), timber boom, present day pineapple, rice, plantain and yuca production, some wild bamboo harvested for Cusco construction, ecotourism to Manu and elsewhere, future completion of road improvements and connection to national electric grid.
Experiments at VC
-Effects of different biochar application rates on agronomic efficiency, net primary productivity, and chemical composition of annual crops (yuca, corn), perennial crops, and bamboo plantation
-Potential to add value to raw biochar through microbial inoculation, nutrient impregnation, aging with compost.
-Other uses of bamboo biochar: filtration and wastewater treatment, animal feed supplement, tree nursery potting mix, substrate for hydroponics.
Other Experiments
Manuani Restoration Forestry
Ochroma, Schizolobium, Erythrina, etc
Potential to Prevent Entry of Mercury into Aquatic food chain
Basic design and capabilities
Stationary steel cart with mobile sarcophagus made of stainless steel, ceramic insulation and mild steel.
Pipework and ducting to capture and combust gas and vapor byproducts.
Centrifugal fan for high pressure air for fire box, water pump and nozzles to regulate pyrolysis reaction.
Multi-feedstock capability with chamber volume of 4.5 cubic meters at ~200-400 kg of biochar per meter.
8-12 hours to complete cycle and quench finished biochar.
Construction Calendar Biochar Kiln:
May 27th- June 5th: Frame metal cutting and assembly
June 4th - June 10th: Exhaust and Flare assembly
June 11th - June 15th: Assembly of Final Unit
Project Site: Estación Biológica Villa Carmen
Site Overview
Kosñipata Valley context
Preinca Matsigenka and Karakmbut, Inca colonization and coca farms, European rubber barons in the 19th century, sugar haciendas, 1955 completion of road to Pilcopata, Velasco's agrarian land reform (1969), timber boom, present day pineapple, rice, plantain and yuca production, some wild bamboo harvested for Cusco construction, ecotourism to Manu and elsewhere, future completion of road improvements and connection to national electric grid.
Experiments at VC
-Effects of different biochar application rates on agronomic efficiency, net primary productivity, and chemical composition of annual crops (yuca, corn), perennial crops, and bamboo plantation
-Potential to add value to raw biochar through microbial inoculation, nutrient impregnation, aging with compost.
-Other uses of bamboo biochar: filtration and wastewater treatment, animal feed supplement, tree nursery potting mix, substrate for hydroponics.
Other Experiments
Manuani Restoration Forestry
Ochroma, Schizolobium, Erythrina, etc
Potential to Prevent Entry of Mercury into Aquatic food chain
China Research Trip
Chinese Tea plantations and factory
Potential application of Chinese biochar.
Conventional Chinese Charcoal production
Drying Equipment Factory
Sample machine at appropriate scale for Peru pilot
Industrial system for Korean swine mortality
Biochar and Bamboo Vinegar
agricultural applications
reclamation of contaminated crop lands (cadmium, selenium, mercury [unfettered coal])
avoided burning of rice straw in an already unsafe particulate matter air quality
Biochar Plastics
for conventional plastics and agricultural mulch
Bamboo
Management and yields
Lianyungang Renewable Energy Research Center
Fluidized bed continuous flow pyrolysis reactor
Coal gasification
Food
Potential application of Chinese biochar.
Conventional Chinese Charcoal production
Drying Equipment Factory
Sample machine at appropriate scale for Peru pilot
Industrial system for Korean swine mortality
Biochar and Bamboo Vinegar
agricultural applications
reclamation of contaminated crop lands (cadmium, selenium, mercury [unfettered coal])
avoided burning of rice straw in an already unsafe particulate matter air quality
Biochar Plastics
for conventional plastics and agricultural mulch
Bamboo
Management and yields
Lianyungang Renewable Energy Research Center
Fluidized bed continuous flow pyrolysis reactor
Coal gasification
Food
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