CARBON GOLD: FINDING A MARKET NICHE WITH A PILOT-SCALE BIOCHAR KILN

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Carbon Gold, a UK-based company, is working to fill what they see as a market demand for a small-scale transportable kiln that can utilize a variety of feedstocks. The company designed the unit based on the traditional ring kiln with additional adaptations that address issues of transportability and sustainability for pilot scale projects around the world. Now in its second iteration, the Superchar 100 kiln can produce up to 100 kgs of biochar per 8 hour carbonization cycle from a broad range of feedstocks from forestry and agricultural residue streams. The kiln can be transported from site to site on a small trailer. With feedstocks such as wood chips, rice husks, coffee husks, and other agricultural residues, users can utilize materials at hand.

Larger Systems and Biochar Sales
“Most interest for our kilns comes from individuals and organizations who want to build pilot-scale biochar systems and need an entry level unit that is transportable and processes a broad range of feedstocks,” says Simon Manley, Carbon Gold’s CEO. This entry-level unit size allows a project to investigate biochar production and utilization without a large financial investment. However, for projects in need of a larger unit, Carbon Gold has the Superchar 1000 which can process 3500 kgs of feedstock to produce 1000 kgs of biochar per 8 hour pyrolysis cycle. These larger scale systems can also be adapted to include heat capture for drying or electricity generation.

In addition to these systems, Carbon Gold is selling a biochar blend in the United Kingdom called GroChar both on the retail and commercial markets. Carbon Gold has initiated field trials at 27 organic gardens in the UK, and is now working with six of the UK’s largest vegetable producers who are interested in finding a replacement for their use of peat moss in agriculture. The growers are finding that biochar can be a much more sustainable substitute for peat moss and elicits many of the same agronomic benefits as peat moss.

Unit in operation (all photos courtesy of Carbon Gold).

The Superchar 100 packaged for shipping to Turkmenistan.

The Superchar 100 in transit.

Biochar from wood shavings.