The Honolulu republican. [volume] (Honolulu, T.H.) 1900-1902, 1900-07-31
OF INTEREST TO THE
sUGlR PLANTERS.
Further Reports on the
Use of Bagasse
as Fuel.
SOME EXPERIMENTS on HAWAII.
LOUISIANA PLANTER PLEADS
FOR THE DUTCH
OVEN.
Refined Sugar Reaches the Highest
Price IN Boston and New
York Known in
Ten Years

The use OF bagasse as fuel is reeeiy-
ing much attention in Louisiana, as
well as here in Hawaii. In the las;
number OF the Louisiana Planter
George Osborne of Kukaiau. Hawaii,
contributes the following interesting
account OF his experiments in burning
bagasse
Il send you herewith a rough sketch
Of what, after great deal Of expert
menting, l consider to be the best
method we have OF setting steam boil
ers in the sugar mills of the Islands, =
he writes. The boilers are set tan
dem. or one in front OF the other Tia
gases pass first under the bottom II
the two boilers and return through the
fiues and tubes of the boilers 10 he
smokestack. This method OF firing has
long been in use, and the difference in
this instance consists in building the
furnaces further out from the end OF
the boiler, so that the firing can he
done from the top of the furnace, in
stead OF the front. as is usually the
case.
These furnaces are usually made
about six feet ten inches by six feet,
ard are fitted with step-ladder and
horizontal CRATE bars. The step-ladder
bars are usually about six feet long.
and the horizontal or common CRATE
bars three feet long. In the bridge
wall six hot-air pipes are built.
These hot-air pipes are q great i'm
provement and increase, or improve.
the combustion wonderfully and to,
such an extent as to surprise many
engineers. Flues are also left on each
side OF the furnace, and they termi-
nate in the bridge wall / may say one
thing for these furnaces, which | can
say for no others that am acquainted
with Ii is that there is rarely any
smoke whatever issuing from the
smokestacks, and it is difficult for peo-
pie at distance to tell whether we
are working or moi.
An improvement is also found in
making the fame bed rather lower,
which gives more room for the flame
and gases TO combine. This style of
furnace may be far from perfect, but
it is an immense Improvement over the
old style and comes nearer satisfying
me than any boiler setting that
have had any experience with, except
ing water-tube boilers. Ia regard to
Arndt's patent automatic combustion
testing apparatus, | will say that it is
TO the furnace what the Indicator Is 20
the steam engine. and shows just as
plainly what is being done in the fur
mace as the indicator shows what is
being done in the engine. l think ii
will eventually be used as much. The
object of the machine is to show the
amount of carbon dioxide, or carbonic
acid gas in the flue gases, which is
everywhere regarded as the test OF
combustion. Only about 8 TO 10 per
cent CO could be got by the old meth
cd of firing. and it was only by the
experimenting with the air supply and
by different methods of firing that the
highest results were attained. When
the firing wss done automatically from
the top door. ana when the ash pit
door was nearly closed, and more fuel
was kept in the furnaces, the eeono-
meter shows the highest amount OF
co or carbonic acid gas.
we find. however, that different
boilers and different settings require
LT.Nv- n 10 a
furnaces require more air on top Of
the fuel, Others do not, and again,
while some need more air below the
furnaces, others require less. So, the
only way to determine what is needed
is to test them with such an apparatus.
i may say that formerly We were short
OF fuel, but since putting in this COM
bustion testing apparatus We have
more fuel. OF bagasse, than We can
use, notwithsta aiding we use 10 TO %
per cent mace alton.
A Louisiana planter. in writing on
the same subject. says: i have burnt
bagasse in my own furnace and / have
seen other furnaces burn IL, but the
hottest fires. to ali appearances. We're
in the Dutch-oven furnaces Where
the steam boilers are hung over the
bagasse fres they. 70 be sure, get the
direct heat, what there Is OF Il, but the
boilers in that proximity TO the fire
so chill the furnace that no great heat
can be generated. The white flames in
such a furnace look warm and genial,
but they are not hot They are cold
and moony as compared with the blue
flames, denotins the intense heat OF the
Dutch oven.
Give me a roomy Dutch oven. with
a blast forced through small tnyeres
to limit the volume OF air and increase
its intensity. The blue faames bore
holes into the glowing mass Of bagasse
and the friedrich Innings are white with
fsryent heat. This heat can then be led
TO the boilers near by. where 1t viii
make itself felt What though there
may be small amount OF bagasse in