The Minneapolis journal., 1903-04-10
INVESTORS ASK WHY BIG BRQUEIE BIZ QUESTION OF DUTY
Northwestern Conditions Favor Es-.
tablishment of Industry Like
r. That in Germany. -
VIM. de la Barre in Germany Study
ing Processes-North Dakota
Ignite Is 0. K. i

Conditions favor the early development
of great Ignite briquette manufacture
ing business in the northwest in the near
future. The use Of such fuel has become
common in Germany, where the industry
has reached vast proportions. Advance
sheets of the consular reports mention the
presence of William de Ia Barre of the
Minneapolis Water Power company as
visitor in Germany, there to study the
briquette- making business. Mr.. de la Barre
was sent by General w. D. Washburn,
who is so largely interested in the Ignite
fields of North Dakota, to study
processes with a view to establishing a
factory in the northwest. In North Da-
kota and Montana there is layer OF Ignite
55, 900 square miles in extent and from
20 to 80 feet thick, and Germany has pro-
nounced the quality Of the best for bri-
quoting. Here is what the consular. re
ports say of tests made with it:
Leaves Little Ash. 80 s-..
"The Dakota Ignite is old and hard.
contains SO per cent Of water, but crushes
and pulverizes easily and forms. without
binder briquettes Of firm structure which
burn readily, are practically smoleless,
and leave only per cent of ash, While
the best German brown-coal brlquettes
yield from to II per cent of inorganic
residue The percentage of water con-
tanned is rather low, but by adapting the
! heating -drying process to that proportion
| of moisture, this obstacle, such as 1t is.
can be easily met: and the reduced task as'S
of evaporation will be an economy IN the
general process" .s.-.-., 3 -.
A typical German plant not far from
Berlin turns out daily from 500 to 500 tons
| of briquettes which sell on the cars at: the
factory for from .66 to $2.14 per ton
| Brown coal briquette companies IN Ger
many pay dividends of from 10 to ~ pei
| cent. = .-.- ~ go.
With such profits in the industry, and
the vast supplies of Ignite in the north
west including the beds in North Dakota
Montana, and some in Iowa, the north
| west will doubtless soon see the develop
ment of the business. The fact tina
briquettes make an almost smokeless fue
will also add to their popularity ~
.. An Interesting Process.
The process of manufacture is interest
ing Lignite containing less than 80 pc
cent of water is difficult to handle. Th'
part played by the water containedSin. lig
mite forms the key to the whole economic
) briuuetting process. The crude brown
coal is brought from the mine, crushed
and pulverized, and then run through
large revolving tubular cylinder, heated b,
l. exhaust steam from the driving engine
and hung on an inclined plane so that tn
: powdered material runs downward thr'
the tubes by gravity and is carried INT
the machine press that stamps 1T into tn
briquettes. During this passage thru tn
cylinder, it is dried and heated unit
there remains the right proportion Q
moisture, combined with the proper tenn
perature to develop the latent bitumen i
, the Ignite and make the powdered mas
plastic and easy to, mold under heavy pres
sure between heated iron jaws into a hare
clean briquette, with a glistening surfac
t,,, ioiN firm NJ St11JPtl1ra +
stand weather, transportation and othe
contingencies. To do this perfectly an
economically the natural Ignite shout
contain, as it comes from the mine, ar
proxinlately enough water so that heatin
to the proper temperature for pressing wi
to evaporate out just enough water t
;, leave it at the proper degree Of moistur