The daily star-mirror. (Moscow, Idaho) 1911-1939, 1923-08-21
BY-PRODUCT COKE
ECONOMIC FUEL
BUREAU OF MINES GIVES INFOR-
NATION ON SATISFACTORY SUB
STITUTE FOR ANTHRACITE

Washington, d. Cat a time when
| thousands of householders are ponder
ing the problem of next winters fuel
supply, the department of the interior
calls attention to the results of tests
recently made by the bureau of mines
which demonstrate the high effici-
ency of by-prOduct coke Tests con-
Quoted by the bureau at its Pitts
burgh and Minneapolis experiment
stations with different types of steam
boilers suitable for heating seven or
eight-room houses recorded as high
efficiencies with by-product coke as
with anthracite. The efficiencies OBJ
tanned with Pittsburgh and Illinois
bituminous coal were s to 20 per
cent lower than those obtained with
coke.
The anthracite used in these tests
was a mixture of egg and nut sizes
and was considerably cleaner than
that ordinarily obtained in the Pitts
burgh market. The by-product coke
tested at Pittsburgh was of domestic
size, made from mixture of several
Goals from the Klondike' region near
that city The by-product coke tested
at Minneapolis was of domestic size
and made from eastern coal.
With the same attention to the fire,
the bureau of mines found that coke
gives much more uniform tempera-
ture than bituminous coal. In addf-
ton, coke is a clean fuel and makes
neither smoke nor SCOT, an advant-
age difficult to express in exact
figures. 1t is nearly as good a fuel
as the domestic sizes of anthracite,
and if anthracite is unavailable at
reasonable prices a by-product coke
makes good substitute.
Domestic fuel should preferably be
clean and smokeless, and should keep
he house at an even temperature,
With little attention to the fire. An
hracite suitably sized possesses these
to large degree and has
,een used for this purpose for a long
ime, particularly near the anthracite
mines. Many thickly populated dis
riots are so far from these mines,
lowever, that anthracite can be OBJ
aimed at high price, and the btu
ninous coal that is available is not
o clean and requires more frequent
ttention to the fire to maintain a
inform temperature. By-product
oke, in small sizes, is a good sub
titute for anthracite. AS it is made
rom bituminous coal, and the btu
linous coal beds are very extensive,
seems possible eventually to pro-
ide smokeless fuel in the form of by
roduct coke for practically the en-
re country.
By burning coke for domestic heat
lg, more soft coal will be used in
plants, which save many
aluable by-products that are wasted
hen the coal is used directly in the
lw state. The by-products of popu-
II interest obtained in the coking
rocess are gas, light oils, ammonia,
nd tar.
The following condensed instruc-
ons as to proper methods for the
lrning of coke in heating
luipment are given by the bureau
mines:
Carry deep bed of fuel; one
)out IS inches thick gives the best
suits
Use very little draft after the fire
started, and keep it always under
'ntrol. The success of even heat
6 depends on careful draft regula-
On.
Do not stir the fuel bed; clean the
re in the morning.
Use sized coke; half to two inches
r furnaces, boilers and stoves; half
4 inches for open CRATES.
Do not allow ash to accumulate in
e ash pit
The results of the foregoing tests
e given in technical paper BIS, by
enry Kreisinger, John BLIZZARD, H.
:. Jarrett, and J. J. McKitterick.
'pies of this paper and of technical
per 242, giving detailed instructions
to the use of coke for domestic
ating may be obtained from the de-
rtment of the interior, bureau of
mes, Washington, D. C.