By Declan Alcock | Director EWB-Ireland
At our last project update we had completed fabrication of 30 units, transferred them to our partner Sanakriri Farms & Reaearch Centre, and held the first of a series of workshops with the local farming community. Since then we have been busy preparing for the next phase of the project, a few key activities are as follows;
Our partners plan to hold a follow-up workshop to collect feedback on the previous stage of the project, this will help with qualitative data collection, social impact, and impact evaluation of the project. For the upcoming field ytrials during the growing season we plan to evaluate the soil nutrients and the yieldusing onion or garlic as fast-growing crops for the analysis, potentially carrying out the analysis in a greenhouse to provide a controlled environment and to quantify the correct mix og biochar and soil before moving to outdoor trials. We will also carry out control samples in Ireland, to compare results with the ones in Nepal.
As part of further evaluation of the kiln we have held meetings with TU Dublin and Kathmandu University to assess the biochar quality, breaking down its composition, the calorific value, and the emissions produced (to assess the possibility of using it indoors) including a heavy metal analysis. It os planned to carry out this analysis in Kathmandu University with TU Dublin providing a scope of what is required.
Our partners have also identofoed fiurther extensions of the project beyond the Kathmandu Valley into the Himalayan foothills and using the kiln as a heating source during the winter season. At the moment, after burning, the heat dissipates for around 2.5 hours so this has potential as a dual purpose unit. This type of heating source is embedded already in Nepali culture so we are considering two different kiln designs; one very efficient for biochar, and one less efficient for biochar but that could be used as a heating source, using stones or other materials to provide thermal mass and retain the heat longer. We also want to assess the lifespan of the kilns which we estimate at 1.5 - 2 years if rust is avoided.
Thats all for now, we hope to have exciting progress at out next update.
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