The Charvester (biochar producing tractor)



Goal: develop a mobile pyrolysis unit for production of biochar from waste organic material. By incorporating the biochar into soil, soil fertility and water holding capacity are improved and nutrient leaching reduced.

The aim is threefold: I.) mitigating high air CO2 levels II.) improve soil fertility III.) deliver energy to the agriculture and raw materials to the synthetic industry.

The ”heart” of the project is a ”charvester”, a mobile unit for pyrolysis (that is heating at restricted oxygen supply) of organic waste material in a closed system. Gases produced such as hydrogen, carbon oxide and methane will be collected and serve in the chemical industry as an energy source.


 * extensive project overview here
 * Project leader: Lars Hylander, Uppsala universitet
 * poster with illustrations: IBI Meeting, Rio 2010 (internal copy [[Media:CharvesterRioPoster.pdf|here]])