Handbook
Agricultural and other products have been dried by the sun and wind in the open air for thousands of years. In industrialised regions and sectors, open air-drying has now been largely replaced by mechanised dryers, with boilers to heat incoming air, and fans to force it through at a high rate. Mechanised drying is faster than open-air drying and uses much less land giving a better quality...
Rice husks and other fine residues have historically been regarded as worthless wastes and disposed of by being burnt on site or flushed away into rivers. By converting them into a resource they become an asset rather than a liability. The major sources like rice-husk, sawdust, millet husk and peanut shells can often be burnt. Such residues are converted into briquettes. In some...
Liquid fossil fuels such as paraffin and fuel oil have been used for many years. Over the past decade, similar fuels made by processing plants, trees and organic waste products have become much more widely available. The rapid growth in the use of biofuels stems from the soaring price of fossil oil, growing concern over security of supply and the environmental impact of fossil fuels. This...
Mud stoves play an important role in improving the efficiency of household energy use in East Africa. The technology has been used for many decades in areas where fuel wood is scarce. For many years, metal or ceramic stoves have dominated the improved stove with little or no mention of the mud stove technology. This book is designed to add value to the mud stove technology and to recognise the...
Fish is the most important source of protein and accounts for 65 percent of the protein intake among Sri Lankan consumers. The demand for fish is increasing with the gradual increase of population. So, improving the local dry fish industry increases income mainly for the small scale coastal fishery communities of Sri Lanka.
Dry fish production mainly consists of micro level cottage...
The windpower technology dates back many centuries and primarily used for the milling of grain and water pumping. The technology was taken up and developed by the early pioneers or settlers for lifting ground water for irrigation, for watering of livestock and later for providing water for steam locomotives. Due to various advantages, the technology was taken up worldwide, especially in the...
The use of biogas for day-to-day activities is something that happens on a large scale worldwide. In countries like China and India the waste produced by large factories and households flats is being used to produce biogas. It has also helped to reduce environmental pollution. This document concentrates on small-scale domestic biogas digesters. The objective of the study is to build awareness...
The basic ingredient of bricks is clay. The clay must be plastic when mixed with water so it can be shaped. A ceramic bond should be formed when bricks are fired in a kiln or clamp. The bricks are heated at temperatures between 900 to 1,200°C to form bond which gives bricks strength and resistance to erosion by water. The low temperature results in a weak product and in high temperatures...
Every home in every country in the world uses some form of cooking equipment. Some people cook with electricity, while others use gas or kerosene. However, in about half of the world's homes, people use biomass fuels such as charcoal, wood, animal dung and agricultural waste such as maize cobs, coffee husks, crushed sugarcane stocks and rice husks. Thus, people who rely on biomass fuels are...
Nearly half the world cooks on three stone fires or rudimentary stoves. Indoor air pollution caused by burning biomass fuels such as wood and agricultural residues causes the deaths of more than 1.5 million people each year. The most vulnerable people are young children aged under five years particularly infants under six months of age. The people living a long way from towns or cities have no...
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