ISSN 0104-7760

v.26 n.1 2020 CERNE

Ivanildo da Silva dos Santos1a, Marcio Arêdes Martins2a+, Emanuele Graciosa Pereira2b,
Angélica de Cássia Oliveira Carneiro2c

PHYSICAL AND THERMAL PROPERTIES OF EUCALYPTUS WOOD

CHARCOAL.

SANTOS, I. S.; MARTINS, M. A.; PEREIRA, E. G.; CARNEIRO, A. C. O. Physical and

thermal properties of eucalyptus wood charcoal. CERNE, v. 26, n. 1, p.109-117, 2020.

HIGHLIGHTS

Keywords: The value of thermal conductivity obtained was 0.030 ± 0.0027 W.m-1.K-1.
Kiln
Porosity The specific heat was 1017 ± 74 J.kg-1.K-1.
Pressure drop
Specific heat The apparent and bulk densities were measured as 344.6 ± 17.6 and 155.3 ± 4.1 kg.m-3,
Thermal conductivity respectively.

The pressure gradient equations of Hunter, Shedd, and Hukill and Ives can model the static
pressure drop across the charcoal bed.

ABSTRACT

Historic: The knowledge of the physical and thermal properties of eucalyptus charcoal is of
Received 05/12/2019 fundamental importance in the design of equipment and development of cooling
Accepted 19/02/2020 technologies. However, literature about physical properties for eucalyptus wood charcoal
is largely unavailable, especially the thermal and aerodynamic properties, for the same
material. The aim of this study was to evaluate the physical properties of eucalyptus
charcoal: apparent and bulk density, pressure drop, porosity, thermal conductivity and
specific heat to support the design of production and cooling systems using heat exchangers.
It was found that the pressure drop could be expressed according Forchheimer’s law
and logarithmical empirical models, resulting in R2 above 0.95. The apparent and bulk
densities were measured as 344.6 ± 17.6 and 155.3 ± 4.1 kg.m-3, respectively, and the
charcoal porosity was 54.8 ± 2%. In the investigation of flow in porous charcoal media,
the pressure gradient is proportional to the increase of the superficial airflow velocity and
is dependent on the charcoal bed height for low airflows and lower bed heights. However,
the gradient was independent of bed height on all tests with columns larger or equal to
+
Correspondence: 0.80 m. The thermal conductivity and specific heat were 0.030 ± 0.0027 W m-1.K-1 and
aredes@ufv.br 1017 ± 74 J.kg-1.K-1, respectively.

1
Instituto Federal de Mato Grosso, Santo Antonio do Leverger, Mato Grosso, Brazil - ORCID: 0000-0002-0303-
2724a
DOI: 2
Federal University of Viçosa, Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Brazil- ORCID: 0000-0001-5705-9431a, 0000-0002-2642-
10.1590/01047760202026012699 312Xb, 0000-0003-0530-6757c

109
PHYSICAL AND THERMAL PROPERTIES OF EUCALYPTUS WOOD CHARCOAL CERNE
INTRODUCTION which evaluated the pressure drop, apparent and bulk
densities, porosity, specific heat, and thermal conductivity
The low energy potential of the Brazilian mineral
of charcoal. The use of transient method for determining
coal, associated with its high import price and transport,
thermal conductivity and a detailed investigation of head
and recent concerns over CO2 emissions from the use
loss models for charcoal bed in a representative range of
of non-renewable fuels, have driven the Brazilian steel
industrial processes are noteworthy for this study.
industry to use charcoal as the main bio-reducer in the
production of alloys, pig iron, and steel (Pinto et al.,
MATERIALS AND METHODS
2018; Mousa et al., 2016). Thus, the high demand for
charcoal from planted forests has driven producers to Charcoal obtained from pyrolysis of eucalyptus
use modern techniques of production (Pereira et al., wood (Eucalyptus grandis) was produced in a brick kiln
2017; Leme et al., 2013). Among these techniques, we (10 wood stereos capacity) with internal dimensions of
highlight the kilns equipped with thermometry, heat 2.3 m long, 1.6 m wide, and 2.0 m tall (height) with a
exchangers for charcoal cooling, gas burners (Cardoso 0.5 m arrow at the top. The timber samples were 2.10
et al., 2010; Carneiro et al., 2018), and wood dryers m long, 8 to 25 cm in diameter, and presented water
(Bustos-Vanegas et al., 2018; Rodrigues e Junior, 2019; content ranging from 27 to 38% d.w. (dry weight).
Vilela et al., 2014; Miranda et al., 2013; Oliveira et
al., 2013). Such techniques have been occurring with
Carbonization conditions
planning, enabling gains in charcoal productivity (Pereira In order to evaluate the physical characteristics of
et al., 2017). The artificial charcoal cooling is a promising charcoal used in blast furnaces, the pyrolysis conditions
technology in order to reduce the time of cooling in kiln (Table 1) were similar to those used in the kilns of the
systems (Oliveira et al., 2015; Bustos-Vanegas et al., large charcoal producers (Figueiró et al., 2019).
2019). Therefore, the physical properties of pressure TABLE 1 Carbonization conditions.
drop, apparent and bulk densities, porosity, thermal Parameter Values
Wood moisture content (% d.b.) 27 - 38 %
conductivity, and specific heat of the charcoal are Wood density (kg m-3) 490
essential to design cooling equipment. Carbonization time (h) 70
Heating rate (oC h-1) 6.43
To determine the specific heat of granular Initial temperature (oC) 150
Final temperature (oC) 450
materials, many researchers use the method of mixtures
for its versatility and effectiveness (Ramaswamy et al., Porosity, apparent and bulk densities of the
2003), relating the specific heat of some agricultural eucalyptus charcoal
products to moisture (Bitra et al., 2010; Kocabiyik et
al., 2009; Aremu and Fadele, 2010) to the temperature, The direct method for determining the porosity
and to humidity and temperature (Aviara et al., 2011). of a granular mass consists of adding a fluid to the porous
There are numerous techniques for determining mass contained in a known volume container. The volume
the thermal conductivity of materials when their of fluid added indicates the same volume occupied by the
measurements are based on steady state, semi-steady intergranular space.
state, or transient conditions (Santos et al., 2010; Yyu A cubic container with 60 cm edges (0.216 m³
et al., 2015). The stationary method stands out over capacity) was used to determine the bulk density of the
others due to its simplicity and high degree of control charcoal according to the ABNT NBR 6922 standard
for the experimental variables, generating very precise (1981). The mass corresponding to the total filling of the
results. The disadvantage of this method refers to container by charcoal was measured in three replications.
long observation time to reach steady state (Sadeghi, The bulk density was then determined using the ratio of
2012), and depending on the material may change its the charcoal mass over the total volume of the container.
composition like in the case of charcoal. The apparent density was determined according
However, there is no recent unified information to the ABNT NBR 9165 standard (1985) through fluid
available in literature on the physical properties of displacement (Equation 1). The assay was determined at
charcoal produced from eucalyptus wood, constituting 25 °C using three replicates. Where ρa is the apparent
a scientific and technical obstacle for the design of density (kg.m-3); mi is the charcoal sample initial mass
industrial equipment used in the carbonization and post- (kg); mf is the charcoal sample final mass (kg); ρw is the
processing of charcoal. The absence of a set of physical water density at 25 ºC (kg.m-3), and Vw is the displaced
properties justifies the general objective of this research, volume of water (m3).

SANTOS et al 110
PHYSICAL AND THERMAL PROPERTIES OF EUCALYPTUS WOOD CHARCOAL CERNE

[1] [4]

The intergranular porosity (ε) of the charcoal bed [5]

is defined as the ratio of empty volume over the total
volume. This property was determined indirectly from It is important to remark that some pressure drop
the apparent (ρa) and bulk density (ρ): models consider the superficial airflow velocity (i.e.,
Darcy velocity or volumetric flux density), defined by the
[2] ratio between the airflow rate and the area of ​​the cross
section of the bed. However, pressure drop models
Pressure drop like Ergun (1952) and Massarani (2002) use the intrinsic
average velocity (i.e. the velocity of the interstitial flow),
A volume of 0.432 m3 charcoal with 5% water
defined by the ratio between the superficial velocity and
content (d.b.) with granulometry ranging from 6.35 mm
the porosity of the charcoal bed (ε).
to 150 mm was used for the determination of the static
pressure drop. The charcoal was randomly arranged in Specific heat
the measuring chamber (Figure 1) to reach a height of
1.20 m. The pressure drop in the bed was measured In determining the specific heat, it was used an
every 0.2 m using, as reference, the static pressure in adiabatic calorimeter (ID 6.5 cm and 12.4 cm high).
the plenum chamber for air flows of 0.15, 0.22, 0.27, The calorimeter consists of a PVC cylinder containing,
0.31, 0.34 m-3.s-1 m-2, which are values ​​that match the inside, a thermally insulated aluminum reservoir with
flow rates employed for convective cooling of charcoal in polystyrene. The calorimeter was placed on a magnetic
the industry. Assays were performed in three replicates. stirring plate to promote agitation of the working fluid
(water). The temperature inside the calorimeter was
measured by Type K thermocouples that were previously
calibrated and connected to a digital thermometer
(Instrutherm, TH- O96, Brazil). Charcoal samples were
reduced and sieved. It was used the retained materials
between ½ and ¼ mesh sieves (12.7 and 6.35 mm
apertures, respectively). The use of charcoal with such
FIGURE 1 Apparatus for determining the pressure drop: (1) particle sizes provided adequate heat exchange between
measuring chamber (1.20 m height and transverse area the particles and water.
of 0.60x0.60 m2); (2) static pressure measurement
points, spaced 0.20m vertically apart; (3) plenum
The heat capacity of the calorimeter (Cc) was
chamber (0.3 m in height and transverse area of determined by adding 100g of deionized water at 25°C to
0,7x0,7 m2); (4) inlet tube (3.00 m long and 0.20 m the calorimeter. Then, 100g of deionized water at 70°C was
internal diameter); (5) orifice plate to measure the added to the calorimeter and the system was kept under
airflow, (6) centrifugal fan (2 hp and 1710 rpm); (7) agitation of 60 rpm until thermal equilibrium was reached.
frequency inverter (WEG CFW 10, Brazil) for airflow
The heat capacity of the calorimeter was determined
control; (8) micromanometer with accuracy of ± 0.1
mmca (Instrutherm, MPD- 79, Brazil). according to Ramaswamy et al. (2003), where Cc is the heat
capacity of the calorimeter (kJ.K-1); cw is the specific heat of
The experimental measurements of airflow and water (kJ.kg-1.K-1); mhw is the mass of hot water (kg); mcw is the
pressure drop, expressed as a pressure gradient, were mass of cold water (kg); Teq is the equilibrium temperature
compared with the values ​​estimated from models of (°C); Tcw is the cold water temperature (°C), and Thw is the
Shedd (1951), Hukil and Ives (1955) and Hunter (1983), hot water temperature (°C).
as described in Equations 3, 4 e 5, respectively. To adjust
[6]
the mathematical models, non-linear regression analysis
was performed, where Q” is the airflow rate (m3.s-1.m-2); To determine the specific heat of the charcoal,
a, b are constants; is the pressure drop per unit 125 g of deionized water at 25°C was added in the
depth (Pa.m-1); V is the airflow rate (m3.s-1.m-2). calorimeter. Subsequently, 25 g of charcoal at 70 °C was
[3] added to the calorimeter, and the mixture temperature
was measured until thermal equilibrium was reached.

SANTOS et al 111
PHYSICAL AND THERMAL PROPERTIES OF EUCALYPTUS WOOD CHARCOAL CERNE
Similar to determination of the heat capacity of the
calorimeter, the specific heat of the charcoal was
calculated as, where cp is the specific heat of charcoal
(J.kg-1.K-1); mp is the mass of charcoal (kg), and Tp is the
initial temperature of charcoal (°C).

[7]

Because of the natural variability of particle size

charcoal, assays were performed in 10 replicates.

Thermal conductivity
Due to low mechanical strength and geometry of
charcoal samples, various methodologies for determining FIGURE 2 Scheme of the experimental setup with data acquisition
the thermal conductivity are difficult to apply. Transient system for determining thermal conductivity.
methods that consider the semi-infinite solid have been
data acquisition system. Data received by the modules
used in the experimental determination of the thermal
was stored on the computer in one-minute intervals.
conductivity (Kwon and Lee, 2012; Zárate et al., 2010;
A determining factor in transient techniques is
Mustafa et al., 2014). In the one-dimensional transient
choice of the temperature analysis interval. The data
heat conduction approach, the semi-infinite solid
must be registered before heat flux occurs between
condition (Equation 8) is valid during the initial instants
the sample and the medium at the opposite side of the
of heating one side of the solid matrix. In this condition,
heating surface, which validates the use of the Equation
the surface opposite to the heated surface is considered
8. This time period setting was carried out following the
adiabatic and the temperature distribution can be considerations made ​​by Santos (2002). Since the heating
written as, where erf(x) is the gauss error function; T(x,t) source has a defined thermal capacity and a contact
is the temperature at given time (ºC); Ts is the surface resistance exists between the source and the sample, the
temperature (ºC); Ti is the initial point temperature (ºC); initial change in temperatures with the logarithmic time
φ (x,t) is the dimensionless temperature; α is the thermal scale is not linear. Therefore, this data range should not
diffusivity of charcoal (m2.s-1); and t is time (s). be considered in the calculation of thermal conductivity.
The latter heating period should also be disregarded
[8] because linearity losses are observed for the temperature
distribution in log scale, due to the heat transfer between
The experiment was performed with three the sample end and surroundings. This problem also
cylindrical samples 70 mm long and 35.5 mm in diameter. mischaracterizes the semi-infinite approach (Equation
The samples were placed on a plate maintained at 8) and therefore only the linear periods of temperature
constant temperature (Figure 2). The cylindrical surface variation with time on log scale are used to determine
of the charcoal was isolated and the temperature was the thermal conductivity.
measured with sensors positioned 10 mm from the
heated surface. The tests were performed using three RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
heating temperatures (37.8 °C, 44.9 ºC, and 48.3 ºC)
and three samples, totaling 9 sampling units.
Porosity, pressure drop, and apparent and bulk
To compare the means, the Tukey test was used
densities
at a 95% significance level. The mathematical model
(Equation 8) was adjusted to the thermal conductivity The apparent density of the charcoal was found
data by means of regression analysis. to be 344.6 ± 17.6 kg m-3. This value was lower than
The temperature data acquisition system is what was indicated by Santos et al. (2011), who found
composed of four T-type thermocouples, three serial density values above
​​ 400 kg m-3. However, this density
data acquisition modules (LR7018, LRCOM), a converter parameter is strongly related to the density of the
module RS232 to RS485 to two wires (LR7520, LRCOM), carbonized wood, which in this experiment was 490
and a computer. A computer program implemented on kg m-3, lower than the values ​​reported by Santos et al.
the platform C++ Builder (version 6.0) managed the (2011) for carbonization. Pereira et al. (2016) measured

SANTOS et al 112
PHYSICAL AND THERMAL PROPERTIES OF EUCALYPTUS WOOD CHARCOAL CERNE
average apparent densities of 405 kg m-3 for the charcoal
from Eucalyptus urophylla clones and average 361 kg m-3
for charcoal from Eucalyptus camaldulensis clones.
The bulk density of charcoal was found to be 155.3
± 4.1 kg.m-3. This value was also lower than that found
by Santos et al. (2011), who measured the bulk density
of charcoal for use in steelmaking to be up to 200 kg.m-3.
Porosity of the charcoal calculated from the
apparent and bulk densities was found to be 54.8 ±
2.7. Variations of porosity and density are acceptable
since these properties depend strongly on the density
of the wood used and pyrolysis operation conditions.
In some porous media models (Ergun, 1952; Massarani,
2002), the intergranular porosity is used explicitly,
which demonstrates the importance of its experimental
determination. Lower porosity values ​​result in greater
speed for the intergranular flow and consequently larger
pressure drop (Gratão et al., 2013).
In the investigation of flow in porous charcoal
media, the pressure gradient is proportional to the
increase of the superficial airflow velocity (Table 2)
and it is a property that indicates the magnitude of the
pressure drop of the fluid flow across a porous medium.
The pressure gradient is dependent on the charcoal bed
height for low airflows and lower bed heights. However,
the gradient was independent of bed height on all tests
with columns larger or equal to 0.80 m. FIGURE 3 Effect of the charcoal bed height in the adjustment
TABLE 2 Effect of airflow and bed height on the pressure to the model of (a) Shedd (1951), (b) Hukill and Ives
gradient for charcoal porous medium. (1955), and (c) Hunter (1983) to experimental data of
Pressure gradient (Pa.m-1) pressure gradient as a function of airflow speed.
Bed height (m) superficial airflow velocity (m3.s-1.m-2)
0.15 0.22 0.27 0.31 0.34 tortuosity values a​​ nd local porosity are more pronounced
0.20 4.90Be 14.71Ad 26.15Ac 31.05Ab 39.22Aa for smaller bed heights. With increasing height, these
0.40 7.35ABe 19.61Ad 25.33Ac 35.96Ab 43.31Aa
0.60 9.26ABe 19.61Ad 28.33Ac 34.87Ab 43.58Aa differences decrease, making the charcoal porous
0.80 11.44Ae 20.02Ad 29.42Ac 38.00Ab 46.17Aa
1.00 12.09Ae 19.94Ad 29.09Ac 38.90Ab 47.72Aa medium isotropic.
1.20 11.71Ae 21.52Ad 31.05Ac 40.04Ab 49.03Aa Considering all experimental measurements
Pressure gradient mean values followed by the same capital letters between rows
(bedheight) and lower among columns (airflow) do not differ at 95 % probability
above 0.8 m, the model parameters shown in Table 3 can
by Tukey test. be estimated based on both specific and intrinsic velocity.
The effect of the porous medium thickness in TABLE 3 Model adjustments for pressure gradient for charcoal
the pressure gradient can also be used to verify the porous media.
Parameter
adjustments of Shedd (1951), Hukil and Ives (1955) and Model Velocity
a b
R2
Hunter (1983) models to the experimental data (Figure Superficial 1.861 0.561 0.997
Shedd (1951) Interstitial 4.307 0.561 0.997
3). Regardless of the model, the quality of adjustment Hukil and Ives (1955) Superficial 0.606 11.487 0.997
Interstitial 0.182 6.273 0.997
improves with increasing height. Thus, experimental Superficial 21.58 343.65 0.998
Hunter (1983)
measurements using deeper charcoal beds provide Interstitial 11.81 103.25 0.998
better model adjustment. In cooling a bed inside a charcoal production kiln,
From the model adjustments shown in Figure the models written in terms of interstitial velocity are
3, the pressure gradient for the charcoal should be more suitable in the design of cooling systems since the
measured in fixed beds at heights of at least one meter. interstitial velocity that percolates the charcoal particles
As the charcoal pieces has a high average diameter (6.07 is the limiting factor in the cooling process (Table 3).
± 2.54) in relation to the bed height, differences in This is because the convective coefficient in the porous

SANTOS et al 113
PHYSICAL AND THERMAL PROPERTIES OF EUCALYPTUS WOOD CHARCOAL CERNE
medium is a function of the Reynolds number based on
the diameter of the particle (Hermansson and Thunman,
2011). The models using linear and quadratic coefficients
(Hunter 1983) are of direct implementation in simulation
programs for computational fluid mechanics (Table
3). This attribute the term of extra stress to the fluid
allowing the modeling of fluid flow in porous media.

Specific heat
The results found for the specific heat of eucalyptus
charcoal ranged from 891 to 1096 J.kg-1.K-1, obtaining an
average value 1017± 74 J.kg-1.K-1. The variability observed
in the value of specific heat is justified by the inherent
heterogeneity of charcoal samples produced in kilns. The
specific heat values ​​obtained were close to values ​​for
charcoal, as noted by Gupta et al. (2003) (768-1506 J.kg-
1. -1
K ), and Eltom and Sayigh (1994) (709 J.kg-1.K-1).
The thermo-physical properties of charcoal can
be compared to coal, an input that has a similar function
to charcoal in the pig iron production chain. Wen et al.
(2015) determined the thermal conductivity and specific
heat capacity for bituminous coal from 25 to 300°C. The
results ranged from 0.118 to 0.175 W.m-1. K-1 e 1025 to
2090 J.kg-1.K-1 for thermal conductivity and specific heat
capacity, respectively.
Specific heat is the amount of heat in kilojoules
required to change the temperature of 1 kg of material
by 1°C. The heat released to cool the charcoal can be
calculated based on the specific heat of the charcoal
and the change in temperature. The dimensioning and
construction of cooling systems has been taking place,
taking into account basically the amount of heat that is
desired to be removed from the kilns in an interval of
time that justifies its implementation.
Thermal properties of woody materials are often
influenced by various factors, such as the wood species,
density, moisture, and fiber orientation (Larfeldt et
al. 2000). The properties of wood charcoal are highly
dependent on the source and the process conditions during
the pyrolysis process. This fact justifies the variability in the
FIGURE 4 (a) Temperature distribution at 10 mm from the
specific heat values obtained in this research. surface heated to 37.8°C, as a function of time, and
model adjustments for samples (b) 1, (c) 2 and (d) 3.
Thermal conductivity
The semi-infinite solid model (Equation 8) was fit
Figure 4a shows that the temperature profiles are to the experimental data for dimensionless temperature
characteristic of the heating process. Initially, there is a (Figure 4b to 4d) with R2 values ​​higher than 0.97, using
period in which heat tends to break the contact resistance the thermal diffusivity as the adjustment parameter (Table
(detail, Figure 4a). Contact resistance occurs due to 4). Additional tests were conducted at temperatures of
the contact between the thermocouple and charcoal 44.9 and 48.3°C, performing respective adjustments to
interfaces which causes some resistance to heat transport. the model (Table 4).
After this period, there is a transient period followed by a The thermal conductivity is a characteristic
steady period with low temperature variation. parameter for measuring the ability of heat transfer.

SANTOS et al 114
PHYSICAL AND THERMAL PROPERTIES OF EUCALYPTUS WOOD CHARCOAL CERNE
TABLE 4 Summary of the regression analysis for the thermal conductivity (K) in the heated surface temperatures of 37.8, 44.9
and 48.3°C.
Temperature (ºC) 37.8 44.9 48.3
Sample 1 2 3 1 2 3 1 2 3
R2 0.990 0.994 0.997 0.999 0.997 0.979 0.998 0.999 0.986
Thermal condutivity
0.029 0.033 0.028 0.031 0.033 0.027 0.028 0.031 0.026
(W.m-1.K-1)
Standard Error 0.0005 0.0004 0.0002 0.0001 0.0003 0.0006 0.0002 0.0001 0.0005
T 59.0865 78.9470 137.7719 212.6646 121.7897 46.5795 131.5566 272.9937 54.6177
P <0.0001 <0.0001 <0.0001 <0.0001 <0.0001 <0.0001 <0.0001 <0.0001 <0.0001
VIF 1.0000 1.0000 1.0000 1.0000 1.0000 1.0000 1.0000 1.0000 1.0000

Most lignocellulosic material has a thermal conductivity distribution is likely to vary between samples. This leads
that increases with temperature; however, for surface to unavoidable uncertainties in modelling of the effective
temperatures used in this study (37.8°C, 44.9°C, and thermal conductivity and, as a consequence, difficulties
48.3°C) this effect was not observed due to slight in determining the thermal conductivity and specific heat
variation between the surface temperatures at the 5%
(Larfeldt et al., 2000).
level of significance for the F test of variance analysis
The heat transfer properties of charcoal (thermal
(Table 5). Eltom and Sayigh (1994) found no relation
between conductivity and temperature increasing in the conductivity and specific heat) are important for
range 30 to 90°C. Higher temperatures can be evaluated, modelling of the pyrolysis of wood and the process of
but charcoal ignition must be considered. charcoal cooling, investigating the kinetics of the self-
TABLE 5 Thermal conductivity values charcoal for different heating phenomena due to charcoal oxidation (Bustos-
heating temperatures. Vanegas et al., 2019); and understanding heat transfer
Sample Thermal conductivity (W.m-1.K-1) and its inertia in the structural components of the kiln
37.8ºC 44.9ºC 48.3ºC Average
1 0.030±0.0005 0.031±0.0001 0.028±0.0002 0.030ab (Bustos-Vanegas et al., 2018).
2 0.033±0.0004 0.034±0.0003 0.032±0.0001 0.033a
3 0.029±0.0002 0.027±0.0006 0.026±0.0005 0.027b In this context, advanced computer modeling
Mean values of thermal conductivity, followed by the same letter in the column, and simulation techniques can assist in the development
do not differ by Tukey test at 95 % probability.
of new methodology for cooling of charcoal, system
The average thermal conductivity values (Table
​​ performance evaluation, determination of the viability of
5), independent of temperature, showed a significant its commercial application and process optimization.
difference between the charcoal samples. This is
due to the anisotropic structure of charcoal, which is
CONCLUDING REMARKS
characterized by internal cracks in the samples. Since
the thermal conductivity variation with temperature was The models of Hunter, Shedd, and Hukill and Ives
not significant in the tested range, the average value was can also be used for modelling the dependency of the static
0.030 ± 0.0027 W.m-1.K-1, considering the average values pressure drop with the airflow velocity across the charcoal
presented in Table 4. It is noted that these results lie bed, and they are valid for beds deeper than 0.8 m.
within the range of values published
​​ (Gupta, 2003; Eltom
The apparent and bulk densities are in the
and Sayigh, 1994). Eltom and Sayigh (1994) found that
required range for steelmaking using; The porosity and
thermal conductivity values ranged
​​ from 0.025 to 0.09
W.m-1.K-1 in a temperature range from 30 to 90°C for specific surface area for the charcoal showed good
charcoal. Gupta et al. (2003) obtained values of 0.0946 characteristics and little variation.
W.m-1.K-1 at a temperature of 35°C for charcoal particles The calorimeter mixing method can be used
from low density wood. It is noteworthy that the above to measure the specific heat of the eucalyptus wood
authors did not describe what kind of wood was used for charcoal since the variations between the samples were
carbonization tests. small. The semi-infinite solid approach can be used for
Thermal conductivity of materials is a function charcoal thermal conductivity determination, since
of the solid fraction composition and its microstructure good agreement to experimental data were verified.
(Vivaldini et al., 2014). The structure of charcoal is The importance of evaluating the time interval is also
partly the result of the wood structure and partly of
highlighted, in which the model is also valid. The joint
the structural changes during pyrolysis, which in turn
depends on main parameters of the carbonization, determination of pressure gradient model, apparent and
such as temperature, heating rate, carbonization time bulk densities, porosity and surface area, specific heat,
and pressure. It is therefore difficult to predict the and thermal conductivity for the same batch of charcoal
structural changes during pyrolysis, and the pore size allows the studies of fluid flow, heat and mass transfer

SANTOS et al 115
PHYSICAL AND THERMAL PROPERTIES OF EUCALYPTUS WOOD CHARCOAL CERNE
in porous media for many industrial applications such as GRATÃO, P. T. DA S. et al. Perda de pressão estática em
cooling, carbonization, power and heat generation. uma coluna de grãos de quinoa. Revista Brasileira de
Engenharia Agrícola e Ambiental, v. 17, 2013.
REFERENCES GUPTA, M.; YANG, J.; ROY, C. Specific heat and thermal
AREMU, A. K.; FADELE, O. K. Moisture Dependent Thermal conductivity of softwood bark and softwood char particles.
Properties of Doum Palm Fruit (Hyphaene Thebaica). Fuel, v. 82, p. 919-927, 2003.
Journal of Emerging Trends in Engineering and
Applied Sciences, v. 1, n. 2, p. 199 – 204, 2010. HERMANSSON, S.; THUNMAN, H. CFD modelling of
bed shrinkage and channelling in fixed-bed combustion.
ASSOCIAÇÃO BRASILEIRA DE NORMAS TÉCNICAS - ABNT. Combustion and Flame, v. 158, p. 988-999, 2011.
NBR 9165: Carvão vegetal: Determinação da densidade
relativa aparente, relativa verdadeira e porosidade - HUKILL, W. V.; IVES, N. C. Radial air flow resistance of grain.
Método de ensaio. Rio de Janeiro, 1985. Agricultural Engineering, v. 36, p. 332-5, 1955.

ASSOCIAÇÃO BRASILEIRA DE NORMAS TÉCNICAS - ABNT. HUNTER, A. J. Pressure difference across an aerated seed bulk
NBR 6922: Carvão vegetal: determinação da massa for some common duct and store cross sections. Journal of
específica (densidade a granel). Rio de Janeiro, 1981. 2 p. Agricultural Engineering Research, v. 28, p. 437-50, 1983.

AVIARA, N. A.; EHIABHI, S. E.; AJIBOLA, O. O.; ONI, S. A.; KOCABIYIK, H.; KAYISOGLU, B.; TEZER, D. Effect of
POWER, P. P.; ABBAS, T.; ONUH, O. A. Effects of moisture moisture content on thermal properties of pumpkin seed.
content and temperature on the specific heat of soya International Journal of Food Properties, v. 12, n. 2, p.
bean, Moringa oleifera seed and Mucuna flagellipes nut. 277-285, 2009.
International Journal of Agricultural and Biological
Engineering, v. 4, n. 1, p. 87-92, 2011. KWON, S. Y.; LEE, S. Precise measurement of thermal
conductivity of liquid over a wide temperature range using
BITRA, V. S. P.; BANU, S.; RAMKRISHNA, P.; NARENDER, G.; a transient hot-wire technique by uncertainty analysis.
WOMAC, A. R. Moisture dependent thermal properties of Thermochimica Acta, v. 542, p. 18– 23, 2012.
peanut pods, kernels, and shells. Biosystems Engineering,
v. 106, p. 503-512, 2010. LARFELDT, J.; LECKNER, B.; MELAAEN, M. C. Modelling and
measurements of heat transfer in charcoal from pyrolysis
BUSTOS-VANEGAS, J. D.; MARTINS, M. A.; CARNEIRO, A. C. of large wood particles. Biomass and Bioenergy, v. 79, p.
O.; FREITAS, A. G.; BARBOSA, R. C. Thermal inertia effects 1637-1643, 2000.
of the structural elements in heat losses during the charcoal
production in brick kilns. Fuel, v. 226, p. 508-515, 2018. LEME, M. M. V.; VENTURINI, O. J.; LORA, E. E. S, et al.
Electricity generation from pyrolysis gas produced in
BUSTOS-VANEGAS, J. D.; MARTINS, M. A.; FREITAS, A. G.; charcoal manufacture: Technical and economic analysis.
MELLMANN, J. Experimental characterization of self- Journal of Cleaner Production, v. 194, p. 219-242, 2018.
heating behavior of charcoal from eucalyptus wood. Fuel,
v. 15, p. 412-418, 2019.
MASSARANI, G. Fluidodinâmica em Sistemas Particulados.
E- Papers, 2002. 152p.
CARDOSO, M. T. et al. Construção de um sistema de queima
de gases da carbonização para redução da emissão de
MIRANDA, R. C.; BAILIS, R.; VILELA, A. O. Cogenerating
poluentes. Cerne, v. 16, p. 115-124, 2010.
electricity from charcoaling: A promising new advanced
technology. Energy for Sustainable Development, v.
CARNEIRO, A. DE C. O. et al. Monitoring of transportation
17, p.171-176, 2013.
network of carbonization gases in cogeneration projects.
Revista Arvore, v. 42, 2018. MOUSA E, WANG C, RIESBECK J, LARSSON M. Biomass
applications in iron and steel industry: An overview of
ELTOM, O. M. M.; SAYIGH, A. A. M. A simple method to challenges and opportunities. Renew Sustainable Energy
enhance thermal conductivity of charcoal using some Reviews, v. 65, p. 1247-1266, 2016.
additives. Renewable Energy, v. 4, p. 113-118, 1994.
MUSTAFA, M. T.; ARIF, A. F. M.; MASOOD, K. Approximate
ERGUN, S. Fluid flow through packed columns. Chemical analytic solutions of transient nonlinear heat conduction
Engineering Progress, v. 48, p. 89-94, 1952. with temperature-dependent thermal diffusivity. Abstr
Appl Anal., 2014.
FIGUEIRÓ, C. G.; CARNEIRO, A. C. O.; SANTOS, G. R. et
OLIVEIRA, A. C.; CARNEIRO, A. C. O.; BARCELLOS, D. C.;
al. Caracterização do carvão vegetal produzido em fornos
RODRIGUEZ, A. V.; AMARAL, B. M. N.; PEREIRA, B. L.
retangulares industriais. Revista Brasileira de Ciências C. Resfriamento artificial em fornos retangulares para a
Agrárias - Brazilian Journal of Agricultural Sciences, produção de carvão vegetal. Revista Árvore, v. 39, n. 4,
v.14, n.3, p. 56-59, 2019. p. 769-778, 2015.

SANTOS et al 116
PHYSICAL AND THERMAL PROPERTIES OF EUCALYPTUS WOOD CHARCOAL CERNE
OLIVEIRA AC, CARNEIRO A DE CO, PEREIRA BLC, et al. SANTOS, W. N. O método de fio quente: técnica em paralelo e
Otimização da produção do carvão vegetal por meio técnica de superfície. Cerâmica, v. 48, n. 306, p. 86-91, 2002.
do controle de temperaturas de carbonização. Revista
Árvore, v. 37, n. 3, p. 557-566, 2013. SANTOS W. N.; SANTOS J. N.; MUMMERY, P.; WALLWORK,
A. Thermal diffusivity of polymers by modified angström
RAMASWAMY, H.; RAGHAVAN, V.; CHAKRAVERTY, A.;
MUJUMDAR, A. Handbook of Postharvest Technology. method. Polymer Testing, v. 29, p. 107-112, 2010.
CRC Press, 2003. 912p.
SHEDD, C. K. Some new data on resistance of grains to air
PEREIRA, E. G.; MARTINS, M. A.; PECENKA, R.; CARNEIRO, flow. Agricultural Engineering, v. 32, p. 493-5, 1951.
A. D. C. O. Pyrolysis gases burners: Sustainability for
integrated production of charcoal, heat and electricity. VILELA, A. O.; LORA, E.S.; QUINTERO, Q. R.; VICINTIN, R.
Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, v. 75, p.
A.; SOUZA, T.P.S. A new technology for the combined
592-600, 2017.
production of charcoal and electricity through cogeneration.
PEREIRA, B. L. C.; CARVALHO, A. M. M. L.; OLIVEIRA, A. Biomass Bioenergy, v.69, pp. 222-240, 2014.
C.; SANTOS, L. C.; CARNEIRO, A. C. O.; MAGALHÃES,
M. A. Efeito da carbonização da madeira na estrutura VIVALDINI, D. O. et al. Revisão: Fundamentos e materiais
anatômica e densidade do carvão vegetal de eucalyptus. para o projeto da microestrutura de isolantes térmicos
Ciência Florestal, v. 26, n. 2, p. 545-557, 2016.
refratários de alto desempenho. Ceramica, v. 60, n. 354,
PINTO, R. G. D.; SZKLO, A. S.; RATHMANN, R. CO2 p. 297–309, 2014.
emissions mitigation strategy in the Brazilian iron and steel
sector–From structural to intensity effects. Energy Policy, WEN, H. et al. Temperature dependence of thermal
v. 114, p. 380-393, 2018. conductivity, diffusion and specific heat capacity for coal
and rocks from coalfield. Thermochimica Acta, v. 619,
RODRIGUES, T.; BRAGHINI, JUNIOR, A. Charcoal: A
p. 41–47, 2015.
discussion on carbonization kilns. Journal of analytical
and applied pyrolysis , v. 143, p. 104670, 2019.
YU, D. U.; SHRESTHA, B. L.; BAIK, O. D. Thermal conductivity,
SADEGHI, A. Thermal conductivity of feed pellets. Journal specific heat, thermal diffusivity, and emissivity of stored
of Agricultural Science and Technology, v. 14, p. 975– canola seeds with their temperature and moisture content.
984, 2012. Journal of Food Engineering, v. 165, p. 156–165, 2015.

SANTOS, R. C.; CARNEIRO, A. C. O.; CASTRO, A. F. M. CASTRO;

ZÁRATE, J. M. O.; HITA, J. L.; KHAYET, M.; LEGIDO, J. L.
R. V. O.; BIANCHE, J. J.; SOUZA, M. M. S.; CARDOSO, M. T.
Correlações entre os parâmetros de qualidade da madeira e Measurement of the thermal conductivity of clays used
do carvão vegetal de clones de eucalipto. Scientia Forestalis. in pelotherapy by the multi-current hot-wire technique.
v. 39, n. 90, p. 221-230, 2011. Applied Clay Science, v. 50, p. 423–426, 2010.

SANTOS et al 117