Wood fuel

Wood burning is the largest current use of biomass derived energy. Wood can be used as a solid fuel for cooking or heating, or occasionally for steam engines.

Related Topics:
Biomass - Solid fuel - Cooking - Heating - Steam engine

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The use of wood as a fuel source for home heat is as old as civilization itself. Historically, it was limited in use only by the distribution of technology required to make a spark. Wood heat is still common throughout much of the world, although it has been mainly replaced with coal, oil or natural gas heating.

Related Topics:
Wood - Home heat

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Early examples include the use of wood heat in tents. Fires were constructed on the ground, and a smoke hole in the top of the tent allowed the smoke to escape by convection.

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In permanent structures, hearths were constructed -- surfaces of stone or another noncombustible material upon which a fire could be built. Smoke escaped through a smoke hole in the roof.

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The development of the chimney and the fireplace allowed for more effective exhaustion of the smoke.

Related Topics:
Chimney - Fireplace

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The stove was a technological development concurrent with the industrial revolution. Stoves were manufactured or constructed pieces of equipment that contained the fire on all sides and provided a means for controlling the draft - the amount of air allowed to reach the fire. Stoves have been made of a variety of materials. Cast iron is among the more common. Soapstone (talc), tile, and steel have all been used. Metal stoves are often lined with refractory materials such as firebrick, since the hottest part of a woodburning fire will burn away steel over the course of several years' use.

Related Topics:
Stove - Industrial revolution - Talc - Tile - Steel - Firebrick

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The Franklin stove was developed in the United States by Benjamin Franklin. More a manufactured fireplace than a stove, it had an open front and a heat exchanger in the back that was designed to draw air from the cellar and heat it before releasing it out the sides. The heat exchanger was never a popular feature and was omitted in later versions. So-called "Franklin" stoves today are made in a great variety of styles, though none resembles the original design.

Related Topics:
Franklin stove - Benjamin Franklin - Heat exchanger - Cellar

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The airtight stove, originally made of steel, allowed greater control of combustion, being more tightly fitted than other stoves of the day. Airtight stoves became common in the 19th century.

Related Topics:
Airtight stove - 19th century

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