Bricarbras presents carbonization technology in national forum

The equipment allows an efficient coal production without contact with the soil, besides reducing pollution and deforestation

Brazil has the biggest production of vegetable coal in the world. According to the data of the Forestry Brazilian Society, in 2006 the national production of that energy input was of 35.1 million mdc (cubic meters of coal), being 17.9 million mdc originating from planted forests and 17.2 million mdc from native forests. In the same year, the national production of firewood got to 91.9 million tons, presenting a growth of more than 30% in the last ten years.

Due to big expansion of the businesses in the sector, between October 20 and 22, specialists of several institutions, as steel industries, iron leagues manufacturers, research centers, forest companies and government offices participated of the First National Forum of Vegetable Coal, in Belo Horizonte (MG). The meeting, promoted by the Forest Investigation Society (SIF) in partnership with the Department of Forest Engineering of the Federal University of Viçosa, approached themes like the evolution of the segment and the use of the product in the national siderurgical industry.

Among the participants was the Paranaense Bricarbras, which was invited to demonstrate the operation of its carbonization system. Besides being clean and more efficient equipment, this project allows an economy of approximately 20% of wood. Janete von Zeschau Tomelin, commercial coordinator of the units of carbonization of Bricarbras, explained that with the Bricarbras equipment it is possible to produce vegetable coal in an industrial way, with an efficient process control, without aggression to the environment and avoiding labor liabilities.

During the event, the participants could see the operation of the system manufactured by Bricarbras and noticed the importance of discussing the theme regarding environmental problems of the present time. "Our carbonization technology offers an excellent income firewood/coal and when we stop emitting 50 to 60 kg of methane for each ton of coal produced we are also contributing for the environment preservation and for the decrease of the global warming", she exemplifies. Besides, the system does not allow that the final product get in contact with the soil, since the coal is produced in steel cylinders and after the cooling process it is carried in bulk to destiny.

With the Bricarbras system only 59.56 kg of methane are emitted monthly, what corresponds to a production of up to a thousand tons of vegetable coal. Another differential of this method is that almost everything is utilized. The heat generated with the cleaning of the smoke can be also used in co-generation of power, having potential to generate up to 1MW/h of useful electric power.

Another point highlighted during the First National Forum of Vegetable Coal was the use of the energy input as thermal-reducer in the siderurgical process, and Brazil is one of the few countries to use it with this purpose. The advantage is in the quality of the raw material and low environmental impact in relation to the mineral coal that is highly pollutant. Besides, its extraction brings a lot of damages to the worker's health.

The national siderurgical segment is one of the most dynamic and important of the national economy. Therefore, during the forum, representatives of the sector showed that the constant supply of good quality coal can generate monthly an economy of even R$ 400,000.00 in the blast furnace. "That is very important for us because the consumers talked about the theme. The companies that acquire the technology manufactured by Bricarbras will have the certainty that they can save at the end of the month for the quality of our product", Janete Tomelin declares.

For presenting an innovative procedure and with advantages for the coal sector, Bricarbras has the pretension of enlarging its businesses to other countries. Nowadays, the company counts on five carbonization plants implemented in three Brazilian states - Paraná, Minas Gerais and Mato Grosso do Sul.

According to the commercial coordinator of the carbonization units, representatives of industries in Europe, Africa and Latin America already demonstrated interest in the Bricarbras carbonization system. "The event served not only for us to demonstrate our system, but also to exchange information", she concludes.

About Bricarbras

With its head office in Jaguariaíva, north of Paraná, Bricarbras is one of the seven companies belonging to Hübner Group, acting in the biomass area. The systems developed by the company involve briquetting of residues and development of vegetable coal production technology, always using systems that do not cause impact on the environment.

Hübner Group

The Hübner Group is an important supplier for the automotive industry, supplying assemblers and their systemists, besides industries of capital goods. The Group is composed now by seven industrial units in Brazil, acting in the areas of reforestation, briquetting, coaling, siderurgy, foundry, machining and road implements, with great synergy among them, what guarantees agility and technological capacity in the development of new products and technologies.