BRICKS FROM ASHES

Waipa Post, Volume XXIV, Issue 1638, 7 May 1925, Page 8

BRICKS FROM ASHES

Lecturing at the Huddersfield Technical College on coal economy, Mr W. H. Casmey, of Holdworth and Sons, Limited (Bradford), said that it was a surprising fact that although coal was discovered 1,240 years ago, they were now considering how to 'burn it economically, namely, without making smoke.

Britain produced over 12,000,000 tons of furnace clinker and ashes yearly, and science had shown that by roughly grinding these and mixing with them a givetn weight of lime and water a mixture was found from which splendid bricks could be preduced. The bricks were piled on small lorries, 400 on each, and then run into a circular steel chamber called an autoclavi, 60ft .long by6ft. 6in. in diameter. When the chamber was full, the end was screwed on and made steam-tight. Steam at 1301 b. pressure was then turned on and the bricks were kept under this pressure for about six hours, and when cooled they were ready for use. Fancy five hundred million bricks made from clinker and ashes.

In future all coal would be treated chemically before using for power purposes, thus bringing it tothe same basis as iron, stone, cotton, wool, or other raw material, and we should then find we 1 could secure from one ton of coal 14 cwt. of smokeless fuel, three gallons of motor spirit, 17 gals, of oil, 151 b. of sulphate of ammonia, and 5000 cubic feet of rich gas, the total value being twice that of coal.